The Song that Best Represents a Band/Artist

[washing machine]

Back on the SY topic in this thread.

I'm willing to leave Schizophrenia entirely and take KD's "The Diamond Sea" suggestion even further and say the definitive Sonic Youth song is indeed...Washing Machine.

I've been listening to WM (the album) quite a bit lately, and I think this track fits both me and KD's criteria nicely, thus making it a truly definitive song. What it has that The Diamond Sea doesn't is that fast and punky energy that made up so much of SY's career. I think that's what I was honing in on most when trying to figure out exactly what The Diamond Sea was missing. Everything after Kim's spoken word part taps into that drone-y no wave ambient thing that The Diamond Sea's outro does so well, but it's just...more layered. If you listen close enough, you can hear Steve Shelley not missing a beat underneath that high feedback mix. It's one of my favorite moments in a SY song and any fan wondering about this band's sound needs to hear it.

What a great song.

Compromise reached!

Here's a quarter!

[tragabigzanda]

[washing machine]

I've given up sugar for 30 days, trag. Sugar is an additive. It masks the real flavor of a thing, often to make it more palatable. Similarly, the sugary streak of SY is not indicative of their sound as a whole and as such does not best represent them.

[tragabigzanda]

[Norah]

But when you get to the "here's a quarter" part the melody does get sugary.

[washing machine]

that's not how this thread works and you know it

I'm digging my heels in. Washing Machine literally has the word "soda pop" in it. How's that for sugary?

[washing machine]

Thanks for having my back after the lottery episode in GD, pete.

[Norah]

of course

[washing machine]

I just realized that "buy him a soda pop" is probably a Pixies reference. Sugar adjacent. Checkmate, Trag.

[E.H. Ruddock]

When you guys want the real SY answer, let me know

[washing machine]

If you say it's "Bubblegum" ruddo, I swear to god.

[E.H. Ruddock]

If you say it's "Bubblegum" ruddo, I swear to god.

It's Candle

[washing machine]

Can't argue with that.

[tragabigzanda]

[E.H. Ruddock]

Lol. On the old board I was always intimidated by the old school RMers talking SY. And just never really weigh in on this board, I guess.

[E.H. Ruddock]

Also, precedent schmecedent, I'm right on this one

[Bammer]

Lol. On the old board I was always intimidated by the old school RMers talking SY. And just never really weigh in on this board, I guess.

Imagine being intimidated by someone on this website

[washing machine]

Did we do Pavement yet? I had a wild hair to put on Slanted & Enchanted today on the drive to work and, while the sound on that one represents Pavement in near embryonic form, it's going to be really hard not to make a case for many of the stone cold classics on there. I feel like the correct song almost has to come from Wowee Zowee though.

[dad]

Did we do Pavement yet? I had a wild hair to put on Slanted & Enchanted today on the drive to work and, while the sound on that one represents Pavement in near embryonic form, it's going to be really hard not to make a case for many of the stone cold classics on there. I feel like the correct song almost has to come from Wowee Zowee though.

if that's the case it has to be Grounded.

[Jorge]

I'm kind of feeling "AT&T" for Pavement. It has the slacker melodicism, it has some guitar freakouts, stream-of-consciousness lyrics with seemingly random asides... I'm not intimately familiar with every single Pavement release but the song embodies several elements that come immediately to mind when I think of them