[scott]

i miss the noisier shows from the 80's.

we caught them just a few months here in austin (rather ripped), and although i don't recall what exactly they closed with (i want to say "world looks red" but that may have been a little earlier in the set) it all ended in a wonderful 5 or so minutes of controlled feedback and loops that just blew us away.

[Chris Lawrence]

Originally Posted by Dead-Air

I've heard it, but it's been many years. I was pretty annoyed when it came out, as I felt like it was an effort to get a more standard alternative rock song out of a Sonic Youth classic. I still feel that way a bit, but not nearly as vehemently as I did in 1986 when the single came out with that on it. As I was 19 at the time, looking back today, I'm certainly aware I might have been overreacting and missing some good things about it in the process.

It's not a spectacular edit, more of a curious novelty. "Starpower" is pretty butchered too, though not as 'creatively' as "Expressway" (which they basically recut to have a 2nd 'chorus'). Definitely doesn't hold a candle to the real version!

It's not as awful as the 'Sunday' single edit, though!

[Dead-Air]

Originally Posted by Chris Lawrence

It's not a spectacular edit, more of a curious novelty. "Starpower" is pretty butchered too, though not as 'creatively' as "Expressway" (which they basically recut to have a 2nd 'chorus'). Definitely doesn't hold a candle to the real version!

It's not as awful as the 'Sunday' single edit, though!

Yeah, so we're on the same page with these edits. I'm sure they got them played by a couple annoying college radio djs who wouldn't have been able to play them otherwise, which in turn got them on more CMJ charts. But what people heard on those lame shows wasn't really Sonic Youth.

I think they made it all worthwhile though, when they called the longer (as in 26 minutes!) version of "The Diamond Sea" the "(Alternative Version)" which undoubtedly got some dumbass college radio and "commercial alternative" djs to throw it on by mistake figuring it would be a shorter version with NIN beats tossed in or something. That was sheer genius. Plus that version really is the best one.

[tasteinmen]

the edit of starpower is awful, the best part of the original version is when it leaves the noise and goes back in the original riff, it doesn't sound as good without the long noise break.

[Kanamori Happy]

Great song, great sound... EVOL is one of my favorite SY albums (along with EJST&NS and Rather Rîpped)

here's the lyrics:

We're gonna kill the California girls
We're gonna fire the exploding load
In the milkmaid maidenhead
We're gonna find the meaning of feeling good
And we're gonna stay there
As long as we think we should
Mystery train
Three way plane
Expressway to your skull
Mystery train
Three way plane
Expressway to your skull
Mystery train
Three way plane
Expressway...
...to your skull.

 

[Rob Instigator]

great fucking song