Sonic Youth's Daydream Nation (33 1/3)
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Review
"'A brilliant series of pocket-sized books focussing on a classic album. Each one a work of real love.' --The NME
Review
"'A brilliant series of pocket-sized books focussing on a classic album. Each one a work of real love.' NME"
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Most Helpful Customer Reviews
10 of 10 people found the following review helpful
Format:Paperback
This book gives you some analysis of Daydream Nation. It's not very interesting or enlightening. The author obviously had the opportunity to speak with both band and production guys. Did he ask them any questions worth asking? No. He didn't.
There are exceptions, such as the story behind Providence.
Believe me, I was as excited about this book as you are. The best SY books I've read are Lee's Jrnls80s and Michael Azerrad's great book Our Band Could Be Your Life.
It seems that the 33 1/3 people get the wrong people to write these books. The Neil Young Harvest one was diabolical. Rant over.
There are exceptions, such as the story behind Providence.
Believe me, I was as excited about this book as you are. The best SY books I've read are Lee's Jrnls80s and Michael Azerrad's great book Our Band Could Be Your Life.
It seems that the 33 1/3 people get the wrong people to write these books. The Neil Young Harvest one was diabolical. Rant over.
9 of 9 people found the following review helpful
Format:Paperback
"Daydream Nation" is unquestionably an important record. Sonic Youth fans may argue about the merits of "EVOL" or "Sister" in comparison, but "Daydream Nation" is the one which grabbed the attention of the public and helped usher in a new era where this kind of music could be considered `mainstream' (to all extents and purposes).
Matthew Stearns' book trips at the first hurdle by trying to over-emphasise the impact of the album, when it was impressive enough in the first place. His attempts to paint "Daydream Nation" as some horrifying, avant-garde monster just don't ring true for me. Yes, there are a few difficult moments on the album, but the vocabulary of this album has become such a part of contemporary music that I don't think anyone would be as weirded out at Stearns thinks they would be, particularly from a contemporary stand-point, as he appears to be implying.
However, after this initial grumble, we get stuck into some serious analysis of the songs, and it is here where Stearns excels. Whilst he is prone to the odd bit of flamboyant prose, he really knows what he's talking about and displays a genuine love of the album. It's just a shame that he couldn't let the album rest on its own laurels (of which it is clearly capable of), and had to over-hype it to a degree where it is occasionally un-recognisable.
Matthew Stearns' book trips at the first hurdle by trying to over-emphasise the impact of the album, when it was impressive enough in the first place. His attempts to paint "Daydream Nation" as some horrifying, avant-garde monster just don't ring true for me. Yes, there are a few difficult moments on the album, but the vocabulary of this album has become such a part of contemporary music that I don't think anyone would be as weirded out at Stearns thinks they would be, particularly from a contemporary stand-point, as he appears to be implying.
However, after this initial grumble, we get stuck into some serious analysis of the songs, and it is here where Stearns excels. Whilst he is prone to the odd bit of flamboyant prose, he really knows what he's talking about and displays a genuine love of the album. It's just a shame that he couldn't let the album rest on its own laurels (of which it is clearly capable of), and had to over-hype it to a degree where it is occasionally un-recognisable.
1 of 1 people found the following review helpful
Format:Paperback
This 33 1/3 series is frustratingly uneven. It is one of its strengths that there is no house style, and the individual authors are free to write as they see fit. That does mean, though, that stinkers like this book get published. 'Daydream Nation' has long been one of my favourite albums, and I was looking forward to curling up with this book for an hour or so and gaining some extra appreciation of it. Unfortunately, from the outset the author assails us with overheated, over the top hyperbole. As a veteran English music fan, I well remember the crushingly pretentious writing that we used to suffer at the hands of NME and Sounds in the late 70s/early to mid 80s, and this is right up (down?) there with it. The author is obviously in love with his own powers of expression and musical analysis, but has created a book rife with the kind of overblown pretension that Sonic Youth, despite the 'artiness' of their milieu, have managed to avoid throughout their career. I have respect for writers, and hate abandoning a book before finishing it, but I must admit that this book is virtually unreadable and I barely got a third of the way through it, slim though it is. If I didn't already know 'Daydream Nation' and I read this book before hearing it, it would almost make me determined to dislike it, and I would surely be disappointed with the reality of the album. There have been some good reviews for this book, so some of us enjoy this style of writing, but for me - no. This is the worst kind of music writing which hides whatever insights the author possesses into the music. Yes, be enthusiastic: nothing wrong with writing as a fan (for good examples, see the 33 1/3 volumes on 'Doolittle' and 'Reign In Blood') but it is a mistake to come across as a wide-eyed, frantic zealot. That just alienates the reader and does this remarkable music a disservice.
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Most Recent Customer Reviews
Kamikazee!!!
Revolutionary insight by an up-and-coming writer produces one of the most esteemed, and arguably the most hauntingly impressive, in-depth accounts of an album that demands to be on... Read more
Published on 2 May 2006 by Brent Ledvina
Great Book!
A screeching rollicking wordfest in homage to an album of similar qualities. It is impossible not to become infected with some of Stearns' boundless energy and enthusiasm for his... Read more
Published on 14 Mar 2006 by Dr. Michael A. Cant
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