i dunno i always thought youth against fascism was meant to be ironic, like a parody of dumb 'anarchic' songs...

Yeah! And Ian MacKaye of Fugazi plays on Youth Against Fascism.
I believe Anita Hill/Judge rot in hell

The rock trilogy is capped off with a bang in RR. I finally forgive them for making NYCG&F.

Yeah, I said it.

I have to say dirty is one of their least good albums...
Murray street Sonic nurse ,ejts and Evol are their greatest.

Murray Street, Sonic Nurse, and Rather Ripped are about as much of a trilogy as Low, Heroes, and Lodger. (I think Lodger completely breaks the Eno/Bowie mold, even though it is an Eno/Bowie album, and really shouldn't be grouped with Low and Heroes)

Yeah, I always saw a lot of ambiguity in Youth Against Fascism. Thurston sings a lot of really stereotypical radical-left wing complaints/bitchings that I think can be takin' either genuinely or sarcastically. The song he hates can either be interpreted as the fascism or the radicalism.

When I first heard it oh so many years ago I thought he was straight up making fun of people who write super-protest song-shit without intelligently backing up their opinions or looking into the more subtle intricacies of politics. I mean we know Thurston is on the Left and against uptight war-mongering conservatism, but Sonic Youth never really seemed to put that into any of their music as a straight up black and white message. I think Thurston probably shared some of the opinions he was singing while simultaneosly singing them in a real ironic crass way and then went on to say "Its the song I hate."

I also seem to remember reading in the Confusion is Next biography that while in the studio Thurston Moore Just started playing Youth Against Fascism with the band before it was a finished song that had lyrics and just singing "I hate this song/It's the song I hate..." over and over again. That might mean that Thurston might have originally just not have been a big fan of the song the band had written. If you listen to the demo on the reissue, I think you can tell the song was just a big wild Jam originally (which kicks ass and is intense as shit) and maybe Thurston didn't think much of it himself.

Well, anyway, I think its an awesome song that's pretty wildly ironic and shows off a political sonic youth with a more ambiguous touch before they became card-carrying George W. Bush haters who spew the anti-George Bush truth in the very straight-forward vehement way that most George Bush-haters do, and often sound real whiny and annoying (and kind of like the people Thurston makes fun of on Youth Against Fascism... hey maybe why people take it literally.)

Although, I guess, Peace Attack and Do You Believe in Rapture the most recent politically-influenced Sonic Youth songs are still more subtle than the average bitching.

Nature Sucks.

Well I don't think its political political... but I think he is exploring the mind of someone who believes in the idea of Rapture, and that person can be perceived as one of those crazy-ass-Republican-God-wantsGeorgeBushtobePresident Start World War III psychos.

hmm...i never thought of that. i just didn't think enough about the song to see that.

Give crazy ass republicans a little slack, they don't want to Start WWIII, they just want to annihilate every country with preemptive strikes so there never can be a WWIII.

Do You Believe In Rapture?

Stand behind his drunken amp
Stand behind his light of love
Hear him yowl his bloody tounge
Hear him yell 4 blood and war

Do you believe in his sweet sensation
Do you believe in second chance
Do you believe in rapture babe

A terrible hit strikes today
A terrible hit for the parade
Burnin' eyes seek jesus comin'
Jesus comes to pave the way

Do you believe in his sweet sensation
Do you believe in second chance
Do you believe in rapture babe

Can you tell me what to feel
Open up yr tender soul
Can I drink yr drunken mercy
Wine burns the devils hole

Do you believe in his sweet sensation
Do you believe in second chance
Do you believe in rapture babe


I think he is sort of questioning right wing religious people, "how can you believe in rapture/salvation/love/etc. when you believe in someone that is a puppet for hatred?"

I love Rather Ripped as I do Sonic Nurse! I thought Murrey Street was just a tad dull! All SY's albums are amazing! The only one i could never quite get into was A Thousand Leaves

I thot DYBINR was about a rock star, I don't know why... That would be pretty fucked up though, if you review the lyrics properly.
EDIT: Or maybe it is; a twisted, ghost-scepter of a rock star; the prophet of the living dead...

I think Murray Street beats both.

Yeah, I agree, it goes Murray Street > Nurse> Rather Ripped. Murray Street is almost Sonic Youth's take on classic rock, and I like it a lot.

Can't really get into Rather Ripped. It just seems like the band have burnt themselves out. They should take a break. Hang out for a while and really collect themselves, and THEN release a new record. This Rather Ripped is Rather Shite.