Opinions on Washing Machine?
 

I've been browsing a few threads of people's opinions of best album, best albums, best 3 albums in a row and all that jazz, and I don't seem to come across many people mentioning one of my personal favorites; Washing Machine. NYC Ghost and Flowers seems to get more mentions, and Washing Machine seemed to get better reviews all round. Is there some kind of inside dismissal of Washing Machine, or do people just feel it to not be a very stand-out album?

(By the way, this is intended to be a way to hear your opinions, no hostilities or right/wrong answers)

I used to think it was boring, + then I heard Rather Ripped.

Skip Tracer is my favorite Lee song. And who can go wrong w/ the Diamond Sea? Two of my favorite SY tracks, even if it is still one of my least favorite SY records.

That said, the album did pave way for a new direction for the band. Washing away all that dirty goo trash and letting something else happen. Some of the albums that followed are some of my absolute favorites (ATL, Nurse, NYCG+F wasn't too bad, either....even if it took a minute to grow on me).

http://www.sonicyouth.com/gossip/showthread.php?t=33163 = "is Washing Machine underrated?"

http://www.sonicyouth.com/gossip/showthread.php?t=15851
= "reassessing Washing Machine"

Two great long threads about Washing Machine, with lots of great posters making thought provoking Washing Machine posts. You'll dig the hell out of these threads.

In my opinion Washing machine is just great album, almost as great as a Thousand leaves!!! When Experimental came, I was very disappointed to it and thought maybe I will not buy any SY-albums (I was afraid that Sonic Youth creativity has gone down).

I remember that day, when I went to the music shop and they played Washing Machine in it (I think I haven´t heard that there is coming new album). It was a tittle track and I noticed that it was Sonic Youth but I understood immediately that they have gone some interesting, a little bit different direction. If I remember correct, vinyl came a little bit later and I had to wait it very impatiently!

When I put the vinyl on the recordplayer, there was a slight moment in Becuz that I thought they have made exactly same as before. But in Junkies Promise my enthusiasm came back! It´s now hard to understand why I didn´t like becuz at first because now I think it´s also just great! Like ATL, I love every song in this album! When ATL is connected in my mind to autumn, Washing Machine reminds me winter. I think here in Finland was winter when Washing was realised.

an opinion about WM?

Simply the best album of all time by any band on the planet.
I'm not joking. It's (by far) my fave LP ever.
It changed the way i've been listening to music ever since.
I listen to it at least twice a week, preferably on sexy waxxxx.

1) Sister
2) Daydream Nation
3) Washing Machine

stunning album, and like ann said was the start of something really special.
love the song washing machine too, incredible the way it melts into the 2nd half. 16 years later (i think?) and it still fucks me up how good it is

I believe that WM is the peak of their career.

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=bQoIvRLX5Qw

It's a fun record, but not very good.
For me it's the record they got all glamorous and started writing songs for Karl Lagerfeld.



Is that you?
If yes, why did you do it?

I remember when it came out, I was 15. What's the Story Morning Glory by Oasis came out the same day, and Washing Machine seemed like the polar opposite of that. Some of the best melodies they've written fused with the most out-there experimental extremes, often within the same song.

What did you mean? Why do I play SY?

I don't want to be an asshole, but what's the point of uploading a video of yourself playing your favourite songs on guitar?
To proof that you can?


I mean, it's quite fascinating sometimes. A few month ago I was searching youtube for some videos of John Frusciante being totally fucked up, talking about demons and so on....
then I found this videos of a boy who seemed to be obsessed with the Red Hot Chilli Peppers. He had uploaded thousands of videos showing himself playing their songs but the really interesting thing was him covering the songs of Smile From The Streets You Hold note by note, including all the mistakes, and even singing along to it. He tried to do all the yelling of Enter A Uh as accurate as possible. It was awesome.
I can't find the videos, unfortunately.

It seems to be a sport of some kind.

It's kind of helping people who wants to play the guitar. I hate those videos when they bitching about shit during the lesson :)
Also you cannot find accurate tabs in the internet, 90% of them are totally wrong. Instead of making the tabs I make a video. So, what's the point?
Sorry about offtopic.

Why do you not commit suicide?

Washing Machine is my favorite Sonic Youth album.

Me too.

There are some moments that are transcendental, euphoric.

Hm. I haven't personally had a problem when looking up tabs where they were TOTALLY wrong, a good guitar site usually doesn't accept the tabs, since most guitar sites are based on ratings and if enough people vote down a tab, the tab usually vanishes. Ultimate-guitar.com works on that system, I believe. I've definitely found some pretty wrong tabs, but I'd say 90% of the tabs I've found are pretty right on. Most tabs are sort of a rough guide, like they might not list EVERY note in a sequence, or all the hammer ons/pull offs or whatever. But who has time for that? Can you imagine someone trying to tab every single note Dick Dale tremolo picks or something? Haha.

I didn't get a cd copy of Washing Machine until about 1997 or 1998. I enjoyed it then but it didn't hit me as hard as Daydream Nation and 1000Leaves. However, somewhere around 2003 and later I rediscovered it as a really cool albumn as I got it on vinyl somehwere. I think it's Saucer-Like or the Washing Machine track and Skip Tracer that come out as really amazing sounding. Especially on vinyl.
To me, Washing Machine beats out Goo and NYC Ghost and Flowers. Of course, I don't own all of Sonic Youth's main albumn. Daydream Nation, 1000leaves, and Murray Street + Rather Ripped stand out above Washing Machine to me though.

There's like 3 threads about it on page 1, so I guess most people enjoy it ;)

Washing Machine was the first Sonic Youth album I heard and I soon developed a very intimate relationship with it that has lasted over 12 years now.
So yes, it still can be considered my favourite SY record to date.

One of my favorites. I usually skip Little Trouble Girl though.

Skip Tracer rules.