Fucking BMR is not half-baked you chodes!
It’s kinda what SY was all about af that time, and continued to be all about even after they developed a more rockist sound. The transitions on BMR make it all bleed together gloriously. It opens with one of the greatest five-or-so minutes in the SY canon (“Intro” > “Brace Men Run”) and hidden in the gaps between proper songs are infectious ass grooves and moments of glorious tsunami noise.
“Society is a Hole” grabbed me by the bits more than just about any other SY song on first listen, if I’m honest with myself. I heard it and never forgot the drone, or the lyrics. When a droney, stony mess like that can get stuck in your head like a pop song, you’re fucking on to something.
The end of “Justice is Might” is revelatory. Takes some patience to locate those moments, but they’re totally there.
“I’m Insane” is one of their most kickass songs, period.
“Halloween” is perfect. That groove, and Kim’s delivery, are quintessentially SY through and through.
I feel like a lot of people, surprisingly, listen to BMR only for “Death Valley ‘69,” which is badass and everything, but it’s not even one of the best songs on the album (or on the reissued album with the bonus tracks, which I’m considering “the album” since it’s the only thing I’ve ever know).
BMR is top tier Sonic Youth. So is Evol. So is Sister. So is Daydream. I feel like the top tierness of BMR is not even debatable. It’s part the best sequence of albums of the 1980s.
Also, it’s fall... this is BMR SEASON. No album sounds better against a backdrop of falling leaves and increasingly chilly winds.