Derek's excellent thread is already here:
http://www.sonicyouth.com/gossip/showthread.php?t=28536
But I simply could not
not make this thread. I mean, it's my namesake.
Let's see... got this at a skate shop when I was, oh, 14 or 15. Only "indie" shit I'd heard was Pixies (yeah, I know they were on a somewhat major label but okay) and Pavement, but I knew
of Big Black, decided to get it. Took it home and was like "What the fuck?" Not what I was expecting at all. Strangely minimal. Turning rock convention on its head. I liked a few songs, like Dog and Pony Show, but then became flat out addicted to the album. Crow is simply in my top 10 songs of all time. Essential. Funny, I remember almost buying Dirty instead of this, which would've been my first SY. Can you imagine? (I don't really dig that album) I think a lot of people overlook the "minimal rock power trio" tag of Shellac. These songs are literally built from just one or two riffs, sometimes repeated for forever, yet it's never boring. I'm not sure how they do it. I guess the bass juggernaut and the drum monster dominate this beast, but the weird, often angular guitar playing, with that insane tone, helps. Just perfect.