last updated: aug 03 '10 12:34pm
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CURRENT SITE STATUS:
1435 shows / 1188 set lists
(sonic youth only)
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WANT TO COLLECT LIVE SONIC YOUTH SHOWS BUT DON'T KNOW WHERE TO START?

TRY HERE - an incredible collection of a wide variety of live sonic gigs from their entire career, with NO QUALITY LOSS. Woooo! So if you download any shows, which I encourage you to do (perhaps I'll post my list of favorites some day), please don't convert them to mp3/etc for anything other than your own convenience (in other words, don't fuck up shit that people worked very hard to preserve and provide to you at no cost with only the expectation that you respect their hard work, OKAY?)

The concert chronology is very pro-recording and eagerly endorses the distribution of live sonic youth material, particularly if you have any shows that you taped yourself, or know are not currently circulating. If there's no set list on this page, that's a good indication that the show may not be circulating. Please contact me if you have any recordings you think might be of interest!

NEWS & NOTES   (OLD NEWS...)

AUG 03 2010

added 2 recent sets.

JUN 18 2010

 added latest 2010 sets. updated stats. couple other things:

  • confirmed 05/04/83 set list
  • added 01/17/85 poster
  • confirmed venue for 10/04/85
  • removed 10/26/85 based on error (see 11/09/85)
  • moved USSR dates from 02/89 to 04/89
  • added full 09/14/90 set list
  • added 09/19/90 show + set list
  • updated notes for 08/05/00 w/ more details

    + a few other things here/there...still have a couple submissions i didn't get around to adding, just wanted to get this stuff out there + get back to workin' on the tab page...cheers!

    FEB 21 2010

     howdy folks. added the 2010 sets + updated the song stats chart, only a little later than promised. that said, i doubt anyone was on the edge of their seat, considering the near total lack of feedback i got on what i thought were pretty exhaustive and impressive concert chronology/discography updates in january (which i worked pretty hard on all throughout the holidays and indeed most of december). i hate to be a whiny webmaster, but it is pretty discouraging, considering the effort i put in (and has delayed updates to the remaining three sites which were also coming along quite nicely through the end of 2009).

    of course, i know i shouldn't be such a baby, as my work is surely much appreciated -- it's not a 'wow, thank you!' i seek so much as input on the fascinating (perhaps just to me?) developments the site has made, particularly spread throughout the 1981-1986 pages, where i spent a lot of time trying to separate long-standing erroneous myth from reasonably evident fact. or something. anyway, check it out! please!

    to shift the spotlight, i owe emmanuel tremblay a HUGE thanks for all of the recent extremely compelling sonic youth shows he's shared via torrent lately, including a wealth of shows i've literally been waiting 10+ years to hear, in some cases. these include:

  • the 09/19/92 show with the only known recording/performance of 'on the strip'.
  • several november '92 european dirty tour gigs including their encore of dinosaur jr's "don't" performed w/ lou barlow!
  • the 06/05/93 show with brutally embryonic versions of 'jet set' tunes (and several other june/july '93 shows featuring more jet set tunes in an only slightly more advanced state).
  • the 12/02/94 show, SY's sole concert appearance in 1994.
  • the 04/23/95 show featuring early 'washing machine' material including kim singing 'saucer-like' (!)
  • several interesting 1983 NYC-area gigs.
  • by my request, two of steve's earliest shows: the wonderfully odd 07/05/85 show which opens with the first known version of 'kat n hat' which perplexed collectors for years with its inclusion on the 'bang zoom' compilation, and, at long last, the infamous 06/12/85 show which features bob, steve, as well as king & teresa from the butthole surfers -- sure, you can't entirely tell there's four drummers in action, but the performance and set list alone are fascinating sonic history.

    so, i can't thank emmanuel enough for sharing these great artifacts, as i'm sure i can't be the only one who finds them fascinating, and every time i've seen them on this website i'd find myself saying 'wish i could hear that show!'. he made my wishes come true over the course of about a month! and, the best part is it really lit my sonic spark and gave me the motivation i needed to begin working on the sites again. so, stay tuned...

    i've added a few other bits of information:

  • this is a big one: thanks to olivier caulet, who provided a flyer for the 06/11/83 show (which i spent much of december agonizing over), i can now confirm the venue (which casts even further doubt on the 11/06/83 show).
  • added some info on the 05/05/86 page re: 'cancelled' bay 63 show courtesy of richard gray.
  • confirmed the 09/29/90 spain date thanks to natxo rodriguez.
  • added the 11/06/88 flyer thanks to rich/atomic.
  • added the 10/15/85 flyer thanks to martin van rappard.

    the following are helpful folks as well, thanks again for the e-mails: randy eijskoot, jonathas formagio, raul galera, thomas geyrhalter, and lobsterdeth !!!.

    anyway, sorry to complain, i suppose it's harder to find the updates when i don't provide a list, but if you reread what i wrote below you'll see my reasoning (and i suppose a lot of the changes that wasted away precious hours of my life were code-related behind-the-scenes monotony that deserve no notice anyway). i truly appreciate all the visitors to this site, whether i hear from you or not...

    see you soon...xx chris

    JAN 01 2010

     hi everybody! merry christmas! ..happy new year! here's the deal: i've been working since the beginning of december on all five sites with the apparently overly ambitious goal of having all five updated for christmas. well, that didn't happen. at a certain point i realised i'd need to focus on one instead of jumping back and forth from one to the other, so the concert chronology drew the short straw.

    what's new? well...this is probably the most massive update this site has seen since it moved to the 'sonicyouth.com' domain. there are many new shows, new set lists, new pictures, etc... i'd love to provide you with a list, but one of my christmas gifts to myself was not keeping meticulous notes of every update, for two reasons: that itself slows me down beyond belief, and there are just THAT many changes this time around.

    you may have noticed i remodelled the front page. i've also redone the yearly pages, so you may now see one of three notations next to any given date:

    * = a complete set list is present
    ^ = a partial set list is present
    ? = there is some kind of confusion/issue regarding this show

    all set lists from 1998 onward are present, so the * is not necessary. i've deleted the 'mysteries' section as the '?' notation serves that purpose (also, most of the previous mysteries have been solved. my biggest headache is now the chronology of SY's pre-steve drummers, and if you scroll thru the '81-83 pages you will find plenty of detailed information/confusion on the individual show pages). i did my best to investigate all of the early dates, trying to weed out erroneous info that had somehow been retained thru the past 13 years of the site.

    i've also recounted ALL of the set list stats. the 'tour stats' are now accurate and up-to-date. the individual tour pages ("european evol tour", "north american sister tour", etc) did not get recounted, and i'm debating deleting those altogether, although i do like the preliminary notes describing each tour. i've updated the outdated 'mustang' email address on all pages, which should hopefully cut down on the amount of emails i get about this.

    i updated all of the 'missing sets' AND the 'city stats'. i have not yet updated the 'song stats' chart, because i fear i will lose my mind if i have to count anymore right now. i'll get to that in a week or so after the january shows are over.

    please look around, you will find lots of new stuff, particularly in the 1981-1986 era. if anybody can assist with the numerous questions, i would really appreciate it... it's been a lot of work to try and sort these things out and i hope to get some feedback.

    thanks for visiting, thank you for your patience, and look forward to the next updated site, which should be within the week...

    xx chris

    PLEASE BE AWARE OF THE FOLLOWING WEBSITES, FOR WE SHARE THE SAME INTEREST:

    BUTTHOLE SURFERS LIVE DISCO -- Jimi's put a lot of work into thoroughly archiving the Butthole Surfers concert/studio recording history, and is the perfect guy to contact if you have any rare or uncirculated Butthole Surfers/assorted recordings or information. PLEASE help him out if you can. Even just memories help!

    NIRVANA LIVE GUIDE -- Mike and Kris are true examples of what online historians should be, relentlessly seeking to discover and document any information pertaining to NIRVANA's concert history/recording material. If you have any rare or uncirculated Nirvana/assorted recordings or information that you could offer, please help them out. They've endlessly supported the communities of many bands with their efforts, including this very site.

    Please see the LINKS section for more band references, these guys just work amazingly hard and any potential lead I can send their way is the least I can offer. Thanks guys!