SYR4: Goodbye 20th Century

SYR4: Goodbye 20th Century
Studio album by Sonic Youth
Released November 16, 1999
Recorded March–August 1999, NYC
Genre Modern classical, experimental
Length 105:42
Label SYR
Producer Sonic Youth, William Winant, Jim O'Rourke
Sonic Youth chronology
Silver Session for Jason Knuth
(1998)		 SYR4: Goodbye 20th Century
(1999)		 NYC Ghosts & Flowers
(2000)

SYR4: Goodbye 20th Century is the 11th studio album by American alternative rock band Sonic Youth. It is a double album of versions of pieces by avant-garde composers, performed by Sonic Youth and collaborators.

Background

SYR4 featured works by avant-garde classical composers such as John Cage, Yoko Ono, Steve Reich and Christian Wolff, played by Sonic Youth and several collaborators from the modern avant-garde music scene, such as Christian Marclay, William Winant, Wharton Tiers and Takehisa Kosugi.

Unlike other entries in the SYR series, SYR4's liner notes were written in English.

Thurston Moore and Kim Gordon's daughter Coco Hayley Moore provided the vocals for "Voice Piece for Soprano" on disc 1.

Track listing

Disc one
No.TitleWriter(s)PerformersLength
1."Edges"  Christian WolffWolff, Jim O'Rourke, Kim Gordon, Lee Ranaldo, Steve Shelley, Takehisa Kosugi, Thurston Moore, William Winant16:03
2."Six (3rd Take)"  John CageO'Rourke, Ranaldo, Shelley, Kosugi, Moore, Winant3:03
3."Six for New Time (For Sonic Youth)"  Pauline OliverosO'Rourke, Gordon, Ranaldo, Shelley, Moore, Winant8:06
4."+–"  Takehisa KosugiO'Rourke, Gordon, Ranaldo, Shelley, Kosugi, Moore, Winant7:01
5."Voice Piece for Soprano"  Yoko OnoCoco Hayley Moore0:17
6."Pendulum Music"  Steve ReichGordon, Ranaldo, Shelley, Moore5:55
Disc two
No.TitleWriter(s) Length
1."Having Never Written a Note for Percussion"  James TenneyO'Rourke, Gordon, Ranaldo, Shelley, Kosugi, Moore, Winant9:09
2."Six (4th Take)"  CageO'Rourke, Ranaldo, Shelley, Kosugi, Moore, Winant2:10
3."Burdocks"  WolffChristian Marclay, Wolff, O'Rourke, Gordon, Ranaldo, Shelley, Kosugi, Moore, Winant13:12
4."Four6"  CageO'Rourke, Ranaldo, Shelley, Kosugi, Moore, Winant30:01
5."Piano Piece No. 13 (Carpenter's Piece) (For Nam June Paik)"  George MaciunasGordon, Ranaldo, Shelley, Moore3:58
6."Pièce enfantine"  Nicolas SlonimskyRanaldo, Winant1:28
7."Treatise (Page 183)"  Cornelius CardewO'Rourke, Gordon, Ranaldo, Shelley, Kosugi, Moore, Winant3:25

Release

SYR4: Goodbye 20th Century was released on CD and vinyl. The vinyl version had a slightly different track order, due to the side length constraints of the format. The first disc of the CD edition contained a QuickTime video of a performance of "Piano Piece No. 13 (Carpenter's Piece)", which showed Sonic Youth nailing piano keys down one by one.

Critical reception

Professional ratings
Review scores
SourceRating
Allmusic[1]
Alternative Press[2]
Robert Christgau[3]
Entertainment WeeklyC+[4]
NME7/10[5]
Pitchfork8.5/10[6]
The Rolling Stone Album Guide[7]
Spinfavorable[2]
Sputnikmusic3.5/5[8]

SYR: Goodbye 20th Century received mixed reviews from critics, but most praised the group's efforts at popularizing and reinterpreting the composers' works.

Personnel

Sonic Youth
Additional personnel
Technical
  • Wharton Tiers – recording
  • Luc Suer – recording
  • Steve Fallone – mastering
  • Chris Habib – sleeve graphics

References

  1. ↑ Birchmeier, Jason. "SYR 4: Goodbye 20th Century – Sonic Youth : Songs, Reviews, Credits, Awards : AllMusic". Allmusic. Rovi Corporation. Retrieved April 19, 2013.
  2. 1 2 "Sonic Youth - SYR 4: Goodbye 20th Century CD Album". CD Universe. Retrieved June 21, 2013.
  3. ↑ Christgau, Robert. "Robert Christgau: CG: Sonic Youth". robertchristgau.com. Retrieved April 19, 2013.
  4. ↑ Farber, Jim (January 14, 2000). "Goodbye 20th Century". Entertainment Weekly. Archived from the original on April 1, 2007. Retrieved June 21, 2013.
  5. ↑ "Album Reviews - SYR4 - Goodbye 20th Century". NME. December 1, 1999. Retrieved June 21, 2013.
  6. ↑ Sirota, Brent S. (January 31, 2000). "Sonic Youth: Goodbye 20th Century | Album Reviews | Pitchfork". Pitchfork. Retrieved April 19, 2013.
  7. ↑ "Sonic Youth: Album Guide". Rolling Stone. Retrieved June 21, 2013.
  8. ↑ Butler, Nick (January 17, 2007). "Review: SYR4: Goodbye 20th Century". Sputnikmusic. Retrieved June 21, 2013.
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