Evol: Sonic Youth and the Pivot Point of Noise Rock
By: Joshua English
Tags: Alternative Rock, Noise Rock, Music, Sonic Youth, Album Review

Evol: Sonic Youth and the Pivot Point of Noise Rock

A breakdown of the 1986 Sonic Youth record that would come to define noise rock and its impact on later genres.

The 80's bore witness to the introduction and expansion of many different subcategories of rock music — new wave, arena rock, heavy metal, progressive rock, and a multitude of other genres were explored and popularized throughout the course of the decade.

Sonic Youth’s aptitude for creating music lied in defying the rules of musical construction that was prevalent in the predominant genres of the 80’s. The band had gotten its start in 1981 as a no-wave group, producing discordant and atonal tracks that defied the pressures of new wave music and shed the structure of traditional rock and roll.

Cover art for Sonic Youth’s 1986 studio release, Evol.

The Importance of the Album

While Sonic Youth would go largely unnoticed to the masses until their further releases Sister and Daydream Nation, Evol was the album that signified their rotation into maturity as a collective of musicians. Earlier releases Confusion Is Sex / Kill Yr. Idols and Bad Moon Rising focus simply on creating noise and maximizing dissonance; Evol would take the lessons learned from the prior two albums and couple them with increased coherence and melodicism, producing a product that would push them further to the forefront of mid-80’s alternative rock and noise rock.

Listen to This One

“Tom Violence” by Sonic Youth.

“Tom Violence” is the essence of Sonic Youth’s song-writing growth boiled down into a tight, three minute display. The lyrical growth that began in Bad Moon Rising is apparent here, as Thurston Moore leads vocals on a dreary song that hints at the impact and inescapability of domestic violence. The unsettling, inharmonic guitar of Sonic Youth’s no-wave origins is still present, as both Moore and Lee Ranaldo are tuned to F#, F#, G, G, A, A for the duration of the track. What “Tom Violence” highlights most is the shift in mood and clarity between Evol and earlier Sonic Youth projects — where earlier projects focused more on the recklessness and chaos of noise, “Tom Violence” shows a Sonic Youth that has matured into calculated, somber disdain.

The Art of Making Noise

WARNING: The video of this live performance has an unholy amount of flashing/flickering lights that begin somewhere after the first quarter of the video. If you have any issues or sensitivity with this kind of thing, it may be wise to skip this video, or simply listen to the audio while you read.

A live performance of “Expressway to Yr. Skull” in 2010 at Prospect Park in Brooklyn, NY.

If “Tom Violence” is the condensed abstract of Sonic Youth’s song-writing abilities on Evol, “Expressway to Yr. Skull” could be considered the unabridged dissertation.

“Expressway to Yr. Skull” (also referred to as “Madonna, Sean and Me” on the back cover of Evol, and “The Crucifixion of Sean Penn” on the lyric sheet) remains as one of my all-time favorite songs from Sonic Youth across their decades of studio releases. This track perfectly captures the turning point of Sonic Youth from no-wave chaos into a more polished product that is just as gripping and substantially more pleasing to listen to.

The first half of the song sounds like something from a cursed road trip to Hell — the manic squealing of Ranaldo’s 12-string slide guitar is equal parts unnerving and suspiciously enjoyable. The second half of the song breaks down into a demonstration of pure noise, but the connection of the two elements is what never fails to impress me the most. Despite its monotonous length, “Expressway to Yr. Skull” is not a complete song without having listened to both parts. The ability to watch Sonic Youth perform this track live only makes the back half more enjoyable; watching Lee Ranaldo drag the head stock of his 12-string guitar across the floor to get just the right amount of feedback and reverberation through the instrument is a special sight to witness.

Listening Recommendations

Evol would not only set the pace for Sonic Youth’s future albums, but would also assist in laying the groundwork for upcoming genres of the 90’s. While not the most conventional album, Evol is still worthy of a front-to-back listen. If you are looking for somewhere to start, consider the below.

“Starpower” — with vocals from bassist Kim Gordon, this is the only track from Evol that would actually go on to become a single. This song is fast, fun, and relatively easy to digest considering other sister tracks on the album.

“In the Kingdom #19” — the only song with lead vocals from Lee Ranaldo on Evol, unsurprisingly led in Ranaldo-like fashion with busy guitar and spoken word lyrics.

“Shadow of a Doubt” & “Secret Girl” — also with vocals from Kim Gordon, both of these tracks have a level of unsettling intimacy to them. “Secret Girl” closes with an eerie piano accompaniment that feels like something out of a horror movie.

“Marilyn Moore” — sung by Thurston Moore, this song plays out like the slower, bleaker cousin of “Tom Violence”. Moore’s less than perfect voice adds an exciting layer of texture that serves to further outline the gloom of the song.