WHO IS SHE? The former bassist and sometime vocalist of New York noise-rock pioneers Sonic Youth. The ex-wife of guitar terrorist Thurston Moore. The erstwhile member of Free Kitten, Glitterbust and Body/Head. The original riot grrrl. And one of the most influential, important, original and hands-down coolest women in rock ’n’ roll.
WHAT IS THIS? No Home Record is the creatively restless 66-year-old artist’s first real solo album — and a disc that sounds more like SY than anything else she’s done since leaving the band and her broken marriage in 2011. Unlike her, fans will be right at home.
WHAT DOES IT SOUND LIKE? Everything you want from a Kim Gordon album: Nine tracks of lurching post-punk mayhem, knob-twiddling sonic weirdness, beat-poet lyrics and unsettling whisper-to-a-yell vocals. But even as it reminds you of her glorious past, it moves forward with tracks utilizing subterranean electronic buzzing, skittering beatboxes, growling no wave horns, ethereal folk guitars and more.
WHAT SHOULD IT BE TITLED? Sonic Senior. Or maybe Reappearer.
HOW SHOULD I LISTEN TO IT? As loud as you can, perhaps while working with power tools or having your teeth drilled.
WHAT 10 WORDS DESCRIBE IT? Noisy, edgy, angular, nonconformist, frayed, chaotic, freewheeling, experimental, itchy, improvisational.
WHAT ARE THE BEST SONGS? The scuzzy rocker Air BnB is the best song Royal Trux never wrote; the slow-driving Murdered Out packs a deadly punch; the twitchy Hungry Baby works itself into a desperate frenzy.
WHAT WILL MY FRIENDS SAY? ‘Living well may be the best revenge — but making an album umpteen times better than your ex’s last few releases can’t be too bad either.’
HOW OFTEN WILL I LISTEN TO THIS? After waiting eight years, it could very well take you a while to get your fill.
IF THIS ALBUM WERE CLOTHING, WHAT WOULD IT BE? A faded Bikini Kill T-shirt over a pair of ripped black jeans and Converse high tops.
SHOULD I BUY, STREAM OR STEAL IT? Get out yr. wallet.
