Albums to watch

The Eternal

Sonic Youth

The Eternal

16th studio album from the New York noise-rock pioneers

ADM rating[?]

7.7

Label
Matador
UK Release date
09/06/2009
  1. 10.0 |   Daily Telegraph

    Jangly, rippling power pop from a band that remains as exuberant, provocative and inventive as ever
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  2. 10.0 |   musicOMH

    Even if these iconic mentors are approaching senior status, The Eternal is living proof that youthfulness is just a state of mind, and by continuing to capitalise on one of most welcome U-turns in recent music history, Sonic Youth are now a band we can love, and not merely admire
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  3. 9.0 |   Independent on Sunday

    As thrilling a slice of life-affirming rock'n'roll as we are likely to hear all year. Dirty, sexy, discordant, arty, clever but catchy
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  4. 8.0 |   The Observer

    Another high point in their melodious, relatively sedate late period, although the rock pioneers can still bring the noise-rock
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  5. 8.0 |   Clash

    While some parts of ‘The Eternal’ verge on the pretentious, the album shows signs of life and heart-wrenching vitality that secures its makers’ position at the forefront of American rock music
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  6. 8.0 |   Spin

    Best album since 2002’s Murray Street
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  7. 8.0 |   The List

    Hoboken’s finest have settled into a fairly consistent groove, much like their spiritual godfather Neil Young, determined to grow old disgracefully.
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  8. 8.0 |   No Ripcord

    Unlike, say, U2, the band members feel no need to alter their direction in order to challenge expectations, probably because they know that what’s normal for them still provides plenty of surprises for the rest of us
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  9. 8.0 |   Q

    Print edition only

  10. 8.0 |   Mojo

    Print edition only

  11. 8.0 |   Rolling Stone

    The Eternal sums up almost everything this band has done over three decades, punk sneers and psychedelic guitars pimping a proudly pretentious belief in rock as art
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  12. 8.0 |   The Guardian

    There is an excitable, almost naive quality to its visceral riffs and enthusiastic name-checks of artists, poets and countercultural figures
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  13. 8.0 |   NME

    ‘The Eternal’ sees this band approach the level of The Velvet Underground, where chaos and beauty ravish each other within the same song. Clever old sods
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  14. 8.0 |   Evening Standard

    Like a benign virus, the melodies course through the band's system. You may as well let yourself become infected
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  15. 7.0 |   PopMatters

    But if the album’s opening one-two punch calls to mind Dirty, then so, too, does Kim Gordon’s refusal to play a supporting role throughout
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  16. 7.0 |   Drowned In Sound

    The Eternal is “Another Sonic Youth Record” but it’s also “Another Good Sonic Youth record”, revealing its finer details gradually, even if there’s no fundamentally new approach, arrangement, or message, in any of the songs
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  17. 6.8 |   Pitchfork

    Some excellent songs lurk among these 12 tracks, and there's enough potential for debate about which are which to make The Eternal worthy of Sonic Youth's singular c
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  18. 6.0 |   Uncut

    Good, but the exciting notion of a genuine career left turn feels increasingly unlikely
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  19. 6.0 |   Observer Music Monthly

    ...still cool
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  20. 6.0 |   Uncut

    Print edition only


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Sonic Youth: The Eternal

  • Download full album for just £7.99
  • 1. Sacred Trickster £0.99
  • 2. Anti-Orgasm £0.99
  • 3. Leaky Lifeboat (for Gregory Corso) £0.99
  • 4. Antenna £0.99
  • 5. What We Know £0.99
  • 6. Calming The Snake £0.99
  • 7. Poison Arrow £0.99
  • 8. Malibu Gas Station £0.99
  • 9. Thunderclap For Bobby Pyn £0.99
  • 10. No Way £0.99
  • 11. Walkin Blue £0.99
  • 12. Massage The History £0.99
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