i voted 80s' although i do love Nurse, i just feel that sy sound better playing harder sounding music like on confusion than layed back stuff like on Nurse.

The 80's albums have excited me the most.

80's are pretty hard to fuck with.

84 - 88 takes the cake
BMR, Evol, Sister, and DDN are all perfect even though i love Goo, ATL, and all since 2000

90s

when considering "daydream nation" -- i think that goes along with "goo" and "dirty" on one side, and with "sister" on the other..
"experimental jet set..." was not so hot, but "washing machine" was great..
i voted 90s, but that's because most of my favorites belong in that era..

i would say after "a thousand leaves" the band took a *prog rock* turn.. that would be the current era..

i'm worried that we are turning into deadheads..
next thing you know, we'll be discussing solos and drum breaks..

I think it's a little inconclusive.

You're going to find that majority(notice I said "majority" and not "EVERYONE"!) will favor the SY era they were first exposed to.

my favs are: sister, ddn, wm, nycgf, syr3 & murray st - so i have representation of all eras.

So far, I love everything that they have ever done, even starting to like NYC Ghost & Flowers lately, so no option for me to choose in this poll.

About all the negative comments about the recent albums, Sonic Youth have grown and progressed during their 25 year career, so have I. So I still admire them & love all their stuff, even the newer ones.

When I wanna hear Sonic Youth like in the eighties, I just put DD on or Sister or EVOL,...

I wonder which other band can still produce very decent records like Murray Street & Nurse after 25 years?

Imo, Sonic Youth stands on a lonely high place in the history of rock music.

Everything between SYep, and daydreamnation is mind blowing.

that is very accurate..

I was first exposed to the 90'/00's era, but I voted for 80's because after listening to those albums, they were fresher, more creative and substancially more influential then what follows.

few bands ever had the substance and integrity sonic youth has maintained over all these years..
a new SY album will always be something to look forward to..

and yes, i agree 80s phase was more creative and influential..

I vote for 80s. All of my favourite SY records fall within this period.

This is what I love about the youth....isnt it fucking great that we can even seriously ask this question? There arent many bands around that have released such consistently good quality albums over 25 years.

this thread is turning into "sonic youth used to be great in the 80s, but now they're not so good.."

i understand the reasoning behind choosing the earlier phase, but again, we all have our personal choices..

i prefer "goo" to "evol", and i prefer "sonic nurse" over "experimental jet set..." i think "sister" was better than "murray st", and "daydream nation" was greater than "bad moon rising.."

it is not about the timeframe these records were released..

I like all their stuff, but I think their best stuff was in the 80's. Like...Whitey Album is simply one of the best album's I ever bought, and Confusion is Sex / Kill yr Idols is enriched with lots of my favorite SY songs. I love their sound now too, stuff off Nurse, Murray, and Rather Ripped giving a more pop-ish sound.

I don't view this thread as that at all. The way I feel about the 90/00 is very much different than the 80's. My favorite era is from ATL to the present day, but I don't think its the "best". Every artist to a lesser or greater degree loses some steam as they mature and continue recording new material. On the other hand they pick up experience and branch out into new areas and experiment with more material. So, there is no right or wrong era, its up to you as the listener to decide, just because a lot of us seem to be in agreement with the 80's doesn't negate SY's work after that time peroid.

that is a good perspective...

but the thread is asking that very question you're trying to avoid -- "which sonic phase is the best?"
my objection was intended to be aligned with your concerns..

we are basically saying the same thing, but the overwhelming popularity of the 80s on this thread implies a deterioration..
that should not be the case..