[Moshe]

http://www.contactmusic.com/news.nsf...20name_1064797

Seasoned rockers SONIC YOUTH are refusing to change their band name - despite the fact they are not as 'youthful' as they were at the height of their fame.
Frontman Thurston Moore, 49, and bandmate and wife Kim Gordon, 54, insist they are keeping the moniker - established when the band was founded in 1981 - although the influential band is being mocked by fans for their outdated name.
In author David Browne's forthcoming biography Goodbye 20th Century of the band, Moore says, "Some people say it's ridiculous - 'you should change your name.'
"(But) I think it's a good thing as far as a state of grace, state of mind. It's actually more fun playing the older we get."


07/04/2008 12:18

[SonicBebs]

I think they should have changed their name to Washing Machine back then

[forkimified]

I'd like to start a band of young people, and call it Sonic Retirement Home. And hope they last long enough for it to be appropriate.

[screamingskull]

didn't they used to say back in the 80's that they weren't refering to themselves with their band name, that The Sonic Youth were an idea of a group of young rebellious people. That you had to think of their band name as if it had a 'The' in front of it. Kim said "the rolling stones aren't really rolling stones are they".

[Sonic Youth 37]

Sonic Life is what it's all about. You're only as old as you feel and they are still the Youth.

[SonikJesus]

Originally Posted by screamingskull

didn't they used to say back in the 80's that they weren't refering to themselves with their band name, that The Sonic Youth were an idea of a group of young rebellious people. That you had to think of their band name as if it had a 'The' in front of it. Kim said "the rolling stones aren't really rolling stones are they".

I have a few live shows where Thurston says, "Hi, we're The Sonic Youth from New York city" or something along those lines, so that might be true.

[EVOLghost]

hmm....Sonic Youth...the band name is what keeps them lookin' young...heh....Plus whoever says they should change their name is honestly stupid. It's an effin' band name dood.

[ZEROpumpkins]

But they're youthful at heart! That's what matters.

[Magic Wheel Memory]

I suppose The Grateful Dead should call themselves The Grateful Alive until they're all actually dead. Or for now, they should be called The Grateful Some Dead and Some Alive.

[Protectmeyou]

They'll be Sonic Death one day. Slightly prior to that they'll need a Sonic Nurse. They've got it covered.

[Everyneurotic]

Originally Posted by SonicBebs

I think they should have changed their name to Washing Machine back then

washing machine is probably their worst album name.

anyhoo, imagine namesake big youth changing his stagename because dude isn't young anymore.

[Death & the Maiden]

Originally Posted by SonikJesus

I have a few live shows where Thurston says, "Hi, we're The Sonic Youth from New York city" or something along those lines, so that might be true.

Sister's album cover says "The Sonic Youth".

[Dead-Air]

Originally Posted by screamingskull

didn't they used to say back in the 80's that they weren't refering to themselves with their band name, that The Sonic Youth were an idea of a group of young rebellious people. That you had to think of their band name as if it had a 'The' in front of it. Kim said "the rolling stones aren't really rolling stones are they".

Actually their name comes from Fred "Sonic" Smith and Big Youth. They've never claimed to be youthful at all (by the "heighth of their popularity" Kim was already approaching 40!) In fact, the name has always been ironic since they were considerably older than most hardcore punk bands when they used to play shows with some of the bands from that scene too.

The fact that dumbasses like the guy that wrote that article don't get it at all has always been the point of the whole joke. Sure the "band is being mocked by fans for their outdated name", yeah right, Sonic Youth fans don't have a clue about their favorite group according to that dork.

[Death & the Maiden]

I don't see any fans "mocking" SY about their name anyway.

[Dead-Air]

Originally Posted by Death & the Maiden

I don't see any fans "mocking" SY about their name anyway.

Of course you don't. Sonic Youth fans tend to want to know about the band, and realize they were never a teen phenomena to begin with. The guy writing that article doesn't know much about them at all and probably just heard that they were somehow connected with Nirvana (without realizing that Nirvana were in their late twenties at the peak of their popularity and looked at Sonic Youth as elder statesmen at the time!)

If he could do math, he'd realize that Kim Gordon was 27 in 1981, which is how old Cobain was when he shot himself!

[pbradley]

People care about this kind of shit? A band name is a band name, would a rose by any other name smell as sweet? Fuck that superficial shit. Sonic Youth could name themselves Stale Toast and still make the coolest music my ears ever heard.

[pbradley]

This just in, Big Black's frontman was not a big, black dude but a skinny, white dude.

[LifeDistortion]

What next Little Richard being called Senior Richard? 'Mocked by fans'? Who are these assholes? My fist wants a meeting with thier face.

[L3BURST]

In 1990, someone told me to listen to "Sonic Youth"...and I lost a few months before finally doing it, just because I was not attracted at all by their name !!

Though SY became very fast one of my favorite bands (and still is since then), it's still far to be my favorite band name, and I still find their name is a bit dumb when I mention it to people who don't know anything about them (and about music) ... but it's not much worse than Can, Pavement or The Velvet Underground...

I prefer shorter and/or abstract band names (Fugazi, Blurt, The Ex, Sebadoh, Shellac...)

[jetengine]

The Resting Stones...? The MC3...? The Creaking Doors...?