Thurston Moore
Demolished Thoughts
Matador
Sure, Beck produced Demolished Thoughts, but don’t expect a feedback-saturated Guero from Thurston Moore’s third solo album. This latest surprisingly isn’t even a trippy reinventing of Goo or one of Sonic Youth’s less fierce albums.
Despite a self-penned bio that sets Moore’s recording studio at times in the dirt or within the front seat of a 1978 AMC Pacer with the windows up (in the midst of a California summer, that’s either dedication or fantasy) and the inclusion of the odd tuning charts that are his weird calling card, Moore’s songs are both sparse and true, without a hint of forced fabrication.
A plucked harp and serious violin accompany Moore’s plaintive vocals and serene guitar strum, occasionally buttered with a pretty, tinkly triangle. Demolished Thoughts is the soundtrack to a very mellow party full of anarchists slyly plotting love.
“Benediction” conjures such tenderness – Whisper “I love you,” one thousand times into his ear / kiss his eyes – yet sneaks in an undercurrent of oppression. I know better than to let you go… won’t leave my head. It’s a gorgeous song that surely isn’t as dark as I think, though later, I just came by to shoot you baby (“Circulation”) makes me wonder about the album’s seeds.
As with most of Moore’s lyrics, these beg for repeat play with a few bottles of wine at the ready. Songs seem at once subversive and simply lovely; every one is beautiful. I challenge you to forget them.
Thurston Moore: http://www.matadorrecords.com/thurston\_moore
