With its 16th studio release, The Eternal, on the brink of release, Sonic Youth is beginning to bust out new songs on the live circuit. On April 29th, Thurston, Kim, and Co. debuted Eternal’s “Calming the Snake”. The track is pretty damn Sonic Youthy. We’ve got dissonant and distorted chordage, Kim sing/shouting her ass off, some powerful bass drums and toms, and the like. Thurston windmills it up before attacking the top of the guitar’s neck for a beat breaking finish. The video quality isn’t too good, but at least it provides a little bit of a insight into what the “weird” new album will sound like. Watch:
According to Stereogum, another version of the song had been played back in ’08 under the name “Mars”. I guess its a little false to call this video the “debut” then, but it is the first time they played “Calming the Snake”.
The Eternal hits stores June 9th as Sonic Youth’s Matador Debut. Get your earplugs ready.
