Rating: NNNN
Now that Sonic Youth are on indefinite hiatus due to Kim Gordon and Thurston Moore’s relationship ending, the quiet George Harrison to their spotlight-hogging Lennon/McCartney finally has a chance to showcase his own songwriting in a solo setting. Ranaldo’s previous endeavours outside Sonic Youth tended toward avant-garde performances and conceptual art, like his poetry book based on spam, but Between The Times And The Tides sees the guitarist concentrating on comparatively straightforward rock songs with folky undertones. His background role in his influential former band camouflaged the importance of his contributions.
Former bandmate Moore has also been exploring acoustic textures in his solo work, but Ranaldo integrates them better and has come up with something more than just an unplugged Sonic Youth. Some moments bring to mind the best aspects of REM’s first few albums, while others evoke CSNY mixed with the wistful droning guitar-scapes that he’s best known for. While it’s less distortion-drenched than we might expect, the album is still sonically adventurous enough to satisfy those worried he might be leaving his art rock roots behind. It’s the strength of his conventional songcraft, however, that makes his late-career foray into the frontman role successful.
Top track: Lost (Plane T Nice)
