Thurston Joseph Moore
(born July 25, 1958 in Coral Gables, Florida) [1] is an American musician best known as a singer, songwriter and guitarist of Sonic Youth. He has participated in many solo and group collaborations outside of Sonic Youth, as well as running Ecstatic Peace! records.
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THURSTON MOORE TICKETS
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Early years
Moore was born in
Coral Gables, Florida, but was raised in
[2] Bethel,
Connecticut. Although he enrolled at
Western Connecticut State University, he opted to move to New York City instead to join the burgeoning
post-punk/
no wave music scenes.
[3]
Once there, Moore was briefly in the
hardcore punk band
Even Worse, featuring future
The Big Takeover
editor (and future Springhouse drummer) Jack Rabid. After exiting the band, Moore and
Lee Ranaldo learned experimental guitar techniques in
Glenn Branca's "guitar orchestras."
He also spent much time at the
University of Massachusetts and in the Amherst/Northampton area.
Sonic Youth
Moore and Ranaldo soon formed Sonic Youth, serving as the band's guitarists, with Moore on lead vocals. The band signed to
Neutral Records, then to
Homestead Records, and then to
SST Records.
In 1984, Moore married Sonic Youth
bassist/
vocalist Kim Gordon; the pair have a daughter,
Coco Hayley Gordon Moore (born 1 July 1994). They currently reside in
Northampton, Massachusetts.
He and Ranaldo make extensive use of unusual guitar tunings, often heavily modifying their instruments to provide unusual timbres and drones, They are known for bringing upwards of fifty guitars to every live gig, using some guitars for one song only.
In 2004,
Rolling Stone
magazine ranked Moore and Ranaldo the 33rd and 34th
Greatest Guitarists of All Time
.
Work outside of Sonic Youth
In addition to his work with Sonic Youth, Moore has also released albums as a solo artist. He and Gordon released a few songs as Mirror/Dash, a reference to their respective nicknames. ("Mirror" being an alliterative pun on "Moore," and "Dash" being a pun on
Flash Gordon.) The two also established
Protest records together but the project has since lapsed.
Moore has collaborated with scores of musicians, including
Lydia Lunch,
DJ Spooky,
William Hooker,
Daniel Carter,
Christian Marclay,
Mike Watt,
Loren Mazzacane Connors,
Tom Surgal,
William Winant,
Nels Cline,
Cock E.S.P.,
Daniel Castro,
Glenn Branca,
Yamantaka Eye,
Chris Corsano and
My Cat is an Alien. Most of his solo/duo collaborations have been instrumental, and are generally improvised and/or
noise based.
In the early 1990s, Moore formed the side band Dim Stars, featuring punk legend
Richard Hell of the
Voidoids. Moore performed solo on the side stage of the 1993
Lollapalooza tour. Additionally, Moore also contributed guitar work and backing vocals on "Crush With Eyeliner," which appeared on R.E.M.'s Monster LP.
Since 2004, Moore has recorded and performed with the all-star noise collective
To Live and Shave in L.A., the lineup of which also features
Andrew W.K.. He recorded with the band at Sonic Youth's former studio in
Manhattan, and later performed with them at the
George W. Bush "anti-inaugural" Noise Against Fascism concert in
Washington, D.C., named in reference to Sonic Youth's 1992 song "Youth Against Fascism." Moore curated the "Nightmare Before Christmas" weekend of the
All Tomorrow's Parties music festival, in December 2006.
Moore directed the music video for
Pavement's song "Here," from
Slanted and Enchanted
.
Foot is a collaboration between
Don Fleming,
Jim Dunbar and Thurston Moore.
On June 21, 2007, Moore revealed to
Spin Magazine
that he would be releasing a solo album titled
Trees Outside The Academy
. The album was recorded at
J Mascis' studio in
Amherst, Massachusetts. The album is made up of mostly acoustic material and features Sonic Youth drummer
Steve Shelley and violinist Samara Lubelski. The album also features collaborations between Mascis and
Charalambides' Christina Carter, who performs a duet with Moore on the track, "Honest James." The album was released on September 18, 2007, on Moore's label Ecstatic Peace.
On September 24, 2008,
Pitchfork Media reported that Thurston was working on a song with former
Be Your Own Pet vocalist Jemina Pearl. They did a cover of the
Ramones song
Sheena Is a Punk Rocker. The song was recorded for the teenage drama
Gossip Girl and was featured in the episode "There Might Be Blood".
Work on film soundtracks
In 1994, Moore teamed up with Greg Dulli of
The Afghan Whigs,
Don Fleming of Gumball,
Mike Mills of
R.E.M., and
Dave Grohl of
Nirvana/
Foo Fighters, to form the Backbeat Band, which recorded the soundtrack album to the movie
Backbeat
.
In 1998 Moore played on the soundtrack of the film
Velvet Goldmine
as a member of
Wylde Ratttz
, along with
The Stooges'
Ron Asheton, his Sonic Youth bandmate
Steve Shelley,
Minutemen's
Mike Watt,
Gumball's
Don Fleming,
Mark Arm of
Mudhoney and Jim Dunbar.
Moore also composed original music for the films:
- Heavy
(1995)
- Bully
(2001)
- Manic
(2001)
- Extra Action and Extra Hardcore
(2008)
In 2007, Moore also appeared with noise/impro constellation "Original Silence" featuring Norwegian drummer Paal Nilssen-Love (The thing, Atomic, Scorch Trio), guitarist Terrie Ex (The Ex), Jim O'Rourke (Sonic Youth, Wilco, Illusion of Safety), saxophonist
Mats Gustafsson and bassist Massimo Pupillo (Zu). The group released the live-recorded album "The First Original Silence" in 2007, on Oslo (Norway) lable SmallTown Superjazz, and a second album "The Second Original Silence" in 2008.
Record label and writings
Moore and other S.Y. members published the irreverent music zine
Sonic Life
. Moore runs the
record label Ecstatic Peace!. Beginning in 1993, this label jointly released records with rock critic
Byron Coley's label,
Father Yod, as Ecstatic Yod Records.
Moore reviews new music in
Arthur Magazine
in a column written jointly with
Byron Coley. He manages the website , named for its protest against United States' invasions in the middle east. Moore was the editor/overseer of the 2005 book
Mix Tape: The Art of Cassette Culture
. He published a highly influential list of collectible free jazz records in Grand Royal magazine.
[4]
Equipment
Moore is known for using a large selection of
Fender guitars during gigs. Most of the time he plays a
Jazzmaster through many different types of amps among which
Vox AC30,
Peaveys and
Fenders are present. He also plays a
Jaguar and a heavily modified
Mustang with three single-coil pickups, but less often.
Since Ranaldo and Moore, together with
Elvis Costello,
J. Mascis and
Kevin Shields are known for being key figures in the popularization and resurrection of the
Fender Jazzmaster,
Fender introduced in 2009 a special Lee Ranaldo signature edition of a Sapphire Blue Transparent version featuring two
Fender Wide Range humbucking pickups together with a Forest Green Transparent one for Moore (equipped with a pair of
Seymour Duncan Antiquity II Jazzmaster
single-coil pickups)
[5].
Trivia
- Contributed to the UNICEF benefit song, "Do They Know It's Hallowe'en?" in 2005.
- Recorded Three Songs In 1982 under the name David Adelmen.
- Is a member of "The Sons of Lee Marvin".
- Is 6 feet 6 inches tall.
Solo discography & Collaborations
Solo Albums
- Psychic Hearts
(1995, Geffen)
- Root (1998, Lo Recordings)
- Trees Outside the Academy
(2007, Ecstatic Peace)
Singles
- "Sputnik" 7" (1997) Thurston Moore and Don Fleming on one side, Pete Kember aka Sonic Boom on the other. Gilltery vinyl.
- "Wonderful Witches" single (2007)
As Male Slut
- 1995 - The Church Should Be For The Outcasts, Not A Church That Casts People Out (7")
Noise, Experimental, extended guitar drone projects
- 2006 - Flipped Out Bride
(2006, Blossoming Noise)
- 2007 - Black Weeds - White Death [Cass, C40]
- 2008 - Sensitive-Lethal
- 2008 - Blindfold
(Destructive Industries), Ltd. 200, Cassette only
Collaborations
- 1988 - Barefoot In The Head [with Jim Sauter & Don Dietrich]
- 1993 - Shamballa [With William Hooker & Elliott Sharp]
- 1995 - Klangfarbenmelodie & the Colorist Strikes Primitive [with T Surgal]
- 1996 - Pillow Wand [with Nels Cline]
- 1996 - Piece For Yvonne Rainer
[with Yoshimi & Mark Ibold (Sunship)]
- 1996 - Piece for Jetsun Dolma
[a live improvisation with Tom Surgal and William Winant at Festival International de Musique Actuelle de Victoriaville (Les Disques VICTO)]
- 1997 - MMMR
[with Loren Mazzacane Connors, Jean-Marc Montera & Lee Ranaldo (Numero Zero Audio)
- 1998 - Foot [with Don Fleming & Jim Dunbar]
- 1999 - The Promise [With Evan Parker & Walter Prati]
- 2001 - New Life After Fire (for Tom Thomson) [With Dave Dyment]
Albums with Diskaholics Anonymous Trio
- 2001 - Diskaholics Anonymous Trio [with Mats Gustafsson & Jim O'Rourke]
- 2006 - Weapons Of Ass Destruction (Recorded in 2002)
Albums with Original Silence
- 2007 - The Second Original Silence (Recorded live in concert on sept. 30 2005 at Teatro Ariosto, Reggio Emilia, Italy)
- 2008 - The Second Original Silence (Recorded Live In Concert on September 28, 2005 at Brancaleone, Rome)
Early work with Glenn Branca
- 1980 - Lesson No. 1
(w/Glenn Branca, Lee Ranaldo, & others)
- 1982 - Symphony no. 2 "The Peak Of The Sacred"
- 1983 - Symphony No. 1
(w/Glenn Branca, Lee Ranaldo, Anne DeMarinis & others)
- 1983 - Symphony no. 3 "Gloria" - Music for the first 127 intervals of the harmonic series
Early work with the Coachmen
Split LP's
- From The Earth To The Spheres (2004, split with My Cat Is An Alien)
- Thrash Sabbatical
(2008, Deathbomb Arc, four-way split 12" + 2x7" w/ Men Who Can't Love, Barrabarracuda, Kevin Shields)
- Mature, Lonely + Out of Control/Alternative Hair Styles
(2008, Nihilist Records, split LP with Graham Moore)
- Built For Lovin
(2008, Lost Treasures of the Underworld)
Album Appearances
- 1992 - Do You Wanna Dance
(by Dim Stars)
- 1994 - Monster
(by R.E.M.)
- 1997 - Legend Of The Blood Yeti
(by XIII Ghosts & Derek Bailey)
- 1998 - Velvet Goldmine - Music From The Original Motion Picture
("T.V. Eye" with the Wylde Ratttz)
- 2002 - Kapotte Muziek
- #12 in Kapotte Muziek series (Korm Plastics)
- 2007 - Touch The Iceberg
(by Owl Xounds Exploding Galaxy)
References
- Sonic Youth
- Dixon, Ken, "Music Hall of Fame proposed for state
", article in ''Connecticut Post'' in Bridgeport, Connecticut, April 26, 2007 ("Thurston Moore, leader of alt-rock legends Sonic Youth, who grew up in Bethel")
- Azerrad, Michael. ''Our Band Could Be Your Life''. New York: Little, Brown, 2001
- http://www.saucerlike.com/articles.php?x=display&id=2
- http://www.fender.com/sonicyouth/