Twenty-five years and over 20 albums into their existence, Sonic Youth have given us a record nearly as good as anything in their career. While 1988's Daydream Nation still represents their peak effort (and was recently enshrined in the US Library of Congress' National Recording Registry as an album that is "culturally, historically or aesthetically important"), Rather Ripped shows the group continuing to operate at the highest levels of their craft. The two major elements of Sonic Youth's approach have always been their immersion in and love for the traditional song structures of rock/pop music along with a dedication to the more avant-garde and dissonant elements of modern 20th-century music. They have relentlessly explored the latter on their own-label releases of largely instrumental music, but their music has been most compelling when they have successfully balanced these two elements within their songs and albums. And while their last couple of efforts have been quite good, Rather Ripped is perhaps their finest ever union of hook-laden short pop songs with their oblique, and occasionally blistering, guitar excursions. Only two songs surge past the six-minute mark, but even these feel completely akin to the more frequent three-minutes-plus tunes that are prominently featured throughout. Furthermore, Rather Ripped has a lightness of touch missing from much of their recent, louder, work, with songs often featuring hushed, almost liquid sounding guitar hooks and chording, along with quiet vocals from either Kim Gordon or Thurston Moore. The occasional feedback squall and distorted guitar solo pleasantly offset this "milder" approach to fine effect, but the real treat here is the concise nature of the hooks and musical themes explored within each song. Opener Reena exemplifies this approach, starting with a simple pop hook on the guitar and sung by Gordon in a husky, breathy, near-whisper. As the song progresses, the vocals and chords veer slightly away from their expected course, but the whole thing is then capped with sublime vocal harmonies, an element not usually associated with this group. And all this is accomplished in under four minutes. The album continues on this course, with song after song revealing their pop beauty while also exploring dissonant, feedback-laden pathways and undercurrents. Mention must also be given to the importance of Steve Shelley's tom-tom heavy drumming, driving each song forward with rock-solid metronomic force that never calls attention to itself. In sum, this may be the most beautiful-sounding collection of "pop" songs Sonic Youth have ever graced us with. And given that they have just hit the quarter-century mark, that is a rare achievement, indeed.

The Soul Jazz label out of England is perhaps the finest current exemplar of a company dedicated to the fine art of thematically compiling both the great and the oft-forgotten songs in whatever genre (reggae, soul, funk) they are surveying. A couple of years back they released "Soul Gospel, Vol. 1", which featured exactly what the title states, soul and gospel artists (e.g., Irma Thomas, Odetta, Staples Singers, Aretha Franklin) testifying with a soul/funk underpinning. It was one of the best releases of 2002. Now along comes Volume 2, which repeats the trick in equally satisfying fashion. Perhaps a little more gospel-flavored in its selection of artists (e.g., the Staples are back, but also joined by Clara Ward, Sweet Inspirations, Lovers of God, and others), the Soul Jazz people simply know how to present a selection of songs that follow their theme while flowing effortlessly one into the next to yield a supremely satisfying listen. And if you like the sound of this, make sure and check out their New Orleans Funk collection, also.