- Thurston Moore
Infobox musical artist
Name = Thurston Moore
Img_capt = Moore at the 2008Brooklyn Book Festival .
Img_size =
Background = solo_singer
Birth_name = Thurston Joseph Moore
Alias = Mirror
Born = birth date and age|1958|7|25
Coral Gables,Florida , U.S.
Died =
Instrument = Vocals,Prepared guitar ,Guitar ,Screwdriver ,Drum stick ,Piano ,Amplifier
Genre =Alternative rock ,Noise rock ,No Wave ,Experimental music Noise music
Occupation =Singer ,Guitarist ,Songwriter ,Consultant ,Record producer
Years_active = 1980 - Present
Label = Geffen
SSTEcstatic Peace! Father Yod Lo Recordings
Associated_acts =Sonic Youth Ciccone Youth The Coachmen
Mirror/Dash
Even Worse
Dream/Aktion Unit
Bark Haze
Dim StarsThurston Joseph Moore (born
July 25 ,1958 inCoral Gables, Florida ) is an Americanmusician best known as asinger ,songwriter and guitarist ofSonic Youth . He has participated in many solo and group collaborations outside of Sonic Youth, as well as runningEcstatic Peace! records.Early years
Moore was born in
Coral Gables , Florida, but was raised in [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")] Bethel,Connecticut . Although he enrolled atWestern Connecticut State University , he opted to move toNew York City instead to join the burgeoningpost-punk /no wave music scenes.Azerrad, Michael. "Our Band Could Be Your Life". New York: Little, Brown, 2001]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 andLee Ranaldo learned experimental guitar techniques inGlenn Branca 's "guitar orchestras." He also spent much time at theUniversity of Massachusetts and in the Amherst/Northampton area.onic 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 toHomestead Records , and then toSST Records .In 1984, Moore married Sonic Youth
bassist /vocalist Kim Gordon ; the pair have a daughter,Coco Hayley Gordon Moore . They currently reside inNorthampton, 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 .)Moore has collaborated with scores of musicians, including
Lydia Lunch ,DJ Spooky ,William Hooker ,Christian Marclay ,Mike Watt ,Loren Mazzacane Connors ,Tom Surgal ,William Winant ,Nels Cline ,Cock E.S.P. ,Daniel Castro ,Glenn Branca ,Chris Corsano andMy 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 theVoidoids . Moore performed solo on the side stage of the 1993Lollapalooza tour.Additionally, Moore also contributed guitar work Fact|date=January 2008 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 featuresAndrew W.K. . He recorded with the band at Sonic Youth's former studio inManhattan , and later performed with them at theGeorge W. Bush "anti-inaugural" Noise Against Fascism concert inWashington, 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 atJ Mascis ' studio inAmherst, Massachusetts . The album is made up of mostly acoustic material and features Sonic Youth drummerSteve Shelley and violinist Samara Lubelski. The album also features collaborations between Mascis andCharalambides ' Christina Carter, who performs a duet with Moore on the track, "Honest James." The album was released onSeptember 18 ,2007 , on Moore's label Ecstatic Peace.On September 24, 2008,
Pitchfork Media reported that Thurston was working on a song with formerBe Your Own Pet vocalist Jemina Pearl. They did a cover of theRamones songSheena Is a Punk Rocker . The song was recorded for the teenage drama Gossip Girl, but it is unknown if the song will appear on the show, or even commercially available.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., andDave 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 withThe Stooges 'Ron Asheton , his Sonic Youth bandmateSteve Shelley , Minutemen'sMike Watt , Gumball's Don Fleming,Mark Arm of Mudhoney and Jim Dunbar.Moore also composed original music for the films:
* Heavy (1995)
* Manic (2001)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 criticByron Coley 's label,Father Yod , as Ecstatic Yod Records.Moore reviewed new music in "
Arthur Magazine ". He manages the website [http://www.protest-records.com Protest Records] , named for its protest against music piracy laws. Moore was the editor/overseer of the 2005 book "".olo discography
* "Symphony No. 1" (w/
Glenn Branca ,Lee Ranaldo ,Ann DeMarinis & others)
* "Psychic Hearts " (1995,Geffen )
* "Piece For Yvonne Rainer " - w/Yoshimi & Mark Ibold (1996,Sunship )
* "MMMR " - Loren Mazzacane Connors, Jean-Marc Montera, Thurston Moore & Lee Renaldo (1997,Numero Zero Audio )
* Root (1998,Lo Recordings )
* "Piece for Jetsun Dolma " - a live improvisation with Tom Surgal and William Winant atFestival International de Musique Actuelle de Victoriaville (1996, Les Disques VICTO)
* "Kapotte Muziek " - #12 in Kapotte Muziek series (2002,Korm Plastics )
* "Flipped Out Bride " (2006,Blossoming Noise )
* "Trees Outside the Academy " (2007,Ecstatic Peace )
** "Wonderful Witches" single (2007)
* "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 w/ Graham Moore)
* "Built For Lovin" (2008,Lost Treasures of the Underworld )References
External links
* [http://www.sonicyouth.com/ Sonic Youth.com] - Official website
* [http://www.myspace.com/llikyouridols Official Myspace page] for "Llik your idols", a documentary about the Cinema of Transgression featuring Thurston Moore
* [http://www.ecstaticpeace.com/ Ecstatic Peace! Records] .
* [http://www.spikemagazine.com/0600thurstonmoore.php "Spike" magazine interview] .
* [http://www.3ammagazine.com/nonfiction/2003/oct/blackout.html Writings by Thurston on 2003 NYC power blackout] .
* [http://www.ubu.com/sound/tellus_10.html Thurston Moore's "Skrewer Boy"] published on theTellus Audio Cassette Magazine @Ubuweb
* [http://www.pitchforkmedia.com/article/news/145888-thurston-moore-jemina-pearl-from-be-your-own-pet-cover-the-ramones-sheena-for-gossip-girl Pichfork Artical working with Jemina]Persondata
NAME=Moore, Thurston
ALTERNATIVE NAMES=Moore, Thurston Joseph, David Adelmen
SHORT DESCRIPTION=Experimental musician
DATE OF BIRTH=July 25 ,1958
PLACE OF BIRTH=Coral Gables, Florida ,United States
DATE OF DEATH=
PLACE OF DEATH=
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