MAISONNEUVE NEWS
- 'The Music We Hate' Issue Launch: July 8 at Cagibi
- Maisy Wins Gold at Mag Awards
- Our Summer 2010 issue
BLOG
- Santropol Roulant's Iron Chef Cook-Off
- Water Calligraphy
- Montreal's Most Overlooked Architectural Gem
- Scott Pilgrim vs. The World: Not Quite.
- On Arcade Fire's The Suburbs
ARTS & CULTURE
POLITICS
MUSIC
- The Music We Hate: Ariel Pink
- Issue 36 Launch: Interview With Pat Jordache
- Issue 36 Launch: Interview With Carl Spidla
MISCELLANY
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The Music We Hate: Sonic Youth
“Welcome to the post–Sonic Youth era: where getting in bed with corporate America is no longer frowned upon but practically mandatory.”
Illustration by Josh J. Holinaty
As a noisy, self-consciously experimental band with an established following, Sonic Youth were already indie stars by the end of the eighties. Signing to DGC, a subsidiary of major label Geffen Records, in 1990—and successfully dodging the “sellout” tag—made them legends.
To the band, joining Geffen put them in the pantheon of proto-punk major-label heroes like the Stooges, the New York Dolls and the Ramones, all of whose eardrum-ravaging singles were aimed squarely at the charts. Twenty years later, not only has Sonic Youth’s bid for commercial success flopped—after eight fair-to-middling …
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ISSUE 36 Summer 2010
online content:
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The Eh-List
You’ve heard of grindhouse, blaxploitation and kung fu flicks. But Canada has its own unique B-movie tradition—Canuxploitation—and new directors are catching on. [full text] -
Things That Make Us Muslim
At the height of Michaelmania, everyone moonwalked—even Muslim kids in Hamilton, Ontario. [full text] -
The Intelligent Universe
The next stage in evolution—a machine consciousness able to manipulate time and space—is just around the corner. The catch: humans will no longer be in charge. [full text] -
Mud and Butterflies
Why do Swallowtails and Sulphurs swarm Alberta’s oil rigs? [full text] -
Adult Language
The internet has changed the way porn writers depict sex. How one man nearly became a scribe of smut. [full text] -
The Music We Hate: Online Supplement
Online companion essays to our print-only "The Music We Hate" feature: Daniel Johnston, Destroyer, Belle and Sebastian, Lady Gaga, Timber Timbre, the xx and more. [full text] -
Dear Maisonneuve
Letters from our readers. [full text]
also in this issue:
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The Music We Hate
Seven top music critics take on the worst bands in the world. -
The Music We Hate: Broken Social Scene
"There is more to Toronto’s music than a mediocre band with one good album." -
The Music We Hate: Radiohead
"Radiohead's Intelligent Musicianship is always up in my face. It’s like being distracted, mid-act, by the fine detailing of a partner’s high-end labial cosmetic surgery." - [see full issue contents]