A feral and liberatory public snapshot of a band’s blossoming imperial phase: this is a classic live album from their 1987 “Sister” tour. Indeed, ‘Hold That Tiger’ is the sound of a group at the peak of their powers, presenting new songs alongside a handful of older ones with the kind of wild, cathartic enthusiasm common to rock ’n’ roll’s most revered live albums.
“Hold That Tiger’s” encore—four songs by the band’s beloved Ramones, which Thurston would later astutely compare to “the perfect pudding after a hearty meal”—serves as a reminder that, like any true punks, Sonic Youth never could resist a good, rousing anthem to send the kids home with their ears ringing, their hearts hot-wired. This must be Sonic Youth at the heart of their greatness, great things done and lots of wonder still to come
“Hold That Tiger”, recorded at Chicago’s Cabaret Metro in October 1987, was first rolled out as a semi-bootleg on the long-ago Goofin’ indie. Superior Viaduct label will finally make the album more widely available (and on vinyl and CD to boot).
Featuring the band’s seminal lineup of Gordon, guitarists Thurston Moore and Lee Ranaldo, and drummer Steve Shelley, “Hold That Tiger” captured Sonic Youth at a pivotal moment. After establishing themselves as rock & roll dismantlers and disrupters earlier in the decade, the band had begun sculpting its sonic whirlwind into somewhat more traditional song structures while still retaining its New York scuzz. At the time, they were promoting “Sister” and were a year away from releasing their landmark 1988 double record “Daydream Nation”, which went on to become one of the most lauded albums in indie rock annals. (It’s even in the Library of Congress, where there is a collection of historic recordings.)
“Hold That Tiger” leans heavily on songs from “Sister”, including “Schizophrenia,” “White Cross,” “Tom Violence,” “Kotton Crown,” and “Catholic Block.” But the set also dips into earlier rattlers like “Brother James,” “Death Valley 69,” and the epic “Expressway to Yr Skull.” To wrap up the show and give a nod to their predecessors on the CBGB’s scene, the band also tore through four back-to-back Ramones covers: “Loudmouth,” “I Don’t Wanna Walk Around with You,” “Today Your Love, Tomorrow the World,” and “Beat on the Brat.”
In an interesting side note, the band was introduced onstage that night by Steve Albini, the equally iconoclastic producer who died this spring. “We pulled up to the Cabaret Metro to find our musician-friend Steve in front of the club telling us he couldn’t go to the show tonight because he was banned for some previous verbal or other provocation,” Shelley tells Rolling Stone. “We refused to accept that situation and demanded that our friend be allowed into the club in order for us to perform that night. Surprisingly the club caved.” As heard on the recording, Albini told the crowd, “Ladies and gentlemen, from NYC, the kings of cough syrup — Richard Kern and the Black Snakes!” (Kern was the underground filmmaker who’d helmed their gruesome “Death Valley 69” video.)
Adhering to Sonic Youth cheekiness, the reissue of “Hold That Tiger” includes its original cover art — a photo of Bob Bert and Julie Cafritz of Pussy Galore, their peers in noise rock, rather than a shot of Sonic Youth themselves.
Mastered by Bob Weston from the orginal tapes. Recorded by Aadam Jacobs.
The Fat Angel Sings 