John Fahey - The Transfiguration Of Blind Joe Death (1965) (@256)

Although someone should strive to find a weak release in Sonic Youth's discography (ok, some of their avant-garde "SYR" releases sound unbearable, but then Jim O'Rourke could be the easy target to blame) it's been some (many) years since their last real glorious release. So, I'm in the pleasant position to declare that I have already placed their latest "The Eternal" next to Daydream Nation, Dirty and Goo; their first release for Matador surely marks a cornerstone in their career.
The (essential) trivia here is that the Eternal's front cover is a painting of the (voluntarily) obscure musician John Fahey whose "american primitive" innovative acoustic guitar style that combined blues and folk with bits of Indian ragas and classical was very influential on a whole generation of artists such as Tortoise and (yes) Jim O' Rourke. And if someone points out the obvious influence that Sonic Youth had on Tortoise, an endless circular music route has just begun...

check also this brilliant Fahey's interview to Wire magazine

album review link: here

download link: here