Quotes from Thurston Moore

I certainly don't sit around in the morning making pancakes listening to Whitehouse or anything.

Every now and again, the alternative culture is cherished by the mainstream for what it is, rather than how it should be, like the mainstream popular music.

I really want to do a book on the history of the no-wave music scene in New York, how it extended out and formed lots of other things. It was such a great visual culture.

Tonight I am going to defecate on stage because I think that is the only way to express the nature of my soul according to rock and roll.

I was surrounded by nature and trying to come to terms with this blissful nature versus the inhumane mentality of war. People were being deluded by someone using the word peace

The band has a liberal philosophy - that's sort of a given.

Most people can't tell now who wrote what. I like that blurring of identities within the band. because it becomes a unified thing that can't be related to other forms of historical poetry

Buddhism has become a socially recognized religious philosophy for Americans, whereas it used to be considered an exotic religion.

We're playing all these weird festivals, usually outdoors.

Whenever I can afford to do something, I do it.

No one really gets rich doing this. A couple people do, Black Sabbath does. We don't sell any records anymore.

So lots of respect for all you boys and girls out there who tab out songs like all the time. You bring rock and roll music closer to the people. Gratefully yours

I have to reign myself in a lot.

I never do releases to try and make or break some contemporary band.

Kids think of us as being totally over the hill.

We never notate our music, so you can try to replicate it, but you don't really have it.

I wanted to hear the songs in the way that I had written them, which was very basic. All I wanted was drums and another guitar, and I was just going to sing.

Traditional songwriting, to us, is where the experimental nature comes in. We're all involved with so much outside activity with really hardcore, experimental music-making.

Lyric writing is an interesting process in Sonic Youth. There's three people writing now, and we've all had a lot of interest and involvement with expression through words.

Each member does whatever they want with the song and it totally changes it from whatever idea I hear around it. It turns it into a Sonic Youth song and completely away from it being a solo song.

Anyone who grows up with parents who are very influential, there are cases where people run away from that if they have parents who are really lame.

We always try to encourage more songs sung by Kim, because there are always requests for it. I certainly don't want to ball hog all the singing.

A lot of the lyrical ideas do have a lot of meaning in a way, although it is somewhat abstracted.

We're all very sensitive that Jim has the shortest history with the band. He wants to be somewhat of a free agent. I'm just going to let time dictate how Jim's future evolves.