Every musician, regardless of their eventual fame, has that one influential artist who gave them the confidence to pursue a musical career. For Thurston Moore, guitarist of Sonic Youth, it was the Ramones who had the most significant impact.
In a recent feature with Uncut, Moore was asked which band gave him the greatest sense of potential for his own musical journey. He responded, “Possibly the Ramones.”
“I was amazed by how they redefined what a great rock band could be, simply by using barre chords. Their minimalism attracted me so much that I thought, ‘This is what I want to do.’”
Moore also noted that frontman Joey Ramone’s perceived awkwardness “validated my own awkwardness.”
“I completely related to Joey because he was as tall, if not taller, than I was, and his physical presence seemed even more uncoordinated. It was completely captivating. It validated my own awkwardness.”
In the same interview, Moore reminisces about the advice Neil Young gave Sonic Youth during their tour together in 1990.
“There was a time when Neil stormed into our dressing room, knowing we were about to appear on The David Letterman Show and were facing issues with sound restrictions and playtime,” Moore recalls.
“Our songs were often longer than three minutes, and we were told we could only play at a certain volume in the studio, so we were debating whether it was worth it.
“Neil caught wind of this and said, ‘Don’t let those guys tell you what to do! When I was on Saturday Night Live, they tried to get me to turn down. I locked the door to the green room, didn’t watch the show, then came out and cranked up the amps.’
“So, that’s what we did. I always took that advice to heart—if someone tells you to turn your amp down, just do the opposite.”
