Thurston Moore @ HMV Ritz

As a member of Sonic Youth, Thurston Moore shaped the sound of US rock over the past twenty years. Now with his third solo album "Demolished Thoughts" he brings a more acoustic sound to Thurston Moore @ HMV Ritz Dressed in suit and tie rather than his usual jeans a band T-shirt attire, he is joined onstage by a violinist, harp player, drummer and second acoustic guitarist. It first appears then that there are are no whitenoise freakouts on the horizon, the kind for which his other band, Sonic Youth, are famed. A rare seated gig for the Ritz, the whole atmosphere feels completely different from a SY gig, and the more sedate surroundings work well for the solo stuff. From "Demolished Thoughts" we get plenty of the newbies including the beautiful "In Silver Rain With A Paper Key", and the equally mellow "Benediction".

Thurston, ever the musical chameleon, managing to adapt to a softer vocal but never veering too far from the punked up snarly attitude that powered his other band along. Those acoustic guitars get a feistymakeover with both guitarists stepping on the fuzztone pedals. Who said acoustic guitars have to be used for delicate folky tunes anyway? Not that it's exactly your all-out melodic noisefestmind, as Thurston and band happily switch from the louder tunes to the more subdued and back again.

Thurston opines that over the years he's read and absorbed more info on Manchester's music scene than any other city, and dedicates "Pyschic Hearts" to the late Tony Wilson, who gave Sonic Youth their first ever gig in Mcr. With its fired up guitars in full swing and powerful lyrics, it's a fitting tribute.

Warming to the role of raconteur, Thurston also relates a tale of how he read his mate Richard Hell's notebook containing a list of potential band names. Given the ridiculous offerings cited here it's a good job Richard settled on Television! One such potential moniker was Staring Statues, which Thurston adopted as a song title for use on his debut solo effort from 1995, "Pyschic Hearts", with the two acoustic guitars making an almighty sound while those trusty fuzz pedals ensure a gloriously noisy ending.

Thurston manages to combine that rare feat of breaking away from his other hugely successful band to go it alone, displaying a more delicate side to his songwriting abilities without ever veering far enough into unknown territory as to alienate the Sonic Youth diehards in the crowd. With the day-job band in hiatus for the moment, it's good to hear he has just as much songwriting skill as a solo artist and whatever the future holds for Sonic Youth, Thurston's solo work will always find a warm welcome here.

Paula Gregory