Confusion Is Sex

Confusion Is Sex
Studio album by Sonic Youth
Released	February 1983
Recorded	1982–1983
Genre	Noise rock no wave
Length	35:40
Label	Neutral
Producer	Sonic Youth Wharton Tiers John Erskine
Sonic Youth chronology
Sonic Youth (1982) Confusion Is Sex (1983) Kill Yr Idols (1983)

Professional ratings
Review scores
Source	Rating
AllMusic	[1]
Blender	[2]
Chicago Tribune	[3]
Christgau's Record Guide	C+[4]
Encyclopedia of Popular Music	[5]
The Rolling Stone Album Guide	[6]

Confusion Is Sex is the debut studio album by American noise rock band Sonic Youth. It was released on 12" vinyl in February 1983 by record label Neutral.

Background and recording

Confusion Is Sex was recorded by Wharton Tiers in his Chelsea studio (which he had set up in the basement of a building where he worked as a superintendent). It was mostly recorded during Jim Sclavunos' brief tenure as drummer for the band, and he appears on drums for most of the album. Frustrated by the unconventional recording situation in Tiers' studio and generally not clicking with the band musically, Sclavunos was ejected and Bob Bert was invited back. Bert appeared on "Making the Nature Scene" and the live Stooges cover "I Wanna Be Your Dog". Confusion Is Sex is the only Sonic Youth album on which guitarist Lee Ranaldo plays bass, specifically on the song "Protect Me You".

Ranaldo recorded the track "Lee Is Free" solo at home on two tape recorders.

Content

The cover image is a sketch by bassist Kim Gordon of guitarist Thurston Moore.^[7] This image was used on gig posters early in the band's career.^[7]

Track listing

All lyrics written by Sonic Youth (Kim Gordon, Thurston Moore, Lee Ranaldo, Jim Sclavunos and Bob Bert), except "The World Looks Red", by Michael Gira; all music composed by Sonic Youth, except "I Wanna Be Your Dog", by The Stooges.

Side A
No.	Title	Lyrics	Vocals	Length
1.	"(She's in A) Bad Mood – Version"	Moore	Moore	5:36
2.	"Protect Me You"	Gordon	Gordon	5:28
3.	"Freezer Burn / I Wanna Be Your Dog" (The Stooges cover)		Gordon	3:39
4.	"Shaking Hell"	Gordon	Gordon	4:06

Side B
No.	Title	Lyrics	Vocals	Length
5.	"Inhuman"	Moore	Moore	4:06
6.	"The World Looks Red"	Gira	Moore	2:43
7.	"Confusion Is Next"	Moore	Moore	3:28
8.	"Making the Nature Scene"	Gordon	Gordon	3:01
9.	"Lee Is Free"			3:37

1995 CD reissue bonus tracks (Kill Yr Idols EP)
No.	Title	Length
10.	"Kill Yr Idols"	2:51
11.	"Brother James"	3:17
12.	"Early American"	6:07
13.	"Shaking Hell (Live)"	3:15

Personnel

Sonic Youth

• Kim Gordon – vocals, bass guitar, guitar, production
• Thurston Moore – vocals, guitar, prepared guitar, bass guitar, production
• Lee Ranaldo – guitar, bass guitar, zither ("Inhuman"), production
• Jim Sclavunos – drums, production
• Bob Bert – drums ("I Wanna Be Your Dog", "Making the Nature Scene"), production

Technical personnel

• Wharton Tiers – production, engineering
• John Erskine – engineering assistance

References

1. Birchmeier, Jason. "Confusion Is Sex – Sonic Youth". AllMusic. Retrieved October 15, 2012.
2. Wolk, Douglas (October 2006). "Back Catalogue: Sonic Youth". Blender (52): 154–55.
3. Kot, Greg (September 27, 1992). "The Evolution Of Sonic Youth". Chicago Tribune. Retrieved June 20, 2013.
4. Christgau, Robert. "Sonic Youth: Confusion Is Sex". RobertChristgau.com. Retrieved October 15, 2012.
5. Larkin, Colin (2007). The Encyclopedia of Popular Music (5th ed.). Omnibus Press. ISBN 0-857-12595-8.
6. Brackett, Nathan; Hoard, Christian, eds. (2004). The New Rolling Stone Album Guide. Simon & Schuster. pp. 758–59. ISBN 0-743-20169-8.
7. Browne, David (2009). Goodbye 20th Century: A Biography of Sonic Youth. Da Capo Press. ISBN 0306816032.

External links

• Confusion Is Sex at Discogs (list of releases)