Richard Edson on Lydia Lunch's Podcast
 

He talks briefly about being in Sonic Youth and why he left. Trigger warning for Kim fans!

Her podcast is called the Lydian Spin and he was on episode 229

Well, band dynamics are always complicated, lots of expectations clashing. But interesting to hear at least a glimpse of the reason he left. And good on Lydia for not fanning the flames any further and moving on in an elegant fashion. It's incredibly hard to keep a band's lineup intact over time, because it's incredibly hard to consistently find consensus over time if - say 3 or more people are involved. It's pretty normal. Don't think I like Tim Dahl much though. He's trying to instigate shit. Kim was and is an incredibly talented musician and Sonic Youth would not have been what it was if she weren't a member. Her handwriting was over so much of what made them great.

It reminds me of reading the comment section of a Facebook post some years back, Lydia was there among various other known musicians all shit talking Kim in a way that didn’t sit right with me, kinda revealing where people start to see perspective as time passes

It’s understandable not everyone in every scene gets along for various reasons, but sometimes it reveals more about themselves then the person they have ill words for

Since I wasn't there, I do generally take accounts with a grain of salt. But what we can gleam from this is that he didn't simply leave to do other things, but that there was some ill will. I know Lydia has a tendency to instigate stuff every now and then. And she's also held some other views in the past I'm not that fond of. Love her music and art, but I can see the flaws of the person behind it. In this instance though, she didn't seem to be willing to heat this up again. Something I can't say about Tim.



In any case, it in no way changes my view on Kim. Seems like a classic spat based on clashing expectations. Richard just seems very opinionated. Tbh, I spaced out until the part where he was talking about Kim and pretty much spaced out afterwards too. Haven't really formed a strong opinion on him. It's just that if you are in a band for a long time and uh, a human being, chances are one of the people who also were in that band will clash with you vehemently. Sometimes sooner rather than later. Interesting side note that interview, but nothing I'd lose sleep over.

i enjoyed the podcast more than i expected, it was often amusing, at least lydia and richard got my attention

what was said about kim was no great crime. basically 2 things:

1) personality clashes, which both agreed with. well, is kim an "easygoing" person? eh, most signs point to no, but why would she have to be? i mean... she's shy and an introvert and maybe needs a hard shell to interact with the world and all its assholes. so what? im sure the other ones have their issues too, just different ones

kim herself in her bio talks about having been tormented by her brilliant mentally ill brother when she was a child. that sort of early experience is not going to turn anyone into the most open and trusting and chummiest person. everyone is different, not everyone has to get along, nothing to see here tbh

(personally, i hate overfriendly mr. peanutbutter types, lol)

2) her bass playing. is she a great player? well, she's no fish or flea or any other sort of virtuoso bass animal. but later in the podcast richard and lydia defended the non-virtuoso approach of just doing things

on that note, richard said that as much as he loved jazz he's not equipped to play it, lacking skills, so plenty of honesty and humility there. and the whole discussion about confidence etc between him and lydia was pretty fucking cool. lydia is crazy hahahaaa. i like her even when she's wrong. liking and agreeing are two different things

so anyway, a bit of shade, sure, but no big drama, it was just a momentary blip, and oliver stone got a lot more attention and airtime than most

back to sy, in the liner notes to the ep reissue richard wrote about the multicultural east village in those days and how his band konk was funkier and sonic youth were a bunch of squares hhahahahahaaaa. this has parallels in the podcast with his return from "too white" san francisco to new york in the 70s. it's a consistent narrative from the guy, he liked the experimental approach but wasn't a perfect fit to the "indie rock" world. so, he lived his life his way, and made his choices, as one should...

anyway it was a fun listen. i'm sure they're all grateful from a few extra clicks generated from this here thread, and some of us are grateful for the entertainment also

Any time Sonic Youth comes up in that podcast Lydia takes the opportunity to throw shade at Kim.

Just out of curiosity Patrick, what was the Facebook post you were referring to and who were the known musicians?

I forget whose page it was on, don’t think it was on Bob Bert’s, maybe it was Lydia’s, but distinctly remember Kid Congo Powers and I think Weasel Walter in the comments

Why do they talk over the top of each other? You have to understand that beer is needed for successful social etiquette. Whilst one talks, the other put beer in belly. beer is the solution