A friend of mine told me Sonic Youth were back in form when this album came out, but I was somewhat skeptical. I gave the album a spin in a record store, but failed to hear what was so exceptional, so I skipped it. But listening to it more in depth today, I have to say I agree, although only partially, with my friend (six years later). The Empty Page is practically as good as past opening tracks like Teen Age Riot or Dirty Boots (that change in the song at approximately two minutes in gives me chills!), but the rest of the album doesn't sound exactly out of the ordinary. They do give up on the alienating weirdness of the past two albums, but the soft/hard dynamic found on every song doesn't make this an exceptional album. Karen Revisited (a follow-up to Tunic off of Goo) is the album's highlight. The band really kick out the noise jam on this one, boosting up the psych factor a few notches.