I started losing touch (and interest in) Sonic Youth with the release of A Thousand Leaves, but with NYC Ghosts & Flowers they completely lost me. I was working at a record store in downtown Stockholm, Sweden when it came out and bought it because I liked the artwork (by William S. Burroughs). I listened to it maybe twice before shelving it. Songs per album were now getting fewer and the length of the tracks longer (for the jams). Listening to it again today, I definitely find it more interesting than I did back then, but as was the case with A Thousand Leaves, the noisier improvisations were much better than the more melodic moments. These structured bits feel more intrusive than helpful to the song's flow. Renegade Princess is the only track I really enjoy throughout even today. This is the first album with Jim O'Rourke as full time member of the band and his presence is noticeable.