o sorely misguided fans, Sonic Youth’s signing with the then-nascent Geffen subsidiary DGC was the ultimate blasphemy; for the rest of us—and legions of soon-to-be-now-that-I-can-find-their-records fans—it was about the best thing they could’ve done. I still think so, and as some of the clearest and best evidence (apart from the fact that by virtue of Geffen’s reissue program in the ‘90s, the still mind-blowing likes of Evol and Sister can now be found in most any record store, a superb thing as much of the country doesn’t live within spitting distance of [insert name of your favorite ultra-cool hipster indie record store here]), I present the newly remastered, augmented, and reissued Deluxe Edition of their first major-label release, 1990’s Goo.

The original album, of course, sounds better than ever in its remastered form. The multi-layered textures of “Disappearer” pop as if in 3-D, “Cinderella’s Big Score” is all swirling colors and dreamscapes (er, in a jagged-edge SY way I mean), and “Tunic (Song for Karen)” is still nearly enough to make you cry, unquestionably one of Kim’s finest moments. So you should buy this just to get Goo in all its remastered glory. But there’s more, plenty more.

There’s the sublime Neon Boys (think way downtown NYC pre-punk) cover “That’s All I Know (Right Now),” total trash in the best way, and the damned fine live track “The Bedroom,” originally released on the “Kool Thing” and “Dirty Boots” maxi-singles, respectively. There’s the loose skronk-fest of “Tuff Boyz,” previously unreleased (and taken from a 1989 rehearsal cassette from Hoboken, NJ).

And then there’s disc two of this deluxe package, which is a goldmine for SY fans, as its first 11 tracks are 8-track demos of the entirety of Goo, save for the missing 1:05 of revving engines that is “Scooter + Jinx” and the inclusion of instrumental “Lee #2” (which shows up in a vocal version on this edition’s first disc). Even though it’s only 0:23 longer, the demo of “Tunic” feels more expansive, and even more emotional than its final version; the looseness of it fits. Conversely, the demo version of “Titanium Exposé” clocks in nearly a full two minutes shorter than the take that ended up on Goo, and feels more right this way—its brevity adds a punch lacking from the final version. And if you like SY’s jam-band-from-hell side, you’ll love the almost nine minutes of “Blowjob (Mildred Pierce).”

What you get from these demos isn’t all that different from what you normally get from hearing the demos of a classic album—it’s the creative process writ large, or at least just writ at all. The additional tracks are great, the accompanying booklet is packed with photos and a pair of fine essays (Byron Coley alert!), and this all sounds gorgeous. Goo – Deluxe Edition won’t convert the unconverted, and frankly, it’s not supposed to. This one’s for the fans, for the lovers, a big wet kiss from Thurston, Kim, Lee and Steve. Until Daydream Nation gets similar treatment (apparently due later in 2006), this is as good as it gets.