You. In front of the computer. Staring at the screen, munching on those cheese puffs. You know who Lee Ranaldo is, don't you? Guitarist and sometime singer in Sonic Youth. Wrote some of their best songs like "Eric's Trip," "Wish Fulfillment" and "Mote." Always has a fan on him when Sonic Youth plays live because he gets too hot. Occasionally dabbles in free jazz performances around New York. Writes poetry. Sometimes makes these weird solo records where he makes noise and performs long spoken word sequences. Once played in a noise guitar orchestra with fellow Sonic Youth Thurston Moore. Oh, that Lee Ranaldo. Oh, you know him? He consults you on his hairdo? Well actually, he doesn't really have big hair. It's kind of floppy and shapeless. I don't think he cares too much about his hair... No, I think you have the wrong Lee Ranaldo...

Hey!!! I'm not implying anything here. I just wanted to let you know about his new solo record. It's called Amarillo Ramp. No, it's not quite like Sonic Youth. This more of a collection of audio projects, spoken word, riffs, and excerpts from soundtracks to movies you've never heard of... the rock and roll equivalent of sonic research and development. As it's a collection of pieces recorded between 1990 and 1995, it's best to not judge this as a fully- realized album.

Still, it contains some truly mesmerizing moments. "Non-Site #3" has fellow Sonic Youths Thurston Moore and Steve Shelley contributing to an improvised noise jam similar in spirit to Sonic Youth's recent trio of instrumental EPs. "Notebook" features some of Ranaldo's architecture- themed poetry over a singular guitar squeal. "Here" is a lush, acoustic instrumental that could have been torn from Pink Floyd's early 1970s repertoire. The centerpiece of the record, however, is this collection's namesake. Clocking in at over 30 minutes, "Amarillo Ramp" is an entrancing, voluminous soundscape constructed out of looped guitar fragments that artfully blends skin- vibrating tones with Ranaldo's expert guitar tweekage.

It was perhaps unnecessary to tack on a ho-hum cover of John Lennon's "Isolation" at the end. Ranaldo cops Lennon's '70s guitar and vocal stylings with remarkable accuracy, but given the excellent work that precedes it, you would expect more. Still, as Sonic Youth is poised to release their new full- length, fans would do well to check out Ranaldo's more obscure side.

-Samir Khan