Lee Ranaldo Talks Moore/Gordon Breakup

Beggars Group, the owner of Sonic Youth’s Matador label, announced in mid-October that the band’s co-founders, Thurston Moore and Kim Gordon, had separated after 27 years of marriage.

The musicians founded the group in 1980 and were married in 1984. The statement released by Beggars Group noted that “plans beyond that (November) tour are uncertain. The couple has requested respect for their personal privacy and does not wish to issue further comment.”

The South American dates began Nov. 5 in Buenos Aires, Argentina, and included shows in Uruguay, Peru, Chile and Brazil.

Ranaldo, who has been with the band since 1981, told Rolling Stone that Moore and Gordon’s breakup didn’t affect the tour “all that much” during an interview posted online Monday.

“It was a pretty good tour overall,” Ranaldo said. “I mean, there was a little bit of tiptoeing around and some different situations with the traveling – you know, they’re not sharing a room anymore or anything like that. I would say in general the shows went really well. It kind of remains to be seen at this point what happens to the future. I think they are certainly the last shows for a while and I guess I’d just leave it at that.”

When asked if he was feeling optimistic about the future of the band, Ranaldo gave Rolling Stone a very glass-half-full answer.

“I’m feeling optimistic about the future no matter what happens at this point,” Ranaldo said. “I mean, every band runs its course. We’ve been together way longer than any of us ever imagined would happen and it’s been for the most part an incredibly pleasurable ride. There’s still a lot of stuff we’re going to continue to do. There’s tons and tons of archival projects and things like that that are still going on, so there are so many ways in which we are tied to each other for the future both musically and in other ways. I’m just happy right now to let the future take its course.”

Click here to read the full Rolling Stone interview.