Reviews > Yeah Yeah Yeahs
The Yeah Yeah Yeahs Make Me Wish I Still Had My Old Bee Gees Records
By Johnny Firecloud, February 23rd, 2009
Potential is realized and bars are raised with It’s Blitz!, the Yeah Yeah Yeahs’ latest- and undeniably their greatest- album, due out April 16 on Interscope. Karen O, Nick Zinner and Brian Chase make their most convincing case for the full attention of casual fans after a three-year recording absence with an an unabashed swan dive into electro-synth disco pop, a formula that by all means and measures should be a nightmarish red-light failure- but instead arrives as a breathtaking work of freak-flag mirror-ball genius.
A sense of genuine romanticism reverberates throughout the entire album, from the throbbing dance dreams of Soft Shock to the epic, strobe phasing beauty of the tip-toeing Skeletons. The album’s got heart, real, colorful, bleeding, stomping heart, and it’s laid out in soaring fashion. The band recorded It’s Blitz! with two producers: TV On The Radio’s David Sitek, who did production work on the last two albums, and Nick Launay, who co-produced the 2007 Is Is EP along with the band. The vintage synths come on strong on the album, finding Nick Zinner utilizing an array of guitar effects and various throwback synth instruments to develop a redrawn sound that certainly bears the YYY imprint, most comparably as a more developed Show Your Bones on the club scene.
I’m sure I’m not the only one who used to think the band have always sounded best when filtered through the New York punk-fuzz garage grit that was on their early EPs. Those conceptual elements, however magnetic and propelling they may have been for their career at the onset, are thrown out the window on It’s Blitz! without so much as a cursory rearviewmirror glance. There’s still a lot of guitar on the album, but this time its got heavy backups in synth-heavy atmospherics- definitely indicative of the sense of evolution throughout, translated through what’s more a soundtrack to electro-nightlife than a batch of concert anthems.
Tracks like album opener Zero (listen below) or the creepily sensual Dragon Queen could find a cozy home between updated versions of Blondie and the Pet Shop Boys.
Zero’s a cocaine disco anthem for modern times, a pulsing mirrorball party that starts off like a red-pill digital assault, an immediately magnetic pulse in sixteenths that threatens to overwhelm the senses before Karen O’s gentle buoyancy sets in and leads the way. The theme stays strong through Heads Will Roll, a speedy satellite party in true glitter fashion, with a similarly ecstatic breakdown/outro to its predecessor. The hyper-reverberating electro-strings and looping beat build a dancefloor base for a vocal performance that little poplets like Lady GaGa could learn some things from; Karen’s passion is unrivaled, and songs like Heads Will Roll are solid proof that she’s got the chops to outshine the silly dance queens soaking up the charts these days.
Soft Shock slows the party down, a whirling instrumental track under the subtle peaks and valleys of Karen O’s pendular melody (listen for her canary-esque ooooohh’s near the end), which leads into the breathtakingly gorgeous and delicate Skeletons. By design, it’s not a far cry from the delicate beauty of Maps, but the chorus is much more fragile- and a hell of a lot less annoying. Buoyed by Zinner’s effects work and a rising march-like snare beat, the song becomes a soaring movement, Karen’s soft-vocal delivery serving as the voice of calm in an epically percussive, dropping each syllable like a slowly leaking faucet. As the soundscape builds around her, her gentle lullaby provides a light through the fog.
The guitars return to recognizable form for the radio-ready Dull Life as well as Shame And Fortune, a grinding bass fuzz monster that wakes and settles before rising up again with a guitar lead that’s not exactly groundbreaking, but serves the song perfectly.
More traditional song structure returns as well with the epically majestic Hysteric, the melody and percussion giving the track an evolved Maps essence, but the repeated line You suddenly complete me… is achingly beautiful in a very primal nerve-stroking kind of way, a moment-of-clarity love letter, like a grown-up fairy tale. Moments like Brian Chase’s little fills around the 1:50 mark under Karen’s gorgeous The cinders, they splinter are what makes this album such a fantastic listen- and why good speakers or headphones would do the listener a world of good to utilize while doing so. The Devil’s in the details, and they love it that way. Staccato horns help build the song’s final act, a royal celebration that vaporizes suddenly, ending with a whistle and gentle feedback.
The heavenly Little Shadow closes the album with an apparent inspirational mix of Lamb, Goldfrapp and Sigur Rós. Karen’s reflective Little shadow / Into the night / Will you follow me? weaves gently through the organ’s rising, shimmering wall of sound and the minimalist perimeter set by the percussion. We’re sent out with a bittersweet mix of gentle yearning and muted sorrow, but there’s a strong undercurrent of victory as well- possibly because The Yeah Yeah Yeahs have outdone themselves here. If there’s any true harmony in the universe, It’s Blitz! will be remembered as the pinnacle of the band’s artistic achievement thus far.
It’s Blitz
April 13, 2009
Interscope
01 Zero
02 Heads Will Roll
03 Soft Shock
04 Skeletons
05 Dull Life
06 Shame And Fortune
07 Runaway
08 Dragon Queen
09 Hysteric
10 Little Shadow
About Johnny Firecloud
Johnny Firecloud's been kickin' names and takin' ass since his first interview in 2001 with A Perfect Circle. You can find more of his rantings over at CraveOnline, where he's the music editor.
February 24th, 2009 at 9:43 AM
i’m kinda surprised / confused at how much you like this album… always thought i was the big yeah yeah yeahs / obnoxious disco pop fan around here, and so far i still like show your bones better. but i’m giving it a chance. and dull life is one of their best songs yet. curious to hear what others out there have to say… ’sup lurkers?
February 24th, 2009 at 8:13 PM
i agree, isn’t as good as show your bones on the first couple of listens although that’s one of my favourite albums. dull life is great, as is runaway and hysteric. not keen on the first 2 tracks or some of the more stadium friendly songs. really like it but wouldn’t say it’s as good as the last album let alone the pinnacle of their achievement
February 24th, 2009 at 10:20 PM
Ok…I can say that without a doubt Mr. Firecloud is right about this album..its a masterful effort…THE BEST!!!
February 25th, 2009 at 11:06 AM
It’s funny, I kind of had the opposite reaction after two listens. I think my least favorite YYYs so far. To each his own, though.
February 25th, 2009 at 4:24 PM
[...] “The Yeah Yeah Yeahs Make Me Wish I Still Had My Old Bee Gees Records” [Antiquiet] [...]
February 25th, 2009 at 4:38 PM
after a couple of days, it’s grown on me a bit. might be almost on par with show your bones, which is my favorite.
February 28th, 2009 at 7:53 AM
I have been listening to it for a few days now, and I am dissapointed. The old garage sound was a huge part of the YYY’s sound to me. I am all for electro-synth but to me the album is basic, the lyrics are basic. I wish the whole album sounded like tracks 3 and 5, which are the perfect melding of yyy’s rock with the synth dance pop they are new to. But overall it was not what I had hoped for.
March 6th, 2009 at 3:17 AM
I hate that Clark. The band isn’t trying to meet your expectations or your sound cuz I’m sure if it were up to you they would regergatate the same bull for years. Why not instead of going into an album with all these false hopes that were never promised to you, you go in and listen to it for what it is. I know your not giving it a fair chance.
March 8th, 2009 at 3:21 PM
So far I am pretty disappointed with the new album. I feel like “let’s Rock or let’s dance” but please don’t put me to sleep.
March 11th, 2009 at 8:47 AM
[...] Wheaties. The reviews have started flowing in and they are all over the map. Some think that it is “undeniably their greatest album” while others are afraid that we will never see the YYY’s that we have grown to love over the [...]
March 12th, 2009 at 1:12 PM
I think because the diversity of the tracks not everyone is going to be 100% happy, some like X some Y. But i don’t buy into the idea that an artist is judged by an entire album; if there are 3 tracks on here you love, there you go, its so pessimistic and ridiculous to say its not good cos you don’t like it all. there are 3 tracks i love and actually the rest are growing.. but those few tracks are so special to me i could not say i’m disappointed.(btw 4 me thats, soft shock, hysteric and skeletons) 1 great track is better than a mediocre but consistent album i would say, and should still be cherished.
March 13th, 2009 at 10:52 PM
I haven’t dove into this one yet but intend to. Enjoyed Show Your Bones, haven’t rolled Fever To Tell in a while. But if they do it just right, Karen O & company could be something akin to a modern day Blondie and that would not be a bad thing at all.
March 17th, 2009 at 4:40 AM
I think the review is spot-on – the Devil’s defintely in the details. Ok garage is in their routes but why stand still and deliver the same formula? If they did this then they wouldn’t be the YYYs. This is a breath of fresh air and whilst Fever To Tell and Show Your Bones work are great, for me this one is more complete, taking some serious steps forward. Love ‘Zero’ and can’t stop playing ‘Hysteric’ – gorgeous! They’ll be pretty amazing live.
March 28th, 2009 at 12:48 PM
[...] took me a little while to come around to this album. Johnny called it their best to date when he reviewed it, and I was skeptical. But he was [...]
April 9th, 2009 at 10:43 AM
It’s as good as Fireclods puts it in here, it just takes more than a couple of listenings to finally soak on it.
April 13th, 2009 at 9:01 AM
The album is more like a chance to get closer to Karen O… feels like a bead of glass raindrop zipping along a telephone wire, or a streak of light in motion photography. Lyrics are a little too simple, could be injected with poetry more visual & unique. Overall, refreshing and comforting to hear her voice anew after such a long time. Thumbs Up :)
April 13th, 2009 at 9:18 PM
An amazing work of art. Loaded with passion, pathos, irony. This woman’s got an amazing voice and style, ethereal, gritty and angelic at the same time. Love it.
April 24th, 2009 at 11:22 AM
the albums isnt AMAZING, but i do like runaway, zero, heads will roll
May 28th, 2009 at 9:22 AM
[...] The single for Heads Will Roll will be released on June 29, off their most recent album, It’s Blitz! [...]
June 9th, 2009 at 8:26 AM
Have to say I dont think this is their finest work to date. For me I love the garage and frankly darker more interesting sound the YYYs have on Show Your Bones, and in particular Fever To Tell- my personal favorite.
I would add its not a poor musical peice, but simply not to my tastes. As I understand the album was heavily influenced by Karen O, who pushed the electro-synth direction the album has taken.
Personal Favorites. Soft Shock. Dull Life.
Hopefully a fourth album would allow Nick Zimmer to give his take on the YYYs.
July 5th, 2009 at 9:16 PM
i love Blitz deffinetly their best work yet though i do love the garage band sound from them but this is deffinetly a breath of fresh air. And i have also been reading alot of stuff from other forms saying the punk is dead from them. isnt punk about creating your own sound and being deffrient and not caring? that is exactly what they did here. real punk may be dead but yyys are the new!
July 29th, 2009 at 10:55 AM
[...] way through a tripped-out desert wasteland (aka El Paso, Texas). Filmed during the recording of It’s Blitz!, the band engaged in a little mescaline-fueled gunplay, black magic and pyromania to keep things [...]
January 26th, 2010 at 1:14 PM
[...] Skeletons is hardly representative of It’s Blitz, but if you’re unfamiliar with the album, check out Johnny’s in depth review. [...]