Yeah Yeah Yeahs: It’s Blitz! (Interscope)

By Ben Liew  •  24 Apr 2009 in Music

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Sounding like less of a band and more of a DJ act might repel some, but the Yeah Yeah Yeahs have moved on to the next stage of future-pop.

Standard drumming and guitar wailing are downplayed while synths and other electronics are beefed up. For old fans getting used to this, the trick is to listen to It’s Blitz! from beginning to end. ‘Zero’ kick starts the album and builds up marvellously before climaxing with a sonic boom. ‘Heads Will Roll’ continues the dance-anarchy with the opening synth sounding like PIL’s ‘This is Not a Love Song’. The first mood shifter on the album is ‘Skeletons’ where the band nails down a haunting Celtic melody over thunderous marching drumbeats. Aptly titled ‘Dull Life’ revisits the old YYY with Karen O’s trademark jerky vocals. And on ‘Dragon Queen’, she gets some help from TV on the Radio’s vocalist Tunde Adebimpe. Overall, it’s still noisy stuff but with poignant build-ups. In an age where those who fail to adapt will eventually die, this is an amazing return and what might be the best YYY album so far.

Listen to them at www.myspace.com/yeahyeahyeahs.