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Yeah Yeah Yeahs – It’s Blitz!

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Back when Fever To Tell came out, I wasn’t quite sold on the . Sure “Rich” was a pretty cool song, “Dance With The Night” was tight and “Maps” has become a minor classic, but the album (particularly its second half) was underwritten, trying to make up in character what the songs lacked in composition. It’s hard to blame them for trying though, as the have always had character to spare. ’s art-chic cool allowed her to pull off the role of punk front woman without resorting to the tired riot grrrl image while ’s endless supply of concrete riffs provided her with a partner in crime just as fierce and original (The other guys were good, too). They had all the style, but maybe not quite all the substance – yet. yyy

The band’s follow-up, Show Your Bones won me over in a big way. While it traded a great deal of ’s dense, noisy production for ’s more subtle approach, the trade off was a perfect fit for that album’s more personal material. More importantly, the album (particularly its superior second half) delved more into the vulnerability of that we were given a glimpse of in “Maps”. Whereas some may have seemed justified in trashing the for being all flash but no bang based on Fever, Bones succeeded in fully debunking that viewpoint. And for those not entrenched in their pretensions, it proved that perhaps there was more to the than we may initially have thought.

Whereas the band’s New York contemporaries and Interpol failed to sustain their creative momentum past solid sophomore albums, the have not only managed to retain their brilliance the third time around, but have continued to grow, change, build upon past successes and adapt to the current movements of indie-rock on the phenomenal It’s Blitz.

Blitz’s sound may not be the expected logical evolution for the band, but it clearly proves itself to be a logical evolution. The album finds a wonderful balance between the noisy, dance edge of Fever and the more fragile, vulnerable pop of Bones. There’s also a strong club influence spread over the album, particularly on “Zero” and “Heads Will Roll” (indie DJs: you’ll want these). Luckily, Zinner’s just as imposing and exciting a presence with a synth as he is with a guitar.

Sitek’s production work is characteristically dense, though this time everything is enveloped in a ethereal sheen (possibly the contribution of co-producer ?) that further distinguishes Blitz from the other items in the band’s catalog. “Soft Shock” and “Skeletons” in particular are more gauzy and dreamlike than anything the band has released up to this point.

Blitz is without a doubt the ’ most consistent album to date; something that is both a pro and a con in relation to past albums. There’s not a weak track on the album but there’s also no dynamite standouts on the level of “Maps” or “Cheated Hearts”. “Zero” and “Heads Will Roll” are the rockers; “Skeletons” and “Hysteric” are the softer, sweeter songs; but the dynamic has been shortened, with neither being too extreme in either direction. Could it be a reflection of Sitek’s evolution as a producer, considering some had a problem with Dear Sciences,’s lack of rough edges in comparison to TVOR’s past work with him as well? Perhaps. By any measure, the consistent quality of the material makes this only a very minor qualm. Blitz may or may not be the ’ best album (I think the second half of Bones puts it just a bit ahead), but it is unquestionably another incredible entry into the ’ increasingly impressive discography and proof that these Brooklyn art-punks might just hold it out for longer than anyone could’ve guessed.

It’s Blitz is out on Interscope March 31.

Tracklisting:
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

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This post was written by:

Marc Z. Grub - who has written 28 posts on popwreckoning.


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  1. [...] never been a huge Yeah Yeah Yeahs fan, but their single “Zero” off of their new album It’s Blitz! is pretty cool. The song has an extreme 70s feel to it, like a faded Polaroid you pulled from your [...]


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