Never content to stay in one musical place for very long, the Yeah Yeah Yeahs take their restlessness to the limit on It's Blitz! -- and wind up making some of their most contented-sounding songs along the way. As if to prove one more time that they're not just the architects of New York's early-2000s rock renaissance, Karen O, Nick Zinner, and Brian Chase strip away the guitars and explosive dynamics of their early work even more thoroughly on these songs than they did on Show Your Bones. In their place are shiny keyboards, synthetic sounds galore, and a very different kind of energy powering this music than any of their previous work. It's Blitz!'s images of a woman's hand bursting an egg and fleshy tomatoes and mushrooms spread across an otherwise empty pizza box are surprising, immediate, and strangely sensual, and that goes double for the actual music.
The album's first three songs are a blitz of bliss, especially "Zero," which kicks things off with blatantly fake beats, revved-up synth arpeggios, and O's command to "get your leather on." Radiating joy and confidence, she and the rest of the band couldn't be further from Show Your Bones' introspection as the song climbs to more ecstatic heights. "Heads Will Roll" shows just how ably the Yeah Yeah Yeahs blend their rock firepower with dance surroundings, as Zinner's prickly guitars get equal time with spooky synth strings and O makes "you are chrome" sound like the coolest compliment ever. Meanwhile, "Soft Shock"'s dreamy, almost naďve-sounding electronics make O's vocals -- which are much less affected throughout It's Blitz! than ever before -- feel that much more natural and vulnerable. Elsewhere, the Yeah Yeah Yeahs and producers David Sitek and Nick Launay find other ways to shake up the album's sound, from the disco kiss chase of "Dragon Queen," which features Sitek's fellow TV on the Radio member Tunde Adebimpe on backing vocals, to "Shame and Fortune," which pares down the band's tough, sexy rock to its most vital essence and provides Chase and Zinner with a showcase not found anywhere else on the album.
However, It's Blitz!'s bold moments are a bit misleading: the album's heart is often soft and searching, offering some of the Yeah Yeah Yeahs' quietest work yet. This approach doesn't always work, as on the too-long "Runaway," but when it connects, the results are gorgeous. "Skeletons" is luminous with an oddly Celtic-tinged synth part, and "Little Shadow" is so gentle and reflective that it could have appeared on that Karen O solo album that never materialized. Best of all is "Hysteric," a love song about being happy with someone rather than trying to make him or her stay, which feels like the mirror twin of "Maps." The serenity in It's Blitz!'s ballads feels worlds apart from Show Your Bones in a much less obvious way than the album's outbursts. But between its violently happy songs and its softer ones, It's Blitz! ends up being some of the Yeah Yeah Yeahs' most balanced and cohesive music.
From seeing Wilco for the first time to hugging Patrick Wolf to within an inch of his life just inches from the venue's doors, the old Birmingham Academy has been the source of many famous (or infamous) nights that are forever etched into my memory. Like all Academy venues throughout the UK, you felt like you were walking on a floor of super strength glue, and at some of the more leisurely gigs...
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It's Blitz! from Yeah Yeah Yeahs is one of What's On The Hi-Fi's top 20 picks for 2009! Check out all of What's On The Hi-Fi's top 20 album picks for 2009! www.whatsonthehifi.com (Top Lists)
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i can't stop listening to this song!!
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‘It’s Blitz!’ is the New York City trio’s third album and is a complete and utter reinvention of their sound. Karen O, lead singer, encouraged Nick Zinner to drop his trademark guitar sounds in favour of synths. Now, even when Zinner picks up a guitar, it all sounds completely different to the band that produced [...]
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The Empire is packed by the time we get inside, having already missed Art Brut, much more so than the other two shows I've seen here over the last week. I guess this is the buzz ticket, the touts outside weren't selling - only buying. The anticipation on the floor is heady, people arejabbering, pushing and impatient to see exactly how the band would make the step up to the big league.
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With the first two albums, Yeah Yeah Yeahs had already established themselves as one of the best bands of this decade. With the third, titled "It's Blitz!", the band emphasizes its ability to change, reinventing themselves as the kings and queen of indie-disco.From 2003's riot-punk explosion that was "Fever To Tell" to 2006's pristine rock sound of "Show Your Bones" the band had already covered a
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First of all this album is way different than other YYY stuff from past years. Do not expect any hardcore lyrics and riffs that emulate songs such as Rockers to Swallow. The first two songs Zero and Heads Will Roll are the most upbeat songs on the album and probably my favorite. Then the album transcends into softer melodies that put you into a colorful state of euphoria such as Soft Shock (thi...
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Major questions (and complaints) about Yeah Yeah Yeahs third full-length will undoubtedly center around the prevalence of synthesizers and various electronics and seeming lack of Brian and Nick's standard drum and guitar blazes. Icy and fuzzed analog synthesizers and skittering electronic beats do appear on It's Blitz!, and considering the emphasis usually placed on Zinner's excellent tones and...
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Not sure how many people read Slate anymore, but here's their Best of 2009 -- led by Brad Paisley. Not a lot of consistency between top albums and top songs, but I guess that's just the way it is, baby.Albums1. Brad Paisley, American Saturday Night2. Aventura, The Last3. Micachu & the Shapes, Jewellery 4. Eric Church, Carolina 5. The-Dream, Love vs. Money 6. Miranda Lambert, Revolution 7. Yeah...
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Here's another track off the brand new Yeah Yeah Yeahs' album, It's Blitz.
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Here is some noteworthy music posted throughout the week. That Danger Mouse and Sparklehorse song has quickly won over my heart. Until "Symphonies" comes out in full, "Ecstasy" has been my Dan Black fix. The new/old Modest Mouse song makes me excited to see what else we haven't heard from Isaac and the gang. Bat For Lashes comes out with another great song that I can listen to before going to s...
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FINALLY, we have the much anticipated video for Yeah Yeah Yeahs' foot stompin', noggin rollin', fist pumpin' track, Heads Will Roll, which is the second single off their recent massive release, It's Blitz!Yeah Yeah Yeahs always have insanely cool concepts tied to their videos, and this one is no different. Kinda makes us wish we had both Karen O's inimitable style, and/or that li...
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From seeing Wilco for the first time to hugging Patrick Wolf to within an inch of his life just inches from the venue's doors, the old Birmingham Academy has been the source of many famous (or infamous) nights that are forever etched into my memory. Like all Academy venues throughout the UK, you felt like you were walking on a floor of super strength glue, and at some of the more leisurely gigs...
More >
just received 'It's Blitz' from the Yeah Yeah Yeahs and 'Fantasies' from Metric. it's going to be a good music day.
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 "It's Blitz!")
