Update: Yeah Yeah Yeahs

Today I picked up It's Blitz! by the Yeah Yeah Yeahs, their latest release. I'm currently finishing up a joyous first listen, but even before I pressed play, I learned a lot about the band while deciding which of their albums to buy. It's Blitz! is their third full-length record, preceded by their 2003 debut, Fever to Tell (containing Maps and Y Control), and 2006's Show Your Bones (containing Gold Lion). As I listened to the infinitely helpful and just as frustrating 30-second samples on iTunes, what I discovered was that the Yeah Yeah Yeahs' sound is constantly and dramatically changing as the years go by. Maps and Y Control are by far the most melodic and subdued songs on Fever to Tell, which is largely populated with screaming aggressive punk-influenced tracks. Fever to Tell debuted to critical acclaim. Their next record, Show Your Bones, was still very guitar-driven, but in it the band pulled the throttle way back on the screechiness and distortion. I liked the change, but many critics felt the band was sacrificing energy. I don't think they were, especially after listening to It's Blitz!.

In It's Blitz!, the guitar takes a back seat to the synth and the atmosphere moves out of garages and basements into the dance clubs – as indicated by Karen O in the single, Zero: "Put your leather on!" It's now obvious that the Yeah Yeah Yeahs are not losing momentum; they're just moving sideways rather than forward, and the critics seem to recognize that. Some still complain that the band is unfashionably late to the '80s retro party. The Killers have indeed occupied that territory since 2004, but I don't mind. I think It's Blitz! sounds perfectly fresh, even if it is obviously dated.

I'd be interested to see what the critics would now say about Show Your Bones in light of It's Blitz!. Would they still maintain it's not exciting, not abrasive enough, or would they recognize it as a transition from crashing cymbals to sweeping synth pads?

Whatever the critics say, I'm super excited to see Karen O sing in person, and especially to see how the band treats their old hits, since they appear to be going in such a different direction than they were in 2003.