09 Mar 09
Yeah Yeah Yeahs
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It’s Blitz!
[March 9, 2009] | [Interscope]
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8.2/10
The Yeah Yeah Yeahs since their start have always had the term art associated with them. Their musical style was deemed “art-rock”, and as silly as it is (as if to suggest other rock music is not art), it is a nod towards the creativity found in their albums that combined pop, punk, rock, and shoegaze tendencies. Newest album It’s Blitz! explores new territory not seen in earlier albums and a look at its Wikipedia page give genres “Dance-Punk” and “Dream-Pop”. A little peculiar, but this album does not disappoint and goes from tender moments to energized moments leaving little grey area in between.
Single “Zero” starts the album off with plenty of rhythm and beat to charge a dance floor. Fast paced electronic jittering with a steady drum beat begins as Karen O softly introduces the song until the pace picks up and she raises her voice “You’re zero!” The single has a good deal of energy, and, although a bit scattered, is a good introduction to an album that shows an increase in electronic work. The following “Heads Will Roll” has the strongest rhythmic styling and energy to it as Brian Chase expertly guides the song behind the drums, and Nick Zinner keeps the beat pumping on bass. Karen O’s voice takes precedence in all of the songs on the album, but it’s important to note how strong of a supporting cast she holds behind her. Take the heart wrenching “Runaway” that begins with a simple piano score as Karen O distresses, “Want you to stay / Want you to be my prize.” Chase initially holds a low profile, but as electronic ambience transitions, Chase chimes in to accelerate Karen O’s vocal hook strengthening its pull. Though it typically comes with the job, Chase consistently guides each song proficiently, and gives the album its dance feel through his bass drum.
After “Zero” and “Heads Will Roll” have gotten the dance energy going, the album falls down to “Soft Shock” where we witness the beginnings of distress calls. And yet despite this, the song still holds an elegant fantasy feel to it as Karen O’s voice is meant to be taken lightly because of the small electronic additions as she sings “Summer moon, catch your shut eye / In your room, in my room” The poise upheld in songs such as “Little Shadow” and “Runaway” speak volumes of an experience with heartbreak, as though they are a painfully accepted remittance for all the good times. Yet - “Dull Life” and “Zero” still seek to convey the pain involved in these moments no matter the amount of past experience.
The music behind here suffers in “Shame and Fortune” but overall is consistently above average. As mentioned, Chase and Zimmer do a great job either moving the beat along or maintaining it. The electronic transitioning throughout the album can work well at times, but it can also be a bit much. A band’s third album usually is the time for a change of sound, and though some fail when they leave their established sound (see: The Strokes), the Yeah Yeah Yeahs’ creativity continues to work as it expands, refines, and creates their own unique sound.
It’s Blitz! ultimately succeeds best when the sound is slowed down in the album’s heartfelt tracks. Be this as it may, the album still holds its weight. The peculiar term “Dance-Punk” may not be 100% accurate, but it does give a glimpse into attempting to characterize the danceable songs like “Heads Will Roll” - a song that is capable of putting any rock club into overdrive with jumping fist-pumping hysteria. These combinations of fun and love’s distresses comes to symbolize that though pain is coped with in reminiscent and contemplative stages, you must also snap out of it and go have fun by dancing, partying, and just doingsomething to get by. The album ends on a tender and pretty arrangement as Karen O asks “Little Shadow, little shadow / To the night, will you follow me?” It is an honest and apposite ending to an album that wrestles the confusion, struggle, and pain of past love.
-Mark
