Yeah Yeah Yeahs - Show Your Bones
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Free Music Notes for Show Your Bones
Free Music Review: Study all the wings that crowd your face
Hit: 4 Stars
This is, respectively, my introduction to the Yeah Yeah Yeahs. I heard Maps when it was released and thought it was decent but didn't pay much mind. However, a few extra dollars lingered in my pocket a while back and I figured "Well, no better time than now". I must say that I'm thoroughly impressed with what Show Your Bones contains. From the hard hitting melodies of Fancy to the halfway minimalistic feel of Dudley, each and every song has something to make it memorable for good or bad.
I'd be remiss if I didn't cover Karen O. She's probably one of the best female frontwomen in the mainstream rock game today. Her energy and offbeat singing beg your attention, and the fact that she'll take a backseat to let the boys do their thing definitely pays off on a few tracks. Always charismatic, Karen O is sure to leave an impression on you.
As for the band, well they tread the line between coordination and mayhem successfully. From the nice drum beat of Gold Lion to the abandon of Fancy, Brian and Nick prove they're more than competent.
Songwise, sure there are a couple slip ups but all in all, Show Your Bones is a solid release. Gold Lion starts us off great. The verses have a certain likability and the chorus completes the song perfectly. Way Out and Fancy are great follow-ups but probably could've been better. Phenomena has a dance feel to it with excellent vocals, which are more of an afterthought. The Sweets is just a good song, not much more than that. Warrior, in all it's semi-acoustic beauty, plays out as one of the albums highlights. Complete with great vocals and amazing lyrics, any listener with an open mind is sure to love this song. Turn Into is a bit of a subdued closer. I don't hate it, but I could do without it. Ending with Warrior would've been a better choice but Turn Into isn't completely disappointing.
My favorite songs are Gold Lion, Fancy, Phenomena, The Sweets, and Warrior. I'm not sure any random person could pick up Show Your Bones and enjoy it, but if you're looking for a female-fronted band that proves they have talent then the Yeah Yeah Yeahs just might be the band you're looking for. While not groundbreaking, Show Your Bones is definitely worth the price.
Free Music Review: Very good!
Hit: 4 Stars
I've had this album for a while now, but wasn't inspired to write anything about it until I had the opportunity to see Yeah Yeah Yeahs live, and while the raw intensity of these tracks do translate better in a live format, it doesn't take away from their beauty on the album. "Show Your Bones," to me, is a typical album from a highly-hyped band caught between fame and fortune, and creative integrity. It had to be a difficult position they were caught in, and they did a perfect job of combining the two.
I'm not crazy about all the tracks, but there should be something for everyone. "Turn Into" is remniscent of "Maps," while "Way Out" holds the same crossover power to actually show up on the radio. "Phenomena" is a throwback to the sound on the first album and EP, and "Gold Lion" is just a fun song. Some of the rawness is gone, although it is apparent during live shows, but the songs are more layered and tighter, and there's a sweetness to them that's often lacking from the first album. In many ways it seems more a love album than anything else, and while the emotion is a bit more subtle, there's a maturity to the lyrics and melodies that shows that while the YYY sound is still very much in tact, they've also grown and changed in the three years between albums, as one would hope. The musicianship is better as well, and really highlights the guitars and drums, giving each band member a chance to shine. If a band kept making the same album year after year after year without changing anything or trying new things, they'd be boring, stale, and without a career. And where would that leave us?
Free Music Review: Excellent sophomore album
Hit: 4 Stars
The Yeah Yeah Yeahs have been around for a number of years, creating major buzz with their live shows, fronted by vocalist Karen O. Their 2004 debut album "Fever To Tell" got an unexpected lift from the break-out single "Maps", which ironically is not really representative of the band's sound, but so what. Now comes the second album.
"Show Your Bones" (11 tracks, 39 min.) starts with the first single "Gold Lion", which is a great tune, if somewhat understated. Next is "Way Out", which I would call the "Maps" tune of this album, just excellent. Other highlights include "Phenomena", which brings the sounds of the band's earliest days, as does "Honeybar", and "Mysteries". The band's sound is more fully fleshed out on the album, even with only 2 instrumentalists (drums, guitars), but of course that is the luxury of the studio. Karen O reminds me of what the Pretenders' Chrissie Hyne would be like, if she was that age today. In all, an excellent album, and at 39 min., the album clips by quickly and you'll want to play again and again.
You will not find this music played on mainstream radio (unless "Way Out" becomes another semi-breakout smash), but this album confirms that the YYYs are one of the better indie-rock bands out there these days. And if you have a chance to catch the YYYs in concert, don't miss them, they won't disappoint you.
Free Music Review: sophomore hit
Hit: 5 Stars
To me, a bands sophomore album makes or break a band. Although this album is a bit more tame than Fever to Tell, I was instantly addicted to the tracks and I love this album.Free Music Review: I guess it's a good follow up
Hit: 4 Stars
Right. Fever To Tell was a fabulous album. It wasn't just becuase of the brilliant muscianship or Karen's beautiful and yet tearing vocals, but for some reason, it was the overall unified feel of the songs. You have a complete rising force that finally climaxes with the hauntingly beautfiul "Maps" and lets you go with a satisfied feeling with "Modern Romance" and "Y control."
Show Your Bones is not Fever To Tell, and it would be unfair to compare them to each other as a review, but there are important differences. The styles, while similar, have a different ring all together. What Show Your Bones has is pop playability, and it's overall accessibility to new listeners. Karen still manages to bring passion into her lyrics but it seems toned down from her cathartic and oftentimes chaotic tone changes and vocal prowess displayed on Fever to Tell.
The single "Gold Lion" is an inviting track that demonstrates the overal tone for the rest of the album. Meaningful lyrics that still captivate but don't stick in your mind as much as those from say "Maps" or "Modern Romance" from Fever to Tell. "Phenomena" has the ability to ingraine itself into your frontal lobe, but mostly for it's driving rythym and guitar rifs, not for power-infused and craftily laced lyrics. Again, this is where the pop side of the Yeah Yeah Yeahs come out.
In deciding, you have to weigh these things. If you are a die hard Yeah Yeah Yeah's purist and are yearning to hear more of Karen's beautifully scathing vocals and powerful presence, and an album that captures the sheer ferocity of the band itself, then Fever to Tell is going to be more up your ally. But, if you are searching for a more mellow yet still punkish/ rock sound that is more accesible, then Show Your Bones will not dissapoint.