PacManY2J's Full Review: It's Blitz! by Yeah Yeah Yeahs
"Dance 'til you're dead."
I guess that's not such a bad way to go. And the Yeah Yeah Yeahs of all bands might even help you look forward to your demise. We knew the New York indie rockers had some danceable swagger in their music as evidenced by, for example, the hip-shaking "Man." But I don't know if anyone was expecting this: their third full-length, It's Blitz! ditches a good deal of what made them famous and takes the Yeah Yeah Yeahs out of the garage and onto the dance floor.
Some might read that last statement and immediately think "sellouts," but that would a hasty judgment. It's Blitz! may focus more on dance beats, but it is clearly not Top 40 material. It's easy to tell that this is still the same Yeah Yeah Yeahs you know and love, just one that's decided to experiment with new sounds and even mature a bit in the process. That's not to say this album is a complete winner. Despite a few excellent tracks, this album is largely lackluster and a bit of a letdown considering the strength of their previous efforts.
The album opens on a strong note with "Zero," driven by a big synth beat, fun but not overbearing effects, and a versatile vocal performance from Karen O. "Heads Will Roll" follows with a even more thumping beat and the infectious refrain "Off off off with your head / Dance dance dance 'til you're dead." While the album doesn't sound completely retro, some tracks like "Dragon Queen" would fit in perfectly on an '80s soundtrack, and I mean that in a good way. "Hysteric" is one of the album's strongest, perfectly showcasing the pretty side of Karen O's vocals with a sweet chorus of "Flow sweetly / Hang heavy / You suddenly complete me." When she does a background shout of the song's title, you can hear a faint echo of the Pixies, as though the YYY's are reminding us that they haven't completely abandoned their punk edge ("Dull Life" even finds a way to mix the dance elements into a mostly energetic rocker). And "Skeletons" shows the band really pushing their boundaries, crafting a slow, haunting track with sound effects that create an atmosphere akin to the windy, oceanside cliffs of Ireland.
Though this record contains a lot of good - and no actual bad - it also slips into mediocrity way more than a ten-track album should. After the opening two tracks, listeners will be fooled into thinking they'll be dancing nonstop for the remainder of the album's 41 minutes. That's not the case though, as several tracks veer toward the drab. It's Blitz! is enjoyable on the whole, but too much of it fails to excite and instead slips into the background. This experiment may have worked perfectly had it been released as an EP. Unfortunately, the Yeah Yeah Yeahs are a rock band, and though they've proven themselves capable of creating some excellent dance tracks, they just didn't have enough in them for a whole album.
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