Most Anticipated Albums Of '12

The rumors of my submission to the treacherous second semester of law school are...sort of spot on, actually.  However, that doesn't mean I've thrown the headphones out with the bathwater, especially since we've got such a great year of music ahead of us.  In between no sleep and less sleep, I was able to settle on a list of my most anticipated records for 2012.  Much like last year, my good friend Matt over at The Sight Of Sound has contributed his picks as well, mostly so we could form a Voltron-style super list for you, the loyal reader.

If that piques your interest, you should probably take a gander below...

Matt & Mike's Shared Picks

Green Day- “TBA” (Summer 2012)

Matt: Whether you like the Ramones-style punk of earlier Green Day work or the Queen-style punk (yes, I’m going to say that’s a valid description) of the recent albums, here is one thing to consider - you don’t have to choose between the two. Not much is known about Green Day’s ninth studio album, but I could be happy with it being a call to the Dookie days or a continuation of the storytelling found on American Idiot and 21st Century Breakdown. Or a combination of the two. Just give me some new music from this band and I will be happy.

Mike: Something interesting is brewing in the world of Green Day, something they can’t quite contain due to sheer excitement.  After holding several secret club shows last fall, it’s evident that the Bay Area natives are sitting on an explosive stockpile of new material.  Of the 15 new cuts they debuted live, there are brash bar burners like the stutter-stop punch of “Carpe Diem” and sweet, acoustic picked ballads like “Amy.”  Rumors are swirling that the yet to be titled album will be reminiscent of nimrod. or Warning:, but what ever it sounds like, you know that the group’s signature energy and snide sense of humor will remain firmly intact.

Muse- “TBA” (Fall 2012)

Matt: With the expected release date to be sometime late in the year, there is a chance that new material from Muse could be pushed back to 2013. I’m going to still hold out hope that we get it before the world ends. Reports have stated that the material will be something “radically different” and a change of pace is always good. Personally, I think Muse is at their best when they go for a sound that employs the best of their instrumental work (“Knights of Cydonia,” “Time is Running Out”) so my hope is that it at least stays in that direction. But the success of The Resistance shows that the piano-heavy tracks can be a factor too. I expect big things out of this band.

Mike: Though The Resistance was a bit of a grower, Muse have promised fans that their latest musical concoction will be “radically different” than anything they’ve done before.  Does that mean more face melting solos?  Heavier synthesizers?  Symphonic art-rock?  Probably all of the above.  Boasting the tightest rhythm sections in modern music with Dominic Howard and Chris Wolstenholme, and one of the most recognizable falsettos in Matt Bellamy, Muse sound like they have their sights sets well beyond the Milky Way.  Expect it to be brash, expect it to be bold, and expect it to bee 100% Muse.

Silversun Pickups- “TBA” (Spring 2012)

Matt: Silversun Pickups have been the dark horse in the alternative scene for a few years now, mainly because their sound is one that you can’t really pinpoint. At times it can be played alongside the heaviest Manchester Orchestra songs and at times alongside the slowest Death Cab for Cutie songs. Using those two bands as comparisons, you can sense my excitement when it was posted that 3 (as it has become unofficially called) was to be “darker.” I’m not sure what this means, or if it was a joke among the band, but I can tell you that I am salivating for this spring release after still giving Swoon some heavy rotation.

Mike: Quaintly dubbing their new material 3 via Twitter, the Silversun Pickups seem to be hard at work on the follow-up to their massively successful sophomore album, Swoon. While their last effort incorporated a fuller, thicker wall of sound, and some dramatic strings as accents, it’s still unclear what sonic direction this new material will take.  Though the group dropped a glacial and fuzzy 7” a couple weeks ago, those tracks were outtakes from previous recording sessions, rather than a teaser of things to come.  In the end, we’ll simply have to keep an ear on the Pickups.  Odds are, there will be plenty to swoon over come spring. 

Matt's Picks

Mumford & Sons- “TBA” (Spring/Summer 2012): A friend of mine once told me that you can’t really call an artist one of your “favorites” until they put out a second album. Until then, you are just a fan of that debut record. And believe me, I was a HUGE fan of Sigh No More, the debut release from Mumford & Sons. In fact, it was the album that introduced me to the folk genre and allowed me to explore other acts. What this new album brings will be the turning point in whether Sigh... was just a fantastic collection of songs or if M&S is a band that is here to stay. If “Ghosts” is any indication, I may just have a new band to call my one of my favorites.

Neon Trees- “Picture Show” (Mar. 27):  I have been itching for new material from this group since 2010's Habits, mainly because the debut album was nothing more than a glorified E.P. Eight tracks clocked in at around 30 minutes that left me wanting more when it was over, especially "In The Next Room" and the smash single "Animal." The Christmas song "Wish List" and the newest single "Everybody Talks" show that the band isn't aiming to change much, which is a good thing. If it ain't broke, why fix it?

Paramore- “TBA” (Spring/Summer 2012): Four songs have been released since Paramore went through a lineup shakeup that essentially changed nothing: Hayley Williams is still the focus of the band. And her voice carries with the modified sound on released singles such as "Hello Cold World" and "Renegade" as well as "Monster" from the latest Transformers movie. I don't think these will be on Paramore's newest release, but if the new material sounds like those tracks then count me in as a supporter.

Honorable Mention

All American Rejects- “Kids In The Street” (Mar. 27): AAR have been a bit all over the place in the near decade since their self-titled album. Along with Fall Out Boy, there are one of the few bands that has strayed into pop that I have actually stuck with. If the new album is anything like “Someday’s Gone,” I’m definitely in.

Linkin Park- “TBA” (Unknown): Talk about a band that has refused to stay in one genre over the
years. I initially hated 2010’s A Thousand Suns but grew to appreciate it. I have no idea what the new material is going to sound like and for that reason alone I’m intrigued.

No Doubt- “TBA” (Unknown): Will they or won’t they? This reunited album has been in the works for a couple years now but the stars are seeming to align and indicate that something will happen from Gwen Stefani and company in 2012. I sure hope so.

Pierce The Veil- “TBA” (Unknown): PTV is a band I fell in love with after seeing them live at a time when I had no idea who they were. They've continued to blow me away at shows, and I'm honestly looking forward to their third album so I have new songs to go crazy to at a future Warped Tour.

Mike's Picks

Bloc Party- “TBA” (Summer 2012): After quieting the rumor mills revved up over front man Kele Okereke’s supposed exit, Bloc Party confirmed their studio efforts to create new music for this year.  Whether it borrows from the spiky energy of Silent Alarm or the heavy electronic stomp of Intimacy, the silence surrounding what kinds of sounds they’re exploring is simply tantalizing.  No one knows what Bloc Party is going to sound like in 2012, and that might just be the most exciting part.

Garbage- “Not Your Kind Of People” (May 14): Though Butch Vig has been busy producing everyone from the Foo Fighters to Green Day since Garbage’s 2005 effort Bleed Like Me, it’s exciting to see him back in action with Shirley Mason and the rest of the Garbage crew.  Not only that, but their reunion seems fruitful.  Vig and Manson and described Not Your Kind Of People as extremely noisy and abrasive, while channeling their energy of their self-titled debut.  With the 90s coming back in force it’s nice to see one of the more dynamic groups from that era still kicking out meaty, attitude drenched jams.

Sleigh Bells- “Reign Of Terror” (Feb. 21):  Guitarist/producer Derek Miller and hipster siren Alexis Krauss have shared similar sentiments regarding the new Sleigh Bells album, namely, that it’ll be BIGGER than their raucous debut.  Reign Of Terror has been billed as a twisting hurricane of Def Leppard guitars, winding arrangements, and machine gun-like beats.  If the dizzying helicopter patter of “Born To Lose” and the blitzkrieg R&B onslaught of “Comeback Kid” are any indication, it’s gonna be an atomic bomb of noise pop.

Honorable Mention

Best Coast- “TBA” (Summer 2012): Bethany Cosentino swears that the new Best Coast record will boast a “mature” sound and concept.  Even if it doesn’t, Jon Brion’s often-pristine production will certainly be an interesting contrast to her typically choppy-surf overtones, and retro fuzz.

Every Time I Die- “Ex-Lives” (Mar. 6): When Keith Buckley isn’t proselytizing about the ills of social media, he continues to contribute grisly vocal performances for the next Every Time I Die record.  Judging by the chainsaw frenzied single “Underwater Bimbos From Outer Space,” Ex-Lives alludes to an effort just as punishing as their past records.

fun.- “Some Nights” (Feb. 21): Aiming to prove something past the sunshiny baroque pop of their debut, fun. is looking to really break through with their sophomore album Some Nights.  Based on the soaring electro-buzz of “We Are Young (Feat. Janelle Monáe),” this proves to be a more sophisticated effort than their debut.

The xx- “TBA” (Summer 2012): “Club music” seems to be the loose/ambiguous influence on The xx’s new record.  It remains to be heard if they can surprise the world via an Achtung Baby style departure, but hopefully The xx won’t lose their signature sense of space and silky bass lines in the process.

My $0.02: Remembering Kurt Cobain

Today marks 14 years since Kurt Cobain was found dead in his apartment.

14 years ago puts me at age 6, and I couldn’t even begin to tell you what I remember about that day. Cobain wasn’t a spokesperson for my generation either. Being born in 1987 puts me worlds away from Cobain with only his recordings to bridge the gap. However, I do think about it because with my life depending so much on music now, it seems rather appropriate to muse on such things.

But I guess I think about him today because he represented the last big shift in contemporary rock.

You can say Cobain was sloppy musician, that he ripped off the Meat Puppets, The Beatles, and anyone else under the sun. It’s also easy to take pot shots at his drugged up wife, and his erratic behavior that hampered live shows.

But the one thing that Cobain excelled at was honest songwriting, and being the forbearer of something different in rock music. And when Nirvana ushered in grunge, it was more than just a fad that died out.

It was a force to be reckoned with; caustically blaring from every radio and CD player, stating that rock didn’t have to be perfectly constructed. Sometimes, it was about the passion, the messiness, and shear force with which the music hit you. It wasn’t about constructing an image, so much as it was deconstructing trends.

While I’m sure there will be bands that are remembered from my generation, they’ll never have this impact that Cobain had.

I could name bands like Thursday, Radiohead, and The Red Hot Chili Peppers as all being incredibly innovative artists in their own right. Perhaps in Thursday’s case, they’re the Nirvana that never was, laying the ground work for a sound that was exploited by so many so quickly while they were never really commended for it.

And ultimately, it’s sad to think they’re might not be another Nirvana, Cobain, or huge shift in rock like there was in 1991. That fear of stagnancy makes me wonder if there will ever be another shift like that.

In the end, I guess I don’t think too much about Cobain today, but more about what he stood for. Even if he hated the pedestal people put him on, they put him on there for good reason. His contribution was less about craft, but more about ideas and passion. I suppose it’s just a shame that Cobain died never really feeling comfortable with people confusing the two and holding him up like they did.

Just like it's a shame, that something like this didn't hit me when I was 6.

Panic(!) At The Disco- Pretty. Odd. (**)

Everything surrounding Panic(!) At The Disco’s new album Pretty. Odd. is anything but normal.

At first it was just little things, the slightest of hints that fans morphed into an ugly snowball of anticipation. There was the bizarre viral marketing, talks of scrapping fully completed albums, and then omission of the beloved exclamation point that normally followed “Panic” in the band’s name. However, upon listening to the new material, it’s apparent that enjoying Pretty. Odd. will hinge on listeners’ abilities to differentiate the old, punctuation loving Panic(!) At The Disco, from this new harbinger of weird.

Pretty. Odd. Finds these 4 Vegas natives ditching the hard electronic break beats, frenzied rhythms, and keyboard squiggles for over orchestrated 60s guitar pop that’s messy rather than meticulous. The endless comparisons to The Beatles circa Sgt. Pepper’s Lonely Hearts Club Band are fully warranted from the fluid guitar melodies and the elaborate horn segments, but it all feels tacked on and artificial.

There is no growth or evolution in the current sound from the band’s former material, just a hard shift to a different style, putting the band’s artistic merit in question.

And unlike The Beatles, Panic(!) At The Disco lack the ability to stay relevant and clever, resulting in a song set that reeks of half-formed ideas and idol worship. When the band attempts humor like in the album’s introduction “We’re So Starving,” it comes off like self-parody as they sing, “We’re still the same/BAND!”

The only reason anybody knows this is still Panic(!) At The Disco is because of the horrible, LSD inspired fashion statements they’ve recently decided to sport.

The lead single “Nine In The Afternoon” is perhaps the brightest spot on the album, partially because of how the band aims to command this new sound rather than being tethered to it. The orchestration is big and bombastic, with loopy guitar lines from guitarist/songwriter Ryan Ross, big backing harmonies, striking string arrangements, and Brendon Urie’s high register delivering a plate load of hooks. The song is still a far cry from the glitzed-out dance rock of “A Fever You Can’t Sweat Out” but it’s the only time the band sound sure of themselves and confident.

But momentum never really builds in the album. And aside from “Nine In The Afternoon,” there’s no track on Pretty. Odd. where the band is found firing on all cylinders lyrically and musically.

“Do You Know What I'm Seeing?” is one such track that’s incomplete, despite containing some of the most engaging orchestration on the entire album. Drifting strings and deep drum sounds create a dream-like atmosphere that is lush and tight, giving listeners a wonderfully relaxing soundscape if it weren’t for the atrocious lyrics that taint it. Hooks such as, “I know it’s sad/That I never gave a damn/About the weather/And it never gave a damn/About me…” irritate rather enamor, while wrecking some of the few times the music really is top notch.

Much like their other their Decaydance label mates Fall Out Boy, Panic(!) At The Disco’s writing has lost a step. Ross, has dropped the tongue twisting sarcasm of their old material, in favor of sing-songy choruses that explore very little about the songs’ themes. Tracks like “Mad As Rabbits” expect fans to swallow half-baked lines such as, “He took the days as pageants/Became as mad as rabbits/With bushels of bad habits…” As if that’s not enough, Ryan Ross has decided to do other things to hinder the band.

He’s decided to share singing duties.

Ross positively wrecks the sleepy “Behind The Sea” by using his dry, narrowly ranged, voice to beat the song into submission. His timber is monotone, offering little excitement for listeners in contrast with Urie’s high-energy and dynamic delivery. The last third of the album is at times unlistenable due to Ross sharing lead vocal duties and his bigger prominence in the backing harmonies.

But the biggest problem, aside from Ross’ creative choices, has to be the fact that Pretty. Odd. sounds gimmicky rather than earnest. Regardless of how people feel about Panic At The Disco’s sound before and after this album, it’s hard to argue that “A Fever You Can’t Sweat Out” wasn’t a breath of fresh air into a stagnant music scene.

On Pretty. Odd. though, the band opts to make the record sound dated rather than to explore a sound. The old time jazz number “I Have Friends In Holy Places” actually sounds like it’s playing off a phonograph, complete with vinyl pops and hisses. The result is cheesy rather than quirky, however, and will further aggravate fans expecting honest songwriting rather than studio trickery.

In the end, no one will really know why the band scrapped an album’s worth of material in favor of this theatrical misstep. However, Pretty. Odd. is a shining example that merely writing material in an older musical style is never a good idea if you don’t have the songwriting chops to pull it off. Perhaps next time, these guys can actually put some teeth into their songs rather than just write musical novelties such as the meandering, “Folkin’ Around” or circus inspired “Pas De Cheval.”

Then again, I suppose if there’s anything normal about Pretty. Odd. it’s that Panic(!) At The Disco is another band to fall victim to the sophomore slump.

Tries To Sound Like: Sgt. Pepper’s Lonely Hearts Club Band (The Beatles), Out Of The Blue (Electric Light Orchestra), In The Aeroplane Over The Sea (Neutral Milk Hotel)

Key Cuts: Nine In The Afternoon, Do You Know What I'm Seeing?, Northern Downpour

Author's Note: This review appears in a recent issue of the Sonoma State Star. As this is the author's own writing and this is his own blog, in addition to holding the position of A&E Co-Editor for the Sonoma State Star, he posts it here with express consent of himself. Duh.

R.E.M.- Accelerate (****)

People are deathly afraid of keyboards and synthesizers.

Upon rereading that, maybe that’s a tad harsh and I should clarify. People are horribly frightened when their favorite rock groups drop the dreaded “experimental” bomb and spout off how their new album is textured. Bands gloat about how they are tinkering with keyboards and electronic loops, to give themselves a rounded out sound, to venture into new sonic territory.

The words, “soundscape” and “atmosphere” come up a lot.

And while R.E.M. did their fair share of experimenting in the mid 90s and early 00s, it hardly impressed their fans. Their listeners unfairly judged the adventurous New Adventures In Hi-Fi and the lush Up, begging for radio hits a la “Nightswimming” or “Losing My Religion.”

Accelerate isn’t quite a statement that the band full regrets dabbling in this experimentation, but their longtime fans will be quick to embrace this energetic album. Channeling the rolling hooks and wildly energetic feedback induced guitar pop of their 80s material, alongside the messy noise of 1994’s Monster, it’s a breathtaking return to a more classic R.E.M. sound.

While even the best of R.E.M.’s newer material sounded like singer/songwriter Michael Stipe had reached his creative peak, Accelerate finds him singing passionately and sounding more urgent than he has in over a decade. The album’s lead of track, “Living Well Is The Best Revenge,” finds Stipe channeling punk fervor within his smooth timber as he sings, “You set me up/Like a lamb to slaughter/Garbo as a farmer’s daughter/Unbelievable/The gospel according to who?”

It’s refreshing to see Stipe still spinning articulate and relevant tales after 28 years in the band.

Complements also need to be paid to guitar player Peter Buck and bassist Mike Mills. Buck’s fantastic guitar tones drive the album with Mill’s steady bass pulsing just beneath the fuzzy surface. Tracks like “Hollow Man” and “Mr. Richards” contrast swirling overdrive against booming drum sounds. Buck’s guitar tones aren’t caustic or sludgy, in fact for as fuzzy and as feedback laced as they are, they’re surprisingly warm.

He creates melodies that seem to wash over the rhythm section, with surprisingly melodic results even when he’s at his heaviest. The swirling mass of melodies that makes up “Man-Sized Wreath” finds descending arpeggios hugged by white noise and ebbing distortion. Cymbals crash around in the mix, adding punch and life to the song as well as a sparkling energy.

Elsewhere, the sing-songy single “Supernatural Superserious” is as close as a “What’s The Frequency, Kenneth?” as the band has been in ages. Sporting with chunky guitars and distortion so thick you can cut it with a knife, the band remind fans, old and new that they can craft an arena sized anthem effortlessly.

And while much of the disc rides on the fuzzy by way of surf reverb of Buck, there are other tracks that truly show R.E.M.’s experimentation was not all for not.

Tracks such as the haunting ballad, “Until The Day Is Done” find the band channeling their folk-inspired roots with rich acoustic guitars and Stipe’s specter-like croon. Mills’ elongated bass lines feed the song’s tension to create something truly epic.

But most importantly, Accelerate is the sound of a band that can comfortably transition between such vastly different song styles, but maintain the cores of them. For as much as the album owes to R.E.M.’s past and the punky energy that runs through it, the album does a surprising job of balancing the atmospheric touches and richer songwriting of their later efforts.

In short, Accelerate shows that while some of us fear change and embrace bands returning to their signature sound, all that tom-foolery with keyboards does teach us something. For R.E.M., it allowed them to focus and create the fastest album of their career.

Sounds Like: Surfer Rosa (The Pixes), Monster (R.E.M.), Pablo Honey (Radiohead)

Key Cuts: Man-Sized Wreath, Supernatural Superserious, Until The Day Is Done

The Hives- The Black & White Album (**)

The most engaging facet about The Hives’ new record, “The Black & White Album” is the cover art. The fact that vocalist Howlin’ Pelle Almqvist’s fingers form the V in “Hives” makes one chuckle right before they hit play on the overly produced and often tedious album.

Things weren’t always this way for The Hives. In the beginning of the 2000s, the band dropped “Veni Vidi Vicious,” a half hour of feedback soaked garage punk with Almqvist’s wild vocals barely hanging onto the bobbing rhythms. It was a lean record, taking cues from punk as well as surf guitar and brimming with unbridled energy. And while they weren’t necessarily poets, The Hives did compose songs with a wry wit and had a talent for avoiding cookie cutter hooks.

Since then, however, good song writing has seemed to dodge The Hives and its here on “The Black & White Album” where it’s most prevalent. The Swedish five-piece has traded in arrogant and attitude laced songs for cheaply manufactured shout outs and nonsensical jabbering. The embarrassingly titled “Giddy Up” finds the band riding the coattails of a monotonous synthesizer beat while they trivially call out “Giddy UP!/Giddy UP!” in the background.

Someone forgot to tell The Hives that dude ranches were not making a comeback.

Sadly, it doesn’t get much better.

The oddly titled “T.H.E.H.I.V.E.S.” features a watered down funk beat courtesy of bassist Dr. Matt Destruction and guitarists Nicholaus Arson and Vigilante Carlstroem. The track never quite grooves like expected and it finds Almqvist’s howl being traded in for a sugary falsetto that comes across as forced rather than experimental. Oh, and the chorus is the oh-so-clever spelling of their band name, “T-H-E-H-I-V-E-S” in rather robotic fashion. The real tragedy is that the track meanders for close to 4 minutes, well past the point where this weird, off-beat joke might be funny.

The biggest problem besides the album’s gibberish lyrics is the slick direction they’ve decided to take their music. The Hives enlisted the help of Jacknife Lee, Dennis Herring, and The Neptunes to help produce this record. The result is an album where the guitars are tightly compressed, the vocals are drenched with delay, and there’s a heavy reliance keyboards rather than their bare-bones garage rock sound. One of the few times the band writes a faster tempo number such as the jagged “You Got It All…Wrong,” it’s buried under layers of synthesizers and extraneous trappings that overwhelm their punk fervor.

It’s too bad, because the few riffs that stay with listeners are all buried in the album’s mix. There is never anything wrong with incorporating new instruments to augment your established sound, but when tinkering with them outweighs solid arrangements, there’s a problem.

The pointless “A Stroll Through Hives Manor Corridors” is an instrumental doodle that ruins the momentum of the album’s first half. Implementing only a drum machine and some sort of 60’s inspired organ, the band simulates a jaunty stroll within their bizarre dream world. Instrumental interludes like this should ready listeners for what’s in stored next, not suspend their ability to digest the material.

Still, The Hives manage to create some songs that are worth listening to despite the direction they’ve taken with their sound. The lead single “Tick Tick Boom” reminds listeners why The Hives were so much fun in the first place. Janglely drumming and dissonant feedback erupt in alongside Almqvist’s howls as the song kicks in. The angular riff is enough to please old fans while sporting and almost dance worthy beat.

It’s big, brash, and the song swaggers as Almqvist declares, “YEA!/I was right all along!/YEA!/You’ve been tagging along!” The backing “YEA!” listeners receive from the rest of the band rounds out the upbeat number nicely.

Elsewhere, the bouncy “You Dress Up For Armageddon” hints at a direction this album could have gone in. The thumping rhythm actually combines the best of their quirky take on punk while being enhanced by hand claps and disjointed lead guitar. The song succeeds because of the crashing hook and the bite in Almqvist’s voice as he sings “You swing it right, right baby/Right, Right/Don’t you swing it at me!”

It’s one of the few moments where their eccentric tendencies come together and the band forgets about trying to be the next Devo.

It’s always unsettling to see a fun band fall into the lure of studio production as a means to crank out mediocre songs, and The Hives are no exception. “The Black & White Album” is a textbook example of style over substance. Audience members are asked to buy into the image of these 5 black and white men and the way this music is produced, rather than quality of the song craft.

For what it's worth, at least the cover art will make you smile.

(Attempts to) Sounds Like: Q: Are We Not Men? A: We Are Devo! (Devo), Tyrannosaurus Hives (The Hives), Oakland Lads Club E.P. (Maldroid)

Key Cuts: Tick Tick Boom, You Got It All...Wrong, You Dress Up For Armageddon

Author's Note: This review appears in a recent issue of the Sonoma State Star. As this is the author's own writing, and his own blog for that matter, he posts it here with express consent of himself. Duh.

Yeah Yeah Yeahs- Is Is E.P. (*****)

The art of creating an E.P. in this age of digital downloading, mp3 blogs, purevolume.com, and internet radio seems to be lost. In some ways I think it’s a shame for I always felt the idea of the E.P. embodied DIY ethic of old school rock and roll. Bands would put together about 4-6 of their best songs in the hope they’d get a record deal and launch themselves into stardom. They would scrape together and cut the sucker with what little cash they had, but for some reason they always turned out to be endearing pieces of music. In some cases, I think some artists put more effort into E.P.s then albums just because it seems like they are in a “do or die” situation when they create them. Either they succeed or they fail.

Owning about 61 E.P.s myself, I can also tell you that there is very little fat on these things, just lean songs that serve to leave their mark on the listener. So, you can imagine my joy when I found out that the Yeah Yeah Yeahs had plans to release the Is Is E.P. One of the most exciting bands in recent memory putting out something like this has got to be dyanimite. It doesn’t disappoint either, the five songs found on this mini-release act as a great medium for the Yeah Yeah Yeahs to let loose and wail. The songs on Is Is rip and roar with all of Karen O’s signature rasp and seductive shout backed by the great minimalist sound of Nick Zinner’s guitar and Brian Chase’s great skins work.

The release immediately draw the listeners in with its great hooks and raw production. Zinner’s rubberband-like guitar sounds on “Rockers To Swallow” all at once create a certain swagger in the group’s sound. While they’re always been one of the better retro sounding acts, the Yeah Yeah Yeahs primarily had two speeds: kick your ass rock or gorgeous and melodic ballads. It seems on this release, the band was more concerned with creating a certain groove with their sound. “Kiss Kiss” is a bit more typical of something found on their debut album, starting with a palm muted riff and slowly building into an almost dancey beat of rolling drums and squealing guitar. Karen O begins the track by silently whispering “Green hours/Blue rope/Hot wax for hearts are cold/We’re three were three in the dark tonight/Oh baby my snake is a shark tonight!” Her sexy croon gives listeners that edge of danger and mystery that the Yeah Yeah Yeahs always pull off flawlessly.

The star of the release though is the fourth track, “Isis.” Evoking that gorgeous shimmering guitar quality of songs like “Maps,” “Isis” is positively trace-like. The track sways and envelops the listener in the stomping percussion and Karen O’s fantastic vocals. The rhythm is utterly infectious and will not leave your head for days as listeners, “Sway to the music of the beat…” The grit and swagger that the Yeah Yeah Yeahs exhibit is all at once infectious and mesmerizing on the Is Is E.P. Each song immediately leaves their mark with unparalleled energy. It’s only fitting for them to showcase this liveliness in a medium that will leave such and impact on the listener. Maybe bigger bands will follow suit and put out such tightly constructed songs. An E.P. seems like an artifact in this day and age. Leave it to some crazy, art-rock, bohemian band to help make it chic again.

Sounds Like: Antics (Interpol), Icky Thump (The White Stripes), Fever To Tell (Yeah Yeah Yeahs)

Key Cuts: Rockers To Swallow, Kiss Kiss, Isis