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19 of 20 people found the following review helpful:
4.0 out of 5 stars
A Lot of Fever -- Not Much Telling, August 3, 2003
This review is from: Fever to Tell (Audio CD)
I first heard the Yeah Yeah Yeahs when they performed "Y-Control" on Conan O' Brien. Initially, I was blown away by the guitarist, Nick Zinner. But what kept me hooked was Karen O's stage presence. I downloaded the song the next day and played it repeatedly. From there, I read a few reviews of the album and downloaded the song "Maps," which seems to be the critical favorite. I found myself equally impressed. Before actually purchasing the album, I tested out one more song and downloaded the current single, "Date with the Night." From there I knew I had to take the plunge and buy the album. And I must say, I'm very happy I did.
The first thing that impressed me with Fever to Tell was Karen's vocals. A combination of PJ Harvey's range and tonal quality with Bjork's vocal abandon. Her voice warbles, shrieks, and screams through tracks like "Rich," "Date with the Night," and especially "Tick" with an amazing elasticity.
Musically, the album also kept me quite entertained. The sheer energy and fun-loving spirit of the album is enough to perk up even the most depressive music lover. The instrumentation is largely just guitar and drums (provided by Brian Chase), but it sounds remarkably full even without the aid of a bassist. Most of the beats have a cheerful march quality to them and the guitar wails as it's pumped through 2 amps. "Pin" would be my choice for the most musically infectious track on the album.
But where the album falters is in the land of lyrics. There are some genuine gems: "Maps," "Y-Control," "Modern Romance," and the bonus track. Basically, the end of the album is where are the good lyrics are stored. It's also where Karen tones down the vocals and the sweet side of her voice gets a chance to shine. But the majority of the tracks have very sparse, one-track lyrics. If you approach the first portion of the album as a feel-good rocker, you won't be disappointed -- the opening tracks will have you bounding across the room. But if it's lyrical depth you're looking for, you're going to be using the Skip button a lot.
The album is also a little short. Most of the tracks don't get beyond the 2:40 mark. But given the fact that their lyrics are more than a little repetative (Karen seems to have a definite habit of choosing a word from each lyric and repeating it over and over again), this may not be such a bad thing.
Yeah Yeah Yeahs have a lot of potential in all the areas of music: vocals, music, performance, and (when they want to) lyrics. I'm really interested in seeing where they take things on their second album. Fever to Tell is most certainly worth a listen and, if you like what you hear, a purchase.
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