Operation alleviate boredom through music is in full swing here at the Anderson abode. My most recent musical refuge has been a band I’ve heard about for what seems decades. Despite this fact, up until about three weeks ago, I had never actually listened to any of their music. At all. The band? Yeah Yeah Yeahs.

The album I’ve been listening to is their debut: Fever to Tell. In the first listen through Tick really grabbed my attention and refused to let go, such that I found myself skipping forwards and backwards, ignoring other perfectly fine tracks in favor of the sheer insanity of Tick. With much will power I was able to break this tendency and listen to the rest of the album.

I’ve been listening to Fever to Tell almost exclusively for a week now, and for a week I’ve been trying to figure out how to describe this album. I finally figured it out, but only by using other bands that you may or may not have heard of. Which kind of makes this post moot, because practically everyone has heard Yeah Yeah Yeahs. The first is Cat Power, the second is Be Your Own Pet. Take both bands, and combine them in various ways. You end up with this album.

My affinity for Garage Rock is limited, to be honest. There is something about it that after a while just gets under my skin. Perhaps it’s too open-ended. Perhaps it’s because the vocals aren’t so pronounced, and to me vocals are what seal the deal. Or maybe it’s because the beat is hard to feel under all that guitar. Regardless, garage rock and I don’t always get along.

This album has some songs that don’t really pull me in. It also grates on me sometimes. Karen O’s crazy vocals are great, but when the guitar gets weird and screamy behind the crazy vocals it feels like too much.

The first two tracks on this album don’t do a whole lot for me.

Tick then goes nuts and permanently landed Fever to Tell in my remembered albums list.

The songs on this album that I don’t care for fall into a category of music I generally don’t care for, no matter who is producing it. Fast lyrics with slow music, or vice versa. Too much vampy guitar. A beat that is off kilter or subject to unexpected change. These things always get to me.

Black Tongue and Pin are pretty awesome. The beats are solid and the guitar is kept under control.

I also really enjoy Maps, but for alternate reasons. It’s a slow song, but with a good beat. The guitar gets vampy without getting piercing, and matches the deeper Karen O vocals. Modern Romance is another perfect slow song. The beat is steady, and the vocals are perfectly nostalgic.

For what it’s worth, though, Karen O seems to be a total Frother…which automatically gets her a gold star.

What to Take Away?

Generally speaking, Leslie doesn’t know enough about Yeah Yeah Yeah’s style of music to make much commentary on that, but overall the album has some good points, some boring points, and some points that really gets on Leslie’s nerves. This being the debut album, though, makes me look forward do a more defined sound in their later albums.

What to Expect?

Garage rock influenced Indie with a general lack of steady beats in favor of craziness.

What drink to pair it with?

A Hot and Dirty Martini. Pepper Vodka, Dry Vermouth, Olive Brine, a dash of chipotle tabasco sauce. Garnish with a pepperoncini stuffed with blue cheese, and enjoy the insanity.

Favorite song?

Oh my, Tick. That song makes the entire album seem like a gift from congress.

Meet the newest incarnation of Leslie: unemployed Leslie. Prior to, oh, today, i had a Job. And prior to that i had school. But i graduated (thank congress), and with that lost my on campus job. While in the search of gainful employment (or, you know, ungainful employment. Whichever presents itself first), i’m filling the 8+ hours a day i normally spent working, going to class, and procrastinating homework via Plants Vs. Zombies, with music.

I reached a musical road block some weeks ago, but thankfully i have at least one friend with a high rate of musical overlap who recommended some music my way.

Currently i’m investigating Noisettes, a three piece Indie/Rock outfit from Great Britain.
They are another band to be retrieved from my musical blind spot. I mean, they make perfect sense, but somehow i had never heard of them before.

But now i have. Specifically i have been listening to What’s the Time Mr. Wolf?. There is a lot of rock in this album. The tag “Indie” always gives me an image of relaxed fit music. Melodies, harmonies, and a lot of sanded down edges. I just automatically think “I’m From Barcelona” for some reason.

That’s not so much the case here. Sharp edges are in abundance, and there are quite a few discordant parts that pop out at you. The electric guitar parts are especially pronounced, not something that generally appeals to me, but most of the time here i feel that it is well placed. Not overwhelming like 70’s power-metal. Really, the album feels like a Garage Rock album. Perhaps with some minor Post-Punk tendencies, and a few dashes of Indie sentiment.

Shingai Shoniwa, the lead vocalist, has an amazing voice. her range is quite sizable, and her ability to switch from shrieking to sultry to soft harmonies is perfect. I’m tempted to suggest that her voice makes the band, but that’s not entirely true. The music certainly keeps up, and is engaging and forceful in it’s own way, but is constructed such that it leaves a gap where her voice can come in and pull everything together.

Shingai herself plays bass. For the record, female bass players are awesome. Dan Smith crafts all the guitar rifts, and Jamie Morrison has control over the drums. Smith and Morrison provide perfect back up vocals to Shingai’s singing. For a three piece, their sound is very large. I want to say the music sounds “neat”, but it certainly doesn’t. It sounds, i imagine, exactly how they want it to sound.

The music itself is varied. The first song “Don’t Give Up“, gives very definite Rockabilly vibes, thanks to a deliberate and prominent bass line, her full throaty singing, and a subtle twang. She even throws in some little growls that really bring the Rockabilly touch home. The whole song is at a good tempo, perfect for throwing someone around the dance floor. I love it. I wish the rest of the album followed this style.

Unfortunately it doesn’t, but at the same time not everyone digs rockabilly as much as i do. From track two, the notion that this is an Garage Rock album really kick in. The bass is backed up to normal. The songs seem slightly unbalanced, but i always feel Garage Rock to be slightly off-balanced. It seems to be part of the charm. Most of the songs certainly don’t follow the normal verse to chorus ratio.

While guitar and vocal heavy garage rock may be the signature of this album, Noisettes throw some tracks onto the album to show they are capable of deliberate and delicate music. “The Count of Monte Christo” is probably the best example of this.

I don’t necessarily love the entire album. But regardless, the whole album is artfully crafted. Some of the songs just reach outside of my normal comfort zone for screaming guitars. There are quite a few songs on this album though that i really dig, and “Don’t Give Up”, is one of the few new songs i’ve become obsessed with in ages. I mean, even one dynamite song is more than most albums have going for them.

What to Take Away?

Noisettes is a solid Indie Rock band that takes much from the Garage Rock genre. Shingai’s voice is powerful and amazing, and a lot of thought seems to go into their music. Oh, and Shingai is a total fox.

What to Expect?

Garage Rock and nuts vocals that sometimes verge on blues or soul.

What to Pair it With?

Gin and Tonic with an extra wedge of lime.

Favorite Song?

“Don’t Give Up“. Its combination of bass and vocals is intoxicating.