Yeah Yeah Yeahs Album: “It's Blitz!”

My rating: 3.5 out of 5

*"Zero." One of the better (if not the best) tracks on this album. It's a groovy electronic dance song with some good singing/lyrics and good synthesized sounds. Like most of the other songs, however, it doesn't have a very strong guitar or percussion; it's a lot less rock and much more dance music.

*"Heads Will Roll." A heavier dance song with stronger percussion and more intense lyrics. There's also some heavier guitar at the end of the song.

*"Soft Shock." A little lighter dance song, with more upbeat melody and lyrics.

*"Skeletons." A soft track with very little instrumentation. Some wood percussion is used, sounding like bones or something. The melody is uplifting.

*"Dull Life." A great rock song, more in line with other music usually sung by this band. It has a distinctive melody (for some reason, it sounds oriental to me), good lyrics, and strong percussion and guitar. It's cool.

*"Shame and Fortune." Another decent rock song, but with more electronic sounds. Melody and lyrics are great.

*"Runaway." Another slow uplifting track, much like "Skeletons." Has some good percussion at the end.

*"Dragon Queen." A moderate-tempo pop/rock song with soft vocals, good percussion, and some groovy sounds.

*"Hysteric." A slower rock song. Has good vocals and percussion, but is still quite slow and soft.

*"Little Shadow." A much slower song with some guitar and soft vocals. Not bad for the album's end.

First off, this album lacks the crazy energetic rock songs that dominated "Fever to Tell," or even "Show Me Your Bones." Instead, this album resembles something Moby made, not only because these songs are electric dance/chill-out, but also because they are using similar sounds. That being said, the album is not bad on its own merits. I found "Zero," "Heads Will Roll," "Dull Life," and "Dragon Queen" worthwile. YYY fans, or anybody looking for good dance tunes, may find this interesting. But if you're looking for more intense rock, you may be dissapointed.

The cover art on this CD is interesting. If you can't tell (because I didn't figure it out right away), the front cover is a picture of Karen O. squeezing an egg. The booklet includes a few good photos of the band performing. The inside covers are made to resemble a pizza box, and the disc art has the image of a pizza on it with the band members' heads on it. It's quite novel.

I have noticed a trend on Amazon.com reviews. Unless you are overwhelmingly positive of a band's album, flocks of diehard fans will freak out and repeatedly label the review 'unhelpful.'

Even knowing this, I have to say: this album is disappointing.

The YYYs raw, guitar-inspired, and entirely original rock has been replaced by smooth synth pop that sounds as if it were meticulously produced. The result is pleasing to the ears but not too original.

As with previous albums, the star of show is obviously Karen's vocals. The thing I was most shocked to hear was the death of her screechy, raw voice. It's been replaced a by smooth sounding croon that has clearly been filtered by a computer. The song 'Hysteric' is appropriately named because her vocals are so Auto-Tuned it makes me hysterical. Seriously, I can't tell: Am I listening to the YYYs or Dido?

This latest release by the group seems much more ambitious than their last effort and a bit more "experimental". Upbeat and catchy are the two attributes that go along with this nostalgic trip back to the early 1980's. If they continue down this musical path, they might be headed in the right direction. Invite some old friends over, put this on, and tell them they're listening to the new release from Blondie or Berlin and they won't know the difference! Having said that, this is much better than anything either Blondie or Berlin have released in recent yeats!

I like this CD. The songs are innovative, good to listen to and the energy is huge. The guitar work is strong, great vocals and a tight drum. Heads Will Roll is a very cool song - nice beat, solid keyboards, great voicals and an overall great sound.

This CD has a slightly Euro Dance feel, but the strong guitar work brings it back to a modern rock sound.

Pushing aside the jittery nerves of their post-punk attack, Karen O goes to Dance Floor Ice Queen on "It's Blitz!." The Yeah Yeah Yeahs decided to lay down the guitars for the bulk of the tracks here and dig out some vintage synths. Surprisingly enough, it works.

The openers "Zero" and "Heads Will Roll" both are disco sirens, with Karen cooing "get your leather, leather on" as she invites you for a night on the town. But beware. "Dragon Queen" also exhorts you to dance, but the band is back into aggro mold with their stinging guitars back in front of the dancey keyboards. Purists may cry foul, but "It's Blitz" is still unmistakably a YYY's record. When Karen cools down for the stately ender "Little Shadow," you can hear that the band is in control of the proceedings. Same with the bare-bones "Skeletons."

"It's Blitz" was one of the last CD's I picked up in 2009, and the similarities it shares with another disc I purchased at the same time startled me. The Gossip's

shares plenty of the same ground as "It's Blitz;" both CD's are swimming in the kind of icy dance music of the mid-80's and having a dang good time of it. While I prefer the heartier tone of The Gossip's disc, "It's Blitz" is still a cool listen.