Now that I’ve gotten some sleep, I can stay awake at my computer long enough to tell you the details of the two Yeah Yeah Yeahs shows I’ve been to this week.
The first show, as you already know, was in New Jersey at the tiny little 200-person venue Maxwell’s. When the tickets for all 3 shows went on sale I knew straight away that this show was going to be 10x more fun than the Bowery shows.
Out of the handful of times I’ve been here, I’ve seen some of my favorite performers (Beck, Sondre Lerche, and Duncan Sheik) and always had such a great time because of the warm and welcoming crowd. What is it about crossing the river that makes audiences so much more accepting and receptive to music?
I have to say, I was pleased by the fact that it was a weeknight, and it was in Hoboken because that meant that the people there had to put some effort into getting to the show–well at least the many of us who came from Manhattan without cars.
As I mentioned the other day, J. and I got to the venue early so we could eat dinner at the club. When the hostess said we’d have to wait 10 minutes for a table, she escorted us to a small clubhouse area toward the back of the dining hall where people can sit and drink while waiting for their table. I never even knew it existed! Anyway, while I was in there I heard Blood on the Wall having a toast to having “a great show” and saw the YYYs and friends getting their chow on at their table.
Blood on the Wall was up to bat first. It seems as though 90-grunge style is back because all three band members were wearing ratty tshirts and jeans. Their set was ok, I wasn’t really feeling it, but J. liked them. I wasn’t really getting what sets their music apart from other bands that do the whole atmospheric rock thing. (I’m sure some angry people will write in and tell me.) I was not sold on the “french-door” of sound meets off-key singing, but the crowd up front kinda loved them, screaming out the band’s name at various points during the set. Different strokes for different folks, I suppose.
After BOTW vacated the performance area, the Yeah Yeah Yeahs’ stage crew started setting up their gear and also laid down some setlists and a chord change cheat-sheet for Nick. Everyone scrambled to see what was going to be played but I resisted, stating “I don’t want to know what’s going to happen!” I heard some people making comments that they weren’t going to be playing many old songs and I said, “well they are here to play stuff of the NEW album!” Seriously guys, if you want to hear the old stuff, go listen to your record at home.
It wasn’t before long that the rock ‘n’ roll trio pushed their way through the crowd and piled onto the stage amidst enthusiastic cheering and whooping. Karen opened the show by saying that 90 percent of what they were going to play was going to be new stuff. Hooray!
They started off with the slow-building but very beautiful “Turn Into,” which is kinda like the older, more up-tempo sister of “Maps.” Up next was the first single off Show Your Bones, the sexy and mysterious “Gold Lion” which features some pretty folky guitar strumming, but the addition of weird electronic noodling noises it sounds modern and larger than life.
More photos and commentary on the shows after the jump.
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