Photos: 02.26 Yeah Yeah Yeahs @ Bowery Ballroom pt.1
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There are trios, there's power trios, and then there's the Yeah Yeah yeahs. If their new album "Show Your Bones" even comes close to capturing the intense energy and passion of their performance at the packed Bowery Ballroom Saturday night its going to be a monster.
Since the early days at Brownies, YYYs shows have always been intense experiences and when I caught them at the Bowery in 2004, a sauced Karen O. flung a microphone into the mosh pit, slicing open a dancing fans forehead. So there was definitely an "anything can happen" vibe before the Yeahs hit the stage.
As always Karen; decked out in 2010’s hippest fashions, ruled the stage with supreme confidence and energy. One second she'll flash the crowd a sly smile and girlish laugh - then grab a beer & fall to her knees with a shrill scream or lean into the second row with a perfect punk-soul croon. She’s punk in motion. Resident guitar genius Nick Z. is amazingly adept at avoiding colliding with her while never missing a beat. He generates a wall of sound so huge that it conjures images of the classic guitar gods - but with a rumbling controlled burn - as if Link Wray had gotten a hold of “Unknown Pleasures”.
Brian on drums has always been the heart of the band. With his sonic booming style he's the propulsive force that powers the YYY freight train while keeping it flying completely off the rails. Tonight he played the new rhythms with and a visible joy that the rest of the band completely vibed off of - especially new band member Imaad who spent much of the show in a kneeling position fiddling with effects knobs in front of his keyboard banging his head along in a kind of euphoric trance. The crowd was equally enraptured - screaming out for their old favorites between songs, singing along to the choruses of the new tunes, and flashing away with their camera phones trying to capture this perfect musical moment.
The fact that the Yeah Yeah Yeahs can roll into town after being virtually MIA for the past year and completely blow away a crowd (and the jaded industry tastemakers in the upper balcony) playing almost nothing but new material speaks volumes to the power & genius of this awesome band.
There are trios, there's power trios, and then there's the Yeah Yeah yeahs. If their new album "Show Your Bones" even comes close to capturing the intense energy and passion of their performance at the packed Bowery Ballroom Saturday night its going to be a monster.
Since the early days at Brownies, YYYs shows have always been intense experiences and when I caught them at the Bowery in 2004, a sauced Karen O. flung a microphone into the mosh pit, slicing open a dancing fans forehead. So there was definitely an "anything can happen" vibe before the Yeahs hit the stage.
As always Karen; decked out in 2010’s hippest fashions, ruled the stage with supreme confidence and energy. One second she'll flash the crowd a sly smile and girlish laugh - then grab a beer & fall to her knees with a shrill scream or lean into the second row with a perfect punk-soul croon. She’s punk in motion. Resident guitar genius Nick Z. is amazingly adept at avoiding colliding with her while never missing a beat. He generates a wall of sound so huge that it conjures images of the classic guitar gods - but with a rumbling controlled burn - as if Link Wray had gotten a hold of “Unknown Pleasures”.
Brian on drums has always been the heart of the band. With his sonic booming style he's the propulsive force that powers the YYY freight train while keeping it flying completely off the rails. Tonight he played the new rhythms with and a visible joy that the rest of the band completely vibed off of - especially new band member Imaad who spent much of the show in a kneeling position fiddling with effects knobs in front of his keyboard banging his head along in a kind of euphoric trance. The crowd was equally enraptured - screaming out for their old favorites between songs, singing along to the choruses of the new tunes, and flashing away with their camera phones trying to capture this perfect musical moment.
The fact that the Yeah Yeah Yeahs can roll into town after being virtually MIA for the past year and completely blow away a crowd (and the jaded industry tastemakers in the upper balcony) playing almost nothing but new material speaks volumes to the power & genius of this awesome band.
Labels: Bowery Ballroom, Yeah Yeah Yeahs
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