YEAH YEAH YEAHS - Cool It Down

We’re spitting off the edge of the world

Out in the night

Never had no chance

Nowhere to hide

Marked by a hot-button topic like climate change, the resulting crisis, and above all what kind of planet (and what kind of problems) future generations will be left to deal with, "Cool It Down", the fifth album by the Yeah Yeah Yeahs, arrives after nine long years of waiting. The album takes its name from a track of the same title on "Loaded" by Velvet Underground, in which the protagonist is on the hunt for a prostitute, drawing a parallel with the way we're treating the Earth. We take whatever we want whenever we please, we give it no respite and pay no mind whatsoever to its natural cycles: just think of the so-called "Earth Overshoot Day", the date on which the planet's available natural resources are declared exhausted, forcing us to dip into the reserves set aside for future generations, and which arrives earlier and earlier every year.

With Lou Reed's band, Karen O and co. share a gaze fixed on punk-rock avant-gardism (at least in intent, though they're currently leaning more towards alt-dance), the ferment and many facets of the Big Apple, and the nature of a project that's just "trashy, punky, grimy" enough.

The excellent opening stretch is dominated by the standout track "Spitting Off The Edge Of The World", a gritty, dark "Blue Jeans" laced with seductive synths and dense atmospheres, straddling the line between dream-pop and shoegaze, where Karen O's voice intertwines with that of Mike Hadreas, aka Perfume Genius, playing out a generational clash between young and old, the latter guilty of bad decisions that have sealed the fate of their heirs and of the Earth. The synths of the sensual, languid "Lovebomb" follow a similar path with space-rock leanings, while "Wolf" takes on an epic, orchestral cut thanks to the strings in its chorus, built around a reworking of dance rhythms and electronic rock sounds pulled from the Eighties.

"Fleez" bets everything on the rhythm section, interpolating the well-known "Moody" by avant-funk outfit ESG, who also get a name-check in the lyrics, triggering a play on words, since ESG is also the acronym for "Environmental, Social and Governance", the sustainability rating used for better management of human resources. The second half of the record opens with the jazz piano of "Burning", where the Urban Soul Orchestra takes center stage, with a gait that recalls the earlier "Sacrilege", followed by the minimal "Blacktop" and the further orchestral contribution of "Different Today".

The journey closes with the spoken word of "Mars", centered on the dream of an alternative planet to settle, a sci-fi utopia that in the collective imagination usually takes the shape of Mars, destined to remain just that, because as we all know, there is no planet B.

A balanced, hit-and-run comeback, clocking in at just over half an hour, "Cool It Down" keeps filler and repetition to a minimum, and while it doesn't reinvent anything, it relaunches the band at its best with a string of interesting ideas. Yet another proof that you don't need to stay constantly in the spotlight churning out empty singles or endless LPs on repeat, since a carefully curated selection of material can often make all the difference.

Ride the wave of great music

Add OndaRock to your favorite sources on Google Discover. Don't miss our reviews, milestones and latest news straight in your feed.

Follow on Google

03/10/2022