Its Blitz!

Yeah Yeah Yeahs are weird. Their first album was a spastic garage album that was pretty much straight Rock n' Roll. Their sound has been danceable, and very much punk rock. Even the lineup, consisting of a drummer, a guitarist and a singer, suggests a stripped down DIY ethos. Which is why their third album, "It's Blitz!," seems to come out of nowhere. Suddenly they have gone techno pop, and I like it.

It seems as though they have traded out a guitar heavy sound for a synth heavy one. The drums are still fantastic, although they are hidden behind the heavy synth. Also, it seems lead singer Karen O has become demure. On the first album, she yelped and screamed and moaned like a sex kitten. What she does here is straightforward singing. Whereas here previous vocals were energizing and spastic, her singing on "Blitz" is soft, melodic and endearing.

This is the sound of a band trying something new. Trying new things is a risk, and sometimes they don't get the results they were searching for. All the same, they handle their decisions well, and I hope they stay as experimental and risky in the future.