April 15, 2004

Yeah Yeah Yeahs

New York punk-influenced rock infused the Forum in Kentish Town tonight. Their sound was a welcome relief after the infestation my ears were subjected to from The Locust, who started the show. Admittedly, one of the guitarists did seem to have a lot of technical talent based on the way his fingers were flying between the frets. And they seemed tight because they did all stop at the same milisecond, but the noise that issued from their instruments and the screaming...Did you ever see that Energizer commercial with a punker going "We're screaming at the top of our lungs"? The stage needed a good dose of insecticide.

On to the good stuff. Yeah Yeah Yeahs. Three words, three people, big sound. Karen O is fun to watch on stage. Shiny tutu-like outfit, war paint make-up, lots of hair flipping and prancing. I see reviews comparing her to Siouxsie Sioux, but I wonder why not Wendy O Williams? The screaming and the whole O thing is a closer match. Maybe because Wendy O was a blonde. I saw a few copies of Karen's hairstyle on girls in the crowd.

Guitarist Nick Zinner was my favorite of the trio. How he makes such a giant sound with his one guitar amazes me. I would guess he is the main songwriting talent.