Brooklyn “buzz band” Yeasayer is back with their long-awaited sophomore album Odd Blood. The album is a freakish whirlwind of celestial synths and percussive samples that somehow meld into an incredibly bizarre “pop” album.
Since their striking debut – 2007’s All Hour Cymbals – the band has cut their hair and reshaped their sound into something altogether more epic and complex. Odd Blood is filled with rhythmic and natural samples that bubble, crackle, and tweet over lush orchestration.
Odd Blood’s astronomical size is created by the sheer number of instruments and the incredibly deep reverb that graces nearly every track. This complexity shifts Yeasayer away from the neo-tribal sound that permeated their first album, and gives way to a much more spacey and futuristic sound. Luckily, the chaos is kept in check and the album never sounds too muddy or distracting.
One of the band’s most notable shifts is Chris Keating’s vocals, which now soar confidently above the track in both blissful and wistful melodies. Sometimes this vocal dominance can stand a little too far in front of a track, but Keating’s performance really is impressive. Also by restricting the vocals to only Keating has allowed him to become a true front-man and experiment with the power of his voice.
Though Ira Wolf Tuton hardly sings, his bass lines have not suffered at all. It should be noted that his riffs are more sparse this time around, but they are infectiously catchy and original.
Odd Blood still sounds like Yeasayer, but a more joyous Yeasayer that could be played at a rave on Mars. This album isn’t a redefinition, but it is a significant evolution into a bold sound that is equally aberrant and fantastic.
8/10
