When Yeah Yeah Yeahs started out in 2000, they were part of a wave of bands in the post-punk revival scene. That melded with their garage-punk sound nicely. Karen O’s screeching voice stood out above the crowd, Nick Zinner’s incredible frantic guitar riffs were a nice throwback to the post-punk of old, and on drums, Brian Chase kept the band sounding tight.

Karen and Nick met at New York University and at one point lived with members of Metric. They recruited Brian later, whom Karen knew from her time at Oberlin College.

They released Fever to Tell in 2003 and it was a huge critical and commercial success. “Maps” was their big hit that got radio time. This is their grungiest album and I love it. It’s worth a listen, this album shreds from top to bottom.  “Date With the Night,” “Black Tongue,” and “Pin” are especially some of my favorites.

Their second album, Show Your Bones, came out in 2006 and was just as good as their debut effort. It builds on what they did before but this one is a bit more polished and moves more into an indie rock sound. “Gold Lion,” “Way Out,” “Phenomena,” “Cheated Hearts,” “Mysteries,” and “Turn Into” are my picks for this one.

It’s Blitz (2009) marked another change for the band. Here we get more of a synthpop sound. Once again, they did well with the change. They seem to succeed no matter what they try to do. Songs like “Soft Shock,” “Dull Life,” and “Zero” are good examples of how they’ve managed to evolve their sound with modern trends. What separated this album though, is “Heads Will Roll.” It was a huge hit and was remixed with A-Trak, and was in Project X. Remember that movie? That takes me back.

In 2013, they released Mosquito. It’s more psychedelic than anything they’d done before. You just can’t pin down what Yeah Yeah Yeahs are. Just when you think you have the answer, they change the question. I think this is their least consistent album, but you can’t fault them for trying. There are still high points on this album. “Sacrilege” and “Mosquito” stand out above the pack to me.

After Mosquito, they took a break. A long break. It would be nine years until they released their last album, Cool it Down in 2022. This one is cohesive. It’s atmospheric and will sweep you off your feet right from the get-go with “Spitting Off the Edge of the World.” It’s a moment that sets up the rest of the trip the album takes you on. “Lovebomb,” “Wolf,” “Fleez,” and “Burning” are my high points on an album that doesn’t have many low points, if any.

You can hear songs from Cool It Down here on Evolution! I’d recommend listening to the whole thing though. Just let it wash over you.