It was only a week ago that I got around to listening to Brooklyn band Yeasayer's 2007 debut All Hour Cymbals, which features a bevy of beeps, blips, boops, and a bunch of other onomatopoeias that I can't think of for the life of me. Their careful range of experimentation never breaches Animal Collective territory; the vocals draw influences from David Byrne, and the electronic elements verge on poppy Kraftwerk. Considering they can still create melodies out of the experimental genre, that might explain their mainstream success (Wikipedia says their music was featured on Entourage, and that's what the kids watch these days, right? Right?)
Ambling Alp is only the first single released from their 2010 album Odd Blood, but this is promising work. The opening crackles like Willy Wonka's Gobstopper machine, calling out the inner hipster in us to draw parallels to Animal Collective's bubbling build-up to My Girls. The drums kick in, picking up the tempo, and guitarist/vocalist Anand Wilder starts to channel Madness' Suggs around the 2:30 mark. With the optimistic lyrics imploring the listener to 'stick up for yourself', Ambling Alp is part motivational talk, part MGMT, and a killer morning jam. -- PC
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