After hearing the first single, “Ambling Amp”, and watching the accompanying video, I began impatiently awaiting the release of Yeasayer’s sophomore album, ‘Odd Blood’. Now, having finally heard the album in its full glory, I’m thinking, ” Glad I didn’t hastily write this after the first listen, because my thoughts have changed (for the better)”. It seems as if ‘Odd Blood’ is a bit of a grower, although, not all of the tracks rooted themselves to my headphones.
Out of the 10 tracks, I can see myself actively seeking out, “Madder Red”, “Ambling Amp” (yes, still), and “O.N.E”, while being satisfied if my ipod unintentionally shuffled onto,”The Children”, “Love Me Girl” and “Rome”. On the other hand, “Strange Reunions”, “Mondegreen” and “Grizelda”, currently invoke a strong, ’skip track’ urge. For those of you mathematicians (or people who can count to ten), yes, I only mentioned nine tracks above, and it’s because I’m still unsure about the track, “I Remember”. Keating’s rising and falling falsetto meshes really well with the slow moving tempo and the change of pace is more than welcome, but I get sort of bored with the repetition after two minutes.
All in all, ‘Odd Blood’ is a good pop album with some impressive standalone tracks that pleads a case for Yeasayer’s versatility. Whether you think Yeasayer has successfully evolved or gone down the crapper since ‘All Hour Cymbals’ , there is a clear shift in sound/style from their debut.
