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Critic Reviews
100
Bones is neither a heated-up knock-off of Fever To Tell nor a fan-alienating abandonment of their signature sound. It is instead, a supremely confident 12-song cut that has a remarkable weightiness. If Fever To Tell was all straight lines and neon colours, its successor is fleshed out with shade and light.
8y
91
Show Your Bones picks up where ”Maps” left off, with the trio finding a middle ground between self-conscious primitivism and refined pop.
9y
90
The rambunctious, ferociously energetic garage pop that formed the backbone of their debut is nowhere to be found. There is a discipline to the groupโs sound now, a control that belies their chaotic origins.
15y
85
With Show Your Bones, the Yeah Yeah Yeahs have proven themselves worthy of the hype, and, more importantly, the excitement caused by an undeniably fantastic record.
13y
83
Show Your Bones jumbles up the approach, letting the band shift gears from track to track. O's primal howl makes fewer appearances, but there's no attempt to soften up for the sake of creating another "Maps."
13y
80
Show Your Bones is an album that, through sheer force of will, transforms anxiety into confidence. It may not be the album many critics and fans were expecting from Yeah Yeah Yeahs, but it’s undeniably the right record for them at the right time, a shrewd display of awareness of both craft and, more importantly, of self too often lacking in modern rock.
11y
80
Sweetly chaotic and dangerously addictive.
4y
80
โShow Your Bonesโ is a determined follow up to the sassy, firebrand punk of its predecessor, enough removed to neatly sidestep direct comparison and intriguing enough to warrant an inquest.
6y
80
Show Your Bones is the sort of second album that, rather than being a sophomore slump, makes you anxiously wonder what albums three, four and five will sound like.
10y
80
This album is, above all, a textural triumph, a quantum bounce from the brittle jitter and insect-chatter fuzz of the band's 2001 Yeah Yeah Yeahs EP and 2003's full-length Fever to Tell. It's as if the Velvet Underground had gone from the black-crusted minimalism of their first album right to the pop bloom of their fourth, Loaded.
11y
80
While a little more subdued with acoustic guitar appearing on many tracks, it's not a step into the mainstream, more a shuffle away from the fringes.
12y
80
‘Show Your Bones’ is an exhausting ride through the trials and tribulations of Second Album Syndrome, and cements their place as one of the noughties’ most exciting bands.
12y
80
Though they’ve shed the cheap – but undeniably fun – Day-Glo immediacy of ‘Fever…’, it’s been replaced by a range of expressions that most artists will only stumble upon by their fifth release.
13y
80
Unlike some of their New York neighbours we could mention, there’s no ‘difficult second album’ syndrome here – Show Your Bones is the sound of a bang irretrievably, irresistibly and deservedly hurtling towards the big time.
15y
70
Show Your Bones is much more accessible than its predecessor, but there isn't really a "Maps" to serve as a gateway.
5y
68
On Show Your Bones the Yeah Yeah Yeahs occupy only one corner of the territory they claimed on Fever, walking confidently in their own footsteps but without claiming any new ground.
15y
60
Although the Yeah Yeah Yeahs are experimenting with more elaborate arrangements and production treatments on their highly anticipated second album, their compositions have taken an unsettling turn toward conventional rock.
6y
60
As the amalgamated response to all the vectors stabbing at its hype, Show Your Bones doesn't come across with quite the nakedness it intended. At times it sounds forced, playing a battle in sound between resolute eyes and erratic tenacity.
13y
60
Too often heartache overtakes the band's sass and attitude on Show Your Bones. Actually, sass and attitude sound like the perfect antidote to heartache -- and, quite possibly, what ails the Yeah Yeah Yeahs.
13y
40
Despite finding some hooks worth pilfering, the band are still struggling to raise their game beyond White Stripes-goth-lite
10y
Gold Lion - 3/5
Way Out - 4/5
Fancy - 3/5
Phenomena - 3/5
Honeybear - 4/5
Cheated Hearts - 3/5
Dudley - 4/5
Mysteries - 4/5
Sweets - 3/5
Warrior - 3/5
Turn Into - 4/5
Deja Vu - - 4/5
It's more of the same from YYYs, but "Show Your Bones" is still a great shift in perspective from the sexual urges of "Fever To Tell". It's also a softer sound compared to that record, but it doesn't hinder Karen O's vocals and catchy, introspective songwriting at all.
Fav Tracks: Cheated Hearts, Dudley, Way Out, Turn Into, Gold Lion, Phenomena, Sweets
Least Fav Track: Honeybear
Score:
8.5
Exceptional
A huuuuuge step up from their debut, going from that mess of a debut to something truly beautiful. Show Your Bones might honestly be the Yeah Yeah Yeahs at their catchiest. The YYYs go in a softer direction after their messy and noisy debut. Instead of jumping from high pace to low pace all over everywhere, Show Your Bones has the band more consistent than ever with a clear sound in mind that they execute near flawlessly. The more alternative, almost Boa sounding, instrumentation leads to more ... read more
Hehehe what if you uhhh what if uhhh you took the title but uhhhh put an "r" between the "e" and "s" in "bones". Heh, that would be funny
Best song: Cheated Hearts
Worst song: Warrior
Standout Tracks: Fancy, Cheated Hearts, Dudley, Sweets
Weakest Tracks: Way Out, Honeybear, Mysteries
Contributions By
wallver, patton, royalflush, Alejandro Gonzรกlez, Alex69, MarkyC, Lazers, OPENblinds, ๐๐ช๐ฏ๐จ๐ฉ๐ข๐ด
