Yeah Yeah Yeahs (often abbreviated as YYYs) are an American indie rock band formed in New York City in 2000 by Karen O (vocals), Nick Zinner (guitars, keyboards), and Brian Chase (drums, percussion). They rose to fame during the 2000s garage rock and post-punk revivals, noted for their evolving musical style and energetic performances.
After earning positive reviews for their 2001 debut EP, Yeah Yeah Yeahs achieved commercial success with their acclaimed debut album, Fever to Tell (2003), placing them at the forefront of the 2000s rock revival. The album produced the single "Maps", which became their best-known song. Their next two albums, Show Your Bones (2006) and It's Blitz! (2009), drew further acclaim and produced the singles "Gold Lion" and "Heads Will Roll". Their fourth album, Mosquito (2013), earned lukewarm reviews but reached number five on the US Billboard 200. After a hiatus, their fifth album, Cool It Down (2022), marked a critical resurgence and produced the single "Spitting Off the Edge of the World".
Yeah Yeah Yeahs have received several accolades, including nominations for five Grammy Awards—four of which are for Best Alternative Music Album—and seven MTV Video Music Awards. Rolling Stone has Fever to Tell on their list of "500 Greatest Albums of All Time" and "Maps" on their "500 Greatest Songs of All Time"; the same publication ranked Karen O and Zinner among the greatest singers and guitarists in history, respectively.
History 2000–2003: Formation and Fever to Tell
In early 2000, singer/songwriter Karen Orzolek—henceforth known as Karen O—and guitarist Nick Zinner founded the acoustic duo Unitard. Later that year, they changed their name to Yeah Yeah Yeahs and shifted towards a "trashy, punky, [and] grimy" sound inspired by the contemporary Ohio music scene. In September 2000, the band was invited to open for the White Stripes at the Mercury Lounge in Manhattan. As Karen O did not want to use a drum machine live, she enlisted drummer Brian Chase a day before the show. He became a permanent fixture of their lineup, making Yeah Yeah Yeahs a trio.
In late 2001, Yeah Yeah Yeahs hired Jerry Teel, a former guitarist for the punk rock band Boss Hog, to co-produce a demo intended to secure more shows. This ultimately developed into their self-titled debut EP, a decision that Zinner attributes to their desire to share their music. It was recorded and produced at Funhouse Recording Studio in New York, which doubled as their rehearsal space. They self-released the EP on their own label, Shifty, in July 2001. They gained significant media coverage after Albert Hammond Jr. of the Strokes wore a Yeah Yeah Yeahs pin while performing on Saturday Night Live, as well as a high-profile performance at South by Southwest, leading to the EP's reissue by Touch and Go Records in the United States and Wichita Recordings in the United Kingdom in 2002. Their first royalty payment from the latter label, who signed them after hearing "Bang", was $32. The EP topped the UK Indie Chart and, according to Nielsen SoundScan, has sold over 71,000 copies.
By the end of 2002, Yeah Yeah Yeahs's first record and live shows garnered them recognition. The band received offers from major record labels to finance and produce their debut album, Fever to Tell, but rejected them, as they felt it would compromise their creative control. They funded the album themselves and hired the then-unknown Dave Sitek (TV on the Radio) as a co-producer, his first of several collaborations with the band. They recorded the album at the local Headgear Studio in early 2002 and compiled unused material into Machine, their second EP, for promotion. Yeah Yeah Yeahs subsequently signed to Interscope Records at the insistence of Lee Ranaldo of Sonic Youth, which allowed them to maintain creative control. In contrast to their usual no-bass style, Zinner played bass in the studio recordings but went uncredited.
Fever to Tell was released in May 2003 and sold more than one million copies worldwide by 2009, propelling the band to international stardom. It reached number 55 on the US Billboard 200 and number 13 on the UK Albums Chart, and it was nominated for the Grammy Award for Best Alternative Music Album and the Shortlist Music Prize. Regarding their musical progression, NME wrote: "When they first arrived in Britain a year ago, it seemed likely they'd make a debut album fixated on the simple art of fucking. Instead, 'Fever to Tell' is more complicated: seeking to explain love, sex and the remarkable, brittle, sometimes disturbing connections between the two." Four singles were released from the album: "Date with the Night", "Pin", "Maps", and "Y Control"; the first three reached the top 30 of the UK singles chart. "Maps" became the band's signature song, peaking at number 87 on the Billboard Hot 100 and tripling the sales of Fever to Tell. The song's music video was played extensively on MTV, and it got nominated for four MTV Video Music Awards.
2004–2006: Show Your Bones
In October 2004, Yeah Yeah Yeahs released their first DVD, Tell Me What Rockers to Swallow, which includes a concert filmed at the Fillmore in San Francisco, all of the band's music videos to date, and various interviews. In early 2005, they began work on their second album, Show Your Bones, with the goal of reinventing their sound and not creating "Fever to Tell part 2". Sitek returned to co-produce with the band and Sam Spiegel, better known as Squeak E. Clean. They faced various problems during production, including once scrapping and restarting the project, and tensions rising amongst the members due to the pressure. Karen O explained, "We just scared the shit out of each other, it was a dark and scary realm that we were going into – not that the music was dark and scary it was just totally different." Chase said that he did not understand the music until a month after they had finished the album. The final product was described by the band as "what happens when you put your finger in a light socket".
Show Your Bones was officially released in March 2006. It became the band's career-highest entry in the United Kingdom, at number seven, and it quadrupled the first-week sales of Fever to Tell in the United States. The press agreed that the band had successfully avoided a sophomore slump, though one critic thought their tensions showed in its music. It earned the band their second nomination for the Best Alternative Music Album Grammy. Three singles were released from the album: "Gold Lion", "Turn Into", and "Cheated Hearts". The first of these peaked at number 88 on the Billboard Hot 100. They toured in early 2006 in support of the record.
Yeah Yeah Yeahs joined All Tomorrow's Parties in 2006, a now-defunct organization from the United Kingdom that promoted independent music through their festivals. As major contributors to the festival, Yeah Yeah Yeahs were included in the 2009 documentary of the same name. Also in 2006, they released a live EP exclusive to iTunes. That same year, they joined BeatBullying's "Take a Stand" campaign to advocate against bullying and contributed a remix of "Cheated Hearts" to the charity album Give. Listen. Help. Volume 3, which aimed to raise awareness of breast cancer.
2007–2009: It's Blitz!
Yeah Yeah Yeahs announced the release of a fourth EP, Is Is, in June 2007, composed of songs written between the production of Fever to Tell and Show Your Bones and produced by Nick Launay. In a statement on their website, the band wrote: "Summer nights are made for this shit. This shit IS IS made for summer nights." It was released in July 2007 and entered the US Billboard 200 at number 72. Only one single was released from the EP, "Down Boy". Also in 2007, the band contributed "Sealings" to the soundtrack of the superhero film Spider-Man 3.
In 2008, Yeah Yeah Yeahs began working on their third album, It's Blitz!. They wrote all the material during production, in contrast with the sessions for their first two albums. Launay, who returned as a co-producer with Sitek, remarked that he had not seen a band do so since 1979. The band reinvented themselves once more by shifting to dance-punk and pop rock, using pre-recorded samples of Chase's drums and making heavy use of an ARP synthesizer Zinner brought on a whim to one of five studios It's Blitz was recorded at. Several breaks were taken during production, to "get inspired". The album was slated for release in April 2009, but an internet leak of the material occurred in February, much to the band's dismay. The band embarked on an international tour to support the album in late 2009.
It's Blitz was ultimately released in March 2009 and doubled the sales of Show Your Bones in the United States alone. It received gold certifications in the United States, United Kingdom, and Australia—their most highly certified album to date, and netted their third nomination for the Best Alternative Music Album Grammy. Three singles were released from the album: "Zero", "Heads Will Roll", and "Skeletons", the second of which became the band's best-selling single to date, going double platinum in the United Kingdom and New Zealand. The song's music video was nominated for the MTV Video Music Award for Breakthrough Video. A remix by the Canadian artist A-Trak further heightened the song's popularity, and it was placed on Rolling Stones list of "The 200 Greatest Dance Songs of All Time". The band also covered the Ramones's "Sheena Is a Punk Rocker" for War Child Presents Heroes (2009), a charity album whose funds provided aid to children in war-afflicted countries.
2010–2013: Mosquito
Yeah Yeah Yeahs headlined a fundraiser performance at the Museum of Modern Art in New York in 2010, which honored several philanthropists and raised funds for the museum. Following the It's Blitz! shows, the band began to work on new material. Their activity decreased in the next two years as the members worked on personal projects. Their following album, Mosquito, was produced during a turbulent time for the trio, who wrote and recorded the songs only when they felt inspired. Combining a return to their early sound with a "playful, lo-fi approach", Sitek and Launay returned to produce the album and were joined by James Murphy of LCD Soundsystem, who the band were previously interested in collaborating with. Karen O said Mosquito "was the rope ladder thrown down into the ditch for us to climb up and dust ourselves off".
In January 2013, Yeah Yeah Yeahs announced Mosquito, whose artwork by Beomsik Shimbe Shim attracted negative attention. After a series of promotional performances, the album was released in April 2013 and became their highest-charting effort in the United States to date, peaking at number five on the Billboard 200. In spite of chart success, some outlets felt the band had taken their first step backward. Two singles were issued: "Sacrilege" and "Despair", both of which were accompanied by music videos. The first won two UK Music Video Awards and nominations for two MTV Video Music Awards. "Despair" was shot on the top of the Empire State Building, making Yeah Yeah Yeahs the first band to ever film there. They toured worldwide in early 2013 to promote the album.
2014–2021: Hiatus and concert focus