Dave Chamberlain

When the Strokes performed on "Saturday Night Live," perhaps you noticed that one of the band members was adorned with a pin that read "YYY." That's because those guys quit reading their own press for a bit and found the light. Hailing from New York's underground, the Yeah Yeah Yeahs are a three-person rock band that clearly lives in the garage without hanging out there all the time. For the genre-obsessed, the Yeah Yeah Yeahs bring post-punk garage rock spiked with tinctures of sixties go-go dance music. For those who don't care what you call it, rest assured that the Yeah Yeah Yeahs play adrenaline-charged, high-octane rock music, usually loud and very stripped down. The band only has a self-titled five-song EP, but its first listen packs more punch than any record I've heard in six months. Lead singer Karen O's voice adds a flippant attitude, but she's far from bored; when she explodes into a chorus on "Miles Away," backed by a rumbling low-end guitar, it carries the same type of quasi-religious experience shared with songs like "Whole Lotta Love" and "Purple Haze." Though only two of the five tracks on the EP are uptempo, the remaining three prove that the Yeah Yeah Yeahs aren't just three-chord rockers--there's texture and depth below the surface, rock music with big hooks that draws on everything between the Velvet Underground and Sonic Youth. Word on the street has it that they double-rock on stage; can't wait to find out.

The Yeah Yeah Yeahs play March 12 at the Empty Bottle, 1035 North Western, (773)276-3600.

(2002-03-07)

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