NAME: Yeasayer
PROGRESS REPORT: Recording their followup to 2007′s All Hour Cymbals in Woodstock, New York.
“There’s some music that can make you feel happy and good, and there’s some that can make you feel inadequate, like you’re not cool enough to be listening to that music. I want to go for that,” says Yeasayer’s Anand Wilder. And that’s just one way Yeasayer is completely different from nearly every other band I’ve talked to about recording. Some of the others ways: they don’t want to recreate their live sound. They don’t plan on using some of the elements that were the best parts of their debut album, and Wilder is eating a peanut butter, jelly, and cheddar sandwich. But once he explains the band’s ideas on writing and recording, they all make sense. Except for the cheddar.
Yeasayer have a lot of time to think about their second album. They are a couple weeks into a three-month recording block at their rented studio home in Woodstock, NY. Like John Vanderslice, the band found their nonstop touring awful for writing new songs. Back home they had too many distractions. “We wanted to be in a place where you couldn’t go home every night, but close enough so that a trip up there wouldn’t kill you,” Wilder says. The band stumbled on an amazing find: a musically-stocked, modern-but-rustic home for rent two hours north of the city. The house, which is owned by a former session drummer for Paul McCartney, Peter Gabriel, and Hall and Oats, has a wood stove, enough bedrooms for the band, and a complete recording studio full of instruments like a Hammond organ, “drawers full of pedals,” gamelans, and koto drums. It’s easy to walk to, but semi-isolated (bassist Ira Wolf Tuton had to sleep with the lights on when he was alone). “We really lucked out,” Wilder says. “We can’t make excuses anymore.”
They’ve already used some of the instruments, though Wilder insists that they won’t use analog sounds just for the sake of using analog. ‘We’re very computer-based. We’re not purists in any way. If a Protools plug-in can achieve the same kind of sound as an analog effect, then we’ll use it,” he explains. “People say Yeasayer is much better live and has more energy. But for us it’s about getting a recording we’re happy with and then replicating that in a live setting, but making the two things very distinct.” In fact, the two new songs they’ve been playing live, “Ambling Alp” and “Lovely Girl,” will undergo major changes. Even the band’s beautifully layered vocals are under review, because they’re eager to try doing just one, polished vocal track on a song.
As for out-cooling their listeners, the goal is really to take them out of their niche. Wilder compares it to how he felt listening to rap when he was a kid, realizing that he was listening to something totally removed from his experience. But so much of indie rock is based on how well you can relate to the band. “I think when you work in that context you’re in a bubble of nerdiness,” he says. “If you were to play some of your songs to someone who was a normal, middle-American person, they would say ‘What is this garbage? Gimme some Coldplay.’ So I want to make songs that don’t just appeal to a certain niche, but that actually can appeal to that niche or alienate that niche and appeal to something much greater than that.” How great? “There’s always some songs that we think, ‘We’ll save it for our fourth record, when we really just want to get on the radio. That’s just a little too sugary.’ Then we’ll turn on the radio and be like, ‘What are we talking about? We’ll never be this cheesy.’”
You can keep track of Yeasayer at their studio blog odd-blood.blogspot.com. They also gave us some photos and this short, freaky video to share with you. It was titled valkimer.mov.
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If there’s a band you want Progress Report to drag out of the studio, or bed, for an update, shout out in the comments or e-mail tips@stereogum.com.
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fuck buttons please!!! thank you kindly.
they really are an eccentric bunch, and I dig it. Bands that preach pure analog make me feel guilty–most music I listen to certainly has a great deal of computerized/sampled components. and he’s right on about the niches!
Rentals and/or Built to Spill progress report, if you please.
Progress Report: Flaming Lips vs Arcade Fire, please!
I was listening to their most recent album the other day wondering if there was any news on a new album, so thank you for this!
PLEASE do a Joanna Newsom progress report! I know it’s been asked several times. But I just really want to get the point across that I’m dying for that to happen. K good thanx.
Ok, everyone uses the comments to suggest something so…
Explosions in the Sky
I love you but I’ve chosen darkness
Snowden
There are more actually… but thanks for keeping up the great work. Love this feature
What the hell is that they’re eating for breakfast? Broccoli rabe or some shit. FUCK that. OK? FUCK bands who eat that shit. They’re pompous. They suck. They’re assholes, and anybody who eats that garbage, he may as well be Wayne Fucking Coyne, who, like, I mean, whatever. You know? Just, like, whatever.
Jesus. Boiled green shit. For breakfast. Hippies. Screw these goddamn hippies. Clouds Taste Metallic was their last decent album. A goddamn decade ago. Wayne? Fuck you, Wayne. Ronald Jones, mtoerhfuckger. He was the shit. He was the whole damn band. He was IT.
That’s not fucking music. It’s not fucking News for Fucking Nerds either. Screw that idiot from that other band, too. Whatever his name is.
Dude, step away from the computer, go outside, take a deep breath; it’s going to be okay.
This guy just made my day.
Must be a pissed off Arcade Fire fan.
Thanks for this. I don’t think I’m alone when I say that “Tightrope” had me saying “oh yea, those guys!” And I mean that in a good way. I look forward to what they come up with next.
Meh Sayer
ooh, how about pavement? or fIREHOSE? where have those bands been?
about 5% of the above is actually about yeasayer. this makes me sad.
never gonna be on a boat
Dappled Cities progress report, please? Also Mew!!!
I guess yeasayer had hype that died and now people are just all “give me a progress report about joanna newsome or grizzly bear”?
Poor yeasayer…maybe it’s time for pony tail dude to lose the pony tails and start fresh?
I think you are right.
It’s kind of disrespectful to start shouting out names of other bands in the comments. I think Stereogum should remove that part that says “shout out in the comments” if you know of any band, and leave it to an email. Don’t you agree?
That’s a good idea.
Yeasayer’s last album was great, can’t wait to hear some new stuff.
I didn’t really dig yeasayer until i heard tightrope on dark was the night. now im hooked.
nice. one of the best shows i saw last year, at mhow. so good
their song on dark was the night is TEERRIIIIBBBBLLEEEEE how did this band make 2080? boring as all hell besides that standout track
Surprised their aren’t more Yeasayer fans on Stereogum. This band is the tits, especially live. And Tightrope is a great song. Jamz is a tard.
I can’t wait for that fourth album.
Jacksfork – really? I saw these guys open up for ManMan last year and they were the worst. Probably top 3 worst shows I have ever seen. The lead singer couldnt sing, and he looked like he was getting tazed every 5 seconds. They suck
false
ambling alp is the song that hooked me on these guys.
It made me sad to find out it wasn’t out yet
and even more sad to find out they’re changing it
great choice for a progress report. they’re fucking awesome.
The world definitely needs more Yeasayer. Great news!
I like collards for breakfast, too.
love yeasayer.
thao with the get down stay down prog. report plz.
how about coolio? he’s due for a progress report.
the most serene republic
please!
Xiu Xiu Please?
appreciate the yeasayer selection.
beeteedubs, pitchfork got gayer.
has anyone heard of KSCRfest? they got crystal antlers, the happy hollows, and mika miko… wtf is that?
Yeasayer are great in their own way, a band that will evlove over time for the best.
Need an update on CALIFONE!
I wholeheartedly agree. 2080 is a great song but this band is god-awful and this write up about wanting to make music that makes you feel inadequate makes me dislike them even more.
Sunrise and wait for the summer are pretty good jams too,
Joanna Newsom. Did she think after Y’s there was no point in trying? Maybe she’s taking a music break and dating a famous actor like Devendra did.
Actually yeah, isn’t she dating Andy Samberg. At any rate, I repeat my desire for a Newsom report
Yay, I love yeasayer!
These guys will never be a great live band. They need to accept that. Their singer can’t sing and they rely too heavily on samples. However, if they took certain ELEMENTS from their live show and incorporated it into their recording process, then they could be one of the best studio bands around today. Even though I can barely stand to listen to their singer live, I find myself youtubing live versions of their songs constantly simply because the arrangements are ingenious, whereas on the album they all sound half-assed. Listen to a live performance of “Red Cave” or “Forgiveness” and then listen to the clusterfuck versions of those songs on the album. There’s no comparison. Why don’t they just record those versions on the album? That way I could enjoy these amazing arrangements while not being tortured by erratic vocals. It drives me crazy. “Sunrise” is the only song that’s actually better on the album than it is live.
Of course, Yeasayer and Arcade Fire we’ve already had. But please– what’s happened to Boards of Canada? Are those guys any more or not? And another band you don’t hear a lot about is Plants and Animals. Another excellent band. That’s all I can think of.
The Progress Report is a great addition to a superb blog.
so they suck live.
but if their record sounded like their live show, they’d be awesome?
mkay.
No, I never said they sucked live. Just that they’ll never be a great live band. But that’s for the sole reason that they’re not technically talented enough to play the kind of tight, consistently good live show that you’d hear from a more seasoned band. My point was that, for whatever reason, they almost always play superior versions of their songs live, with more layered vocals and more creative sounds. There’s no reason why they can’t just record those versions on the albums so they can capture all of their strengths as songwriters while giving themselves time to polish their sound in the studio, as opposed to playing live, where they can’t do that.
If I thought they sucked live, why would I refer to their RECORDINGS as clusterfucks when I was obviously contrasting the two things? Read.
good to hear they’re recording a new album. these guys are definitely unique but they have such a great sound. all hour cymbals is a pretty good debut. anybody know what happened to their drummer though? i noticed the new line-up in this pitchfork fest video.
http://pitchfork.com/tv/#/episode/2022-yeasayer-at-pitchfork-music-festival-09/1
(great version of wait for the summer btw.)
thanks for the progress report.