Yuck [Updated]

[Update: As time went by since I wrote this post, two songs by "Yuck" which I did not review began to stand out to me, so I am updating this to include those two songs]

Yuck is a band I first heard of while listening to sports talk radio show of all places. The host put on their song "Get Away" as a transition into commercial break. It just goes to show you never know when or where you'll be introduced to a new band. Yuck formed in 2009, but didn't released their first album until February, 2011. They join the countless number of artists whose debut albums are eponymous, seriously there are a ton. To name a few there is Vampire Weekend's Vampire Weekend, Weezer's Weezer, and Nirvana's Nirvana. I was too lazy to go through and count, but there must be over two hundred eponymous albums on the full list. Two of the band members, Daniel Blumberg and Max Bloom, played in Cajun Dance Party before joining Yuck. If you asked me to describe their sound in terms of other band's, I would say they sound like a mix of Smashing Pumpkins, Dinosaur Jr, and some Oasis mixed in for some British flavor. The mixture creates quite a unique sound that is both hard enough to satisfy fans of rock but thought out and raw enough for indie fans.

Let's jump right into the album shall we?

The lead single off Yuck is a song called "Get Away." It features bluesy distorted vocals that a lot of bands seem to employ now. I've looked at the lyrics several times now and I am still unsure what exactly the song is about. The lyric "Summer sun says get out more, I need you, I want you but i can't get this feeling off my mind" may indicate that the song is simply about a sort of summer love and does not contain a deeper meaning. I do get a bit of a carefree vibe from the band and this song especially, so I maybe there is no need to overanalyze.

The next song I'd like to discuss is called "Georgia," the sixth track on the album. This song has the most "pop" qualities out of the bunch, and is very simple in terms of chords and arrangements. Once again the lyrics have no deep meaning, describing a fading relationship. This song features female bassist Mariko Doi on lead vocals with usual frontman Daniel Blumberg taking a minor vocal role. It makes sense, as the chorus begins with the lyric: "Georgia, what's a girl to do?" I really like the old-style video, especially because of the songs classic feel.

The fifth track on the album is a song called "Suicide Policeman,"and is one of Yuck's most lyrically serious. When I played this song for a friend, he mistook the title lyrics for "suicide replacement," and remarked "Oh that's nice."Even with the correct lyrics, this song deals with a bleak subject. In similar fashion to Third Eye Blind's "Jumper," the singer is attempted to help a friend who is contemplating suicide. "Brother if you're feeling low/Tell me one thing i should know of your situation/I could stand out in the hall/I could be your suicide policeman." Unlike the first two songs I discussed, "Suicide Policeman" is much softer in tone and utilizes mostly acoustic instruments.

This next song, "Suck," reminds me of the Smashing Pumpkins, especially their Melon Collie and the Infinite Sadness album. While most of the album is filled with distorted rock guitars, this and "Suicide Policeman" represent the softer side of Yuck. I think this may be my favorite from the album, although it seems to alternative between this and a song I'll discuss later. This song utilizes a lot of Christian references throughout the verses. The song begins with the lines "Everyday was a Christian holiday/We held each other and we prayed in our own way."Later he says "Hold my hand and lick the disease/I'm not a Catholic but I know what it means." I think the song attempts to compare love and religion, especially the way the chorus ends with "They can never burn out my love for you."I couldn't find the study version on youtube, which I prefer, but here is a decent live version to give you a feel for the song.



"Sunday" is a song that possesses many of the same pop qualities that "Georgia" does. This is one of the few songs where Blumberg's vocals are higher in the mix than the instruments. Usually the instruments drown out his voice, which is one of my only complaints about the album. Like "Georgia" this song deals with a relationship that the singer would like to rekindle described with the lyrics "Did you take the rhythm from me/Yesterday I had it all/Someday you're gonna take me back."Like "Suicide Policeman" and "Suck," this song uses softer clean guitars to create a mellow sound. Once again, I couldn't find the studio version, but this live performance will due. Try to track down the studio version if you can.

"Operation" brings us back to the hard rocking Yuck that we knew so well at the beginning of this post. This is the song I was referring to when I mentioned that my favoritism often sways between this and "Suck." Admittedly, the main riff sounds like it may have been "borrowed" from a few different songs, it just sounds a bit generic. With that being said, this is certainly one of their fan favorite songs and a popular one at their live shows. The video is the studio version, but it is slightly sped up to avoid copyright infraction, so just imagine it a bit slower.



Here's an instrumental number called "Rose Gives a Lilly." The song contains no lyrics, and as far as I'm concerned is a very well structured song. It progresses nicely and keeps the dominant riff intact with letting it become stale. It's definitely a mellow and "chill" and has summer feel to it, don't ask me how I sense these things from songs.



"Shook Down" is a song from the album that I recently began listening to intensively. It's a fantastic song, leaving me wondering why I didn't review it in the first place. As you may realize by now, Yuck is seemingly broken up into two types of songs: those with heavy distortion and fast pace (Get Away, Georgia, The Wall, Holing Out), and those with slower tempos and cleaner guitar work (Suck, Stutter, Shook Down, Sunday). I prefer the songs from the latter group, and if you've read closely you noticed that this song, "Shook Down," is one of them. It contains several pop qualities, and is one of the few songs from this album that has mainstream radio-playability in my mind.



"Stutter" is the last song I'll be reviewing in this extended and updated post. This is another one of those "Duh" songs that I should have reviewed in the first place. The guitar work is hypnotically beautiful, and the song as a whole almost lulls you to sleep (I mean that in a good way). The lyrics deal with the passing of time, which is always a sensitive topic for me. The video below is an in-studio performance by the band which will give you an idea of how the album version sounds (I prefer the album version, of course).



There are a few songs that I wasn't able to discuss but are still worth a listen, namely "The Wall," "Holing Out," and "Rubber." For me, these songs took several listens to like them, but the same could be said for most tracks.

Yuck will be performing in Buffalo, NY September 27th at the Ninth Ward at Babeville. Should be a fantastic show if you're able to attend.