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Stars indicate the most critically-acclaimed albums.
Fever To Tell
Universal acclaim
Based on 27 critic reviews
How did we calculate this?
Based on 42 votes
Read user comments
Rate this album >
Album Info
Label: Interscope
Release Date: 29 April 2003
Discs: 1 disc
Genre(s): Alternative, Rock
Summary
This is the highly-anticipated debut LP for the New York art-punk trio, who have developed a fanbase and generated a great deal of publicity (not to mention a major-label deal) through a series of EPs and live performances.
Also By This Artist: Is Is [EP] It's Blitz Machine [EP] Show Your Bones Yeah Yeah Yeahs [EP]
Also On Metacritic
MUSIC: The Seconds: Kratitude
Also On The Web: Official Artist Site
What The Critics Said
All critic scores are converted to a 100-point scale. If a critic does not indicate a score, we assign a score based on the general impression given by the text of the review. Learn more...
Dusted Magazine
Occasionally, it feels like there’s a manipulation going on somewhere, a cloud of hype that obscures both the band’s actual virtues and its shortcomings.
Read Full Review >Uncut
Fever To Tell is, quite simply, magnificent.... This is as revitalising a debut as could be hoped for. [May 2003, p.92]
Filter
This is a rapturous, badass art-punk record that swaggers with as much heart as it does cockiness. [#5, p.87]
Mojo
This record is full of surprises, roping in all manner of esoteria for a sweaty, beer-splattered and tune-drenched rock'n'roll party that rivals even Nevermind for balancing the pop sugar with the twisted underbelly and subtle smarts. [May 2003, p.90]
Urb
Easily one of the best albums of 2003. [Jul 2003, p.94]
Neumu.net
O's seductive, cooing/shrieking contributions to the power of the Yeahs are immense, but they are no bigger than those of guitarist Zinner or drummer Chase.
Read Full Review >PopMatters
Like their fellow New York area bands The Strokes and The Walkmen, The Yeah Yeah Yeahs have crafted yet another accomplished first album, but theirs is the best-produced and the most promising of the bunch, and the band shows that they're not only ready to transcend all the hype that's been building up; they've already started.
Read Full Review >Village Voice (Consumer Guide)
To care about this band you have to find Karen O's fuck-me persona provocative if not seductive, and since I've never been one for the sex-is-combat thing, I find it silly or obnoxious depending on who's taking it seriously.
Read Full Review >All Music Guide
Ultimately, Fever to Tell might be slightly disappointing, but it delivers slightly more than an EP's worth of good to great songs, proving that even when they're uneven, the Yeah Yeah Yeahs are still an exciting band.
Read Full Review >Delusions of Adequacy
They've got enough going for them that they're likely to remain steadfast favorites of true music fans even after the hype has died down and the scenesters have moved on to something else.
Read Full Review >Magnet
Credit sludgemeister Alan Moulder's mixing with fashioning this trio's graceless clamor into a pop blasterpiece (though the high-gloss context occasionally suggests a randier, more cacophonous No Doubt). [#59, p.111]
The Wire
A set of intelligently performed rock tunes distinguished by Karen O's smart and smarting lyrics. [#232, p.74]
Rolling Stone
Now they just rock out, stripping New Wave and metal and rockabilly down to primal thrust and blare. There are half a dozen songs under three minutes on Fever to Tell, and they sound absolutely complete.
Read Full Review >Q Magazine
An impressive pop artefact, propelling its creators clear of the current garage-rock morass.... It's the sound, if not the smell, of teen spirit. [May 2003, p.111]
Splendid
It probably won't sway rock and roll, and it most likely won't change your life, but it's a solid disc from a consistent band who haven't let their major-label affiliation change them.
Read Full Review >Blender
The songs on Fever to Tell swerve like they're being followed by the police, constantly changing and transforming. [May 2003, p.124]
Dot Music
Be assured, this is a genuinely spectacular album: the most stunning aspect being that there's clearly better to come.
Read Full Review >Village Voice
Guitarist Nick Zinner's greatest advantage over his contemporaries is his complete lack of an attention span.
Read Full Review >Entertainment Weekly
Combine the intense vocals and thin lyrics with the speed and exuberance of the songs (most are well under three minutes) and ''Fever to Tell'' feels a lot like a series of quickies -- exhausting, fun, but a bit empty.
Read Full Review >Pitchfork
The problem here is that, while the guys are definitely on here, they're still nowhere near groundbreaking, and as a result, they rise and fall depending largely on Karen's delivery.
Read Full Review >ShakingThrough.net
Fever to Tell... shows that this seeming one-trick pony is capable of more varied and interesting material than its members have previously exhibited.
Read Full Review >Stylus Magazine
Capable punk rock with a slightly skuzzy, yet unmistakably pop edge.
Read Full Review >The Onion (A.V. Club)
While not quite the epochal showing demanded by its creation, the album holds out an impressive range with a few different directions to follow.
Read Full Review >New York Magazine
When you’re treated to such a powerful front woman, it seems almost unfair to complain about the lack of sophisticated sonics.
Read Full Review >Austin Chronicle
Tefloning the lo-fi clang of their 2001, self-titled indie EP breakthrough with Interscope's sugar Daddy Warbucks, Fever to Tell sounds like a tenement rolling, garbage cans bashing some helpless gutter rat.
Read Full Review >What Our Users Said
The average user rating for this album is 8.2 (out of 10) based on 42 User Votes
Note: User votes are NOT included in the Metascore calculation.
Clif C gave it a9:
The girl has a voice! Her shouts are very musical, a bit like Björk but in a style totally different. The music is almost perfect: very catchy despite the unusual style (in a commercial sense, 'course). Standout tracks: "Rich", "Date with the Night" (this one is like 11/10), "Tick" and "Y-Control".
Richard gave it a3:
Ear aching noise. i smashed the CD to pieces after 3 listens.
Heather gave it a3:
All but the last couple songs sound the same. Why does she need to distort her voice if she can truly sing??
Alexandra F gave it a9:
The whole thing is unusual but especially fantastic.
marsh 88 gave it a9:
I love the YYY's. i got there "Show Your Bones" album before this one, so it was big breath of freakish air from a band that sounds so much calmer on the usually slow, but nonetheless amazing "show Your Bones". It took 3 listens for me to get used to it, and i can'tsto listening to them! i recoment both there albums, and there EP's.
Brandon H gave it a9:
The sound that Karen O is sometimes bigger than is still electric enough to escape the dreaded sophomore slump label. A lot of fun.
Amanda D gave it a10:
amazing sound.
