Cool It Down

It continues the group’s evolution with a powerful, more seasoned take on their earlier sounds.

A raging confidence surges throughout Cool It Down, and the music showcases a band who older, wiser, more mature. It’s held together by the strength of Karen O’s lyrics, her signature voice, and the eclectic instrumentation that have made the band so loved. It’s also their most experimental effort yet, full of dramatic soundscapes that see the band push the boundaries of what it really means to be an alternative rock band in 2022.

Cool It Down is a masterwork of lush production and catchy melodies that work off of one another to create a colorful and textured album that makes the 13-year wait worthwhile.

One of their boldest statements yet — Cool It Down has everything one would need in a rock record in this day and age, and it’s the most complete version of the band we’ve ever received.

Cool It Down may be only eight tracks long but there’s so much to admire that you certainly don’t feel short-changed, in fact, it reinforces just how much they have been missed. It’s great to have them back and in such sparkling form.

Whereas previous YYYs albums are built on thrills and speed, Cool It Down drives us with its almost manic instrumentation at every corner, subdued and despondent pleas in its lyricism, and an intoxicating, frenetic energy.

‘Cool It Down’ feels defined, succinct in a way that suggests complete confidence – it’s also a weakness. A smidge over 30 minutes, and with only eight songs, it already has you yearning for what might come next.

They may never lose all their restlessness -- nor should they -- but it's undeniable that Cool It Down is one of their most consistent albums.

This certainly isn’t an indie-sleaze revivalist album, nor is it an effort to prove their relevance. Cool It Down puts words and music to fears and concerns while shaking you into feelings of some radical hope.

The minimalist, glassy music, combined with her depiction of her younger companion’s spirited imagination, makes for an ending that manages to contain enough optimism to inspire O, Zinner, and Chase to keep their collective spirit smoldering, even against the 21st century’s brutal headwinds.

At only eight tracks, intensely focused, it crackles with furious energy, a slow-motion film of combusting fireworks.

It’s their shortest album to date – just eight tracks, with a little over 30 minutes for a running time – and, as with Mosquito, there’s less emphasis on Zinner’s incendiary solos now, in favour of a smoother, synth led sheen. When it kicks into gear though, they still sound magnificent.

With ‘Cool It Down’ the trio disregard expectations with ease, bursting through conjectures with tracks that make the apocalypse sound fun.

Even though it's only eight tracks long - a rare example of the band having some chill - their fifth album feel like it's operating on a cosmic scale. [Nov 2022, p.92]

Space and darkness area constant among these eight tight songs, but there’s also plenty of punch. [Oct 2022, p.36]

This is one helluva return. [Oct 2022, p.77]

It’s a formidable statement of purpose, one that sounds unmistakably contemporary without ever veering into flavor-of-the-month pandering. In fact, the band sounds more comfortable in themselves than ever.

Yeah Yeah Yeahs spend some of Cool It Down’s sharpest moments citing and deconstructing their influences with refreshing candor. ... But every now and then, her reliable lyrical workhorse hits a brick wall.

Across these eight tracks, Yeah Yeah Yeahs mix big moments and simple softness, playing with tone and dynamics to develop tension, release, and steady propulsion. It’s kinetic energy that might not have been evident during that decade the band members focused on other projects, but it’s one that shows no sign of friction.

Cool It Down is not only timely but a necessary album in evaluating the feelings of the present and looking ahead towards an uncertain future.

There's rebirth in the swirl of destruction, but these days the Yeah Yeah Yeahs seem more interested in the stories that start after the cataclysm, where purple fireweed bursts from scorched hillsides and glass shards are rounded by the tides.

Cool It Down, is less of a step forward, or in any meaningful direction, and more of a twirl in place. It’s a pleasant and polished listen, more palatable than its predecessor, with glimpses of the band’s top gear. But fans anticipating some return to the frenzy of “Tick,” “Man” or “Pin” will keep waiting.

The eight tracks of Cool It Down (a real mission statement of a title) make for a quasi-gothic synth record that beefs up the Eighties revivalism of the past decade... even as it leaves behind the yelping dynamism of their youth for a more considered and placid middle-age.