Last night, New York art rock icons Yeah Yeah Yeahs played their first Philly show since 2018’s 215 Block Party Festival. That show was an epic night of hits; surely, I thought, they couldn’t top it…but somehow they managed to, at a sold out Met.
The band opened their set with the synthy, atmospheric 2022 single “Spitting Off the Edge of the World,” and followed it up with two older fan favorites, “Cheated Hearts” and “Black Tongue.” The band celebrated their new album, last year’s excellent Cool It Down, and traveled sonically through their history. The Yeah Yeah Yeahs made sure to show love for nearly all their eras: their intense debut Fever to Tell, the more mellow Show Your Bones, and the dancey It’s Blitz, even revisiting their early Friendster-crowdsourced playlist essentials like “Our Time” and “Machine.”
Yeah Yeah Yeahs | photo by John Vettese for WXPN
They also showed love for their Philly history, shouting out friends in the crowd and reminiscing about the first time they played the city, in the basement of the First Unitarian Church circa 2001-02. “I think that was a show that was like, yeah, I think we can do this, let’s just do this a little longer,” said frontperson Karen O. “So much love from Philly, and we kept coming back. And here we are, 20 years later!”
Throughout the concert, the undeniably incredible Karen O spun, jumped around, posed like a superhero and overall looked like she was having the time of her life. Her chemistry with the rest of the band (guitarist/keyboard player Nick Zinner, drummer Brian Chase, and guitarist/keyboard player Imaad Wasif) seemed fervent. They hugged a lot, locked eyes and midway through the finale, “Date With the Night,” they stood for what seemed like a solid minute frozen on stage, ready to pounce. When Zinner started back up, the band exploded like the pedal-triggered confetti canons Karen O set off throughout the night.
Yeah Yeah Yeahs | photo by John Vettese for WXPN
Opener Sasami was without a backing band but she still amazed. Playing many new songs, she used her laptop and guitar to get the crowd moving. Her new cuts were dancy and poppy, a very different feel from her last project, 2022’s Squeeze, which was very much a metal album.
Everything Samsami, does she does well, and her 30-minute set last night was no exception. I can’t wait to hear the new songs in album form.
Sasami | photo by John Vettese for WXPN
Overall, it was a terrific night at The Met. The crowd matched Sasami and the Yeah Yeah Yeahs’ energy, and when walking up Broad Street after the show, I heard cars driving by, blasting Fever To Tell, not wanting the fun to end.
Check out more photos and the Yeah Yeah Yeahs setlist below. The band’s 2023 tour concludes this Saturday night with a sold out show at History in Toronto.