Let’s get this out of the way: What the hell were the Yeah Yeah Yeahs thinking with this awful, piece of shit album cover? I instantly put it among the worst album covers of all time, possibly in the #1 spot. So many bands misuse a great opportunity to advertise their music, this is one of them. It looks like a crappy, mid 90s computer animated still. It is stupid and makes the band look like they are a bunch of high schoolers. Now; on to the music:

The Yeah Yeah Yeahs have gotten progressively more dance oriented over the years. They seemed to really have this figured out on their last album It’s Blitz but they have taken a step back on Mosquito. The album isn’t a whole lot worse, it just fails to really grab your ear. They nail the dancey vibe on the opening track “Sacrilege” and the title track “Mosquito” reverts back to their Fever To Tell indie rock roots. Unfortunately they felt the need to bring in a rapper on “Buried Alive” that not only ruins a potentially good song but taint the album almost as much as the cover does. The closing “Wedding Song” attempts to channel the vibe of their biggest hit “Maps” but falls well short and ends the album without much of a punch.

Their are a couple good tracks here that will adorn a nice greatest hits compilation one day but overall the album is still a bit disappointing. It is still a ton better than the terrible cover indicates though.

Key Tracks: “Mosquito” “Sacrilege”