Yeah Yeah Yeahs & Automatic @ Hordern Pavilion

I like to take any opportunity to see a good show, but to have the chance to do it when I'm back at home is always a blessing.  So when timeing saw the Yeah Yeah Yeahs at an old haunt, the Hordern Pavilion, how could I say no.  

I even got Moz to come along with me.  The only other time I've seen the Yeah Yeah Yeahs was with Moz at Coachella in 2009.  We met at Mary's just outside the front doors for dinner before the show.  I love that in Australia you can still sit outside and eat dinner in the middle of winter (but also because of some well placed heat lamps).

The Hordern is smaller than I remember.  I've seen a lot of shows in there: Nirvana, Red Hot Chili Peppers, Bodycount, Alice In Chains and more, where a frenzied floor took you all over the place.  The complete opposite of that occured with Automatic.  I didn't go for them and I'm not sure the rest of the crowd cared too much - though no one was rubbishing them.

The crowd picked up when the Yeah Yeah Yeahs hit the stage.  And why wouldn't they?  Karen O's energy from the start was on fire.  As was her voice.  Such a unique voice!  This would have to be one of the hardest bands to cover, just for her voice alone.  3 songs in, Black Tongue, and I was fully hooked.  Rockers To Swallow followed that - the only ong they did off Is Is.  A third of the set contained songs from the new album Cool It Down. I didn't know them but they mixed there way into the set really well.  Soft Shock lead in 3 new songs in a row and they finished the main set with Maps and an amazing crowd-dancing-confetti-bombing Heads Will Roll.  Y Control and a faster Date With The Night were the 2 song encore, that had everyone buzzing as they left.

Yeah Yeah Yeahs @ Hordern Pavilion

I know it is good for the band overall that Karen O has "it".  You can't not watch her (like Nick Cave, or Iggy Pop, or Les Claypool), and that voice draws you in even further.  Many times you forget that a great band is playing behind her, and tonight was no exception.

I wish I'd bought the boys (not that they're into the Yeah Yeah Yeahs), as tomorrow I have to come all the way back to next door to see the Women's World Cup.

Yeah Yeah Yeahs setlist

The Crap Facts:

This is my 488th concert.
This is my 22nd concert at the Hordern Pavilion.
This is my 29th concert in Moore Park.
This is my 186th concert in New South Wales.
This is my 189th concert in Australia.
Automatic are the 557th band I've seen.
This is my 2nd Yeah Yeahs concert.

The Yeah Yeah Yeahs are the 100th band I've seen in at least 2 states.