By Jodi Root

It was a very big happy birthday to me last night as I joined countless others in the dance party of 2009 at Uptown’s Aragon Theatre. I celebrated my 26th alongside super goddess Karen O, guitar mastermind Nick Zinner and percussion madman Brian Chase—dancing til I screamed myself hoarse and sweat out every last ounce of life I had left in me. The one and only Yeah Yeah Yeahs kicked off their nation-wide tour in support of It’s Blitz! last evening in Chicago, and you may as well stop reading this review now and just go buy your ticket for the closest stop to your city now—I mean it. God damn incredible.

I was previously borderline dreading this set. Don’t get me wrong, the Yeah Yeah Yeahs are my most beloved band ever—even with my initial reaction of caution to the calmer sounds of It’s Blitz!, I am still 100% devoted to this thrashtastic rock trio—but I am, or at least was, definitely not a fan of The Aragon Theatre. Formerly a ballroom, the acoustics in this hall have always been echoic, with feedback and sound difficulties always mucking up whatever headliner was trying to rock it out. But not last night, oh no. Nothing could stop the rock, the glamour, the almighty beings that hail themselves, “Bigger than the Sound.”

The YYY’s stepped to the stage around 8:45, to thunderous, crazy ass applause. Backed by a giant deep violet glittery spiral, Karen O kept her reputation as indie rock’s most trend-pushing rock gem, rocking some bitchin’ yellow purple zebra tights and a crazy ass eyeball patterned kimono, which transitioned cloth hula hoop accessories, a hoodie and of course, a leotard. Bitch looked hot. Glowing amber lights illuminated through the fog, catching the shimmer of the glitter stage set, as Y shaped confetti shot through the shadows to the crowd. And this was just the beginning.

YYY kicked it off with a gentle, yet epic rendition of It’s Blitz!’s “Runaway.” Gorgeous and intimate, the song served as a perfect calm before the storm—kicking next into Fever to Tell’s raunchy grit theme, “Black Tongue.” Let me tell you, there is nothing more liberating and empowering than screaming “Boy you’re just a stupid bitch and girl you’re just a no good dick,” at the top of your lungs on your birthday. And I was definitely not the only one. The crowd went shitastic as Karen writhed, moaned and screamed. Zinner killed it on the guitar. Shit was sharp.

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Next up to bat was the Cramps’ cover “Human Fly,” which was my first time catching and Fever to Tell’s album-title proclaiming, “Man.” Nothing could beat the next triple whammy, however, as YYY busted out the incredulous slow start build-up dance party demand “Dull Life,” wringing into Show Your Bones’ crowd clappy intro “Gold Lion,” (complete with crowd participating chorus Whoo-hoo! Whoo-hoo! Whoo-hoo, whoo-hoo!’s), and then moving up to my all-time favorite “Cheated Hearts”—in which Karen O made good on her promise of “take-a, take-a, take-a, take-a takin’ it off,” stripping down to her leotard, proclaiming to being “bigger than the sound,” when in actuality, pretty much being bigger than life—wowing the masses in the eager crowd.

Slowing things down next, the trio glowed in the dark, (or at least Karen’s facial accessories did), playing what seemed like the coolest high school dance soundtrack ever—two of the new agey numbers from It’s Blitz!—“Skeletons” and “Soft Shock,” which totally evoked some 80’s neo flash back vibes. After giving the crowd a chance to catch their breaths and get their heart beats back to a normal rate, YYY ramped it back up with a crowd stomping, immediate and urgent rendition of “Honeybear.”But as if the yelping and pouncing wasn’t enough to get everyone hyped up, a familiar Pavlov-like jittery keyboard intro took the masses into oblivion—teasing for what everyone knew was next. When Karen O pranced out in the leather, forget about it. Confetti once again blasted the crowd as we prepared our shaking ladders to the sun, and joined our beloved rock goddess on her journey through an energetic, uncontrollable performance of “Zero.”

Needless to say, this party was bangin’. The beats were sharp and everything was slick as if we were listening to the albums on full blast versus a live performance. Think HD for your speakers. Dancing was insane. Miss O smiled to the crowd upon completion, thanking Chicago as one of her favorite crowds and dedicating “The Yeah Yeah Yeahs’ love song—L-O-V-E, Love!” to all in attendance—which unsurprisingly, was “Maps”—the acoustic, slowed down rendition. Delicate and breathy, Karen crooned as Zinner strummed the acoustic guitar, leading the crowd in an intimate sing-along. I honestly don’t know if I’ve ever heard such loud applause in a single building before as what followed.

Just when I didn’t think it could get any better, Zinner and Chase kicked in with the undeniable manic opening chords of “Y Control.” Total madness ensued. Karen O sprayed mouthfuls of water between her growls and shrieks. The crowd leapt up and down as if to reach salvation. Zinner shredded electric insanity. Thrashing of percussion blended the whole soundgasm to a mix. Then with a curtsy, they were gone. Stampeding, wild, roaring cheers and some Yeah-Yeah-Yeah! chanting followed and eventually Karen and Co. returned, with Miss O sporting a creepy plastic pink wrestling mask, swirled into some punk bondage spiral. This is when we got our real treat—the encore brought the madness of dance anthem “Heads will Roll,” oldie “Art Star,”—sans creepy face mask, but instead, with a towel-draped to support Karen’s deepthroating of the mic; and finally FTT’s orgasmic “Date with the Night.” Sweat, smiles, and lots of “Oh my god’s,” concluded the evening, and it was definitely one helluva happy birthday to me.

Discuss: Please leave your thoughts/reviews in the comments. Does the new material serve itself better live? What were your thoughts on openers Grand Ole Party?

Set list: Runaway / Black Tongue / Human Fly / Man / Dull Life / Gold Lion / Cheated Hearts / Skeletons / Soft Shock / Honeybear / Zero / Maps / Y Control
Encore 1: Heads will Roll
Encore 2: Art Star
Encore 3: Date with the Night