New York City alternative darlings, the Yeah Yeah Yeahs kicked off their latest tour in the sleepy California town of Riverside Tuesday (6/10) to a trio of live debuts, covers and deep cuts.
And yes the crowd at the intimate Fox Performing Arts Center said yeah a lot.
Loudly.
The show was the first of eighteen specially designed to sound best in smaller venues, slightly altered, and to serve as a career-spanning celebration of one of the most original and captivating rock bands in the last 25 years.
”Hi, we’ve missed you, they don’t miss you like we miss you,” the group slyly noted when announcing the tour.
“Out of a deep desire to reconnect with our band family and you our lovely fans, YYYs are embarking on a series of very special shows this summer," they continued.
"We’ll be playing songs that are rarely (if ever) performed, alongside all-time favourites with new arrangements to delight…and yes there will be acoustic guitars and strings too,” they wrote.
“We’d love for you to join us for these intimate performances in beautiful iconic theatres to celebrate 25 years of Yeah Yeah Yeahs, not a bad seat in the house!”
Two songs that they haven't played in forever, "Warrior" and "Isis" they packaged together in the middle of the show.
"Warrior" was culled from the Show Your Bones LP and performed 49 times previously, all in 2006.
When the group, led by Karen O., broke into the driving "Isis," which comes from the EP, Is Is, it was just the third time they'd performed the tune since it dropped in 2007.
The song is the theme of the show and tour, in a way: a tune from the past that received little love on any of the stages the band have rocked, yet it's generally regarded as a solid piece -- finally getting the attention it deserves.
It's also where the tour gets its name.
All my loves are
Hidden in pieces
All my loves are
Within a wild night
How about this for a deep cut... after playing "Gold Lion," which was one of their singles in 2006, the YYYs live debuted the B-side of that track, "Let Me Know." What's great about that B-side is it's listed simply as the demo of the song.
But the tune never surfaced on a proper album, just on that extended single, which is why they hadn't played it nearly 20 years after putting it out into the world, half-heartedly.
Then they covered an incredibly tender Bjork song.
What a setlist! Who doesn't want the rarest of rare songs next to a cover of someone we should always be playing more of.
Another tune that got it's live debut after 16 years of saying, "hi. 'member me?" was "Little Shadow" from 2009's It's Blitz!
The final song that got its live debut out there in Riverside was one Karen dedicated to her son, Django.
It's a sweet, surreal spoken-word number where she talks to him as they watch a sunset dip into the horizon of the ocean. And just like most sunsets, before you can really appreciate how lovely it is, it's gone.
The Yeah Yeah Yeahs are taking this wonderfully special show across the sea for a trio of gigs in the UK including a pair at the Royal Albert Hall. Then they jet to North America where they will play shows in some beautiful theaters including the Ryman in Nashville.
Go to the YYY's website for tickets.
Hidden in Pieces Tour 2025
June 16 – O2 Apollo, Manchester, UK
June 18 – Royal Albert Hall, London, UK
June 19 – Royal Albert Hall, London, UK
June 26 – Corona Grandstand Stage, San Diego, CA
June 30 – Teatro Metropólitan, Mexico City, MX
July 1 – Teatro Metropólitan, Mexico City, MX
July 9 – Orpheum Theatre, Los Angeles, CA
July 10 – Orpheum Theatre, Los Angeles, CA
July 11 – Orpheum Theatre, Los Angeles, CA
July 14 – Davies Symphony Hall, San Francisco, CA
July 15 – Davies Symphony Hall, San Francisco, CA
July 18 – Ryman Auditorium, Nashville, TN
July 19 – Ryman Auditorium, Nashville, TN
July 22 – The Chicago Theatre, Chicago, IL
July 23 – The Chicago Theatre, Chicago, IL
July 29 – Beacon Theatre, New York, NY
July 30 – Beacon Theatre, New York, NY
