Keep on Clappin', CYHSY Is Here To Stay

Last night Clap Your Hands Say Yeah packed TT the Bears full of fans eager to hear if the highly-buzzed band would live up to expectations. The show sold out weeks ago, but a lucky few scored $5 tickets outside the venue. Playing seven tracks from their self-titled debut album and introducing two songs of new material, CYHSY sounded more polished than early tour reviews indicated. They stuck to the music, engaging the crowd without anecdotal quips or stage antics.

It seems that every album review to date draws comparison between Alec Ounsworth's vocals and those of the Talking Heads' David Byrne. It's been over-referenced in excess and frankly, isn't that interesting anymore. One surprise last night, however, was that tracks like "Upon This Tidal Wave of Youth" and "Over and Over Again (Lost and Found)" lost their David Byrne/Talking Heads feel when performed live. And dare we say, they sounded better last night than they do on the album.

No shock, "The Skin of My Yellow Country Teeth" was a crowd favorite, eliciting displays of unguarded, enthusiastic dancing. Unfortunately absent from the line up was "Let the Cool Goddess Rust", but the let down was short lived as CYHSY went into Neil Young's "Helpless" for the encore. The show ended and Bostonist was left yearning for more; so if that's not a testament to a good show, what is?

Bostonist cornered vocalist Alec Ounsworth after the show to pepper him with a few pressing questions:

You played some new songs tonight; what are the plans for your next album?
We're looking to record in December, but we have enough material for at least two or three more albums right now.

You covered Neil Young for your encore at Khyber in Philadelphia, and again tonight. Is he a favorite?
Actually, we had planned to play Dylan's "Love Minus Zero" tonight, but the fans seem to really respond to Neil, so we went with "Helpless".

Pitchfork's endorsement has propelled your popularity in the past few months; how's CYHSY handling the buzz?
People forget that we were doing pretty well before Pitchfork. I'm still trying to wrap my head around it. I've been saying its like being bitten by a shark in shark-infested waters. We're focused on touring and playing music right now. I hear things, usually in this context, but I'm not caught up in it. I haven't been using the internet and I turned off my cell phone a while ago, so that helps.