Yo La Tengo

  • Hoboken, NJ
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  • Alternative
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  • 1984
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About Yo La Tengo


Yo La Tengo are in many respects the quintessential critics' band: in addition to their adventurous eclecticism, defiant independence, and restless creative ambition -- three qualities that virtually guarantee music press acclaim -- the group's frontman, Ira Kaplan, even tenured as a rock scribe prior to finding success as a performer. So frequently compared to the Velvet Underground that they even portrayed the legendary group in the 1996 film I Shot Andy Warhol, the Hoboken, New Jersey-based Yo La Tengo have explored the extremes of feedback-driven noise rock and sweetly melodic pop, shading their work with equal parts scholarly composure and fannish enthusiasm. Prolific and mercurial, they have ultimately transcended their myriad influences to ensconce themselves as a beloved institution of the indie community.

The core of Yo La Tengo (Spanish for the outfielder's cry of "I've got it!") is comprised of singer/guitarist Kaplan and his wife, drummer/vocalist Georgia Hubley. After forming the band in 1984, they placed an advertisement seeking other musicians to round out the lineup, requesting applicants who shared their fondness for the Soft Boys, Mission of Burma, and Arthur Lee's Love. A number of bassists and lead guitarists passed through the band's roster during its formative years, but after bowing in late 1985 with the single "The River of Water," backed by a cover of Love's "A House Is Not a Motel," Yo La Tengo's membership appeared to stabilize with the additions of guitarist Dave Schramm and bassist Mike Lewis prior to the sessions for 1986's full-length roots pop debut, Ride the Tiger, produced by former Mission of Burma bassist Clint Conley.

However, both Schramm and Lewis exited in the wake of the record's release, leaving Kaplan to assume lead guitar duties. Bassist Stephan Wichnewski signed on for 1987's New Wave Hot Dogs, a more assured outing that brought the group's Velvet Underground obsession to the fore via a cover of the early VU composition "It's Alright (The Way That You Live)." Not only did Kaplan's introverted, half-spoken vocals and buzzing guitar work closely recall Lou Reed, but Hubley's rock-steady drumming and breathy backing turns simultaneously conjured memories of vintage Maureen Tucker. Even better was 1989's President Yo La Tengo, recorded with producer and guest bassist Gene Holder; opening with the droning squalls of the stunning "Barnaby, Hardly Working," the record spotlighted the group's sonic schizophrenia by including two Jekyll-and-Hyde versions of the track "The Evil That Men Do" -- one a gorgeous instrumental, the other a blistering feedback freakout.

Schramm returned to the fold for 1990's Fakebook, a remarkable acoustic folk-pop journey through Kaplan's record collection and a virtual family tree of Yo La Tengo reference points. A wonderfully low-key collection of covers ranging from forgotten nuggets (the Kinks' "Oklahoma U.S.A.," the Flamin' Groovies' "You Tore Me Down," Gene Clark's "Tried So Hard") to absolute obscurities (Rex Garvin & the Mighty Cravers' "Emulsified," the Escorts' "The One to Cry," the Scene Is Now's "Yellow Sarong"), Fakebook also included a handful of outstanding new originals as well as luminous retakes of the previous record's "Barnaby, Hardly Working" and New Wave Hot Dogs' "Did I Tell You?" The superb That Is Yo La Tengo EP previewed 1992's May I Sing with Me, the first effort to feature permanent bassist James McNew (formerly of Christmas). A return to noise typified by the hot-wired nine-minute feedback saga "Mushroom Cloud of Hiss," the record balanced out its extremist tendencies with the occasional sidestep into melodic beauty ("Detouring America with Horns") and infectious indie pop ("Upside-Down").

A move to the Matador label predated the release of 1993's Painful, another winner informed by the atmospherics of shoegazer drones and dream pop. Bookended by radically opposed renditions of the track "Big Day Coming" -- the first an organ-driven mood piece, the other an edgy guitar outing -- the record pushed Yo La Tengo in a multitude of new directions, significantly expanding the trio's palette of sounds and textures. Released in 1995, Electr-O-Pura continued the progression, zigzagging from dead-on British Invasion re-creations (the sparkling "Tom Courtenay") to shimmering folk (the Hubley-sung "Pablo and Andrea") to bracing sonic experimentation ("Decora"). After 1996's Genius + Love Equals Yo La Tengo, a two-disc compendium of B-sides, compilation tracks, rare singles, and unreleased material, the trio resurfaced in the spring of 1997 with I Can Hear the Heart Beating as One; And Then Nothing Turned Itself Inside Out followed in early 2000.

The group also performed a three-night stint as the backing band for Ray Davies on his 2000 U.S. tour, and in 2002 released The Sounds of the Sounds of Science, a soundtrack to the undersea documentaries of French filmmaker Jean Painleve. That fall, they released the Nuclear War single, which featured several versions of Sun Ra's epic, and that winter performed their second annual Hanukkahpalooza, an eight-night musical festival at Hoboken, New Jersey's Maxwell's, which also led to a special limited-edition EP of Christmas songs. Yo La Tengo released Summer Sun in spring 2003, and that year Georgia Hubley performed in Mirror Man, an avant-garde rock opera by Pere Ubu's David Thomas.

In 2005, Matador Records paid homage to Yo La Tengo's 20th year as recording artists with the career-spanning compilations Prisoners of Love: A Smattering of Scintillating Senescent Songs: 1985-2003 and A Smattering of Outtakes and Rarities 1986-2002. The band returned the following year with the strong all-new album I Am Not Afraid of You and I Will Beat Your Ass. Fuckbook, a covers album that the band released under the alias Condo Fucks, arrived in 2009, followed several months later by the full-length Popular Songs. The following year, the Here to Fall EP, which featured remixes by De La Soul, Rjd2, and Pete Rock, arrived. The group's 13th album, Fade, was released in 2013. This album marked a departure for the band, as it was the first record since their 1993 breakthrough, Painful, not recorded with producer Roger Moutenot, but instead tracked with Chicago scene veteran and Tortoise member John McEntire. ~ Jason Ankeny, Rovi

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Music

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    • Stupid Things
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    • Is That Enough
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    • I'll Be Around
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    • Autumn Sweater
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Photos

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  • Matador
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News

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  • Yo La Tengo
    Billboard Music Awards 2013: The Complete Winners List
    MTV News
    May 20, 2013
    Taylor Swift is the night's big winner, taking home an impressive eight trophies.
    Read More
  • Yo La Tengo
    Billboard Music Awards 2013: The Complete Winners List
    MTV News
    May 20, 2013
    Taylor Swift is the night's big winner, taking home an impressive eight trophies.
    Read More
  • Yo La Tengo
    Demi Lovato Hustled Cher Lloyd For Cameo (And Mom Helped)
    MTV News
    May 19, 2013
    'I felt like a rapper like 'Yo man you've got to be on my track,' ' Demi told MTV about 'Really Don't Care' collaborator.
    Read More
  • Yo La Tengo
    Demi Lovato Hustled Cher Lloyd For Cameo (And Mom Helped)
    MTV News
    May 19, 2013
    'I felt like a rapper like 'Yo man you've got to be on my track,' ' Demi told MTV about 'Really Don't Care' collaborator.
    Read More
  • Yo La Tengo
    Christina Aguilera Shares Sexy Photo From Music Video Set
    MTV News
    May 16, 2013
    Singer, who's just confirmed return to 'The Voice,' shows off her slimmed-down figure on set of Spanish-language track.
    Read More
  • Yo La Tengo
    Christina Aguilera Shares Sexy Photo From Music Video Set
    MTV News
    May 16, 2013
    Singer, who's just confirmed return to 'The Voice,' shows off her slimmed-down figure on set of Spanish-language track.
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  • Yo La Tengo
    Yo La Tengo to tour the UK in June
    www.drownedinsound.com
    by a wheel spin, with these possibilities. Over to the band for more on each. Condo F*cks: "Our Ziggy Stardust. If the wheel decides this then loud it...
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  • Yo La Tengo
    Pete Rock + Yo La Tengo = Here To Fall (Pete Rock Remix)
    prefixmag.com
    have employed indie or minimal-minded artists to do the honors: e.g., Tortoise, µ-Ziq, Nobukazu Takemura, et. al. This time around, they've hired hip-...
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  • Yo La Tengo
    Yo La Tengo Hanukkah Shows Going Ahead; Ira Kaplan Has 'Health Sca | Prefix
    www.prefixmag.com
    Tweet Yo La Tengo's Hanukkah shows are often a highlight of the live music calendar, with special guests and unexpected covers now a firm tradition of...
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  • Yo La Tengo
    QA: Yo La Tengo on Personal Songs and Keeping New LP Brief
    www.rollingstone.com
    Yo La Tengo have sometimes had trouble knowing when to stop writing songs, but not this time. The New Jersey trio's latest LP, Fade, clocks in at 45 m...
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  • Yo La Tengo
    Q&A;: Yo La Tengo on Personal Songs and Keeping New LP Brief
    music.yahoo.com
    RELATED CONTENTView Photo Q&A;: Yo La Tengo on Personal Songs and Keeping New LP Brief Yo La Tengo have sometimes had trouble knowing when to stop wri...
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  • Yo La Tengo
    Watch Yo La Tengo with Fred Armisen on Fallon
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    Yo La Tengo stopped by the set of Late Night With Jimmy Fallon last night, just in time to celebrate the release of their latest album Fade. In a plea...
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  • Yo La Tengo
    Watch Yo La Tengo Play Fallon With Fred Armisen
    stereogum.com
    Yesterday, Hoboken indie greats Yo La Tengo released Fade, their utterly gorgeous new album. And last night, they celebrated that release by serving a...
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    Yo La Tengo - "I'll Be Around" Video (Feat. Mac McCaughan)
    stereogum.com
    Phil Morrison, who directed the movie Junebug, made the video for Yo La Tengo's minimal-but-aching Fade ballad "I'll Be Around," and it's a weirdly po...
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  • Yo La Tengo
    Watch Yo La Tengo Cover The Supremes' "Come See About Me"
    stereogum.com
    The Crystals' "He Hit Me (And It Felt Like A Kiss)" was probably a lot less gut-wrenching when it originally dropped than when Grizzly Bear took the o...
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    Photos: Yo La Tengo @ Fonda Theatre, Hollywood 5/9/13
    stereogum.com
    15 Photos » When you have a discography as extensive as Yo La Tengo, you can open for yourself by playing a stripped down acoustic set before coming b...
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Tour Dates

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  • May 20 Monday
    Salt Lake City, UT, US The State Room
    Buy Ticket
  • May 21 Tuesday
    Boulder, CO, US Boulder Theater
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  • May 22 Wednesday
    Kansas City, MO, US Crossroads Kc
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  • May 23 Thursday
    Iowa City, IA, US Englert Theatre
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  • Jun 21 Friday
    North Adams, MA, US Mass MoCA
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  • Jul 6 Saturday
    Toronto, ON, Canada Fort York: Garrison Common
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  • Jul 7 Sunday
    Toronto, ON, Canada Horseshoe Tavern
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  • Jul 9 Tuesday
    Boston, MA, US Bank of America Pavilion
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  • Jul 10 Wednesday
    Philadelphia, PA, US The Mann Center for the Performing Arts - Skyline Stage
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  • Jul 11 Thursday
    Brooklyn, NY, US Celebrate Brooklyn at the Prospect Park Bandshell
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  • Jul 12 Friday
    Columbia, MD, US Merriweather Post Pavilion
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  • Jul 12 Friday
    Cincinnati, OH, US Bunbury Music Festival
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  • Jul 13 Saturday
    Pittsburgh, PA, US Stage AE
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  • Jul 18 Thursday
    Beccles, UK Henham Park
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  • Jul 19 Friday
    Chicago, IL, US Union Park
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  • Jul 26 Friday
    Niigata, Japan Naeba Ski Resort
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  • Aug 23 Friday
    Mexico City, Mexico El Plaza Condesa
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  • Aug 24 Saturday
    Los Angeles, CA, US Los Angeles State Historic Park
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  • Nov 5 Tuesday
    Munich, Germany Muffathalle
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  • Nov 7 Thursday
    Vienna, Austria WUK Werkstätten- u Kulturhaus
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  • Nov 8 Friday
    Zagreb, Croatia Tvornica Kulture
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  • Nov 10 Sunday
    Heidelberg, Germany Karlstorbahnhof
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  • Nov 11 Monday
    Dresden, Germany Festspielhaus Hellerau
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  • Nov 12 Tuesday
    Hamburg, Germany Docks
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  • Nov 14 Thursday
    Stockholm, Sweden Debaser Medis
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  • Nov 18 Monday
    Oslo, Norway Rockefeller
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  • Nov 19 Tuesday
    Copenhagen, Denmark VEGA
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  • Dec 2 Monday
    Leuven, Belgium Het Depot
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  • Dec 5 Thursday
    Dublin, Ireland Vicar Street
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Discography

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  • Fade (2013)
    Yo La Tengo
    Fade (2013)
    Matador Records
  • Popular Songs (2009)
    Yo La Tengo
    Popular Songs (2009)
    Matador
  • I'm Not Afraid of You and I Will Beat Your Ass (2006)
    Yo La Tengo
    I'm Not Afraid of You and I Will Beat Your Ass (2006)
    Matador
  • Summer Sun (2003)
    Yo La Tengo
    Summer Sun (2003)
    Matador
  • The Sounds of the Sounds of Science (2002)
    Yo La Tengo
    The Sounds of the Sounds of Science (2002)
    Egon
  • Mishmoshi-Moshi (2000)
    Yo La Tengo
    Mishmoshi-Moshi (2000)
    BMG
  • And Then Nothing Turned Itself Inside-Out (2000)
    Yo La Tengo
    And Then Nothing Turned Itself Inside-Out (2000)
    Matador
  • I Can Hear the Heart Beating as One (1997)
    Yo La Tengo
    I Can Hear the Heart Beating as One (1997)
    Matador
  • Electr-O-Pura (1995)
    Yo La Tengo
    Electr-O-Pura (1995)
    Matador
  • Painful (1993)
    Yo La Tengo
    Painful (1993)
    Matador
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