Yo La Tengo - And Then Nothing Turned Itself Inside Out

Yo La Tengo – And Nothing Turned Itself Inside Out
Matador, 2000
Acquired: Love Garden, New, 2006
Price: $20

On any given day this is my favorite Yo La Tengo album. 13 years after the primordial New Wave Hot Dogs, this finds the band becoming even more comfortable with themselves. In a world where hype is king and the bands you love start sucking on a prety constant basis, Yo La Tengo is, well, a constant. I really don't think they've put out a bad record. I mean, Summer Sun wasn't that well received but I think it's great (“Season of the Shark” and “Little Eyes” totally sell that thing though). This isn't as noisy or upbeat-summertime-pop as I Can Hear the Heart Beating as One but the subtlties, the gorgeous downbeat nature of it all. If I had to peg it, this is my #1 record to listen to on summer nights. Notably, long drives on summer nights.

I mean, there's just such a transcendent beauty to all of this. Tracks like “Our Way to Fall” and “Last Days of Disco” recall nostalgia but also a sense of serenity. The percussion is airy, the guitars sort of floating in space. The songs drift along and the record is a tonal masterpiece. One that is throughly consistent. Well, consistent in the way it moves. That's not to say that all the songs are these slow, gorgeous ballads. There's their cover of “You Can Have it All,” which is pretty much destined for any mixtape ever, and the one standout noise-rock jam on the record, the sublime “Cherry Chapstick.” Ung, every fucking song on this record is so fucking good I don't even know how to express the wonderful feelings I get listening to this record. “Tears are in Your Eyes” is on right now and I'm thinking this is the saddest song I've ever heard. And I mean that in a good way. It takes a lot to write a song that's truly sad and makes your heart feel strained, like it's being squeezed. In closing, I'll state that I'm amazed that this is ten years old. It sounds so fresh, so classic!


Camp Yo La Tengo style!!