Yo La Tengo
 Camp Yo La Tengo, Matador CD EP Ole 171-2, 1996

Hold the mayo

Despite their early critical acclaim, I have remained blissfully ignorant of Yo La Tengo. This 19 minute EP/CD consists of two remixes of  Electr-o-Pura songs, and two new tunes. It's clear why they're such a critic's band - they're essentially a post-modern revision of the Velvet Underground. Lead vocals alternate between a disaffected woman and a nasal, adolescent-sounding guy. The slow songs have a sparse, minimal drone, and the faster are dominated by a metallic clanging guitar. The whole effort is laden with pop references that are too smart by half, and I spent most of the album trying to figure where each phrase was stolen from. -  Bill Kuhn

performers

Ira Kaplan, guitar, vocals; and drummer/vocalist Georgia Hubley, drums, vocals; James McNew, bass.