NASHVILLE |FR: MITCH SCHNEIDER/LIBBY HENRY/ALEXANDRA GREENBERG/DIANA MENDOZA
MSO
BAND FILMS SHOW IN NYC FOR POSSIBLE RELEASE
YAZ, 'RECONNECTED' EP OUT NOW VIA MUTE
It was the first time that VINCE CLARKE and ALISON MOYET—known for their alternative classics such as “Situation,” “Nobody’s Diary,” “Don’t Go” and “Only You”—performed a U.S. date in 25 years; they’d only played New York in support of their landmark Upstairs at Eric’s in 1982 and never even toured behind their second and final album You and Me Both. “The Reconnected Tour” began with "…a triumphant trifecta of super-sold-out gigs at downtown Los Angeles's Orpheum Theater," as noted by NME.com, and also included three nights in New York city (two sold-out shows at Terminal 5 and one at the Beacon Theatre) where "Yaz turned out everything from gorgeous, poignant ballads such as ‘Winter Kills’ to full-on disco-stompers such as ‘Situation’… [with] Moyet's amazing voice…" raved Newsday.
Fans who missed out on the 11-show, seven-city tour—which also visited Chicago, Oakland, Dallas, Washington D.C. and Costa Mesa, CA—should stay tuned to www.yazooinfo.com for possible release details about the show YAZ recorded and filmed in New York at Terminal 5.
Meanwhile, Mute has released on August 12 ‘Reconnected,’ a six-track digital EP via iTunes. It includes a Hercules and Love Affair mix of “Situation” and a Black Light Odyssey mix of “Goodbye '70s,” among others.
During their U.S. tour, YAZ stopped by NPR. To listen to the full interview, click on: http://www.npr.org/templates/story/story.php?storyId=92871278.
YAZ is also garnering acclaim for the release of IN YOUR ROOM, a 4-disc box set released July 8 via MUTE Records in the U.S. In a July 11 review from Entertainment Weekly (grade A-minus), Dave Karger notes: “…the unlikely pairing of Clarke’s workmanlike synths and Moyet’s bluesy vocals is as arresting and vital now as it was a quarter century ago.” The package includes remasters and 5.1 mixes of both YAZ classic albums Upstairs At Eric’s and You And Me Both, b-sides and remixes plus a DVD featuring a new short film containing exclusive new interviews with Vince Clarke and Alison Moyet and the promo videos for “Don’t Go,” “The Other Side Of Love,” “Nobody’s Diary,” “Situation (1990)” and “Only You (1999).” A limited edition vinyl 12” with new dance mixes will also be released to promote the set (details TBA).
The joyous, unlikely coming together of Vince Clarke, who had just left Depeche Mode, and Alison Moyet lasted for only two albums, saw them performing only 24 concerts worldwide but left an indelible mark on pop. Yaz released Upstairs At Eric's in July 1982, then parted company just 12 months later on release of the second album You And Me Both, which reached Number 1 in the UK. Vince and Alison have since gone on to have their own successful careers, Vince with Erasure and Alison as a solo performer, both releasing critically acclaimed albums in 2007: Erasure with Light At The End Of The World and Alison Moyet with The Turn.
As Alison told the Contra Costa Times (CA) "…as we both kinda grew up and became more mature as people, we recognized what the other gave to the other, and a warmth grew out of that, until I was grateful, because I knew that without Vince I wouldn't have become a singer, and he knows that without me, he wouldn't have made one of his best albums."
Here are some critical soundbites about “The Reconnected Tour”:
"…Yaz turned out everything from gorgeous, poignant ballads such as ‘Winter Kills’ to full-on disco-stompers such as ‘Situation’… [with] Moyet's amazing voice…"
"The futuristic British duo perfected a sound that demanded contrasts. On songs like ‘Too Pieces,’ Clarke always accompanied his skull-crushing beats with a lush undercurrent of relaxing keyboards. Moyet… sounds more robust in this second incarnation…on songs like ‘Mr. Blue’ and the electro-funk ‘Good Times, she sang lyrics tailored with sweetness and sold them with teenage excitement."
"…triumphant Los Angeles debut…the audience was effusive and adoring."
“The capacity crowd roared approvingly, as loudly as they would for any of the 21 cultishly cherished songs the pair spotlighted…”
“Flawless vocal performances: Check. Impeccable synth sounds: Check. Flashy disco-tronic lighting and 16-bit-video-game-evoking-projections: Check and check. Mutual outpourings of love from both Yaz and fans: Mega-check. Club anthems like ‘Don't Go’ couldn't help but kick ass, but the ballads ‘Winter Kills,’ ‘Ode to Boy,’ ‘Anyone,’ and, oh baby, ‘Midnight’ slayed even harder.”
"…a triumphant trifecta of super-sold-out gigs at downtown Los Angeles's Orpheum Theater. "
"…during the second night of a sold-out two-show stand at Terminal 5, Yaz delivered a meaty 90-minute set that, surprisingly, oozed timeless relevance. From the angsty drama of the opening ‘Nobody’s Diary’ through the industrial stomp of ‘Goodbye ’70s’ and such sinewy-funk shakedowns as ‘Sweet Thing’ and ‘State Farm,’ Moyet belted, hissed, snarled and growled, beaming herself dead-center into tunes she inhabited with unyielding presence. While hits like ‘Don’t Go’ and ‘Situation’ drew the most enthusiasm, the stealthy, minimal ‘Ode to Boy’ and ‘Winter Kills’ resulted in more riveting, soulful performances. During ‘In My Room’ Moyet reached a chilling theatrical peak."
"…soulful, husky vocals [from Alison Moyet]…she sounded amazing…"
"…a packed house of boisterous fans….’Ode to Boy’ was haunting; ‘Goodbye Seventies’ proved irresistible thanks to its synth-rock-dance groove…Ms. Moyet remains in soulful, strong, enveloping voice. The woman's pipes can leap over even the most intense pastiche of electronic rhythms….the lovely ballad ‘Only You’ [was] still melodically and lyrically beautiful…"
"…a set that covered nearly every song they ever recorded — from the disco scorchers (‘Don't Go,’ ‘Situation’) to the bubbly pop gems (‘Bad Connection,’ ‘Nobody's Diary’) to the bluesy ballads (‘Winter Kills’) – and Moyet delivered at every turn. Not only did she perform the songs as effortlessly as she did two decades ago, she attacked them with conviction that made the band's archetypical tech-pop sound almost timeless."
"Song highlights included the bubbly ‘Bad Connection,’ a pulsating ‘Good Times,’ the ballsy ‘Goodbye Seventies’ and a stark ‘Winter Kills’ (Moyet’s strongest vocal of the evening)… ’Don’t Go’ came late in the set but proved to be an audience favorite, while ‘Situation’ was saved for the encore (along with a heartfelt take on ‘Only You.’)”
“Vince was busy triggering classic samples and arpeggios that made him one of the forefathers of electronic music. Vince's programming with Alison Moyet's (Vocals) sultry and soulful vocals combined to form the super duo of Yaz. The ping-pong synthesizer lines of ‘Nobody's Diary’ immediately transported everyone back to 1983 as Alison couldn't stop smiling from the huge ovation from the crowd. ‘Good Times’ lived up to its namesake as I was surrounded by a pack of rabid Yaz fans dancing all around me. Sugar coated synthesizers propelled the ‘Sweet Thing’ into overdrive as Vince added some robotic vocoder vocals. Alison was correct when she warned the crowd they would be dancing till the close of the show as they tackled ‘Bring Your Love Down (Didn't I)’ and a feverishly audience clapping version of ‘Don't Go’".
"The baby boomers may have the Rolling Stones, the Who and other various touring acts that keep nostalgia alive, but for Generation X, few bands capture both the sound and mood of the early 1980s better than the English duo Yaz."
"Kicking off the show with the defiant torch-song anthem ‘Nobody's Diary,’ Yaz would deliver some 80 minutes' worth of synth-pop music that firmly connected with the crowd. The music was both nostalgic (leading people to remember all the times they had danced to these tunes in the past) and excitingly fresh (causing some to wonder when they had last heard a modern synth-pop track that was good as what Yaz turned out in the early '80s)…As the final techno beat was absorbed into the art-deco walls, one thing was made abundantly clear: These fans never forgot Yaz."
For more information regarding YAZ, contact:
MSO 818-380-0400
Alexandra Greenberg x223, agreenberg@msopr.com
Libby Henry x224, lhenry@msopr.com
Mitch Schneider x235, mschneider@msopr.com
MUTE 212-886-7679
Leslie Hermelin, leslie@mute.com
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