I Am Not Afraid Of You And I Will Beat Your Ass

by Yo La Tengo

supported by

The Rev. Dr. D3 Among the draws for music fans in YLT's oeuvre is their ability to write instrumental jams that put so-called "jam bands" to shame. Feedback-drenched, rhythmically pulsating excursions that get you moving but require that your brain engage in just exactly how they shifted from this melodic element to that one. What matters is the propulsive drive from one melody to another, at times chaotic and at other times soothing.

That's how this record opens. It frees your mind for what follows. Favorite track: Pass The Hatchet, I Think I'm Goodkind.

more...

	/

Streaming + Download

Includes unlimited streaming via the free Bandcamp app, plus high-quality download in MP3, FLAC and more.

Purchasable with gift card

$9.99 USD or more
Record/Vinyl + Digital Album
Includes unlimited streaming of I Am Not Afraid Of You And I Will Beat Your Ass via the free Bandcamp app, plus high-quality download in MP3, FLAC and more.

ships out within 3 days

Purchasable with gift card

$23.78 USD
Compact Disc (CD) + Digital Album
Includes unlimited streaming of I Am Not Afraid Of You And I Will Beat Your Ass via the free Bandcamp app, plus high-quality download in MP3, FLAC and more.

ships out within 3 days

Purchasable with gift card

$10.18 USD

1.	Pass The Hatchet, I Think I'm Goodkind 10:46	info	buy track
2.	Beanbag Chair 03:02	info	buy track
3.	I Feel Like Going Home 04:14	info	buy track
4.	Mr. Tough 04:05	info	buy track
5.	Black Flowers 04:28	info	buy track
6.	The Race Is On Again 04:36	info	buy track
7.	The Room Got Heavy 05:10	info	buy track
8.	Sometimes I Don't Get You 03:16	info	buy track
9.	Daphnia 08:51	info	buy track
10.	I Should Have Known Better 03:15	info	buy track
11.	Watch Out For Me Ronnie 03:01	info	buy track
12.	The Weakest Part 03:03	info	buy track
13.	Song For Mahila 03:40	info	buy track
14.	Point And Shoot 04:18	info	buy track
15.	The Story Of Yo La Tango 11:48	info	buy track

about

Ira Kaplan, Georgia Hubley and James McNew sound like no other band. This is not because they're contrarians, but because they're artists. I Am Not Afraid Of You And I Will Beat Your Ass has everything that ever made Yo La Tengo great, but elevated to new heights, from the remarkable orchestral chamber piece "Black Flowers" to the garage-punk rave-up "Watch Out For Me Ronnie." If there's one constant about Yo La Tengo, it's that this famously restless band continues to broaden its horizons.

I Am Not Afraid Of You And I Will Beat Your Ass is an album that delights in being an album. This is no mere loud followed by soft merry-go-round, but a subtle parade. Bookended by very different but equally intense ten-minute-plus guitar epics, the set has dramatic arcs that don't all build in expected ways. After a dense thicket of forest they may find a clearing, stop for a picnic, but then fall asleep, dreaming away as day turns to night. A violin (played by David Mansfield, of Dylan's Rolling Thunder Revue) threads its way through the heartbreakingly fragile "I Feel Like Going Home," mirroring the longing in Georgia's vocal, after which "Mr. Tough" struts in on a funky piano riff, with Ira and James singing in falsetto about the transformative power of music.

As much as the full album experience is about the big picture, Yo La Tengo are aware of the small moments. In fact, it is the slivers that make the band so hard to describe: The ambient static in the haunting instrumental "Daphnia"; Georgia's dramatic reading of the vaguely "Autumn Sweater"-esque "The Room Got Heavy"; the way the drums, bass, and tambourine turn themselves inside-out in the intro of "Pass The Hatchet, I Think I'm Goodkind".

credits

released September 11, 2006

2006, Yo La Tengo under exclusive license to Matador Records

license

about

Yo La Tengo New York, New York

yolatengo.com

contact / help

Contact Yo La Tengo

Streaming and
Download help

Redeem code

Report this album or account

If you like Yo La Tengo, you may also like:

HEY WHAT
by Low

supported by 18 fans who also own “I Am Not Afraid Of You And I Will Beat Your Ass”

Mimi was so unbelievably amazing. More is a perfect track in a flawless album. ollie gn
go to album
Blue Rev
by Alvvays

supported by 17 fans who also own “I Am Not Afraid Of You And I Will Beat Your Ass”

Alvvays has always been great, but with this album they took it to the next level. Every one of these songs is lodged in my brain now, permanently (in a good way). s. moxley
go to album
Promises
by Floating Points, Pharoah Sanders & The London Symphony Orchestra

supported by 17 fans who also own “I Am Not Afraid Of You And I Will Beat Your Ass”

hypnotic and incredibly moving marsplutomusic
go to album
Walk Thru Me
by The Folk Implosion

Lou Barlow & John Davis return as Folk Implosion, with 10 more songs that are sweetly tuneful. Bandcamp New & Notable Apr 17, 2024
go to album
Survive It
by Ghostpoet

featured on Bandcamp Radio Apr 16, 2024
go to album
How Will I Live Without a Body?
by LOMA

An earthy yet somewhat chilly record about life, death, and reconnection, the latest from LOMA experiments with a turn towards the gloomy. Bandcamp New & Notable Apr 16, 2024
go to album
G_d’s Pee AT STATE’S END!
by Godspeed You! Black Emperor

supported by 16 fans who also own “I Am Not Afraid Of You And I Will Beat Your Ass”

haha, they said pee *ascends the staircase of holy light* Jay
go to album