America Yeah

America Yeah

No Tenderness EP (self-released)

www.myspace.com/americayeah

The breezy, multi-genre approach to 1970s pop/rock isn't exactly downtown Las Vegas-friendly; one listen of America Yeah's five-song EP, No Tenderness, and you wonder who exactly is going to listen to this -- hipsters, or their parents? However, it all clicks once you see the sextet live, and No Tenderness almost magically transforms into this palatable -- and relatable -- work. You realize the band's love for post-bicentennial soft rock isn't ironic or cynical; it takes its music seriously. You realize its melodies aren't easy to dream up. And you realize its expansive incorporation of different music styles creates many entrance points for the listener. "Love Nectar" alone has about six of them; it's a jazzy, soulful, reggae-disco tropicalia pop number that makes your feet do creative things. America Yeah has obviously taken its Talking Heads and Roxy Music lessons; General Public and Joe Jackson also figure in as potential influences. In other words, America Yeah is influenced by everyone its Vegas peer bands seemingly aren't. Another niche has been carved into the increasingly sprawling local music scene. MIKE PREVATT
- CityLife Magazine

"They've been here since 4:30 doing sound check," says the slightly amazed Bunkhouse bartender on Friday night. It's now 10:30 p.m.

The dedicated band is America Yeah, the latest local outfit to host its CD release party at the Downtown venue. Apparently its six members spent close to an hour meticulously fine-tuning each instrument. And there are a lot of them filling the stage, everything from the traditional drum kit and guitar to the more exotic marimba and bassoon. They even brought their own sound engineers.

That's not the only sign these guys mean business. Although they've played just three shows with the latest lineup — America Yeah has been around for three years but has seen changing faces and styles — the tally at the door shows that approximately 100 people showed up to see them.

So what's the fuss all about? The band brings a unique sound to the local scene: tropical, feel-good harmonies reminiscent of the Beach Boys, with a worldbeat flair and romantic vocal styling courtesy of singer Logan Lanning.

And some big-name connections can't hurt. Former Panic! at the Disco member Ryan Ross, a friend of Lanning's, played a part in getting America Yeah access to the Palm's studio, where it was able to record the new album, No Tenderness, with chief audio engineer Mark Gray. Free of charge.

"[Ross, Gray and I] went out ... we got to talking and one thing led to another. [Gray] was looking for a local act to work with — something new and fresh. Two days later he came over and listened to some of the demos and said he was really interested and wanted to commit to the project," explains Lanning.

While the recordings may be high quality, that's not what's getting the crowd at the Bunkhouse so enthused tonight. It's the swoon of the saxophone and pounding of the standing drum that gets them moving. Lanning's sweat-dripping sincerity as he clutches the mic or beats the conga isn't making the girls complain either. - LV Weekly

It was clear by the end of the evening that the crowd was almost entirely there for America Yeah’s performance. The half-empty venue quickly filled up as the group took to the stage and began their progressive rock onslaught, which ultimately found more than one hipster grinding on each other as the music pulsed. The group’s musicianship was unquestionable, percussion was played together in perfect harmony with the sweet music coming from the piano and guitar strings. America Yeah was absolutely the highlight of the evening. - Rebel Yell Newspaper