Yo La Tengo - the early years

Yo La Tengo is an American indie rock band, based in Hoboken, New Jersey. With more than 15 albums released over a period of twenty years, they have demonstrated unusual longevity for the indie-rock scene. While they are a critical favorite with a devoted fan base, they have achieved only limited popular success.Experiencing Yo La Tengo live is a bit like eating peanut brittle: it doesn't look like it should taste very good, but when that first bite dissolves into crunchy sweetness inside your mouth, you can't help but become positively hooked. This trio from Hoboken, New Jersey has ignored the mandates of the How to Make It Big as a Pop Band manual, such as "costumes and on-stage antics are an indispensable component of the successful live act" or "it has been proven that an appealing or provocative image sells records." Yo La Tengo proved that, despite their nondescript appearance and presence, they can easily sustain the rapt attention of a live audience with their music -- a brand of pop which is rare for its combination of sincerity, maturity and originality. Calling a Yo La Tengo show a 'sonic experience,' though it would be slightly melodramatic, would not be inaccurate. Hypnotic stretches of their trademark sound -- waves of meticulously controlled feedback washing over moody keyboards and crashing drums -- give way in the next song to a pure, simple melody…