Baby

by William CooperThe Swiss act Yello began as an avant-garde electronic trio, releasing two critically acclaimed albums (1980's Solid Pleasure and 1981's Claro Que Si) before scoring major U.S. club success (and MTV exposure) with 1983's more accessible You Gotta Say Yes to Another Excess. Following the departure of Carlos Peron, founding members Boris Blank and Dieter Meier toned down the more experimental touches while successfully keeping Yello's quirky danceclub sensibilities intact. In 1985, Yello released the more pop-oriented Stella, which included the song that would be a major turning point in the group's career. "Oh Yeah" became a sensation, appearing in major motion pictures and countless commercials before belatedly hitting the U.S. pop chart in 1987. With the release of 1988's Flag, Yello achieved its greatest commercial and critical success. Baby, the 1991 follow-up to Flag, predictably sounds quite similar to its predecessor. With Flag, Yello began to heavily incorporate Latin rhythms into its signature sound, and Baby continues this approach, although with less success. Baby is not without its share of strong tracks, however. "Jungle Bill" and "Who's Gone" are as delightful as anything on Flag, and the wonderfully weird "Rubberbandman" proves Yello definitely has a sense of humor. With Baby, however, Yello faces the task of following its strongest album, and the material is too slight to scale the heights of the complex and often brilliant Flag. But Baby is, for the most part, frothy and fun, and definitely a worthy addition to the Yello catalog.