CLAP YOUR HANDS
SAY YEAH
Hysterical
self-released
Rating: 
The line between internet sensation and internet cautionary tale is thin: Just ask Clap Your Hands Say Yeah. The New York quintet rode bloggy buzz to virtual acclaim—along with some corpo real sales—for their 2005 self-titled debut. But 2007’s Some Loud Thunder vanished as quickly as a kitten video on YouTube. Now they return, older and wittier, with a batch of charismatic tunes built to last. Over the key board hum of “Same Mistake,” cracked-voiced singer Alec Ounsworth opens his heart to the open road. On the beautiful “In to Your Alien Arms,” his crooked declarations of love are downright otherworldly. It’s a true album in a pre-digital sense—with zero need to hit refresh.
