WWhile the "Bimbo" single on Ralph was the first Yello I had heard [on community radio in Tampa], the first record I found out in the wilds and bought was something else. It was easy enough back then to find the Ralph pressing of "Claro Que Si." While I had a jones for hearing "Bimbo," I am at least pragmatic and know when to be flexible. As it turned out, "Claro Que Si" was a strong introduction to Yello. "Daily Disco" got the album off to a rousing start with one of Yello’s dynamic dance tracks as singer Deiter Meier vacillated between two vocal characterizations to contrast with the flanged synths and jittery sequencers of Boris Blank. This was a track that actually belonged in its namesake; an early example of Yello’s club appeal, which was just one side of a multifaceted branding at the time. As if the next song, "No More Roger" didn’t make abundantly clear.
The band had traveled from Switzerland to San Francisco to meet with prospective label Ralph Records since they were fans of the idiosyncratic Residents. The trip was a good thought since Ralph signed the band and issued their first two albums. "No More Roger" sounded like little else out in the 1981 marketplace with roiling, liquid synths providing the melodrama underneath Meier’s chorused, vocoder vocal. The stark melodrama of the instrumental "Take It All" was a throwback to the queasy cinematic landscapes of the debut album, which I had yet to hear when I got this, but makes perfect sense here.
It served as a long introduction that segued into "The Evening’s Young," which was the first Yello video I had the pleasure of seeing brief clips of on cable TV somewhere. I was just as taken by Meier’s cinematic eye [and penchant for lighting gels] as I was with the electrifying music. "The Evening’s Young" posited a fascinating portrait of a barfly questioning his redundant existence while Boris Blank and the band created a driving, motorik psychedelia. With the processed tapes of Carlos Peron adding mysterious textures and the solid drumming of Beat Ash and guitar of Chico Hablas all folding into the rich mix. At one point Hablas’ guitar attempted to try for a Tom Scholz styled Boston riffage but Blanks synths stepped up to quickly obliterate the guitar.
(full version: postpunkmonk.com/2021/07/21/claro-que-si-my-first-yello-album/)