Brad Farberman

It feels lazy to describe a band as versatile, but Yo La Tengo, the veteran indie-rock trio of guitarist Ira Kaplan, drummer Georgia Hubley and bassist James McNew, fits the bill. Whether it’s lengthy jams or short-and-sweet pop you’re in the mood for, this legendary Hoboken, NJ, act—famous for its lengthy annual run of Hanukkah gigs at Maxwell's, which ran from 2001 through 2012—has something for you. In celebration of its 30th year as a group and a reissue of its 1993 LP, Painful (called Extra Painful), YLT plays the Town Hall this Wednesday and Thursday, December 3 and 4. Here, we select ten key tracks from the group's sizable discography. “Emulsified”(Fakebook, 1990)From the covers-heavy Fakebook comes Yo La Tengo’s take on “Emulsified,” a 1961 R&B track by Rex Garvin and the Mighty Cravers. From its insistent organ to Kaplan’s impassioned lead vocal, “Emulsified” is fun to the bone. “Mushroom Cloud of Hiss”(May I Sing With Me, 1992)Yo La Tengo is known for its sensitivity, but “Mushroom Cloud of Hiss” hits hard. Punkish and wild, the song drops into about two minutes of pure noise at the six-minute mark. “Big Day Coming [Second Version]”(Painful, 1993)Painful offers two looks at the Yo La Tengo original “Big Day Coming.” The first is calming and ethereal, but “Big Day Coming [Second Version],” with its distorted guitar and driving drums, is where it’s at. “Let’s wake up the neighbors / Let’s turn up our amps,” sings Kaplan. “Sugarcube”(I Can Hear the Heart Beating As On