TV On The Radio
Desperate Youth, Blood Thirsty Babes
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NATN Recommended
TV On The Radio
Desperate Youth, Blood Thirsty Babes
Touch & Go, 2004
RiYL: something new |
TV On The Radio was born in Brooklyn during the new century, but they don't sound like Gang Of Four, or Wire, or the Velvet Underground or any of those touchstones that have become de rigeur for recently hip young NYC-based rock bands.
No, this group (on record, Tunde Adebimpe, Dave Sitek and Kyp Malone) has its own sound, for sure. Describing that sound, naturally, is another matter. On this debut full-length, TVOTR expands on the rhythmic, soulful, exploratory palette set forth on 2003's Young Liars EP, but due to new members and a completely different recording method, the discs sound very different.
During the Young Liars sessions, the young band was really just Dave and Tunde, in their Williamsburg loft, continuously adding layers and chipping away to form over time five distinct sound sculptures that together heralded the birth of the proper "band." But by the time of the Desperate Youth recording, able singer/guitarist/songwriter Malone had joined the fray, and structured sessions were slated for Sitek's New Jersey home studio.
Structured is perhaps not the best word, as most of the songs on the LP were carved from lengthy, free-form jams, and then built upon and multi-tracked to achieve the final result. And the result is stunning, if a bit dense -- sometimes swingin', sometimes meditative, the music incorporates elements of hip-hop, doo-wop, noise-rock and tape collage.
"Staring At The Sun" is the only song reprised from the EP, and it may be at first jarring to listeners already familiar with the cut, to hear it plopped in at track two amidst a host of new friends. But it fits in well, forming a welcoming, if haunting, bridge between opener "The Wrong Way" and the somber, mantra-like "Dreams."
"The Wrong Way" is a rumination on the complicated state of race relations in the United States, set to a thumping beat and jazzed up with a smoky saxophone. It's a defiant way to start the record. But "King Eternal" burns just as strong, piercing falsetto vocals leading the way through a mutating staccato rhythm and confrontational lyrics.
The most striking aspect of the band's signature is its arrangements. The a capella track "Ambulance" and the bouncing, penultimate song "Bomb Yourself" highlight completely different aspects of the group's vocal prowess -- the former softly evokes a sparse soundscape as eloquently as the rumbling bass of "Wear You Out," rhythm vox bubbling up and down like simmering soup as Adebimpe croons "I will be your ambulance, if you will be my accident." "Bomb," on the other hand, showcases the high end of Malone and Adebimpe's range, as they screech "So baby, bomb your countraaaay!" -- the ironic sentiment linking back to the opening tirade "Hey, desperate youth / oh, blood thirsty babes ... your guns are pointed the wrong way!"
The lyrics make plenty of pointed social observations and dissertations throughout the course of the record, but it's the music that really shines. It may take a while to settle into listeners' brains (perhaps due to the lack of musical references), but for the dedicated, it should nestle there for a long time. The freshness of Desperate Youth is what's so invigorating about TV On The Radio -- rather than invoking vivid memories of musics past, this album just makes us want to hear what comes next.
TROY CARPENTER | Troy Carpenter founded NATN from a Chicago apartment during the ambitious winter of 1998 with co-conspirators Ben French and Jonathan Cohen. After a five-year stint in New York, he and wife Lourdes have recently relocated to Indianapolis, where he spends days listening to music and nights in the kitchen at Elements restaurant. Musical heroes: Jimi Hendrix, Bob Marley, Super Furry Animals. What else makes life worth living: Sushi, Phucty, runs in the park, and the Atlanta Braves.