TV On The Radio @ 9:30 Club, 10.15.06 #2

"Live, TVOTR are spellbinding, conjuring a wall of sound within the first few bars, then surging and retreating with a boxer's dexterity. Harmony vocals float unerringly through the noise, and the rhythm section lock into place with a swinging urgency, propelling the music breathlessly forward." - 4AD

Usually, labels fluff it up. They pump their bands and say things about them that may or may not apply. They are pushing CDs, selling you things. But these two sentences, from 4AD's band profile of TVOTR, are all over it. And they are as true as the Sunday night set was powerful.

The raw emotion that pours out of Tunde Adebimpe by the gallon, both in vocal and liquid form, is only part of what makes TV On The Radio so special. You look to the right, at guitarist David Sitek, and you can't see his right hand during "Wolf Like Me." It is a blur. He hammers away at a frantic progression of chords that stirs your blood and makes you believe every word belting out of Tunde. You look to the left, and you are mesmerized by Kyp Malone's falsetto hovering hauntingly out of his beard and over his precise, controlled guitar work. Almost going unnoticed is Gerard Smith, behind the keys and the bass. He is out of the spotlight, but everywhere. Keeping pace with Sitek and Malone, giving each stride an extra ounce of heaviness, distortion, or clarity depending on the movement. Directly behind Tunde is Jaleel Bunton, drums, providing fabulous rhythm, pounding away, and rounding out the group of five.

They sound like nothing else. They have no peer. Name the genre and I will point you to a TVOTR song that has an element of it. Electronica, jazz, hip-hop, trip-hop, trance, rock,...the list is tiring. They burst into the Sunday evening with "The Wrong Way," the first track off of Desperate Youth, Bloodthirsty Babes, their first non-demo LP. On the album, to the untrained ear, it is all horns. Without those horns, as it was on Sunday, it is still a complete, unadulterated assault, and probably, faster. It sounded like a freight train at warp speed, to the point that I did not even know what song it was until the vocals came in. The gravity with which the sounds hit, and it is clearly sounds and not simply sound, catapults the listener into a euphoric new place. There are no boundaries. It is a limitless expanse with rich textures and an engaging embrace.

I hesitate, catching my breath, after "The Wrong Way" and wonder to myself if it is good or bad that they don't have a brass element to this thing. The thought, the question, is quickly abandoned as "Dreams" reveals itself via Jaleel's steady thump-ba-da-bump-thump. Kyp eases over the beat, a soft harmony at first then forcefully, alliteration ("bartering bellowing / barracking blundering / pillaging plundering / living and lavishing") and all, and the roles reverse for "Blues From Down Here," as Kyp bellows out the opening lines,

"From the depths I called you, ma
for your breath and breast so warm and fabled
Your hands reached inside
grabbed my heart, enlarged, disabled"

just to be met with a steady, focused cadence from Bunton. "Blues" was heavy, pulse-pounding, and cathartic.

They touch just about everything an avid fan needed. I long for "Playhouses," preferably right before "Wolf Like Me," as it is on Return to Cookie Mountain and hope that Friday night's show at Sonar in Baltimore will bring it, in addition to the ethereal "Tonight." But, they played a healthy mix of new and old. While the crowd enthusiasm and attention was the only weak spot, "Young Liars" received a healthy amount of crowd participation during the chorus. "Satellite," another track off of Young Liars rounded out the main set, and while we could see the setlist on the floor in front of Tunde, there was a palpable sense of anticipation from those of us closest to the stage.

After a short time back stage, the group emerged again and quickly resumed business with "Poppy." The encore finished with a vigorous version of "Staring at the Sun" and then "Let the Devil In." Celebration burst out and help the Brooklyn boys with the last track. Katrina Ford, who appeared earlier, providing background vocals for a stirring "Province" (among others), rocked out heavily next to David Sitek, while David Bergander and Sean Antanaitis hammered away on a drum placed in front of Jaleel Bunton's kit. The scene was very reminiscent of their closing tracks at Coachella, with Tunde using a megaphone for "Let the Devil In," alternating mics and moving hectically about the stage.

By the end of "Let the Devil In," Tunde, now without his glasses, is grasping both of his mic stands (there are two), as if they are the only thing keeping him up. He has left everything out there. There is nothing left to give. My only regret is that the crowd wasn't as engaging as he was. There weren't any signs of disrespect, but there wasn't overwhelming responses to gear shifts in the music, or the opening bars of certain songs. Unphased, he is appreciative. Maybe he knows it is a Sunday night, or maybe he understands that some people just don't "get it." Regardless, they continue to blow me away. It is truly a spiritual experience to see them live.

TV On The Radio will play Sonar this Friday night. Tickets are still available.