Maybe try 'I Was A Lover', which I reckon is the only interesting song on the new album. Falsetto vox and horns and slabs of noise.
TV on the Radio
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I hate how Staring At The Sun sounds like its about to go somewhere but then never does. It's like flat pop, you wish it were more but you still drink it anyway when you have to.
I got turned off TV on the Radio really early too, because I went to go see them live, and they were, hands down, THE worst live act I have ever seen in my entire puff. They were beyond terrible.
I got turned off TV on the Radio really early too, because I went to go see them live, and they were, hands down, THE worst live act I have ever seen in my entire puff. They were beyond terrible.
exactly
what i liked most about them was the fact they sounded like a studio creation and well, that they used electronics. i cant help thinking the sound of the new album is something of a concession to the traditional rock band format, even though no, they dont sound like a typical 4 piece by any means. but the live sound they now have has basically robbed them of what made them stand out. they were much more interesting on young liars, ok calculator and desperate youth. their songs are still interesting but just as much as they sound more (dissapointingly) organic , they also sound quite overproduced and overlaboured, strangely. its like they wanted to replicate their prowess as a live unit but then decided to layer and layer it until they drowned the original take in overdubs and effects. it kinda reminds me of loveless in places but it just sounds somewhat messy on cookie mountain and overcooked. i like the denseness, the fact that you have to work a bit to get to the songs (not much in the way of immediacy here except for wolf like me), but the *sound* of the album doesnt make me want to return to it very much at all. it just sounds ugly to me. which is good in a way, as its not making it 'easy' and sticking to the comfortable, but still, it just seems 'cold' (and not in a eno/hannett/joy division way, just a cold, bloated 80s kind of way).
what i liked most about them was the fact they sounded like a studio creation and well, that they used electronics. i cant help thinking the sound of the new album is something of a concession to the traditional rock band format, even though no, they dont sound like a typical 4 piece by any means. but the live sound they now have has basically robbed them of what made them stand out. they were much more interesting on young liars, ok calculator and desperate youth. their songs are still interesting but just as much as they sound more (dissapointingly) organic , they also sound quite overproduced and overlaboured, strangely. its like they wanted to replicate their prowess as a live unit but then decided to layer and layer it until they drowned the original take in overdubs and effects. it kinda reminds me of loveless in places but it just sounds somewhat messy on cookie mountain and overcooked. i like the denseness, the fact that you have to work a bit to get to the songs (not much in the way of immediacy here except for wolf like me), but the *sound* of the album doesnt make me want to return to it very much at all. it just sounds ugly to me. which is good in a way, as its not making it 'easy' and sticking to the comfortable, but still, it just seems 'cold' (and not in a eno/hannett/joy division way, just a cold, bloated 80s kind of way).
Funny, I really like "staring at the sun" cos its completely wrong drum wise, just hi hats and distorted thrumming artificial sub bass, only gaining a kick and snare for about 4 bars right at the end... to be honest "I was a Lover" is the only decent thing on their new record, the rest is stodgy and boring. I don't get why critics are creaming themselves over it (I get the accolades for the band themselves, they hint at amazing originality, or at least perversity...)
'I was a lover' is definitely the best thing on there for sure, the rest of the album dies a slow, disapointing death.
I honestly think that 'God's Money' is the best album of the last 3 years. (obviously, i haven't heard every album out there in that time)
its innovative, original, fluid, economical, coherent: in other words a classic. I don't understand why there hasn't been more fuss about them. maybe the fact they are from Brooklyn and have an arty name?
Haven't heard much Battles but certainly intrigued.
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Best band in NYC? I like TVOTR, but Gang Gang Dance and Battles utterly utterly beast themI honestly think that 'God's Money' is the best album of the last 3 years. (obviously, i haven't heard every album out there in that time)
its innovative, original, fluid, economical, coherent: in other words a classic. I don't understand why there hasn't been more fuss about them. maybe the fact they are from Brooklyn and have an arty name?
Haven't heard much Battles but certainly intrigued.
Both Battles (post Reich post-rock with guitar loops, frenetic sampling of live instruments, 2 step beat boxing, musique concrete, drummer with very tall hi hat) and Gang Gang Dance have re-instated a belief in the power of live music to actually be exciting, as both of them appealed to brain and to feet. Gang Gang Dance were unbelievably good live, but probably only cos I was dancing properly to it, (the chin stroking contingent reported it sounded messy and contrived) -- but in terms of dance music they make complete sense (along with the fact they are clearly influenced by grime/dubstep on some of their new stuff- interesting). I thought GGD's "God's Money" was a perfectly enjoyable album, but live they far far far exceed that, possibly just because they improvise more around the edges (approaching the big tunes rather like a jazz "head", wherein they play with the familiar tune for a while before heading off into rhythmic post-urban psychedelic orientalist Kraut-dance...) Crucially both these bands have superb drummers, who were incredibly well mic'd up on the occasions I saw them (and therefore the drums didn't sound like a flea hitting an empty packet of crisps). These two are the exception to the "get rid of the drummer" rule that Swears has been banging on about elsewhere... in fact at times they sound better than synthetic drums (but probably only because both acts percussion-wise are clearly heavily aware of the wealth of post-acoustic drum rhythms and sounds available)
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I'd agree that no matter how you slice the musical landscape, Battles are one of the best 'bands' around. They do in fact incorporate all of the features that gek mentions - except that the tall cymbal is a crash cymbal, not a high-hat (which Stanier keeps close by and works with mechanical patience) - but also crucial to their elegant musical success is (a) a musicality lacking in many flavor-of-the-month bands, and (b) they have all been around for a very long time. The drummer, John Stanier, was the original drummer in Helmet, a band who for about one record maybe two, were quite something in '91-93. I saw Helmet's first tour, just months after the first record was released, winter of 1992, and it was one of the more frightening things I had up til then experienced. Though they sounded 'metal' on record, in concert they sounded like a gigantic, utterly precise machine, completely mechanical, but made with warm staccato guitars and a disgustingly precise and disciplined drummer. That drummer was Stanier.
As for the other members of Battles, Ian Williams played in what remains the definitive math unit, Don Caballero. He went from them to another band, Storm and Stress. Tyondai Braxton is the son of none other than Anthony Braxton, but also an accomplished solo artist in his own right. Dave Konopka was in Lynx. So when these four fellows decided to play together, they had each already participated in over a decade (or two) of music history and, in some cases, had seen the rise and fall of Touch & Go and Amphetamine Reptile-style heaviness, the emergence of 'post-rock', the ebb and flow of jungle and other 'electronic' genres, etc etc . . . the point being that when they set out, they knew what they were after.
That being said, I still think that their strength is the live show, which is utterly incandescent, machine-like but virtuosic without ego - churning out multiple loops with guitars, keys (sometimes played simultaneously), samples, and a live kit. It doesn't always translate on record. The new one could change that.
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I concur. I saw them supporting massive attack a few years ago (dragged to see them by my then girlfriend).
Dreary. Really dreary. As leaden and dreary as their name suggests.
@ Tate: Yes, Battles on record are merely good, live they are unbelievably excellent, the combination of simple basic musical elements and the virtuosic manner in which they are deployed... my favourite moments were when a country-minimalist-rock bit suddenly stopped to be replaced by about 8 bars of insane Tin Drum era Japan-esque oriental wonky synths, before shifting without warning into another segment... or similarly when Tyondai Braxton broke out into 2 step beat boxing, then immediately afterwards the band shifted into something else... just pure excitement, and the band all looked like they were utterly loving it too, all covered in sweat... its like they transliterate part of what the excitement of seeing live rock and roll in the 50s or 60s was like... that level of raw excitement made fresh by their complete mastery of live sampling technology...
just saw battles live last night in Toronto, and I definitely agree with Gek's assessment. The whole crowd was RAPT. The drummer was incredible, just playing these complex rhythms, then turning on a dime. For such intricate music, they really pull off the rhythmic complexity alarmingly well. The trick that both Tyondai Braxton and the non-Don Caballero guitarist pulled off, playing the keyboard and left-hand guitar simultaneously was very impressive too. One complaint I had, though, was that after a while, their basic sonic palette felt a bit samey... sure, they might bust out with cool synths sounds and guitar/keyboard processing, but the underlying guitar/drum chug lay a little too much in the traditional metaly-math territory for my taste. Braxton did provide an incredible exception with this beautiful harmonized-on-the-fly vocalization in one song. Great night.
Oh, and unlike Gang Gang Dance (who I saw a few months ago at the same venue), they did not get the crowd dancing except for some excited activity right up at the front. I think the irregular and shifting beats make it hard to follow with your body...
Oh, and unlike Gang Gang Dance (who I saw a few months ago at the same venue), they did not get the crowd dancing except for some excited activity right up at the front. I think the irregular and shifting beats make it hard to follow with your body...
Battles are definitely pretty awe-inspiring live - but at the same time, I honestly don't think I could sit through it for more than an hour without my head exploding. But then I would never even think of listening to them outside the live arena either.
TV On The Radio, however, are probably the band I most want to see live in the world at this moment. I am currently kicking myself for just presuming I wouldn't like them and avoiding them until this year. Have devoured their back catalogue since falling head over heels for "Wolf Like Me" and I think they're easily one of the best bands around at the moment, and the first rock band in a LONG time that have actually blown me away.
TV On The Radio, however, are probably the band I most want to see live in the world at this moment. I am currently kicking myself for just presuming I wouldn't like them and avoiding them until this year. Have devoured their back catalogue since falling head over heels for "Wolf Like Me" and I think they're easily one of the best bands around at the moment, and the first rock band in a LONG time that have actually blown me away.
I danced more to the last GGD gig (with greater abandon, in essence) than at any club night I can recall. I remember wanting to get down to battles (if only cos dancing to math-ish stuff is like counting with yr entire body- you can actually feel the measures) but the crowd was resolutely arms-folding indie. The drummer was also sonically ace when I saw them the sensual sounds of his beats were incredibly fat and hi fi, like well engineered synthetic drums...
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new album has leaked. just heard the first track. really good stuff, even though i think it rips off something i cant place quite a lot. from skimming the album, this feels much more assured, so far.
basic things i have noticed - the darkness has gone from their sound
they seem to have become quite tuneful without seeming like theyre trying too hard to be accessible - im impressed with their songwriting
they sometimes overpack their songs with too many layers/instruments
adebimpe seems to keep doing a weird bowie impression lol
the 80s influence is very big with these guys - didnt really notice it til the last album but its more pronounced on this one. i thought since so many other bands are deeply into the 80s, tvotr would maybe lay it off a bit but theyre doing their own thing with it more than most so hey...
this makes the last album seem like a transitional album. this is much more accomplished and confident.
basic things i have noticed - the darkness has gone from their sound
they seem to have become quite tuneful without seeming like theyre trying too hard to be accessible - im impressed with their songwriting
they sometimes overpack their songs with too many layers/instruments
adebimpe seems to keep doing a weird bowie impression lol
the 80s influence is very big with these guys - didnt really notice it til the last album but its more pronounced on this one. i thought since so many other bands are deeply into the 80s, tvotr would maybe lay it off a bit but theyre doing their own thing with it more than most so hey...
this makes the last album seem like a transitional album. this is much more accomplished and confident.
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