TV On The Radio - Nine Types Of Light

It was with no small amount of sadness that I heard the news that TV on the Radio bass player Gerard Smith passed away this week. He died on Wednesday morning following a courageous fight against lung cancer. The band have had to cancel five gigs, and I imagine when they do get back on the road those are going to be some pretty tough gigs to play.

This review isn't a reaction to Smith's death. I'd already bought the album on release, and was looking forward to spending the week with it. So out of respect I'll try to review it the same way I would if Smith were still with us.

It took me a while to warm to TV on the Radio. I'm not sure exactly what it was, but I certainly kept them at a distance for a number of years. Sure I liked Wolf Like Me (hell, who doesn't) but they always seemed to have a slight whiff of art and pretension. Two things I'm not always at ease with in a musical context. It wasn't until Kingsmill made their previous album Dear Science his album of the year for 2008, and spoke about it so enthusiastically that I gave them a proper chance.

What TV on the Radio do is very hard to define or pigeonhole, there's so many elements at play. There's a little funk, a little soul, a little rock, a hint of dance/electro. They're unlike any other group I've heard. You do get the impression that there is nothing accidental at play here. Not a bit of what has been committed to record here escaped the scrutiny of the band. For most bands that level of exacting detail would manage to squeeze any life out of the songs. Somehow here, like that crazy machine the kids in The Goonies use to open their gate, it works.

Somewhat anachronistically in our digital age the album seems to have been sequenced with the vinyl record in mind. There are clearly two distinct sides, the first closing so absolutely with Killer Crane that I feel like I should have to get up and turn the record over. They even launch side two with lead single Will Do, a wonderful trick from the days of vinyl to settle the listener in to making it past side one.

There are concessions to the digital age. 'Bonus' tracks (one new song, and two remixes of Will Do) tacked on to the end of the album. They don't really add anything to the album, but they don't exactly over egg the pudding either.

I think I'll try and pick this one up on vinyl. I like it, but I think I could really love it, I just need the context to fit the feel.