Over the weekend I got a chance to see TV On The Radio at the Hollywood Bowl. The last time I had seen them was at the Siren Music Festival in 2004. Back then I liked them, but not so much that the had my full attention. Partially because the crowd camped out for Death Cab stretched back what must have been a quarter mile, partially because of the sticky as syrup heat (I gave up on Siren after that year), I bailed on them midway through their set. My opinion of them today is miles from what it was, but I think also that they are a far better band than they were, and I couldn’t have been more excited to see them play stuff off of the new record.
They were great, although unnecessarily short. I like that the songs have a personality of their own live, with altered arrangements a whole lot of energy. My memory is already fading, but I think the Katrina comment of “Dirtywhirl” started with a heavy beat and a whistled melody. No, shut up, it sounded awesome. I will say, though, that the Massive Attack fan behind me wasn’t so far off when he said that they were a little rough around the edges. I think the mixing needs a little work, because some of the songs were painfully heavy on guitar, while the vocals went unheard. Late in the set they started to dedicate a song to Los Angeles, but were cut off and exited abruptly. Hardly a deserving finale for a band that is touring for what is arguably the best record of the year.
Luckily they also did a live set while they were in town Friday morning on KCRW. You can stream the set, along with their interview here. The song selections work well, and I think its pretty clear why “Blues From Down Here” was my favorite of the songs they played Sunday night. On the album it is good, but live it is great. And then, for as much as I thought the strength of “Province” was in the Bowie harmonies, wow, does it sound great this way.
Hopefully they’ll return to L.A. shortly and play a couple medium-sized venue shows. After Sunday night, I wasn’t the only one who looking to see them in a more appropriate “atmosphere.”
: 01 Blues From Down Here :
: 02 Wolf Like Me :
: 03 Hours :
: 04 Province :
: 05 Wash The Day :
