Review: Dear Science

TV On The Radio

Music is not a science. There is no set of exact values, there is no defined unit of measurement with which to compare various styles, and there no unequivocal way to state what a certain piece of music is worth. This is part of the rationale behind Off The Richter’s refusal to give any albums that it reviews a set rating; there are things about every album that appeal, just as there are things about every album that turn us away, and it is unfair for us to feel that we can pin a value onto these. It relies on concepts that are abstract, concepts that are more subjective than objective, concepts like creativity, concepts like emotional accessibility, and concepts like energy.

Energy in music doesn’t necessarily mean anything, but at the same time it can mean everything. An earlier post on this site by my esteemed colleague Dodo made reference to the fact that there are many bands that are unable to substantially alter their sound or feel from their album when performing their material live, the result of which is the equivalent of standing in a crowded room with over-priced drinks and playing a CD. This is because they lack energy; a fault that is by no means fatal to a band, but that doesn’t help it in a live setting. After all, as rare as it is to find a band that is able to truly link with an audience in a Hawnay Troof-like state of connection, it is equally uncommon to find a band that is able to record a truly gripping collection of songs, so it is perhaps unreasonable to expect a group to do both at the same time.

Rarer still is a band that is able to record that album – the album that grabs a listener by the scruff of the neck and forces them to remain chained to its power for a certain amount of time – and at the same time infuse it with the kind of energy that every audience member dreams of, the raw charisma of a band that is made to perform. Dear Science, the third full-length studio effort from TV On The Radio, is part of a rare breed; an album that sounds as complete and innovative as anything else around, but at the same time reeks of a raw power that, by any rights, shouldn’t be able to be contained on one recorded album.

This album is a remarkable achievement. From the frenetic verses of early standout ‘Dancing Choose’ to the politically charged rant of ‘Red Dress’ the songs exude the sort of vibe that live music was made for; the feeling of sweaty bodies pressed together as they move in unison to the sensation of one song. This is energy that is hard, that is fast, and that is satisfying, the musical equivalent of sex in the toilets of an airport with the partner you’ve just picked up after they’ve been overseas for six months. Probably. It was obvious from their last album, 2006’s stunning Return to Cookie Mountain, that they were a band more capable of blasting out fast-paced songs that still had depth than almost anybody else in music, and Dear Science has done that reputation nothing but favours.

However, the energy that seeps through this album most thoroughly, and that takes to the ears of the listener most seductively, is not the same energy that is most prevalent in the aforementioned tracks, stunning as they may be. Instead, the highlights of the album come when this energy transforms, changing into something slow-burning that grabs the listener in a more gentle way, but still with the same essence of power that runs through the more overtly vibrant tunes. Some songs are emotive because they are beautifully written, even if it is in a clichéd sense. ‘The Drugs Don’t Work’ is a fantastic song, but it is written to draw feeling from the listener in exactly the same way that any number of ballads are, and this doesn’t necessarily detract from the merit of any of these songs. Rather, it makes the fact that TVOTR are able take the energy that they are so famous for, and then transfer it into music that they, in all fairness, shouldn’t be able to perform, the indie equivalent of Opeth writing ‘Hey Jude’. ‘Family Tree’, a true highpoint of Dear Science, and recognisably the work of TVOTR, is at the same time different to the more recognisable tracks from their back-catalogue – it is about as far as conceivable from the vigour of Return to Cookie Mountain’s ‘Wolf Like Me’ and ‘Dirty Whirl’. Similarly the gradual build of ‘Shout Me Out’ is more reliant on the primal energy of the band moving the song, even though the slow first half to the song is musically in no way indicative of the band’s history.

A band that is able to harness it’s famed raw energy and run it successfully through the filter of a different style of music is rare indeed, for it is too easy for a group to find something that they excel at and stay with it. With Dear Science, TV On The Radio have challenged themselves, and passed with flying colours. They were always a band that could make you move. Who knew they were a band that could move you as well?


+: Hard to narrow it down . . . Dancing Choose and Family Tree are two easy highlights. Diversity works. Despite changing some parts of their sound, the band is as obviously TVOTR as ever
-: Not a great album to listen to and try and do something else at the same time . . . It says a lot when that's the biggest negative to be found.

Dancing Choose - TV On The Radio
Family Tree - TV On The Radio