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Being an avid listener of music for my entire life and with the current state of music in shambles, it is not often anymore that I become instantly infatuated with a single, let alone an entire record. Being from the old school of musical purism, I define my musical taste as “a fan of music that matters.” I am always unhappy with the majority of music because I crave for great music of the past. The group that I am choosing to review today are exactly that which I formerly mentioned, music that matters. After hearing the first single “Wolf Like Me” I had to go out an pick up a copy of TV on the Radio’s album “Return to Cookie Mountain.”

TV on the Radio is a group who’s sound is almost diverse as anything I have heard in the past decade, maybe ever. Hailing from Brooklyn New, York; TV on the Radio is a group that encompasses aspects of almost every style of music that has been popular in the past 100 years. Being dubbed as New York Art Rock from many of the “leading” rock review magazines, the group is popular for exhibiting elements of English Rock, Trance, Afro-Beat, Jazz, Punk, Psychedelic, the music is unlike anything I have heard in years.

Upon listening to the album and absorbing it, the user is taken into another realm and continues to world jump as frequent as the beginning and ending of each track. The music is smart, it is lyrical, it is intellectual, it is political, it is everything. “Return to Cookie Mountain” is a musical melting pot that works; take one part John Lennon, throw in a healthy serving of The Ramones, add a dash of The Clash, then heave in some Afrika Bambaataa, The Payolas, Freddy Mercury, and stir it all around and you have an idea of what only one track sounds like. You literally are paying for a travel experience and tutorial in enlightenment more so than a rock album.

Each song on this album instantaneously paints an illustration in your head, your own music video if you will; this is not seen more ubiquitous than in the first single “Wolf Like Me.” From the moment I heard lead singer, Tunde Adebimpe’s vocals on the track I was directly transported to what seems to be a very real version of the transformation scene in the movie “American Werewolf in Paris” running through a subway literally ripping my clothes off, almost tasting the insatiable bloodlust as his vocals pound in and out through tongue twisters to common jargon, since obtaining the album I have listened to this song (the official count courtesy of my Last.Fm account) an astronomical 84 times. The flavor that is left dripping from Tunde’s vocals, tastes like The legendary Ramones and The Clash met and became in sync vocally, birthing Tunde. This is the kind of sound you would have expected out of a 1980’s English rock singer, however +1 point to the States this round, for once a great rock singer hails from the great Us of A.

Another must mention bursting from the seems of this musical magnum opus is the experimental, “I Was a Lover” which along with the aforementioned “Wolf Like Me” has created a tag team of chaos on my Ipod. The song contains incredible afro-beat elements, incredible horns, just all out inconceivable samples, vocally fused by the dreamsequence-esque vocals of Tunde once again. If you were to give this production to any artist out their in the Billboard Top 200, they would look at you and laugh, it is perfect for this group and this group only, no other sound or singer could make this track work. This song along is the epitome of what exactly the style of TV on the Radio is; indescribable.

Yet another highlight of the album, is the appearance of rock icon David Bowie on the track “Province”. Through typical rock fashion, TV on the Radio gained the support of the legendary David Bowie via gutiarist David Andrew Sitek’s other passion, art. Bowie’s doorman saw Sitek’s work and bought a painting, upon discovery of his buyers profession Sitek insisted that he pass the groups music to Bowie, and unexpectedly, the group actually got a call from Bowie singing their praises and announcing his yearning to be apart of their progression, and so the collaboration is born on the track, “Province.” Though more simplistic production wise than any other track on the album, this song says the most vocally. With simple yet ingenious lyrics such as:

“Suddenly, all your history’s ablaze Try to breath as the world desintegrates Just like autumn leaves we’re in for change Holding tenderly to what remains.”

This song is just another one of those incredible songs on an album which seems to bring about the word so often.

The Bottom Line: With the current state of music what it is, this album will definitely fall to the side of non importance, and it is a fucking shame. If this album was released in the 1980’s TV on the RADIO would be considered rock icons, and would undoubtedly be selling billions of records worldwide. Tunde is one of rocks greatest vocalists, and ironically he is not from Britain, he is from America, and we cannot celebrate this, because current music listeners do not care. They prefer background noise to world altering music. So with all that said, my position is this. Make an investment in the future of music, BUY THIS ALBUM NOW. Incredible album that will indubitably be overlooked by the masses, yet like all fine art at first, the few will appreciate it before mass appeal becomes apparent.

Tracklisting

1. I Was A Lover
2. Hours
3. Province
4. Playhouses
5. Wolf Like Me
6. Method, A
7. Let The Devil In
8. Dirty Whirl
9. Blues From Down Here
10. Tonight
11. Wash The Day
12. Snakes And Martyrs
13. Hours – (El-P remix)
14. Things You Can Do

Websites

TvOnTheRadio.com
MySpace.com/TVOTR

Record Label:

• Interscope Records

Release Date:

• 09/12/2006

Reviewer:

• Kevin Dank