TV On The Radio

There's an anxious energy powering Dear Science, and it's incredibly infectious. Apparent from the first grating guitar riff on "Halfway Home," it flows through "Crying"'s bassy/falsetto interplay and "Dancing Choose"'s fast, flippant flows that can contend with R.E.M.'s "It's the End of the World ..." The restless vigor turns upbeat with "Golden Age," which could be a New Age mantra if it weren't for all the moonwalk-able beats, and on "Red Dress," a funky, big-band thrill ride. TVOTR may still allow the gloom to lurk, but this time around, they're having more fun with it.

In an era where many rock visionaries are happy operating on the scale of a high school
auditorium, it's encouraging to find an indie-minded group that's willing to step into the
arena. On their major-label debut, 2006's Return to Cookie Mountain, TV on the Radio
established themselves as one of Brooklyn's most innovative bands — a matter-of-factly
interracial outfit that mixed doo-wop, soul and arty post-punk into something br... More >