Return To Cookie Mountain (Interscope '06) Rating: A
After the stellar Young Liars EP and the impressive but not quite all there yet full-length LP Desperate Youth, Blood Thirsty Babes comes Return To Cookie Mountain, on which this unique and talented band put it all together. For one thing, the band has expanded from a trio to a quintet, and having a real live drummer (Jaleel Bunton), and a damn good one at that, makes a big difference. As for their dense sound, for starters let's just say that it's difficult to describe, and that it takes some getting used to. Those who criticize it for being overly processed and lacking warmth have a point, but the band's hybrid jazz/soul/indie stew is consistently creative and retains interest well after multiple spins. In fact, I discover intriguing new details with each successive listen, and though it's not the easiest album to love, it is relentlessly fascinating, not the least because it's such a rarity these days for a primarily black band to be playing rock music. I liked my friend Trevor's description of the band as "The Platters meets My Bloody Valentine," and though I'd go with "Prince meets My Bloody Valentine" instead due to Tunde Adebimpe fabulous falsetto vocals (heard to best effect on "I Was A Lover" and "Providence," the latter of which guests fan David Bowie), it's still an apt description. The deeper voiced Kyp Malone also sings, and the band's contrasting, multi-layered dual vocals are perhaps their most striking characteristic. As for the music, Malone and David Andrew Sitek provide the churning guitars, while Sitek is also the architect behind the band's densely layered samples and loops. Throw in the odd piano, sax, or horn along with the band's focus on rhythm (bassist Gerard Smith rounds out the lineup) and you have a general idea of what TV On The Radio sound like. As for the songs, I must admit that there are times when actual melodies get lost amid a certain static-y, droning murkiness, but by and large these are well-written songs. In addition to the aforementioned tracks, other highlights include "Hours," which is sparse yet evocative, "Let The Devil In," a funky, energetic shout along, and the pair of closing epics, "Tonight" and "Wash The Day," both of which feature spectacular vocals. But the highlight, hell my hands down pick for the song of the year (with apologies to Gnarles Barkley), is "Wolf Like Me," which features an unstoppable groove and whose propulsive forward drive makes it all but impossible to stand still. I wish that the band would be as direct and rocking elsewhere, but they're on their own trip and I respect that. Besides, most of the rest of these songs are really good in their own idiosyncratic ways, and with Return To Cookie Mountain TV On The Radio firmly established themselves as one of the most interesting and original bands around today. The album received rave reviews, too, and for once the hype was justified.