Patrick Sisson - Writer, Journalist, Cultural Documentarian, Music Lover

TV on the Radio: Dear Science

Music Review
Earplug
September 2008

dear-science

Relentless and righteous as hell, TV on the Radio soar through Dear Science, retreating from the buzzing, hotwired rock of Return to Cookie Mountain for a wide swath of lush hymns and muscular tracks. Made for confusing times, the record tends to look outward, not inward, and sounds more crisp, electrified, and anthemic than anything the band has done before. It’s even, occasionally, upbeat. Though tense riffs and sheets of noise still grind and smoke, there are more sugary strings (“Love Dog”), taut rhythms (“Dancing Choose”), and clipped guitars (“Shout Me Out”). The thicket of damning lyrics in “Crying” and “Red Dress,” meanwhile, offer a counterpoint to the last record’s tales of toxic attraction. Stirring and poetic, it’s a lithe, gorgeous art-rock record.

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