The following is less a review than an assessment of the artist at this time. Does that make sense? More of an essay than a review I guess. But the short answer is yes, buy this album. It is more than worth it.
In my old Postmodernism in Film class, we were told a quote that I can't quite remember. Something beautiful. Speaking of how irony & cynicism had completely replaced authentic emotion, how pessimistic detachment was the new standard, the quote read something to the effect of "the solution is pure, unabashed romanticism."
This has always stuck with me. Well, the exact wording has not, but this idea. This is what we need now. And this was years ago! This was when we were discussing Eternal Sunshine of the Spotless Mind, and this is why I still consider that film to be the greatest of the past 20 years or so. Because it had the courage to be unabashedly romantic without compromising on story, character, depth, or anything else that most optimistic movies (I'm looking at you, romantic comedies!) lack. It didn't undercut itself with a cynical joke, a sarcastic comment, or anything like that.
When speaking of TV on the Radio, I have always leapt to hyperbole. I have compared them to the other most influential artists of various eras (Radiohead, Pixies, The Clash). I said that their last album had "conquered art." That may have been a little much. But I remain steadfast that they are the most important band working today.
Back to my original point. Their previous albums always had an undercurrent of cynicism. Which is not a bad thing. Lines like "I was a lover...before this war" demonstrate a yearning for something romantic but unattainable. And here we are, our nation in a huge recession, three-ish wars going on, more divided than ever. We still live in cynical times. We need this. This is the only way out. Romanticism without irony.
So lyrically, that's what we have. Love songs. Optimism.
Now the other side. The music. TVOTR expanded their sound exponentially through each album up until Dear Science. But they have stopped expanding. They had to stop at some point. They are now just using the tools that they have. It sounds like an insult, and I don't mean it that way, but everything on here lies somewhere on the spectrum of what this band has already established. The most chaotic moments on this album do not reach the level of "Shout Me Out" or "Let The Devil In," and the most delicate moments do not match "Family Tree." But it is within these established boundaries that the band has really ripened.
This is exactly what it should be. One can't just keep expanding the hyperbole. TV on the Radio has established a playing field with enormous potential. It is time to explore this field. On Nine Types of Light, they have given us the romanticism we so desperately need as a society. I embrace this direction and look forward to further internal explorations.
