TV On the Radio

Nine Types of Light is the follow-up to the TV ON THE RADIO's gorgeous, glorious 2008 release, Dear Science, and proved to be its breakout release. It was named album of the year by Rolling Stone, Spin, Pitchfork, Entertainment Weekly and MTV; and touring behind the album, the group sold out a year's worth of live shows across the world. This, however, did not prevent everyone from referring to TV ON THE RADIO as a Brooklyn band. That is not a bad thing. The group – Tunde Adebimpe, Kyp Malone, Dave Sitek, Jaleel Bunton, Gerard Smith – are indeed from Brooklyn.

Though Nine Types of Light will sound like an album full of love songs, often the true meaning of the songs lie deeper. On "You," Tunde sings a haunted refrain; you're the only one I have ever loved. The sincerity of his voice sells the idea of absolute adoration. But Tunde explains, "It's a song about the feeling you get sometimes when you're expressing how much you care about someone but resorting to these beautiful sounding lies. You're the only one I ever loved? It's a terrible thing to say to someone because it's most likely not true."

Nine Types of Light is the fourth album from TV ON THE RADIO. You will want to refer to it as the "fourth proper studio album" from TV ON THE RADIO; those albums were preceded by an EP, Young Liars, and an 18-track handmade CD called OK Calculator, that is considered more like a demo tape (because it was "released" by being hidden in random sofa cushions of New York coffee shops). Enhancing nearly every aspect of their Shortlist Prize-winning Desperate Youth, Blood Thirsty Babes, 2006’s Return to Cookie Mountain was released to crazy universal acclaim. Rolling Stone said “It might be the most oddly beautiful, psychedelic and ambitious album of the year,” with The New York Times agreeing: “It's more experimental yet catchier, more introspective yet more assertive, by turns gloomier and funnier, and above all richer in both sound and implication. ‘Return to Cookie Mountain’ is simply one of this year's best albums.”

TV ON THE RADIO do not write traditional pop songs. Often, they change direction two or three times in one song. Distorted guitars, sauntering and reverberating bass, TV ON THE RADIO tunes are just-barely containing an explosive amount of energy underneath itself – and that tension is nothing less than thrilling. It has become somewhat of a signature of the band, particularly matched with Tunde's serene and poetic vocals. On this album, the group takes an admittedly simpler approach to some of their songs. "Will Do," starts out with wind chimes before giving away to that trademark buzz, with Tunde singing about the yearning for his ungovernable, unrequited love of another. "I think the songs on this album, to me, maybe sound simpler," Tunde says. "But it just might be that we have gotten better at what we do."

Other songs on Nine Types Of Light include more up-tempo post-rock jams like "No Future" (vocals by Kyp) and the '80s-rap-beat "Caffeinated Consciousness," which sounds like it was influenced by Big Audio Dynamite. There are two songs, "All Falls Down" and "The Troubles," that will be available on the Deluxe Edition of the album.