ACL Review: TV on the Radio

Playing opposite Bassnectar as the sun set on the Miller Lite stage, TV on the Radio opened with an ethereal ocean of electronic drone and tinkling percussion that slowly unfolded into a 10-minute take on 2003’s “Young Liars.” Such a slow-burning intro takes moxie, but the Brooklyn art rockers, performing here as a sextet, remain utterly unafraid.

They’re a band of big songs and big ideas, and lead singer Tunde Adebimpe boasts one of the best voices in rock music. He offered little in the way of stage banter, but declared “Winter” “a song for Austin.” On an autumn evening that felt every bit like summer, the driving rock sowed a sea of head nods, if not cooler temps.

Kyp Malone, whose long gray beard might be the envy of stage crews everywhere, shredded guitar on “Wolf Like Me” and seized lead vocals on “Golden Age.” Those proved the rare tracks from career-defining LPs Dear Science (2008) and Return to Cookie Mountain (2006), one of the few nits to pick from a triumphant set that leaned heavily on 2014’s Seeds.

“Repetition” again proved TVOTR as many things, often in the span of a single song. There’s bold experimentalism, bits of soul, and flashes of urgent punk rock. TVOTR isn’t just the best black rock band of its generation, but one of the best bands, period.

Despite that, the periphery of the crowd peeled off early, and by set’s end, ambling to the front of the stage was a surprisingly easy task. Not that it fazed TVOTR, a band who once seemed destined for headlining slots but seem perfectly at ease with who and where they are. As Tunde assured on “Trouble,” “Everything is gonna be okay.”