They couldn't do it. No way. Impossible. Return to Cookie Mountain was too good of an album. How could TV on The Radio follow up one of the best albums of 2006? Better yet, how the hell could they follow up one of the best albums of this decade? With expectations for Dear Science at impossible heights, Tunde Adebimpe and company were going to let everyone down... right?
Far from it. Like, distance-to-the-moon far from it.
In fact, though it may be blasphemous, ridiculous and downright absurd to even think about, it may actually (deep breath) be better than Cookie Mountain!
The mainstays of Cookie Mountain - and TVOTR in general - are kept perfectly intact: Adebimpe's hypnotizing voice, Kyp Malone's just-barely-reaching-the-high-note vocals and David Sitek's haze of guitar, it's all there. What puts it a step above their previous work is that, overall, it's catchier; it's more fun.
Maybe it's because of the heavier use of synth, maybe it's because the songs have a higher tempo (which makes a heck of a lot of sense given that TVOTR's live shows have more energy and speed than Cookie Mountain and Desperate Youth, Blood Thirsty Babes ever had), or maybe it's because Malone's ghostly voice plays a bigger role in the vocals, but the point is it's a refreshing tweak to an already magnificent sound.
Take, for example, the album's first single, Golden Age."" TVOTR's distinctive style is infused with a heavy bass blasting in the background with horns and a choir that crash the chorus to earth-shattering valleys - but only after Malone builds the song up to the stratosphere with his man-possessed singing. It's a musical roller coaster. These embellishments give the track a light feel, which is a complete 180 from the thick tones of Cookie Mountain.
Other songs follow suit, like the opening track ""Halfway Home"" and ""Crying."" ""Crying"" in particular teeters on a peak all the way through the song, kept there by an electronic tick that is stuck like a frozen computer. Finally, within the final minute, it unleashes an infectious downward scale that comes together with swinging trumpets, ending the song on a cloud.
That's not to say Science doesn't have songs with the deepness that put TVOTR on the map. ""Family Tree"" has a much darker feel to it, with mellow strings and a calming piano echoing as Adebimpe's melancholy tone uncoils softly in a gloomy love song.
""Stork & Owl"" has the same classic sound to it, which is especially noticeable after the chaotic ""Dancing Choose,"" in which Adebimpe barks out lyrics as an MC, pushing the song to a frenzied pace that only allows him to take a breath when the refrain comes back.
Other notable songs are ""Red Dress,"" ""Shout Me Out,"" and ""Lover's Day."" That actually accounts for almost every song on the album, so throw ""DLZ"" in there, too. This is one of those albums that is amazing when listened to from beginning to end, but each song can stand perfectly fine on its own as well.
For Dear Science, there is only this to say: If you love TVOTR, listen to it. If you hate TVOTR, listen to it. If you have no idea who TVOTR is, listen to it. You will not be let down.
