Gig review: TV on the Radio

THERE was something particularly sad about TV on the Radio's bassist Gerard Smith's death from lung cancer in April at just 36. The fiercely individual Brooklyn art-rock six-piece could have been forgiven for taking a long pause for reflection, but they instead cancelled only a few dates before forging ahead with promoting their typically impressive fourth album Nine Types of Light.

At the tail-end of a British tour that peaked hilariously in the Glastonbury sunshine with a cover of the theme tune from Ghostbusters – calls for a repeat of which were politely declined with a cheeky "I don't know what you're talking about sir" from frontman Tunde Adebimpe – they honoured their departed bandmate and friend in the best possible way, with a career-spanning set underscoring what a singularly smart, fun and thrilling proposition they are.

To see TVotR live is to appreciate that, as well as being natural heirs to Radiohead's cerebral rock throne, their songs are a visceral experience too. Red Dress – sung mainly in the rumbling baritone of beardy guitarist Kyp Malone – made unlikely bedfellows of dissonant noise-rock and gruff blues-funk, while their best song Wolf Like Me was a powerhouse of propulsive rhythm.

Hopping seamlessly and effortlessly from one style to another – be it agitprop hip-hop or knotty jazz – is practically TVotR's raison d'tre. Between the whipsmart vocals of hyperactive frontman Adebimpe and boffin-like multi-instrumentalist and producer Dave Sitek's shoegazey soundscapes, this most resilient of bands achieved it without ever losing touch with what makes them so remarkably distinctive.