In House #1666: TV On the Radio's Return to Cookie Mountain; White Whale's WWI

Though those of us in North America don't yet have the opportunity to get our hands on it (perhaps because it's too subversive), TV On the Radio recently unleashed their second album, Return to Cookie Mountain on the rest of the world. Early returns suggest an original and addictive, if also a bit challenging, batch of tunes. It's dense. It's meaty. And it's an album's album in an age of mp3 singles, begging to be listened to from front to back. The influences here are complex, too: vintage Prince soul rock meets Talking Heads eccentric New York stew meets additional seemingly disparate rock elements encompassing Richard Hell to My Bloody Valentine. In short, there's lot going on, but it's a fine mess by this one band that includes appearances by David Bowie, playing himself on the schizophrenic "Province," Blonde Redhead's Kazu Makino, and Celebration's Katrina Ford. Reviews have been glowing in from all around, implying that Return to Cookie Mountain may just be this year's Illinois. Word is that it will even eventually see a North American release, slated for Interscope.

TV On the Radio

Elsewhere today, we get to the the debut release from Lawrence, Kansas' White Whale, entitled WWI. Like Return to Cookie Mountain, this effort benefits greatly from repeated listens, revealing nooks and crannies lost on radio singles. The members of the band are no newcomers, featuring musicians late of the Get Up Kids and Thee Higher Burning Fire, as well as Matt Suggs. Also like RtCM, WWI picks its difficult places but is ultimately an at once original and accessible work. It drops next week on Merge.

White Whale

In House #1666.
Airdate: 7/20/06
Focus: New releases from TV On the Radio, Return to Cookie Mountain, and White Whale, WWI, plus new music from Portastatic, Cursive and more.



PLAYLIST

In House PODCAST #141