TV On The Radio announce live shows and 20th anniversary of Desperate Youth, Bloodthirsty Babes
The Brooklyn indie-rock stalwarts have announced their first shows in five years in London, LA, New York too.
Desperate Youth, Bloodthirsty Babes was released in 2004, and featured the breakthrough song ‘Staring At The Sun’.
On November 15th, the band will release an anniversary edition of the project with five bonus tracks, two of which are previously unreleased tracks. ‘Final Fantasy,’ is out now and is an early demo of what became the song ‘Bomb Yourself’.
The band have also announced live dates in London and New York, where Tunde Adebimpe, Kyp Malone and Jaleel Bunton will perform without founding member Dave Sitek who is unable to join them.
TV On The Radio tour dates:
November 25 – New York, N.Y. @ Webster Hall
November 26 – New York, N.Y. @ Webster Hall
November 29 – New York, N.Y. @ Webster Hall
November 30 – New York, N.Y. @ Webster Hall
December 4 – Los Angeles @ El Rey Theatre
December 5 – Los Angeles @ El Rey Theatre
December 7 – Los Angeles @ El Rey Theatre
December 10 – London, UK @ Islington Assembly Hall
December 11 – London, UK @ Islington Assembly Hall
December 12 – London, UK @ Islington Assembly Hall
Tickets go on sale Thursday, September 12th at 10:00 AM local time. Visit tvontheradio.com for more information.
Desperate Youth, Bloodthirsty Babes, is an album full of rich, bruising ideas about life, love and loss. Lyrically but especially sonically, Desperate Youth, captured the dystopian hum of post-9/11 America (a war in Iraq, a proto-right-wing political regime, a surveillance state threatening personal agency at home), putting a voice to the general unease young people felt at the time. Kyp shared vocal duties with Tunde, creating a unique vocal fingerprint that further distinguished them from their peers. Desperate Youth captured the attention of critics around the world, and won the prestigious (and now defunct) Shortlist Music Prize that year. What was first seeded as an experimental enterprise had now, in just a couple of years, blossomed into something beautiful, powerful and whole.
Looking back at the band’s career, it is significant to note that TV On The Radio willfully pushed against stereotypes – musically and otherwise – simply by existing. The notion of a mostly Black indie rock band was, at first, a novelty for critics. But their identity and how it translated to lived experience is exactly what drives them to make the music they do; and over time, what has become more clear, is how they have carried forward the legacy of influential groups like Bad Brains, Death and Funkadelic before them. Similarly, it cannot be understated just how much of an impact TV On The Radio have made on future generations of Black indie artists pursuing their own path.
Desperate Youth, Bloodthirsty Babes 20th Anniversary Edition
1. The Wrong Way
2. Dreams
3. King Eternal
4. Ambulance
5. Poppy
6. Don’t Love You
7. Bomb Yourself
8. Wear You Out
9. Staring At The Sun
10. You Could Be Love
11. Staring At The Sun (Demo)*
12. New Health Rock (single)*
13. Modern Romance (from the “New Health Rock” single)*
14. Final Fantasy (2004 recording)*
15. Dry Drunk Emperor (2005 recording)*
*bonus tracks
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Niall Byrne is the founder of the most-influential Irish music site Nialler9, where he has been writing about music since 2005 . He is the co-host of the Nialler9 Podcast and has written for the Irish Times, Irish Independent, Cara Magazine, Sunday Times, Totally Dublin, Red Bull and more. Niall is a DJ, founder of Lumo Club, club promoter, event curator and producer of gigs, listening parties & events in Dublin.