Ty Listens to "Thee Black Boltz"

I'm a TV on the Radio fan. I remember the first time I heard "Desperate Youth, Bloodthirsty Babes", and it totally blew me away. I followed every aspect of their career after that. One of the best live shows I've ever seen was watching them in Kansas City in a smaller venue. They brought the house down. I was floored. I was so grateful to my brothers for inviting me to this show. I still think about it regularly.

But, they haven't made any music as of late. I know that life gets in the way, but I miss TV on the Radio. I have read rumors that they are going to do some shows with LCD Soundsystem this summer, one of which is in the STL, and I have tickets to that show. I hope this is true because that would be epic.

I was scrolling the internet the other day and I saw that Tunde Adebimpe had put out a solo record. I guess it slipped my mind or my feed until then because this was news to me. I listened to the record almost instantly after reading about its release.

This record is rad. I have been really enjoying it. I have listened all the way through at least half a dozen times now and it still feels fresh and new to me. That's a big deal when I first listen to new music. I find myself still bopping along to the songs, I find stuff I have missed on previous listens and I am quickly learning the words. This sounds like classic TVOTR to me. The band is made up of different musicians, and I do miss Kyp Malone's distinct guitar sound. But, with Tunde lending lead vocals, I get "Dear Science" and "Nine Types of Light" vibes from this album. While not as good as "Dear Science", that record is a stone cold classic", this new Tunde record, "Thee Black Boltz" is really, really good.

The record kind of goes in many different directions, but it all melds together very nicely. I like how the record starts with Tunde making a simple statement and then goes into some good dance/pop/electro/rock music. I love the keyboards and synthesizers sprinkled throughout the record. The drums are groovy and fun. The guitar is quite serviceable. But this record is all about Tunde lending his beautiful voice. I forgot how much I missed his singing. He can go into different tones and different genres better than most. He seems to have fun singing and it comes off on this record. He seems very much into the material he is performing and has written. I have since gone back and listened to TVOTR and compared the two. There isn't much of a difference, and for me, that's a very good thing. I liken it to when Dan Auerbach would make a solo record or record with a different band. When he would break away from Pat Carney for a bit, it was good, but it still sounded like Black Keys. That is what Tunde has done here. While he has a new lineup, "Thee Black Boltz" still sounds very much like a classic TVOTR record, and again, that's a good thing.

I recommend this record to any TVOTR fans or fans of music that is genre-less. I have been really liking this record and I will be listening to it many more times. I suggest you do the same.

Ty 
Ty is the Pop Culture editor for SeedSing and the other host of the X Millennial Man Podcast.

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