TV On The Radio; Hove Festival, Norway, Thursday June 28

So good we got Norwegian wood

English festivals? Been there, done that… bought the overpriced poncho. Here in Arendal, Norway, we’ve seen the future, and it’s a purpose-built site complete with beaches, boats, clean toilets and vehicles running on eco-fuels.

Oh, and there’s one more thing the British fests couldn’t get – Brooklyn’s TVOTR, which, judging by this show is a massive shame. Guitarist Dave Sitek, looking like an NYC hipster version of Hot Chip’s Alexis Taylor, delivers wave after wave of distorted noise while simultaneously playing a tambourine. Tunde Adebimpe, meanwhile, races about the stage hollering lyrics like a demented preacher and, as Sitek takes a trip to RSI-ville during ‘Young Liars’’ manic lead line, he humbly asks us, “How’s it sounding, OK?” – a marked departure from Interpol’s set earlier. Then he unleashes ‘Wolf Like Me’. On record, it’s a layered, malevolent masterpiece, but here it’s a raw, noisy beast that rampages through the picturesque valley before disappearing over the hill – it’s a monster. The Killers, Queens Of The Stone Age and My Chemical Romance are all here this week, but the single moment that made our treacherous trek to the land of trolls worth it was new single ‘Province’’s gospel anthem – nothing short of spellbinding.

Rob Webb

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