The by now legendary Tiny Desk Concerts are organized by NPR Music,
the project of National Public Radio, an American privately and publicly funded
non-profit membership media organization, that launched in November 2007
to present public radio music programming and original editorial content for
music discovery, since 2008.
Small and big musical artists/bands have performed in the
room filled with books and a tiny little desk, ever since.
Last night, DAVID BYRNE was the (famous) guest. He brought a whole group of musicians, with a diverse set of instruments, backing vocalists, and dancers along for the occasion.
4 songs were played. Two tracks (Everybody’s Laughs / Don’t Be Like That) from Byrne’s new album Who Is The Sky? and 2 Talking Heads crackers, (Nothing) But Flowers from 1998 and Life During Wartime from 1979.
It’s mega-enjoyable to watch the fabulous 20-minute gig.
It feels and resonates like an early Xmas holidays party.
Everybody’s dancing, singing, laughing. Pretty contagious
and no psycho killers in sight.
Byrne: “Someone I know said, ‘David, you use the word ‘everybody’ a lot.’ I suppose
I do that to give an anthropological view of life in New York as we know it.Everybody
lives, dies, laughs, cries, sleeps and stares at the ceiling. Everybody’s wearing everybody
else’s shoes, which not everybody does, but I have done.
I tried to sing about these things that could be seen as negative in a way balanced by an uplifting feeling from the groove and the melody, especially at the end, when St. Vincent and I are doing a lot of hollering and singing together. Music can do that, hold opposites simultaneously. I realized that when singing with Robyn earlier this year. Her songs are often sad, but the music is joyous.”
Photo by: Ahmed Klink / Costume by: Tom Van der Borght
“At my age, at least for me, there’s a ‘don’t give a shit about what people think’ attitude
that kicks in. ”I can step outside my comfort zone with the knowledge that I kind of know
who I am by now and sort of know what I’m doing. That said, every new set of songs, every song even, is a new adventure. There’s always a bit of, ‘how do I work this?’ I’ve found that not every collaboration works, but often when they do, it’s because I’m able to clearly impart what it is I’m trying to do. They hopefully get that, and as a result, we’re now joined together heading to the same unknown place.”
TUTV: Well, I can’t add much to what the man said. He takes us on his merry-go-round. Probably his most upbeat longplayer ever. Lots of groovin’ and movin’, flamenco echoes and Mexican trumpets. Sonically, he entertains with frisky tunes and melancholic lullabies.
Lyrically, as usual, he comes up bizarre stories and bizarre song titles such as My Appartment Is My Friend, A Door Called No and I Hear The Buddha At A Cocktail Party.
My fav tracks: Everybody Laughs, When We Are Singing, that Buddha Song and The Avant Garde.”
Band:MANTRA OF THE COSMOS Who: British supergroup featuring happy mondays Shaun Ryder and Bez, Andy Bell (Ride/Oasis) and drummer Zak Starkey, Ringo‘s on, who came up with the project’s
idea.
TUTV: A blaring belter of a banger. Disco-punk pzazz. Noel Gallager
is somewhere in there too, they say. I have no clue what he’s doing.
Anyway, this a bonkers tune.
Band: KNEECAP Who: Belfast‘s sharp-mouthed, notorious rap team KNEECAP – Mo Chara,
Móglaí Bap, and DJ Próvaí – hip & hop around with a knife between
their teeth since 2017.
They released their debut album 3cag in 2018
and went viral last year with follow-up Fine Art.
Lately, they make headlines with their loud and clear, ongoing support for Palestine.
They got heavily critiqued for it when they played Coachella Festival in Indo, California
last April.
To emphasize the whole political charade the band go after the Tory trade minister Kemi Badenoch who started to hunt them back in 2023 when he withdrew an
arts grant awarded to the band.
The trio brought a discrimination case against the U.K. government
and won, donating the proceeds to Belfast community groups. Yes!
“I wrote this one when I was feeling stuck and stagnant, but when I finally
brought it to the band they really breathed new life into it and made it feel
magic again!!”
TUTV: This sickly sticky steam-riff-roller drives me crazy. Head-twisting stuff.
Band: THE IRRATIONAL LIBRARY Who:The Irrational Library is a Dutch-American rock band with its roots
firmly planted in both the regional and international counterculture. The Dutch-American band produces a raw, dirty groove influenced by punk,
provo and punk icons. Their poetry is packed with social criticism.
Track: TRUTH SERUM
First single from the quartet’s new, upcoming
5th LP ‘The Saying Of It All’. More details TBA.
Artwork by political cartoonistTRIK
TUTV: TIL move and groove again with brio and gusto motorized by a striking
drum/bass tandem, while a 60s psychedelic flute flutters like a butterfly throughout
the song. Frontman Joshua Baumgarten draws your aural attention (as usual) with
his near-rapping phrasing of the clear-cut lyrics.
Artist: GINA BURCH Who: Co-founder/bassist of British punkettes The Raincoats (1977-1984, 1996)
were one of the top indie bands in the UK. They released 3 LPs, then called it a day.
In 2023 she released her critically acclaimed solo debut
LP I Play My Bass. It was released through Jack White’s
Third Man Records.
New album artwork
Track: DOOM MONGER
New single of her 2nd LP, named Trouble,
out on 11 July, again via Third Man Records.
TUTV: We’re in the middle of Armagideon Time as we know it. Doomsday is just around the corner. The good news is that this
dub reggae earworm will activate your hips and uplift your worried
state of mind. If we have to go, why not with a slow-mo sway.
Artist: DAVID BYRNE Who: The former talking
head voice/face.
Track: EVERYBODY LAUGHS
First single from his upcoming 9th solo album (that’s already one more than
with Talking Heads). Who Is The Sly? will see the day of light on September 5th.
TUTV: Imagine a beach bathing in the sun and a cocktail bar serving piña colada
while enjoying this feel-good upper. A luminous light in a dark world. Laugh.
“The song is essentially about people only wanting the sweet stuff in life, and sugar coating anything and everything that may be a difficult subject. We live in a society where social media is treated like the Holy Bible, simultaneously releasing dopamine hits, a highly addictive drug, when posting pictures for ‘instant gratification.”
TUTV: This happens when The Ultra Violets eat too much sugar. They pick up their instruments and go mental, producing mental hullabaloo for mental people, like
you and me. Roaring ripper. Flaming score.
Band: LOVINA FALLS Who: The dark dream-pop project of Boston-based singer-songwriter,
multi-instrumentalist, and producer s Valerie Forgione. In 2023, they
released their debut album, Calculating The Angle Of Our Descent.
Forgione: “‘Light and Low’ is about recognizing that as time goes on, it’s ok to let go of old
and ‘historic thinking’ to create a new path through and out of the Thicket of Now. It’s about knowing that when things change, the path is not predestined. Change the change. Move with conviction but head gracefully into the unknown, light and low.”
Collage art by Lindsey Walker, design by Valerie Forgione
TUTV: Lovina Falls take you on a swift gothwavish ride from the get-go, propelled by a motorik bass riff, nervy drum hits, jittery tremelo riffs and poignant vocals. Fast-forward, without brakes nor breaks, speeding like a runaway train. Light And Low unfolds like a salvo of light flashes out of the dark, causing a rapid eye movement sensation. Intriguing, right? Absolutely. Don’t wait, get started.
Artist:JEHNNY BETH Who: Former France-born frontwoman
of female post-punk band Savages.
Track: OBESSION
Single from her 2nd solo LP called You Heartbreaker You.
It’ll land on August 29th. She wrote the album with partner
and collaborator Johnny Hostile.
Beth: “We’re living in a dark time, full of drama and barbarous tragedy.
It became clear to me that, in these times, we either learn how to scream
really well, or we learn how to whisper.”
TUTV: Be prepared for a savage industrial shocker showing her
amadant intention to make an agressive sound on her new record. Obsession is a splintering bombshell with a raging Beth finale.
TUTV: Blimey. Lobsterbomb return with an adrenalized missile, going fast-forward,
full steam ahead from the kick-off. And they never slow down. No breaks, no brakes.
135 seconds of eruptive emotions and high-voltage dash. Imagine The Stooges fronted
by riot grrrl Kathleen Hanna. Boisterous punk turbulence. Bang-on.
p|m: “We wrote and recorded it ourselves, delivered in our trademark double-team
deadpan vocal style, rhyming “80’s car” with “Californiarr”. This one has Arctic Monkeys
swagger and Mannequin Pussy edge, featuring a one-shot video in an iconic venue’s
bathroom.”
TUTV: Punk-pop spunky, sassy spirit, sharp-mouthed flair, dry humor, word spielerei, and utterly cool. That’s what p|m is about. This new non-stop drum-thumping tune zigzags left and right, forth and back flavored with slap-happy vocals. I’m quite sure that peach|melba will become your new favourite bathroom band.
TUTV: This burning funky-punky soul-burst is revved-up with ardent passion, electrical energy, warm-blooded vocals and sultry sax. Shake your booty and scream your lungs out when the clamoring chorus pops up. Sly Stone would have said there’s a riot going on. And it is. Spread the gospel, people.
Artist: NELSON SOBRAL Who: Singer-songwriter-guitarist hailing from Toronto, Ontario, Canada. His music is as much Americana and blues as it is soul and rock’n’roll, perfectly balanced with the energy and sound of each of his respective influences.
TUTV:Sobral‘s cover of Cyndi Lauper‘s supreme 1984 classic Time After Time (more
than 1 billion streams on Spotify) is a soulful and enticing accomplishment. A gripping vocal performance, bringing the emotive timbre of the sublime voices of Springsteen and Seger to mind.
Artist: PAUL WELLER Who: The 67-year-old former The Jam and Style Council
maestro, who started his solo career back in 1990.
Track: I STARTED A JOKE
A cover of the Bee Gees‘ 1967 goosebumps ballad.
It’ll appear on his 18th solo LP, a covers one, named El Dorado, out on July 25th.
TUTV: Weller‘s version is pretty poignant and appealing.
Daily noise that works faster than a stream of caffeine
11 June 2025
New album artwork
Last week David Byrne and his former Talking Heads colleagues celebrated their very first gig, 50 years ago in the legendary CBGB club in New York, opening for the gaba-gaba hey Ramones, with a brand-new video for their classic 1977 single Psycho Killer.
And yesterday, Byrne announced the upcoming birth of his 9th solo album (that’s already one more than with Talking Heads). It’s named Who Is The Sly? and will see the day of light September 5th. Tracklist and other info here.
The first singleEVERYBODY LAUGHS is a feel-good, cocktail party
gem for the upcoming summer. A luminous light in a dark world.
Byrne: “Someone I know said, “David, you use the word ‘everybody’ a lot.” I suppose I do that to give an anthropological view of life in New York as we know it. Everybody lives, dies, laughs, cries, sleeps and stares at the ceiling. Everybody’s wearing everybody else’s shoes, which not everybody does, but I have done. I tried to sing about these things that could be seen as negative in a way balanced by an uplifting feeling from the groove and the melody, especially at the end, when St. Vincent and I are doing a lot of hollering and singing together. Music can do that — hold opposites simultaneously. I realized that when singing with Robyn earlier this year. Her songs are often sad, but the music is joyous.”
Wake up people,
all together now,
1-2 and a 1-2-3-4.
