The first time that I saw TV On The Radio play “Staring At The Sun” was at a Baltimore DIY venue called the Supreme Imperial, which hasn’t existed for a very long time and which I think was a converted auto-body shop. Google tells me that this was May 2004, so their debut album Desperate Youth, Blood Thirsty Babes would’ve just come out. Katrina Ford, the great singer from the Baltimore band Celebration, sang backup, just as she did on the record. My memories of that night are hazy, but I have a clear image of the band just levitating on that song — channeling some primal energy and taking me to another place. Two decades later, coming off a years-long hiatus, TV On The Radio can still evoke that feeling while playing “Staring At The Sun” in the sterile confines of 30 Rockefeller Plaza. It’s really something.

TV On The Radio performed their classic debut single 'Staring At The Sun' on US TV last night (November 21) – watch the video here.