tUnE-yArDs played Terminal 5

Taking a page from Dirty Projectors' book, Merrill Garbus creates a symphony of sounds compiled from loops, squawks, jagged horn sections, and strums from a ukelele to create a cacophony of music that somehow comes together in a brilliant and unique fashion. Backed with a bass player and two others, the assembled tUnE-yArDs brought their amazing jams to Terminal 5 on Friday night for an evening of high energy and dancing. Stomping percussion and funk infused bass riffs got everyone moving from the explosive opening of "Gangsta" and was only halted for a brief moment as a mis-triggered loop caught everyone off guard. Yet even in that moment, and impromptu saxophone solo resulted in heavy applause and cheers. The evening highlighted the band's most recent accomplishment, the stunning W H O K I L L,   as the crowd responded with passionate sing-a-longs and non-stop body moving. The joyful banter from Merrill only increased the positive feelings of the evening and killer renditions of "Powa", "Es-So", "My Country" and "Bizness" brought the house down. "Sunlight" from BiRd-BrAiNs was a treat for fans of the the band before the breakout sophomore record and Merrill kindly reminded everyone that this was not in fact a new song, but the band's first single. The call and response action of "Do you wanna live" closed out the evening as a grinning Merrill left the stage and the house music came on with their latest single "Lady" (a Fela Kuti cover featuring ?uestlove) providing a little extra entertainment for a night that no one seemed willing to let end.