‘dance, white boy,” was the cheeky but affectionate shout of a particularly merry patron at Le Poisson Rouge on Thursday night. The order was aimed at Thom Yorke, and the once sulky Radiohead singer was only too happy to oblige. Having steered the British rock gods into a more groove-based direction in recent years, Yorke is now scratching his electro-itch even harder with his new band Atoms for Peace and their debut album “Amok.” If it’s a midlife crisis he’s having, it’s hard to imagine a more enjoyable one.
The unique show was part DJ set, part live performance executed by a truncated version of the band; producer Nigel Godrich spent the set hunched over laptops manipulating the band’s tracks while Yorke was left to sing and loop his vocal melodies into the mix. If it sounds like a music-tech nerd’s idea of a night out, that’s because it most certainly was.
But this incarnation of Atoms for Peace was frequently as physically exciting as it was mentally. Over the course of the night, the band managed to span an entire spectrum of electronica by stringing together mutant versions of their originals. The title track from their album reverberated with the brilliant chill of a Detroit techno track, “Stuck Together Pieces” delved into exhilarating tribal rhythms, while “Before Your Eyes” was stretched out into a wonky funk nightmare. At its best, the set had the power to propel you involuntarily into dancing and for those few resisting, the sight of Yorke flailing around like a miniature maniac was fine entertainment in itself.
During the odd fleeting moment, Yorke reached down and pulled out a guitar, which brought about instant cheers from the crowd of about 700. Just the sight of him striking a rock pose is still enough to get loyal Radiohead fans salivating, but there was never even the slightest chance of a quick verse from “Karma Police.” As it turned out, the guitar didn’t even serve a particularly melodic purpose, as Yorke used it to add even more percussive depth to the cacophony, particularly during a potent version of “Harrowdown Hill” (from his 2006 solo album “The Eraser”).
For all its inventiveness, the show did suffer under the weight of its overlong one hour and 40 minutes. Although he did what he could to keep the crowd going, the novelty of Yorke’s jiving gradually wore off, and the array of colorful visuals seemed more incidental than truly engaging.
But seeing Yorke extend the scope of Atoms for Peace so early on in their life span suggests that they are a band not to be dismissed as a pet project while Radiohead has some downtime. Complete shows (with bassist Flea, percussionist Mauro Refosco and drummer Joey Waronker) are in the cards for later in the year, so don’t put those dancing shoes away just yet. The likelihood is that Thom Yorke has yet to bust out his best moves.