Diverse Musical Genres Blend in Energetic Show by The The

For all its hard edges and themes of modern angst, the music of The The is strangely tuneful and accessible. It is also energetic and soulful. Not that mainstream audiences have ever embraced the band. But the quartet’s sold-out concert at the El Rey Theatre on Wednesday demonstrated just how formidable this often underappreciated band can be.

The British group’s new “NakedSelf” album is The The’s first in five years and stands among the best of its career. Wednesday’s nearly two-hour show opened with about five minutes of raw feedback and aggro-noodling, played by the band standing onstage in silhouette. But the quartet quickly slid into an often funkier groove that blended the harsher textures with rich pop melodies. It was rock that dipped gracefully into a variety of musical genres, from industrial to folk to samba.

Singer and musical mastermind Matt Johnson stood behind a bank of three microphones, singing songs largely culled from the new album (released on Trent Reznor’s Nothing label). Songs such as “The Whisperers” had Johnson strumming his guitar and singing of dark emotions with notable tension.

With the show’s second encore, Johnson took things to another musical extreme, stripping The The down to the level of folk music. And as he stood alone with an electric guitar, filling the room as completely as he had with the complete band, he showed that his musical vision is not dependent on volume, but ideas.