Radio 4, Small Sins

The old-school Brooklyn-based dance-punks in Radio 4 vividly illustrated their dissatisfaction with The Man on 2004’s pissed-off Stealing of a Nation, but they forgot to have any fun in the process, which made joining their underground resistance a very hard sell. Though it doesn’t match the punk-funk intensity of 2002’s Gotham! (produced by the DFA before they began rubbing elbows with Britney Spears), the new Enemies Like This scales back Nation‘s dance-music dabbling in favor of the live-band throb that is Radio 4’s strong suit. Smart move, as you’ll see tonight. Openers Small Sins, from Toronto, play dreamy, synth-coated pop; their best song lifts the beat from “Billie Jean.”