Spoon
Album:
Gimme Fiction
In the three years since the release of 2002’s Kill the Moonlight, Spoon has remained virtually silent. A long hiatus can be a gamble, but it has paid off for this Austin-based outfit.
It shouldn’t come as a surprise that Gimme Fiction resoundingly delivers. Counting on Britt Daniel to concoct great songs has become as safe as counting on The Stones to announce a world tour. Self-assured without being pretentious, grandiose without being over-the-top, Fiction is the band’s most defining statement yet.
In the opener, “The Beast and Dragon, Adored,” Daniel sings “I’m going back to the water –been landlocked too long” with the conviction of a man on a mission and, from there, never relinquishes control. From the biting “I Turn My Camera On” to the incessant and hypnotic pounding of “My Mathematical Mind,” Spoon takes one intriguing turn after another.
The album’s best moment, however, may be its most simple. The heartbreaking “I Summon You” features little more than Daniel wearing his love for The Beatles on his sleeve. The fact that it would have sounded at home on Rubber Soul probably isn’t coincidental, and it’s at this point listeners should find themselves glad to be along for the ride. Spoon might be the most important band in America now. Are you listening?
Paul Snyder is currently finishing his final semester at Marquette University. In addition to the numerous intern duties he took on with Vital Source, he is also a contributing writer and editor for the magazine.
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