Monday, August 23, 2010

The Rhythms of Spoon

An intense driving beat, punched syncopation, a playfulness with octaves, and intelligent lyrics come to mind when I think of Spoon.  For me, the Spoon gestalt translates into music that makes bodies move.

The band formed as a duo in Austin in 1994, with just Britt Daniel (guitarist and principle songwriter) and Jim Eno (drummer). (A more detailed history of the band, including the comings and goings of other band members can be found at Wikipedia.) I first heard Spoon on WTMD in 2005 when Gimmie Fiction, their 5th album, was released. I was immediately entranced with their sound. 2007's Ga Ga Ga Ga Ga featured increased instrumentation and production and thus an even fuller sound. Their 7th album, Transference, released in January of this year, delivers more raw and less polished music. I happen to prefer that Spoon has returned to less instrumentation, and Transference is one of my favorites thus far of 2010.

Enjoy a video of Spoon performing "The Mystery Zone," a terrific new song from Transference:




I was fortunate to catch Spoon during their tour for Ga Ga Ga Ga Ga. The high energy that one enjoys when listening to their albums is truly turned up to eleven when you hear them live.