Neon Musical Insight

Many have been describing Spoon’s latest effort, Transference, as being the bands “Spooniest” record to date, including lead singer Britt Daniels, who caught up for a recent chat with the NY Times. While I can’t quite explain what it means to be “Spoony”, I think it’s easy enough to understand what Daniels meant by this statement. It’s Spoon at their rawest, finest, and most eloquent, all rolled up into a tightly packed ball that trails down a path of curiously addictive musicality, unafraid to span the entire universe. Follow? Well let me divulge.

Transference, to put it simply, would be the album that I would use to explain to my children what rock and roll meant in the beginning of the 21^st century, and how it expanded from an earlier point in time to what it is now. It’s an album that exudes confidence, without ever sounding insecure or unsure of itself. To be frank, it makes an album like Contra from Vampire Weekend nearly laughable — both of these albums were spinning in my personal rotation for a little beyond the past two weeks.

The album opens with “Before Destruction”, a minimalist composition that features barebones drumming, with a droning single, three-note progression on the synth. If you thought Spoon were minimalists before, then this will make a song like “My Little Japanese Cigarette Case” sound like Stravinsky. “Is Love Forever?” sounds like more familiar territory for the average Spoon listener, even acting as a touch-up on the earlier days of Girls Can Tell. With it’s thumping bass drum, and pound-it-out strums on guitar, it’s easy to see why.

“The Mystery Zone” kicks in with Daniels demanding for you to: “Picture yourself set up for good in a whole other life, hmmmmm, in the mystery zone,” sounding like an exuberant reformation of Lennon, while “Who Makes Your Money” is a subdued, hypnotizing rhythm, that once again is built around the formulized three chord progression. The stuttering strikes to the piano on “Who Makes Your Money” — that carry the song to lilting grounds — leave you there in a near transient state of mind, without any intentions or desire to escape.

“Written in Reverse” is the first single off of the album, most likely because it’s also the most accessible. Daniels howls at the top of lungs over the chorus: “I’m not standing here!” while the see-saw interchange between the drums and piano will be sure to leave you feeling topsy-turvy.

The only problem in Transference may lie in “Got Nuffin’”. An excellent song off of last years E.P. of the same name, “Got Nuffin’” unfortunately becomes incapable of finding a fitting home amongst the hazy others, mostly due to it’s outwardly aggressive nature.

It goes without saying that Transference is a very different Spoon record from most of their prior. There’s a lot more weight to it, and it is definitely a grower. The first, superficial listen presents Transference’s core values, but trust me, dig deeper, and a whole other mystical world will be sure to welcome you, that is, if you’re searching.

**** / ***** 4 out of 5