Spoon - Gimme Fiction

Since Ariele Gentiles, a native Texan, got to write the review of The Decemberists’ Picaresque, I thought I’d take a stab at her neck of the woods. Namely, the new album from Austin, Texas’s Spoon.

Gimme Fiction is the follow-up to 2002’s critically-acclaimed release, Kill the Moonlight, a riveting mix of ricocheting rock tunes. From the first organ chords of “Small Stakes”, Kill the Moonlight hits the listener with simple and propelling rock and roll. The rolling piano of “The Way We Get By” and the beat-boxing catch of “Stay Don’t Go” just show how good Spoon is at crafting stunning pop tunes.

Gimme Fiction is more of Spoon’s signature sound, and most of the songs would have seemed right at home on Kill the Moonlight. As every indie band seeks to follow the Wilco/Radiohead experimentation route, Spoon sticks with simple guitar jams, piano and soulful vocals. Despite the simplicity, Gimme Fiction sounds as fresh and exciting as anything out there.

Not that chaos and quirky sounds don’t play a role in Spoon’s recording process…”Sister Jack” features some squealing guitar and static to great effect…but Spoon doesn’t seem to be sacrificing songs to be different. Lead singer Britt Daniel’s stuffy-nose vocals lend the catchy instrumentation a very unique sound.

For a sample of vitality and tension that Spoon can create within a single track, check out the album’s opener, “The Beast and Dragon, Adored” and try not to get goosebumps.

All in all, it’s difficult to call Gimme Fiction a better album than Kill the Moonlight. Both albums are coarse and jagged and sweet and pretty, and both showcase some of the best rock music being made right now.

Posted on April 10, 2005 12:03 PM