In an earlier time, Spoon would have been a text-book rock ‘n’ roll success story: The band started small and grew slowly, building a fanbase as it released a series of ever-better albums, including a major label try-out with 1998’s “Sneaks.”

The major-label thing didn’t work out, and it’s been increasingly obvious with every Spoon album since that Elektra simply didn’t give the band enough of a chance. That was never more apparent than on 2007’s “Ga Ga Ga Ga Ga,” a masterpiece of smart, catchy indie pop that caught on to the tune of a top-10 debut on the Billboard 200 albums chart and more than 300,000 copies sold since.

Now Spoon is back for more, with “Transference” (out Tuesday on Merge, streaming right now on NPR), a collection of 11 new songs that the band produced on its own for the first time. Five of those tunes are the original demos. It’s a rhythmic record, with choppy guitar and persistent drums carrying “Is Love Forever” and a bouncy beat anchoring “The Mystery Zone.”

“Transference” is not as bright or punchy as “Ga Ga Ga Ga Ga,” but it’s clear that songwriter Britt Daniel hasn’t been slacking: “Written in Reverse” is relentlessly catchy, with little bursts of piano alternating with guitar over a snaky bass line. There’s a ramshackle garage-rock feel to the vocal harmonies on “Trouble Comes Running,” while “Who Makes Your Money” rides an atmospheric synthesizer vamp. The band even tries its hand at a piano ballad on “Goodnight Laura.”

It’s an assured record from a band that couldn’t sound more comfortable in its own skin, and that’s the best kind of growth there is.

— Text by Eric R. Danton, photo by Autumn De Wilde

January 15, 2010 at 3:15 pm | Share |