Rating:

Spoon set themselves up for failure with their 2002 release. The arrangements are strikingly sparse, the percussion is incredibly simplistic, and the musicians avoid any displays of virtuosity. There isn’t really anything conventional about “Kill the Moonlight” at all, in fact, and that is part of what makes it so impressive. Rarely does an album come together as well as this one, practically defining “synergy.” This synergy come from perhaps the best production job I’ve ever heard, keeping every song fresh and unique with techniques such as soaking the sound in reverb (think “recorded in a bathroom”); lowering the fidelity for that dirty, garage-rock sound; and giving the whole record a professional feel without making it sound overly polished. Of course, all of that would be nothing without brilliant songwriting to showcase, and Spoon certainly don’t let down in that department either. The lyrics flow easily, and the syncopated rhythms would feel equally at home on a dance record. From the distorted, upbeat rocker “Jonathan Fisk” to the bare-bones, drumsticks and warbling organ of “Paper Tiger” to the record’s simply stunning climax “Back to the Life,” Spoon deliver nothing short of a masterpiece.

1. Small Stakes
2. The Way We Get By
3. Something to Look Forward To
4. Stay Don't Go
5. Jonathan Fisk
6. Paper Tiger
7. Someone Something
8. Don't Let It Get You Down
9. All The Pretty Girls Go To The City
10. You Gotta Feel It
11. Back To The Life
12. Vittorio E

Buy album

– Quinton

This 5-beetsreview was posted on March 18th, 2005. You can follow any responses to this entry through the RSS 2.0 feed. You can leave a response, or trackback from your own site.