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np: "Before Destruction" - Spoon

I mentioned a few days ago my excitement for the new Spoon full-length, Transference. The release date, one week ago today, has come and gone and I have to say we were certainly treated to, as I had anticipated, "another great Spoon album". How great is it? How does it stack up against the other pillars in the band's noteworthy discography? I'm not sure yet, this is most definitely a record to spend a lot of time with. Not a "grower" mind you, this one made a pretty solid impact right away, but an album that needs to be lived in - there are lots of little nooks and crannies to crawl around and get lost in. As I embark on yet another listen, I thought it might be fun to do some liveblogging of sorts as I offer up thoughts on each track as I listen to the album.

1. "Before Destruction"
Seems like a pretty apt title, as this song feels more like its falling apart more than coming together. Buzzing drones float around that main guitar and vocals lines, dropping out time and again to reveal a pretty sparse skeleton. No hook, not much of a melody to grab, I can certainly see why those who loved the band's poppier moments might not have been impressed with this. But there is a certain sort of beauty in the way this stumbles along to the finish line. It's almost as if Spoon are daring you to follow them in another direction.

2. "Is Love Forever?"
This springs to life right out of the gate with a great guitar riff. Quite a bit of playing around with the vocals on this one, between Britt's double-tracked lead and the dub-inspired echoes. Not much of a typical verse-chorus-verse structure, but the studio trickery keeps your ears entertained. Such a tight and concise song at just over two minutes that you hardly notice just how sparse it is. Love the way Britt's vocals just sort of cut out near the end though. It's like the theme of this record is "addition by subtraction" or something.

3. "The Mystery Zone"
Establishes a great groove, solidified by a boisterous one-note bass line. This has the swagger that the best of the Spoon tracks have. More studio trickery as pianos, synths, and vocal echoes float up from the bottom to entwine Britt's vocal melodies. Really love how confident this one feels. As the song progresses, I'm noticing just how few notes make up that stuttering guitar rhythm. It's amazing how "full" this song can sound when made up of so little. Nice little drum break before an ethereal guitar solo of sorts jabs and darts away. There goes Britt's vocals cutting off in the middle of a word again. Warts and all? Some backwards vocals mixed in. I'm not sure if this beat counts as motorik, but I can certainly feel the influence. And we cut out mid vocal, but for good this time.

4. "Who Makes Your Money"
More emphasis on the bass again, punctuated by sparse snare hits and heavily processed vocals bouncing around. I'm feeling more dub influence on this one too, particularly on the swirling chorus. Is that Britt trying to channel some Prince with his mid-song exclamations? So many layers of rhythm on this song, leaving pretty much just the lead vocals to bring the melody. Even with all the studio trickery, there is a lot of open space in this track. We slow down to the end with Britt intoning the title over and over.

5. "Written In Reverse"
Another strong rhythm here, intensely struck piano chords and fuzzy guitar stomp around in the background as Britt works himself up to the chorus. The percussion is all sorts of rolling and tumbling, while the piano barrels around in the sawdust on the barroom floor. Loving the way Britt is stretching out the "looooooose". Really nice Crazy Horse styled guitar solo, particularly the little patch where it becomes one note repeated. The guitar playing on this whole song is fantastic. Sounds like they are having fun, as evidenced by the laugh at the end.

6. "I Saw the Light"
Some cool layering here with the different instruments, especially the rapidly strummed acoustic. More fuzzy guitar too. I like the way everything builds to a mini climax before it all drops out and we are left with just the piano and the propulsive drumbeat. Here comes the clean electric guitar and, whoa, some really low-end, demonic sounding vocals that I hadn't caught on any previous listens. Again, getting a very krautrock, motorik kind of vibe from the rhythm section. The guitars are just sort of free to roam all over the place while that groove holds everything else down. Really, really love this track and wish the instrumental portion could have gone on for another five minutes.

7. "Trouble Comes Running"
This starts out with muddily recorded acoustic guitar that sounds like it was lifted straight off a Robert Pollard project. Everything stays a little lo-fi and fuzzy, but Britt's vocals are right up front and clean. Even the drums are dampened and muffled. Now Britt is singing about "a heavenly host" in "a heavenly place". Everything cuts out for a guitar solo right out of the Pollard canon. This is at once both the most and least accessible song on the entire album, and I absolutely adore it for that. The vocal hook is undeniable, but the muddy production feels quite at odds with how bright the tune feels.

8. "Goodnight Laura"
Surprise, surprise. Here comes the piano ballad. The lyrics actually sound pretty sweet, a feeling aided by the neat way the humming approximates what would typically be the swelling string section in your ordinary ballad. Again I get the feeling of wide open space, the piano sounds like it is all by itself in a deserted ballroom. Surprised to like a Spoon piano ballad this much.

9. "Out Go the Lights"
The chiming, ringing guitars really make this song work, almost stealing the spotlight from Britt's vocals at times. There is a real clean, crisp snap to this one. For some reason the lyrics are making me think this might be the indie rock equivalent of "Wonderful Tonight". No? The instrumental performances on this song are all great and we get a few more of those dub flourishes as the extended instrumental intro rolls on. This song doesn't scream out for your attention, but quietly steals it anyway.

10. "Got Nuffin'"
This track gallops off from the starting line on the back of the drums and staccato guitar line. "I got nothing to lose / but darkness and shadows", I really like that line. Everything feels urgent and rushed, like the narrator just can't get his feeling out fast enough, before his veil of optimism is punctured and his bitter, cynical self comes to the forefront once again. The guitar riff repeated in the solo may be one of the biggest earworms on the entire album. "The flowers bloom and the trains collide", another great line. More frenetic guitar fun and driving drums out to the sudden finish.

11. "Nobody Gets Me But You"
A funky start to this one, more blatant R&B influence than we've seen on this album so far. An insistent, metallic sounding heartbeat off in one channel that plays nicely off the bass guitar figure that pumps the lifeblood into the song. Twinkling piano runs and a steadily increasing drone carry us forward. Tons of rhythm here, but little melody to hang your hat on. The common theme returns, lots of little sonic touches but plenty of "white space" to keep things from getting claustrophobic. I don't think there is any active rock band on the planet that used the studio as well as these guys do. Another extended instrumental run to wrap up the album, complete with tape manipulation and buzzing static to end the sentence.

Hopefully my ramblings weren't too disjointed, but I found it a bit more challenging to write as I'm actively listening than I expected it would be. Anyway, Transference. If it wasn't clear enough above, I really love it. There isn't the immediacy certain fans might be expecting, but anybody that really loves picking out minute details and listening for studio trickery will find plenty to love. Its rare that a band can sound this focused and confident while exuding the kind of playful and loose vibe that seeps through every track. This may not be the most accessible Spoon album yet, but it certainly feels like the most replayable one. I'm already itching to dive into it again, always a sign of an album worth keeping around.