FUV's New Dig: Spoon

Spoon
They Want My Soul
Loma Vista Records

You may not even realize it, but Spoon is a twenty-year-old band. They got together in Austin, Texas in late 1993, and they've spent years forging their identity and honing their craft as they watched other indie rock darlings come and go.

After releasing five records from 2001-2010, the band took a little break. Frontman Britt Daniel started the band Divine Fits while some of the members of Spoon began working on new songs. When it was time for Daniel to return to his regular gig in Spoon, he brought Divine Fits bandmate Alex Fischel with him. Fischel’s influence is clearly felt in the synth vibes, so much a part of Divine Fits’ appeal and now quite present on the new Spoon release, They Want My Soul.

You can still hear Daniel’s trademark vocal swagger, but the new album also finds him exploring some different styles vocally with hints of R&B in some of the songs. It might be the longer layoff or a variety of other factors, but it’s clear that the entire band sounds rejuvenated by the new material. The vibrancy that runs through this record is refreshing and enticing.

To say that this is Spoon’s finest album to date could be going out on a bit of a limb, but it’s not out of the question. They Want My Soul is filled with some of the band’s strongest arrangements to date, and reveals different nuances and textures with every listen.