Review: Spoon’s ‘Transference’

It’s hard to sound heartbroken when you find the kind of success Spoon found with its last album, 2007’s “Ga Ga Ga Ga Ga,” and that’s a shame for a band that does heartbreak so well.

Instead, on its new disk, “Transference,” the band reaches for something harder-rocking, funkier and often darker than its past releases. The acoustic guitars and horns of “Ga Ga Ga Ga Ga” are either pushed into the background or gone entirely in favor of fuzzy electric guitar riffs. The lyrics take a turn away from the romantic longing of “Ga Ga Ga Ga Ga” as well. On “Is Love Forever?” front man Britt Daniel questions “some ex-girlfriend” with growing conviction, sounding plenty bitter, but even more introspective. “Nobody Gets Me But You,” a song about alienation, appropriately features  a robotic bass line and drum beat.

None of the songs have the mainstream appeal of the band’s last big hit, “The Underdog,” and unfortunately few of the songs show as much growth. After a first listen many songs bleed together, and the tempo shifts little throughout the majority of the album. It improves after a second, but you still get the feeling sometimes that Spoon isn’t trying as hard as it could be.

That being said, when “Transference” hits its high points, like the piano-clunk of “Written in Reverse,” the album can stand beside Spoon’s best. “Goodnight Laura” is a charming indie lullaby, with it’s subtle piano and bedtime lyrics (You can fall asleep by being very still// And you let your breath slow down// And when you think your thoughts be sure that they are sweet ones). As with the group’s other albums, however, singer Britt Daniel’s voice ultimately takes the spotlight, and maybe even saves the show. At the moments where the music starts to drag, Daniel’s gravelly, slurred vocals kick in, and Spoon suddenly becomes a difficult band to ignore.

All in all, “Transference” is exactly what the title suggests, a movement. The final product may be mixed, but a step in a new direction is admirable for a band that could have found more success with the same old shtick.

Contact the reporter at clecher@asu.edu

Tagged as: music, Reviews, Spoon