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album: Ga Ga Ga Ga Ga
artist: Spoon
label: Merg / 2007
score: 80
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by Tim Mathiesen
What more could Spoon possibly do after a solid four albums in a row? Starting with Series of Sneaks, a 90's take on post-punk, followed by Girls Can Tell and Kill the Moonlight which compete with each other for critics' favorite. The former has a grunge-based rock sound, while the latter was built on a stripped down version of the 60's blues/rock genre. 2005 brought us their breakthrough album, Gimme Fiction, which was the first time the group allowed a polished production that complimented their R&B influenced rock. Each album explored a different genre of rock, so what do they do now? They've explored punk, grunge, blues and R&B.
It appears that during their exploration, they may have been trying to find their own sound. On their latest effort, Ga Ga Ga Ga Ga, Spoon has obviously benefited from their genre experimentation. Mixing what they have learned and loved from the past, this album is pure Spoon. The rhythm and bounce has never been so obvious and the simplicity of each song is deceiving as it seems effortless, but the arrangements are complex and creative, giving each song a wonderful uniqueness that only Spoon can provide.
Being one of the most consistent bands today, I was worried that this album would not meet critical expectations, but this album gets the job done. One of the most anticipated album of Spoon's career, the band seems not to have let that bother them. I guess that's the secret to artistic consistency - not letting outside attention and opinion influence your decisions, sticking to your artistic convictions and what you believe is best. After all, you are the artist, not the audience . . . .
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