Spoon - Ga Ga Ga Ga Ga [Review]

1fastdog.

Posted to Music on Tue Oct 02, 2007 at 08:06:54 AM EST (promoted by port1080). RSS.

Here's a record to put on your short-list for album of the year. Spoon's 6th album, with the baffling title (supposedly named after a piano sound on one of the songs on the album) of Ga Ga Ga Ga Ga, is one of the best albums to yet wash ashore in the veritable sea of excellent releases that 2007 has so far seen.

The record's been getting raves mostly, and the raves are indeed well deserved, as this is an incredibly tight record. Credit Spoon frontman, Britt Daniel with writing some instantly appealing tunes that longtime Spoon collaborator Michael McCarthy was able to fill out with his production techniques, resulting in an album that sounds like a classic upon first listen. There's horns, handclaps, piano, and a ton of other instruments floating around, but they're wisely used to enhance the songs, rather than overwhelm them.
Producer-at-large, Jon Brion also lent a hand to the proceedings with production credits for one the best singles of the year: The Underdog:

Despite the album's poppy sheen and easy likability, there's an undercurrent of discontent bubbling just beneath the surface of Ga Ga Ga Ga Ga that lends some gravitas to the ear-candy tuneage, and make no mistake, the songs here will be stuck in your head for hours after being heard. Yes, they're that good. The album clocks in at a concise 36 minutes and is all the better for it, so kudos to Spoon for not loading up the album with filler just to make it longer. The album runs the gamut from the power-pop-esque stylings of "You Got Yr. Cherry Bomb" and "The Underdog" to noisier and more atmospheric tracks like "Don't Make Me A Target" and The Ghost Of You Lingers." Basically, the entire album is a crash course in the modern rock arsenal of sounds.
Tracklist and final thought to follow:

1. Don't Make Me a Target    
 2. The Ghost of You Lingers       
 3. You Got Yr. Cherry Bomb       
 4. Don't You Evah       
 5. Rhthm & Soul   
 6. Eddie's Ragga   
 7. The Underdog   
 8. My Little Japanese Cigarette Case       
 9. Finer Feelings       
 10. Black Like Me

What we've got here is an album full of songs that are well written, impeccably produced, and very decisive in their desire to reach your brain via your ears. This album presents itself like it's going to be a classic rock-n-roll record whether you want it to or not; it just has that certain something about it that draws the listener in again and again. If you're a fan of their earlier work, this should be right up your alley, and if you're new to the band, it's a very good starting point in which to explore their sound. Overall, it's a great album; a record that knows how to instantly connect with the listener and yet one that isn't so glossy and forward as to fatigue the ears. Style and substance in equal amounts make Ga Ga Ga Ga Ga a contender for album of the year. Highly recommended! 9 out of 10.