Quick, Before It Melts.

Emerging as a front-runner for "Album Of The Year" status in mid-June should always be viewed as a positive thing by any artist, but sometimes early accolades can get forgotten by the time year's end rolls around. I'm always feeling hesitant about heaping too much praise on an album and making any kind of declaration at this time of year, but in the case of Ga Ga Ga Ga Ga, the latest from Austin's Spoon, I'll take my chances--this is a marvelous record, and one you will not easily forget in the mad dash at year's end.


Ga Ga Ga Ga Ga defies easy categorization because it's one of those albums that blends influence and style together seamlessly. You can't peg the album based on any one song, because the one before and the one after offer you a completely different experience. Those who have written the band--and this album--off after hearing "The Ghost Of You Still Lingers" are doing themselves and Spoon an injustice. I personally love that song, but even if you're not particularly impressed with it's (stunning) orchestration, there's other delights to please your sonic palette. I'm so thrilled that the band are approving "The Underdog" for blog posting, because I think it's one of the best tracks on the album, and yet again a big leap stylistically from some of the other tracks. It has a swaggering horn and rhythm section that blasts through your radio like an atomic bomb wake-up alarm, and will have you clapping and foot-stomping along.

Spoon "The Underdog"

Ga Ga Ga Ga Ga is released on Merge July 10, 2007. As the record company is quick to point out, it has ten songs on it, much like The Queen Is Dead, Heroes, Unknown Pleasures, Sticky Fingers, Nebraska... Get the none-too-subtle hint?

+Spoon
+official
+Myspace
+more mp3s
+buy Ga Ga Ga Ga Ga at Insound