August 20, 2002 by A.S. Van Dorston

The more conservative fans of Austin, TX’s Spoon would have you believe that their peak was their second album, 1998’s uneven A Series Of Sneaks, it’s charms boiled down into the 1:30 “Car Radio.” Don’t believe a word. Spoon gets better with each album. Last year’s acclaimed Girls Can Tell (2001) pared down their sound to show off its stronger songwriting. Much like The Dismemberment Plan, Spoon eschews guaranteed crowd-pleasers on their new album, Kill The Moonlight to instead forge ahead and develop their own unique sound.

While its melodic charms are not as immediate, it’s by far their best album. Their arrangements are wound up so taut and spare, that the few points of comparison are Wire’s Pink Flag, The Cure’s Boys Don’t Cry, and Young Marble Giants’ Colossal Youth. And perhaps’ Prince’s “Kiss.” “Small Stakes” starts with a muffled, compressed drumbeat, a tambourine and then a keyboard. Its lyrical buildup suggests a stripped-down Who-like mod anthem. “The Way We Get By” features piano, handclaps, tambourine, and a thick bassline. Soon the drums kick in and the simple piano melody has your head bobbing as you realize this is a stellar Revolver-era Beatles quality tune. “Something To Look Forward To” and “Stay Don’t Go” feature enticing melodies that are not overdone and don’t overstay their welcome, leaving you hungry for more. The latter is driven by a human beatbox rhythm track, along with other more subtle experiments.

“Jonathan Fisk” is the only song that sounds much like older Spoon, with it’s insistent rhythm guitar, it’s tension expertly built up with drums and an additional guitar. The haunting “Paper Tiger” features a processed, rubbery drum beat, rim shots, a stalking keyboard, dub echoes and jittery strings. It’s simple words, “I will be there with you when you turn out the light” are brilliantly affecting. “Someone Something” is memorably catchy, “All The Pretty Girls Go To The City” has some nice falsetto choruses, “You Gotta Feel It” adds horns, and “Back To The Life” strangely rips off the stomp-and-clap of Led Zeppelin’s “Boogie With Stu.” The brief (34:57) album ends with the lightly psychedelic “Vittorio E,” possibly a hint at Spoon’s next departure? In the meantime, Spoon’s stature will continue to grow as the significance of this album grows over time. A modest masterpiece.