Spoon's Transference melancholy, moody

Spoon is not the most provocative band name in the world, but the indie rock group from Austin, Texas, has certainly come a long way under their blasé title. Inspired by the 70s German band Can, the quartet formed in late 1993 and has released a stunning 14 LP's and EP's in their 17 year career. It wasn't until their 2005 release of Gimme Fiction when they began to make waves outside of the U.S. independent market. Fresh off of their 2007 Ga Ga Ga Ga Ga album, which debuted at #10 on the Billboard Top 200, Spoon's seventh full-length album Transference lives up to expectations.

Transference is a moody album, stripped to not much more than steady back beats and Britt Daniel's mournful lyrics. "Nobody gets me like you" he admits in the last track of the same name and it's not hard to see why. The album is chaotic, mellow at times, angry and distorted at others. It contains no big hooks or soaring melodies, trademarks of today's pop music; but it's not your typical indie rock album either, as it employs neither chanted anthems or soft ballads. Just as you begin to tap your foot, Transference takes you reproachfully in another direction.

This is not a record you will come back to again and again. It doesn't demand replays or even multiple listens. There are few songs that you'll want to hear over again, although tracks like "Got Nuffin" and "Written in Reverse" are hard to deny. Transference doesn't attempt to set itself apart from the noise of the Internet and digital age, but rather embraces the ever-shifting moods of the indie scene. The album is part rock-and-roll, part melancholy afternoons and lonely nights. At 11 tracks it is hardly extravagant and by the time "Out Go the Lights" comes on, the album has barely hit its stride.

Transference leaves the listener with the impression that he/she liked the album, liked it a lot, but for reasons he/she can't grasp and certainly couldn't explain. Some of the songs stand on their own, but others lean heavily on the tracks preceding and following them, barely bridges of distortion and noise between winding riffs. Melody is given little emphasis, as Spoon is content with merely playing the same beat and bass line for the last few minutes of the song until all elements melt away, like on "Out Go the Lights."

Overall, the album is best consumed whole. Transference lacks any strong singles that will drive it high on the Billboard Top 200, but it's subtle rock appeal will be sure to attract both steady fans and new fanatics. The album was released on January 19 in the U.S. by Merge Records.