They Want My Soul – Spoon
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Yes, we are going back to Austin, TX for successive picks of mine. However, no cowboy hat is needed.
Released in August of 2014,
They Want My Soul is the eighth studio album by American indie rock band Spoon.
This was an album of firsts:
- first released on the band's new label, Loma Vista Recordings
- first to feature the multi-talented Alex Fischel, who since plays keyboards and guitar in the band
- first album where I became an intense fan of this band from their unique and transformative sound that had evolved from their earlier albums
The band had taken a 4-year break from the release of their last album, and this effort showed them more cohesive in their songs after such a long rest from a prior string of albums.
From a recording point of view, this was a release of two distinct sessions on one album. Spoon initially started on tracks with producer Joe Chiccarelli back in the fall of 2013. They took time together to explore different songwriting approaches in this first session. Several songs were recorded during this time, though some of the material was ultimately scrapped.
In the beginning of 2014, Spoon began working in a second session with producer Dave Fridmann at his studio in New York. Much of this album's aesthetic is credited by lead singer Britt Daniel to Fridmann in noting "Dave’s sound is kind of all over it. He has a really unique manner about him, a really cool perspective; he kind of maxes everything out. We've never worked with somebody like that before - somebody with such a strong sense of their own style."
What makes this album work for me and has been a long-time favourite is due to what a critic well noted is "a tension between experimentation and allegiance to form", an aspect highlighted by Chiccarelli and Fridmann's production work on their respective tracks.
Tracks 2-6 include what I feel is the essence and richness of this album, as track after track delivers that amazing sound for me. I have fond memories of business trips into Memphis during this time where track 3 of “Rainy Taxi” was my ‘earbuds-in, fast-walking-through-the-airport-song’ on my way to my rental car. After a few hours on a plane, this was my get up and move song, usually the first in succession of album tracks on my way to a full rack of BBQ ribs.
Other standout tracks for me include “Inside Out”, “Knock Knock Knock”, and “Outlier”, where Alex Fischel’s lush and inventive sound brings a uniqueness I hadn’t heard from Spoon prior. The synths and keys on this album can’t be denied, and it’s what makes it a top go-to for me, and the band one of my indie favourites. I still whistle along unselfconscious to “Knock Knock Knock”, and the distorted guitar within just brings along a sound that delivers to go along with the steady bass heard throughout.
Spoon also took a 1962 pop/bluesy/rock release from Ann-Margaret in “I Just Don’t Understand” and made it their own. The Beatles also covered this song in 1963 with John Lennon on lead vocals. The Spoon song version keeps its 1960s roots, but it has a faster tempo and emphasizes the piano keys throughout. Next on “Let Me Be Mine”, the lyric “You’re gonna take another chunk of me with you when you go” has always hit hard and to me is a reminder of not holding something so close not to let it breathe. Similar to the theme in Sting’s “If You Love Somebody Set Them Free”.
Ironically, the final track of “New York Kiss” came from the initial Chiccarelli sessions, not recorded in New York. There is also a
(Deluxe More Soul Edition) version to this album in Spotify that includes a second disc of initial tracks that is of course only if you are so inclined. What I enjoyed listening to on this disc when it came out last year was the original stripped down takes on those lush songs in their original form, especially versions of “Do You”, “Inside Out”, “Knock Knock Knock”, and “Outlier”.
I first saw Spoon in concert in 2017 in the 2nd row where the first 4 tracks from this album were played live, and I’d rank that among my top 10 of shows of all time given it had band proximity, strong song selection, and an amazing band cohesiveness on stage.
For some here, this might be your first time hearing Spoon. Hopefully you’ll find something here to take away from this that you enjoy, no matter your typical musical genre leanings.
