Spoon Ga Ga Ga Ga Ga

Backstage at the Bluebird in March, Spoon's front man Britt Daniels made a bold claim about this album. He said, "It's my favorite Spoon record, and I didn't say that about the last two." He's right. Their sixth is arguably their best album -- a tight, 10-song disc perfect for summer driving and porch chilling.\nSpoon flew relatively under the radar in and around Austin for a few years, but they've been growing steadily both critically and in popularity. Through constant touring and recording, it would be hard to not have heard of them the last few years, with their big single "I Turn my Camera on" and "Way We Get By," which was featured on the "Stranger than Fiction" soundtrack.\nStarting strong with "Don't Make me a Target," Daniels shows off his strong lyricism, with thoughtful lines such as "He smells like the insides of closets upstairs, the kind that nobody goes," resonating over his rhythmic guitar.\n"The Ghost of You Lingers" falls victim to the "Eleanor Rigby" syndrome at track two. It's a beautifully haunting song, but early in any album I prefer a faster, more upbeat song. Ga Ga Ga Ga Ga gets going again on the horn-infused, falsetto-driven third track "You Got Yr. Cherry Bomb." It would be destined to be a single were it not for the 20 seconds of dead space at the end. \nThe next few songs are solid, and there aren't any worth skipping. However, it took a lot of restraint not to press the repeat button anytime "You Got Yr. Cherry Bomb" came on, and I was constantly rooting for "The Underdog" at track seven. Smartly chosen as the first single, "The Underdog" is a grandiose tribute to the little guy. It bursts with horns and a constant feeling of crescendo. It's helped greatly by being the only song produced by Jon Brion (known for working with Kanye West) who gives the song a Phil Spector-esque wall-of-sound feel. \nI typically find myself listening to the track after my favorite song on any album because it ends up getting played often by association. Luckily on this album, the song after "The Underdog" is the rhythmic guitar, layered-vocal treat "My Little Japanese Cigarette Case." \nThe album stayed in my car a week and I'm still Ga Ga over it.