Ga Ga Ga Ga Ga

I'm catching up with some of the albums that were highly acclaimed last year. One of the most celebrated was Spoon's Ga Ga Ga Ga Ga. I'm not that familiar with Spoon, but I had heard a marvelous song called The Underdog on the radio frequently, so I took a small chance and I'm glad I did--I've listened to the record about four times and like it more each time.

Spoon's sound, at least on this disc, can perhaps be summed up by the title of one of the songs: Rhythm and Soul. Though they can be classified as an indie band of white musicians, their is a distinct flavor of funk on this record. The songs don't have much diversity, but that's okay, because each has a terrific beat (anchored by bassist Rob Pope) and a brassy kick. A staccato piano is added to the mix, and thus each song can have you wanting to move your hips.

The Underdog is the best song, as it goes even further and adds a New Orleans-style horn section. I'm also very fond of Finer Feelings and Don't You Evah, in which Pope's bass is almost the lead instrument, and he lays down a sinewy line that is deliriously infectious. The one song that pushes the musical envelope is The Ghost of You Lingers, which is an ethereal audio soup of echoing vocals and that insistent piano, which, as the title suggests, makes for a supernatural sound.

The songs, save for one, are written by the lead vocalist Britt Daniel. The lyrics are, to be kind, circumspect. Another song that gets a lot of airplay, You Got Yr. Cherry Bomb, is certainly open to interpretation. "Brush your teeth for bed, blow out that cherry bomb," Daniel sings. What exactly does cherry bomb represent (if it isn't fireworks)? I have a guess, but I have a dirty mind. Eddie's Ragga has the best writing, and even if I don't know what it means, some of the lines have poetic resonance: "I'm a slut for The New York Times/She made my heart soft, wore an aiguilette on her arm/She never been to Texas, never heard of King Kong/And it'd been so long since I'd been suitably high/So we did an Airborne, settled in for the night."

My days of going to concerts are pretty much over, but I might make an exception for Spoon, because their music would seem to lend itself well to live appearances. Ga Ga Ga Ga Ga is a very strong album.