Everything Hits At Once: The Best Of Spoon

Album / Artist: Everything Hits At Once: The Best of Spoon
Label: Matador

Reviewed: 9/23/2019
DJ Stace

General Comments / Release Notes
It’s about time Spoon got the type of acknowledgement that a “Best of:” collection means. Epic indie pop rock with hints of punk, and attitude. Hailing from Austin, TX, Spoon were very nearly a “local' band when I was in my 20’s in Dallas, and I’ve always been a fan. Masters of arrangement and instrumentation, this collection really is some of the best they have to offer, with only a few glaring omissions (I’d have included ‘Lines in the Suit’ or ‘Fitted Shirt’ from ‘Girls can Tell’). I’ve always thought of Spoon as the INXS of the 2000’s: Making masterful pop rock, a bit obscure to many, but with a really fantastic catalog, all the way back to the beginning.

“Everything Hits at Once: The Best of Spoon is a greatest hits compilation album by American rock band Spoon. It was released on July 26, 2019 through Matador Records. The compilation was announced on June 19, 2019, coinciding with the release of new single”No Bullets Spent.”“

FCCs: Clean
RIYL: Spoon!, Beirut, Andrew Bird, Fruit Bats, Beck
Play: All, Especially: 1,6,9

Tracks:
1. “I Turn My Camera On” Gimme Fiction, 2005 (3:13) - Danceable, insistent and perfect. That punchy rhythm start to finish is one of my favorites in rock.
2. “Do You” They Want My Soul, 2014 (3:33) - From one of the “lost” albums that doesn’t get much attention.
3. “Don’t You Evah” Ga Ga Ga Ga Ga, 2007 (3:33) - Lazy mid tempo, but still danceable. Great rhythms and handclaps.
4. “Inside Out” They Want My Soul (5:03) - Love the ethereal start to this one. Again, the beat is what everything is built around. Bouncy, but softer than other songs.
5. “The Way We Get By” Kill the Moonlight, 2002 (2:39) - Urgent and rocking piano-centric handclapping goodness. Great sing-along lyrics.
6. “The Underdog” Ga Ga Ga Ga Ga 3:39 - The greatest song Billy Joel never wrote. Brass-backed uptempo arena worthy indie pop rock. Perfect. Play it more.
7. “Hot Thoughts” Hot Thoughts, 2017 (3:40) - Dance-beats and catchy lyrics. Not my favorite on the collection, but a solid Spoon song, and still better than most out there. More cowbell.
8. “I Summon You” Gimme Fiction (3:37) - Big acoustic strumming Spoonness
9. “Rent I Pay” They Want My Soul 2014 (3:09) - Big, crashing, punctuated, plodding midtempo power-pop masterpiece.
10. “You Got Yr Cherry Bomb” Ga Ga Ga Ga Ga 2007 (2:50) - American Bandstand sounding teen pop rock. Uptempo and infectious. Big horns, keyboards, sort of an indie “Wall of Sound” thing going on here.
11. “Got Nuffin” Transference, 2010 (3:42) - Back to the punk roots. Urgent rhythm, bass and riff starts out, with those perfect Spoon lyrics over the top.
12. “Everything Hits at Once” Girls Can Tell, 2001 (3:21) - This song has always reminded me of a Joe Jackson tune. Mid-tempo. Great organ and rhythm, but that’s to be expected with Spoon.
13. “No Bullets Spent” (new single) N/A (3:40) - The new single. Punchy, danceable.