Half-Handed Cloud - We Haven't Just Been Told, We've Been Loved CD

We Haven't Just Been Told, We've Been Loved songs GIRLS CAN TELL is the second release in two years from Texas-based Spoon, and they're on a roll. It follows the EP LOVE WAYS, and it's more mesmerizingly cerebral pop. Spoon are unafraid of pushing the envelope. The set opens with one of their best songs, "Everything Hits at Once." Its bleakly resonant lyrics dart in and out of the alluringly minor key musical structure. Elsewhere, keyboards embellish the arrangements with smart bits of filigree--"Me and the Bean" is full of wonderfully simple choices. Throughout, the rhythmic core of guitar, bass, and drums lock together like a delirious machine. This is a band with a seven-year history, and a commitment to their vision that in the late '90s allowed them to survive being briefly signed by a major label (resulting in the superb but overlooked A SERIES OF SNEAKS), and then being dropped by the same. Personnel: Ames Asbell (viola); Lee Spencer (harpsichord); Conrad Keely (Mellotron). Audio Mixers: Craig Ross; Mike McCarthy. Recording information: ...