Thanks for joining us on the art of longevity. We're about sci fi, because you're on tour at the minute on you. I'm
Britt Daniel, Spoon:in Austin, Texas. We do some shows next week. But yeah, not quite on the tour. Okay,
Keith Jopling:I have to say, I'm hugely excited for your new album that's coming out Lucifer on the sofa. Let's get started with that. I've heard about the roar and dirtier sound and the more live sound for the record. And I've had a Listen, what made you go there?
Britt Daniel, Spoon:Just time, you know, I mean, we do tend to, or at least I do tend to want to react against the last record we put out. Last record we put out was fairly pieced together. I mean, I'd still call it a rock record, but a lot of sense on it. drum machines and programming and like it was very produced. And this time, I guess we were figuring out that while we were doing touring on that record that we we actually much preferred some of the live versions of the songs that we develop after the record came out. And so it's sort of like about staying on that sort of tip where it's more about the band playing live. It's a it's about playing on those strings that we had really worked up during that tour. Just seemed like it was the right thing to do. I mean, the world needs more great rock and roll records.
Keith Jopling:is interesting as well, isn't it because I've had this conversation with quite a few artists on this program, as well as that. There's this feeling that a song is never quite finished. Songs just have a life that go on beyond the album. Yeah, that's right. Somewhere, ZZ Top came into the equation with this record, which fascinated me and might worry some people they ought not to worry. But where did that come into the scheme of things here? Mostly
Britt Daniel, Spoon:just because I saw them in 2019. Then I saw their documentary right after that. And sort of the combination of those things kind of sent me down this path that you know, how you do, you just go through phases where you're, you're get obsessed with a with an artist or a band, or an album or a group of albums. And that I was having that for sure. Personally, you know, major ZZ Top phase I guess I'd had while we were coming up for song with songs for this record, it probably crept in. I mean, you probably
Keith Jopling:make these creative decisions of how to sound and where you want to go in a vacuum. I appreciate that. But as you say, you know, influenced by what your obsessions are at the time and it does feel like a timely cultural move because guitar music is is so back. A lot of people wrote it off for me so pleased to hear that. Yeah. Well, so am I. So I'm like, because I mean, I mean, I work in the record industry, a lot of a lot of the industry kind of wrote it off.
Britt Daniel, Spoon:But you're saying it's actually good timing. I mean, we actually thought, Well, I remember even saying to a few people while we're making the record, like, yeah, just going full on rock and roll record, natural band in a room. And that's just what I want to do. And do I think it makes any sense or that the world will is one step. No. But I'm glad to hear you say that. Maybe we anticipated some. I talked to one other DJ last week who said the same thing to me. He's a DJ knows what's up. I've known this guy for a long time. So. But what makes you think that?
Keith Jopling:Well, it's been coming a long time, but I mean, I don't know what the scene is in the US to be honest. But in the UK, it's really buzzing. I think it's sort of led by, you know, the success of bands, like Fontaine's DC. Yeah, graveyard Act, as another band brought new album out last week, dry cleaning, wet leg. I mean, there's just tons of these bands. And the thing is, it's such a large crop of bands, but they're all pretty good. But you know, over the years, the Sonics that you bring into your records have always caught my ear. So what's new sonically, on Lucifer on the sofa? Or is it just like purely stripped back rock and roll?
Britt Daniel, Spoon:I guess it's drift back, it's definitely different from the last record, I mean, it's more in line with the way that we we used to make records, which was, you know, when we started out, getting into a recording studio, lost a lot of money. And so you would try to limit your time in that studio, as much as you could write, I don't get the sense that people do that the same way anymore. Because they can record at home, they can, they can do the whole thing at home, or they can supplement the studio part with the thing at home. And so, yeah, what we used to do was, you know, get those songs as ready as we could and know them inside out know what you're gonna do before you show up in the studio. And that's not to the same degree, but we really strove to do that this time, before we hit the record button was, you know, plan out what everything was going to be simply by playing it together and getting that sort of group chemistry feedback going, you know?
Keith Jopling:Well, you have new members into the band as well. Right. So that's interesting to me. So you have Gerardo Larry also has come in on guitar and Ben token on bass. What did they bring to the mix? Well,
Britt Daniel, Spoon:we've never had a guitar solo electric guitar solo on the hardest cut, we could never have one because we didn't have her auto playing in this band. I mean, he, you know, like, he just has an ability. I'm a pretty good rhythm player, my right hand is strong, you know, but as far as planning a more intricate type bead like that when it just never was going to happen. But I don't think it's fluff. You know, it's it. I feel like it's got a real energy to it, you know, like, what we were shooting for was like a Dave Davies kind of energy on that solo. So I mean, I've always been a little bit wary of, of leaning on skills, you know, leading on like, virtuoso type skills. I feel like you still gotta end even though we've got somebody in the band who's in play like that. Now, I don't feel like, you know, you just have to have good taste.
Keith Jopling:Yeah, well, that comes through it comes through because, you know, the music that you make is something that imbibes your listeners with a certain kind of energy, like a restless energy. That's what it does to me anyway. And, you know, that's what music should be about. It's about how it makes you feel not you know, being impressed by the virtuosos. Yeah, absolutely.
Britt Daniel, Spoon:I get that, you know, but I feel like a lot of people who are learned, musicians don't necessarily get it.
Keith Jopling:Well, I was thinking about Ben, though, because if I Googled him, I was kind of checking out his, his CV, because if you come into spoon as a bassist, that that's sort of big shoes to fill sales to me. How's he doing?
Britt Daniel, Spoon:He's great. I mean, he's like, you know, he's definitely put in his time, you know, with Charles Bradley playing with the fields. He had a rock band called robbers on High Street should play with Sharon Jones for a while. He's done a lot of death kings stuff. So he's definitely Daptone stuff. He's a r&b player when he needs to be and he's a rock player when he needs to be.
Keith Jopling:I love the artwork as well. On the record so far, I was looking on spoons, Instagram. So there's this guy. Adel Rodriguez is the artist. Tell me about that concept. Like how did you find Adele and what happened there to kind of create that artwork?
Britt Daniel, Spoon:Yeah, see? He is great. And I saw one of his paintings in a sort of a fine art setting. And so I and I loved it. And I look into him. And once I did, I realized, Oh, this is the guy who did this time magazine covers of Trump that I love. They were just so pointed. And I don't know, he just says he, I don't know anybody is doing it as well as he's doing it in terms of political illustrations. Fantastic. And so I don't know, I just reached out to him, send them an email said, Hey, would you ever consider doing a illustrations for a spoon record and he said he was a fan of the band. Turns out, we're about the same age, and he was down. So I sent him the whole record, it was right when we had finished it. Or maybe we hadn't even mixed it yet. But I send them all the songs. And he, he said he would do an illustration for each song, you do three or four illustrations for each song. And then we would hone in on that, like, which one of these do you like best? And they were all kind of varied, you know, like, several different impartation interpretations of each song. And then he would paint the ones we liked the best and really, you know, finish them up. And yeah, it was just a great experience to work with such an amazing individual artist
Keith Jopling:of the days of sort of, of conceptual artwork feel like they're making a comeback. To me, maybe it's vinyl or something like that.
Britt Daniel, Spoon:Right? That along with these big presentations of the artwork, you can actually, you can actually appreciate it a little more. So people put more thought into it is already seen.
Keith Jopling:Yeah, yeah, absolutely. It makes a huge difference. Especially, I mean, the way things are these days, you know, kind of releasing singles leading up to dropping the album, and you've got that opportunity to start to tell the story with the visuals a little bit. And also with the, on listening to the record rates, 10 tracks, which is another thing I sort of senses returning with, with vinyl, is this quality over quantity, just keeping it two distinct sides as well. I mean, did you was that on your mind? Do you think about the scheduling? Do you work hard on that once you've got the tracks down? And how do you whittle it down to sort of the you know, the last 10 chosen tracks,
Britt Daniel, Spoon:we tried out different, you know, because we did end up with more more songs finished than we needed. And so we just tried out different sequences with different songs, I kind of had a feeling from the top when, you know, I tried putting held first, and that felt really good. And it gave the record some place to grow from because it's not a it's not a super high tempo song. But it has a really interesting Sonic introduction, it makes it a cool Sonic introduction to the record with way that it starts and all of that studio chatter. So once I kind of have that, and I just, you know, placed the different things around it, you know? And yeah, we did with every record we've ever done. We've always put a lot of thought into the sequencing, I think it just makes a huge difference. And in terms of the impression you're going to have of that record, you know, are the listeners going to have that record? It would be a totally different record, if we put loose from the sofa first, you know,
Keith Jopling:well come on too loose around the sofa later. But on the record itself and the sound. I mean, when I was going back over your catalogs, this is album number 10, isn't it? Yeah, I'm super familiar with everything since Gaga, Gaga, like I know everything since then inside out, but the earliest stuff I hadn't checked out so much. But going back to it, there is a lot of distinct changes between albums, which is sort of the way it used to be, you know, back in the day, I think with the police, Elvis Costello, the class they all made, every album was different. And you've kind of followed that. Where does Lucifer kind of fit into the overall so to speak?
Britt Daniel, Spoon:It's in number 10 very nicely. You know, it's so hard for me to say like, it's easy for me to look with some perspective and say, telephoto was our trashy barbed end set don't really love that record a whole lot and then a series of snakes we were trying to go through post punk you know, there was nothing cooler than wire and gang of four and then the by the next one, we were really into Motown and all these radio so I'm not really sure where this one I mean, it does seem very different to me than hot thoughts. But you know, I'm only now only just now starting to get an appreciation for they want my soul which is like two records back. Yeah, for a second. I was kind of down on it. And then I really, really think it's a great one. I don't know I just I think I need a little more perspective.
Keith Jopling:The ultimate longevity is presented with Bowers and Wilkins. Many of the most listened to recordings of all Time were created at Abbey Road Studios. Most of those recordings were first heard on Bowers and Wilkins loudspeakers. It's a pleasure to have Bowers and Wilkins supporting our show. I've been going back over the years, all of your records if it's something Borno says, yeah, he's quoted as saying that there's one. There's always something you want to change. If you got back in the time machine, and went back to one of the albums. What's it going to be?
Britt Daniel, Spoon:Oh, for any of those albums? Yeah, yeah. Yeah, I would definitely. I mean that my least favorite is first one telephoto. And then the EP that came after it is one of my favorite ones we put out? I don't know, maybe we just had a little bit more. I don't know. It all happen for a reason. But yeah, that's, that's when I would go change. I thought you're going to ask which song on this album? Would we want to change? I think I would love one more shot at on the radio.
Keith Jopling:Okay. As we speak, you have three days to like? Yeah, I heard I mean, it's, it's a great song. What's wrong with it?
Britt Daniel, Spoon:Oh, it's a good song. I just feel like we could have got stuck with this one permutation of what the rhythm section should be doing and maybe hashed it out a little bit more to come up with something a little more creative. But I think it starts amazing. And then it and then I kind of it loses me for a second. I say that. Knock in the song. I love the lyrics, and what they're about, you know, go back and do one, I feel pretty good about this record, you know that that's the only one that I feel that way about. But you may hear it and think it's perfect. I hope you do.
Keith Jopling:I hope I do. And I'm pleased anyway, that you wrote a song about the radio, I'd like to think that it kind of fits into somewhere into the classic canon of songs about the radio? I'm sure
Britt Daniel, Spoon:it does have ability for a second. Yeah,
Keith Jopling:no, I totally agree. I mean, radio is is what it is, I think, you know, they have an opportunity. I just like to see them, step up to it.
Britt Daniel, Spoon:And you feel like they're not fulfilling their potential right at the moment.
Keith Jopling:I think radio had its confidence, knocked very heavily with streaming. And then you know, subsequently Tik Tok, and you know, they've been playing follower a lot. Yeah, I
Britt Daniel, Spoon:guess what you're saying? Yeah,
Keith Jopling:they don't need to, in my mind, I think it's just something that's, maybe it's all in their heads. But to me, when you hear something on the radio, it, it gives it a status that you're never gonna get on those other platforms. But when you're releasing a body of work these days, I mean, obviously, you've been doing it for for a long time now on album 10. And it's things are different. Now to you know, releasing albums back in the day, what what are your expectations, personally, when you put a record out there?
Britt Daniel, Spoon:funny because I don't think about it too much. While we're making it, I just think it's really a scramble to get the, the songs and sounds feeling good in my head. And then, once it's done, I do hope people like it. You know, I just hope that the way that the sounds have lined up in my head is pleasing to everyone else once, once I've decided what they are, you know, but sometimes that's gonna happen. Sometimes it won't. So yeah, I hope people like it. And then I, you know, I just, I would love it if I don't know, because I have a hit one of these days. But barring that, I would just like to be able to go out and do a lot of shows and have a lot of people come to him. I
Keith Jopling:totally agree. I mean, I think it would be nice to have a hit. But I also think that it's good not to need one.
Britt Daniel, Spoon:You're right. And it is the best. And we were in a we've been in a position before where we did need a hit and it didn't work out. So good. Sign to Elektra Records, Elektra Records, and I think we were after, once the record came out. We were We were not signed for another four months. You know, four months later, we were dropped. Yeah, I
Keith Jopling:was gonna ask you about that when we talk about love feet later, but briefly, but you had a kind of it was nice, in a way, because you had that kind of concentrated dose of major label madness. And that got it out of your system. Whereas a lot of bands, you know, they go through, I mean, they might have signed to a five album deal or something and been trapped in development health for a long time.
Britt Daniel, Spoon:Yeah, we got it out of our system we got out of their system. And it was a precarious moment because I didn't think that, you know, we finished a version of girls can tell our next record and we didn't, we couldn't find anybody to put it out. And our manager and lawyer was saying, Guys, maybe you should disband, started another or put another name on it or something else it's just not going to work out. Guys do It was good. Some reason we just kept going because we always had local shows. And I kept writing songs for local shows. But yet for a second, I thought we're not going to be able to put out records that other than making them ourselves. Yeah,
Keith Jopling:but lo and behold, girls can tell was a big step up in success on reaction to to the album. It's interesting to hear you talk about that. I'm always fascinated because the amount of sheer Blood Sweat Tears and creativity it takes to make a record especially one that sort of the traverse the a pandemic, your records are critically revered Brit. I mean, the you know, if I go back to 2010, I think it was the eve of the transference album. I'd become a fan because of gah, gah, gah, gah, gah. But the UK, The Guardian, famously ran an article that spoon was the best ban of the past 10 years. Do you remember that? Dave Simpson? Yeah, yeah. And he sort of looked at the Metacritic scores, and that you popped out? I mean, it's hard enough to you don't sell anything anymore. But in terms of reaction to a record, I would guess you know it from the audience's you also know it critically, I'm just wondering how you how you do kind of soak up the feedback.
Britt Daniel, Spoon:I mean, I have no concern about what, you know, the record is going to be coming out on next Friday, and I really just have no concern about how it's going to be accepted critically. I just, I mean, people gotta like it, right? It's really fucking good. I guess I'm not. I think it was around that time that I that I stopped reading reviews, because there were some, as much as transference was, was hailed in that article and in that, and then maybe in your country, it was not super loved by critics in America. It was okay. But certainly not as it was the first sort of, and we stumbled in that arena in several records. I figured out at that time, you know, it's definitely no good to read those articles to read to read reviews. And so now I just don't read them. Unless somebody points something specific out to me or I might take a glance at how many stars there are, you know,
Keith Jopling:usually four or five. It fascinates me in a way because always you've had, you've been kind of revered in the UK. But your success is largely contained to the USA, which is something that vexes me and frustrates me. How do you feel about it? What's your take on it?
Britt Daniel, Spoon:What sorry? What was it the vexes you and frustrates you?
Keith Jopling:I missed the fact that you're not so well known here. I mean, I'll give you an example. Like, you know, since since I became a fan, basically, it was around about that time with that review. Not there was influenced by the review as the records that did it, but people would ask me, who's your favorite band up until that point, it was always Radiohead. It was just like, that's where it everything converged, and I changed it spoon, and people would just go, who? And that's always been a frustration for me and in the UK. I just wanted to hear your take on that.
Britt Daniel, Spoon:Yeah, I don't know why that is, you know, if I feel like if if the UK was having, the moment it is now, when we put out our first record or two, it would have been a different story, because we were making records that sounded a bit like squid, or maybe Fontaine. We were definitely drawn from the same influences. And but at that time, I remember coming over here, and it was the only thing I could see was, was miles and miles Oasis posters. And we didn't really have that vibe at all. And so we kind of got off on the wrong foot. And eventually, like critically, they came around. I don't know, I don't. We do. All right, we come to London, we play a pretty big show, you know, but I'm not surprised to hear you tell me that when you switched from telling people right radio had the spoon that a lot of them said they didn't. They didn't know in your country, you know? Yeah, why does it why does it happen
Keith Jopling:when you first came up through the 90s? Yeah, I think the UK was a little bit obsessed with with Britpop and Oasis and all of that stuff, which really wasn't cool. It was very sort of just mainstream rock and roll and and a bit of release, and I think you were doing something that was maybe a little bit more not cerebral, let's let's say, but like a Brit. I've done my bit for you. I'm still campaigning on on your behalf and in fact, it's it's great to be a fan in the UK in some ways, because as you say, you do. You come over here and do a show in some way like Shepherds Bush empire. I've seen you at a Hoxton. I've seen you at borderline. And it's cool, because we wouldn't. I wouldn't I would never get a ticket in the US to see you do those shows?
Britt Daniel, Spoon:Well, that's a good thing for you, right?
Keith Jopling:Yeah, totally.
Britt Daniel, Spoon:That's a good for me, because we don't we don't show up as, as often as we'd like. I mean, we have no shows. And
Keith Jopling:that's the downside. I mean, are you planning to come to the UK or Europe anytime soon? My
Britt Daniel, Spoon:surprise, no. It's gonna happen on this record. But I was supposed to be there in the second week of January to do a week's a week of promo maybe I was supposed to talk to you while I was there. I don't know. But it didn't happen because of Omicron. And, yeah. And yeah, we don't have anything planned.
Keith Jopling:Everyone's had to just take a step back and, and have a rethink.
Britt Daniel, Spoon:I think it's gonna get better. I think it's already plus obviously, already. It's getting better. And I think we're getting we're turning the corner.
Keith Jopling:Keith here, thanks for listening to the art of longevity. I hope you're enjoying the conversation so far. Please tell your friends. Listen back to the other episodes. And don't forget to subscribe on whatever podcast platform. You back to the conversation. Rate, can we stop off at a couple of songs? Sure. My discovery song for you was ghost Have you lingers?
Britt Daniel, Spoon:Yeah, like that one.
Keith Jopling:I actually first heard it on Daytrotter was a session you did on de trata, which is really very, very cool. Kind of indie sessions website. Do you remember doing that session?
Britt Daniel, Spoon:I do. Remember, it was like a, maybe an Iowa or something. I remember being in there and being a small town. Yeah.
Keith Jopling:Just passing through the Midwest. Yeah, it was great. It was so it was super popular here. Um, I feel like in a discovery for me that was discovery working well as a as a music fan. And that's how I discovered spoon. I mean, it's like we've kind of gone back, in a sense, because I don't know where Daytrotter is these days?
Britt Daniel, Spoon:I'm surprised that it was the non album version. But we must have done a good job. Yeah,
Keith Jopling:yeah. Well, it's still my favorite version.
Britt Daniel, Spoon:I got Okay, now I gotta go listen to it.
Keith Jopling:It's very, very cool. But it made me become somewhat obsessed with the track for all these years. I just want to read some lyrics. So put on a clinic till we hit the wall, just like a sailor with his wounds been assaulted? Come on. I had a nightmare. Nothing could be put back together. Would you settle the score? If you were here? Would you calm me down, the ghost of you lingers, it lingers. Just tell me something about that. Because that's just been spinning around my head for God knows how long when
Britt Daniel, Spoon:I was writing that song, I was very frustrated with I was having a day where I was trying to write write some song, something or other and I or maybe a couple days, and I was in Portland, that was where I was living in. And I just nothing was happening, you know, you have those days where nothing comes. And so I got frustrated to the point where I started really banging the piano hard. And I was just like, I'm going to just do this exercise where it's not me writing a song, I'm just going to come up with this pattern, you know, and it's just, it really is more about getting these frustrations out than anything. And I put down the pattern. I was kind of a thing. I was really into the Solara soundtrack by Cliff Martinez at that time. Yeah. And he had these things where, yeah, where the upper register would kind of stay the same. And then there would be bass notes that were moving in the bottom. And so I was doing that kind of thing. And I was like, you know, after I put it down and listen to it, the next day, I was like, that's pretty damn good, you know, and then, and it just sat there. And I knew I wanted to turn it into something for a long time, but I didn't have the guts to sit down and try to make it a song. You know, like, I was like, that's, that's really fucking good. And it came when I wasn't trying to make a song. And now I'm going to have to actually get in my head and try to do it. So I kind of put it off for a while. And at some point, I rented a house out in the coast of Oregon, where I just did nothing. I knew no one out there and I just went out there to really get a lot of shit finished for Gaga, Gaga. And that lyric came one morning, and it all came at once and it was very much just throw it down on the four track machine as you're singing. That kind of thing where you do a pass where you think syllables, and then you rewind, erase everything that didn't sound good. And then rewind again and then go in and try to put state put words in places zero syllables and just do it really fast without too much thought about it. And that's what that was came back. Oh, yeah, it's one of my favorite songs.
Keith Jopling:And what about that lyric? Where did it come from?
Britt Daniel, Spoon:I remember this, like, Taylor with his wounds being assaulted. I thought there was maybe a scene from roots where the what they were. Maybe it wasn't even roots, I don't know, but some some kind of scene where there's somebody being whipped. And they throw salt on the wounds to make it hurt more. And then we put on a clinic. I don't know, it just means we really made a go of it. Okay, okay. That kit gives you less clarity than you had before.
Keith Jopling:No, no, that's good. I mean, I think the piano is a rhythm instrument is got something going for it. That's always a there's something kind of magnetic about that for me. So maybe that's you put your finger on it there. Yeah,
Britt Daniel, Spoon:it's kind of hypnotic that little. I mean, it's very Yeah, very much. Oh, to that, that part of it. That sense of it to the fullest soundtrack,
Keith Jopling:it gets right inside your head. That's I mean, I've written about this song at least twice. And yeah, that's That's exactly it. Okay. Second one is live feed. I mean, I don't want to dwell on it too much, because we talked about, you know, your experiences in the industry. But yeah, I'm on my website, Song simile, I put a compilation together called stick it to the man. And it's sort of songs, what songs about the music industry can tell you about the industry, it's quite unique. It, you know, put the name on, on everything. And I guess, you know, ended up sort of telling you your first real story, and in the world,
Britt Daniel, Spoon:it was a stroke of luck. At the time, it felt like a face saving measure. And it also felt like, getting even. But there were, you know, we definitely felt like, after putting out two records that both did poorly, we did one on an independent, a great independent label, and then did another one on a major label, and neither had worked. And it just felt like, wow, this, this whole experiment is trashed, you know, damaged goods. I didn't feel that way. And so to sort of make light of it, we had come up with the song titles, and they were just too good to not write songs for you know, but it definitely came with titles first, sort of subject matter first.
Keith Jopling:I guess you've reconciled your relationship and your place in the, the, you know, the crazy machinations of the, of the music business. But I mean, how does an artist stay sane you went, you went through that patch, you're you. You're down the line? I mean, almost, you know, 30 years later, how does an artist and new artists, we talked about all these young guitar bands coming through? How do they stay sane?
Britt Daniel, Spoon:Maybe they have a dream. And so they put up with things you have to put up with in business wise, or equipment lugging wise or rehearsal wise, in order to do this thing of being able to play music in front of people have a party every night? Or to make records?
Keith Jopling:Yes, sort of staying on the bus as well, in a way, isn't it? I mean, you know, back in Psalm 96, as you say, released telephone now, there was a matador right. And you came back around, you stayed on the bus, you came back around you your last two records have been on mastered. Yeah, it's kind of interesting journey for you. But I suppose now as you said, you know, you'd like to have a here it'd be nice to have a hit doesn't really matter. You know, your records are insanely reviewed, you always going to sell out wherever you play. Is there a secret to spoons longevity? Where do you learn? If you reflect back on it? I mean, is there anything that you could kind of pass on or just reflect on as I say, like, that's, that's how we
Britt Daniel, Spoon:did it. We did it by not being okay with anything less than something that was gonna get us rock hard, you know, that we keep going until we really, really like it. And we don't settle, you know, but I think I remember what I was trying to grow. I was trying to go with Luffy thing was that, yeah, it started out with as a release, but it ended up being quite accidentally, like the first time that people had anything to say about us, you know, and it became the story that made it so that our next record, actually did have some success. The first time there was a story other than it's a band from Austin, Texas, who were named after a cancel, you know, there's not much to run with there. But when we had a band that was very unfairly treated by their label, and they wrote a song naming names about their experience than it was okay. There's something Yeah,
Keith Jopling:a cool song as well. Yeah. Okay, one more song, which would be loose fur on the sofa. Yeah, we talked about it earlier. For me, it's a classic l Boom, closer. It's kind of just just goes freeform. Just tell me about where that came from. The other thing is as well, it's yet another fascinating lyric for me. You know cashed out in the front room, ashes, stay in his lips, Lucifer on the sofa staring at you. You've been counting weekends, never getting dressed, speaking in third person trying to forget. So tell me more about that.
Britt Daniel, Spoon:I love that lyric. It was, it was a song that Alex and I were kind of, I guess you'd say jamming. We turned on a drum machine, looped it. And then just sort of playing through it me on acoustic guitar him on piano, and it recorded for maybe three, four minutes. But there were there were about 25 seconds in there that were just brilliant. I looped that 25 seconds. And that's the chord progression you hear on that song? And and so one day, in April of 2020, I sat down with the idea of I'm going to finally make something of this one. And and I mean, I think the looser on the sofa is me, it's me at my worst character I can become when I'm depressed or anxious, or it's the character that makes me you know, lose my motivation, and bitter nasty. And yeah, that's what the song is about a moment where I can't get past being that character. The song is about getting up, walking around the town, trying to take a walk to get to clear my head and instead seeing this version of Austin, Texas, which is almost unrecognizable. Definitely it is 2020
Keith Jopling:I mean, in that sense, it's kind of classic lockdown song, isn't it? I mean, it's so you know, it's funny the two years we've all spent at home, it feels to me like we've we've kind of realized we're all really the same. Everyone has the demons that we face. And you know, we've invited them into our, our homes for us two years ago, hanging around on the sofa or right looking over our shoulder in the kitchen. Yeah, so you go you leave the house, you go out for a walk. You think okay, I'm gonna leave you and it's great. It's Was that was that kind of the vibe?
Britt Daniel, Spoon:Yes, yeah, absolutely. Yeah, it's a song that had a lot more verses and even had a bridge and lyrics for all of them. And sometimes it takes me quite a while to write lyrics. But that time, they happen real fast. And it took me a second, but I love that line loose from the sofa. staring at you. It just creeped me out. But eventually, I figured it out that what I was writing about with myself, the two sides and so that when you look at the record cover, there's a there's a face with a black one has what happens? Yeah, that's that's what got it. Got it. Perfect interpreting. Yeah.
Keith Jopling:The art of longevity is a team effort. show is produced by the songs of Lea. That's me. With project managers. It's audio engineered and edited. Audio cultures are amazing cover up by the wonderful Mick Clark. And original music for the show is by Andrew James Johnson. Well, Brett has been great to have you as I said, you know, for listening to your music over the years, it's got that kind of energy just imbibes you with that restless energy, I know that the new album was was a long time in making and finally getting it out there. I guess you've written a bunch of other stuff. I mean, just tell me a little bit about what's next. You
Britt Daniel, Spoon:know, it's possible that some of the songs we finished that didn't make the record will come out. We're working on some different versions of the songs. And at the moment, we're going to turn in North America quite a bit because we're able to set it up otherwise, but I love that part of I love that part of it. So I'm really looking forward to that. 2023
Keith Jopling:is your 30th anniversary. Have you got any plans? Is that even? I guess it has dawned on you? I don't want to make you feel Oh, no.
Britt Daniel, Spoon:I don't know a big, big homecoming show in London. How about that? Oh,
Keith Jopling:yeah. That sounds great to me. I don't know. I haven't thought about it. If you're gonna do it do residency. Yeah.
Britt Daniel, Spoon:Okay. No, but you asked a lot of really good questions. I got to talk to you and I have to go listen to that Daytrotter version of that song.
Keith Jopling:Absolutely. And for young kind of guitar bands, particularly out of the UK should check out so young. She has a magazine. Okay. Very, very cool magazine. I will write that. But they have playlists on Spotify. Please check that out. And please also do check out sticking to the man playlist on the website because you're a prominent position on that. Now it's really cool to talk to you. You're one of my music, all time heroes. And it's been a real pleasure.
Britt Daniel, Spoon:Thank you. Great to talk to you. I hope we get to talk again.
Keith Jopling:Yeah, come to the UK please. Alright. See you soon. All right, take care. Bye bye