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Forget “college rock”; with seven albums of quirky indie guitar dribbed and drabbed out over the course of nearly a quarter-century, the affable crew led by Don Ralph have spawned a whole new genre: “college reunion rock”. Said Album Number Seven, Homewrecker Spoon, from this slow-moving collective—whose members have worked with everyone from They Might Be Giants to Patti Smith—celebrates the freewheeling, anything-goes indie vibe that hasn’t been heard much since, oh, say, the Young Fresh Fellows’ heyday. Needless to say, off-kilter pop nuggets with a dark streak reign supreme here (is that album title referencing the nursery rhyme… or heroin?), from towering album centerpiece “Sean Connery” (where Ralph’s narrator marvels at a photo of the titular Scot reading a magazine in a but), the bleak verse/sunny chorus of “post-apocalyptic ode to joy” “Juiciest Plum” or the oh-so-proper lark “Does The Lady?”. The full-to-bursting-with-ideas ethos sometimes distracts from the band’s undeniable skills—tunes like “Go-To Man”, “Kill the Bottle”, and “The Rain Makes Me Thirsty” feel derailed by one gimmicky gear change too many—but the group is clearly having a blast and fans of smart indie rock circa the Bush Senior administration (not an insult!) will find plenty to enjoy here.

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24 Jul 2007
College rock stalwarts and They Might Be Giants pals come together for their sixth album of quirky pop, but don't have quite enough pizzazz to hit the next level.
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