Spoon – “Can I Sit Next to You” (Singles Going Steady)

Paul Carr: Even after nine albums, Spoon manage the remarkable feat of releasing a song that sounds nothing like anything in their remarkable canon. Whilst every album has seen them experiment with their sound in some way, “Can I Sit Next to You” sees the band move in a funky dance pop direction. It sounds supremely confident with the strut and the swagger of a band who have full faith in what they are doing. A welcome return that shows that Spoon are still capable of pulling off a few surprises. [7/10]

Adriane Pontecorvo: “Can I Sit Next To You” starts out like a perfectly average Spoon song, and while there is absolutely nothing wrong with that, perfectly average Spoon songs have been around for almost a quarter of a century now, and no more are needed. It’s refreshing, then, when things start getting a little more psychedelic about a minute and a half into the track. All of a sudden, there is Technicolor in the world, and even when Spoon returns to a more settled verse, there’s a little more acid to the song. It’s good to be down the rabbit hole. [7/10]

Andrew Paschal: Spoon’s latest is a typically lean, jaunting pop effort swooning with attraction. Like a lot of the band’s best material, it locks into a propulsive yet restrained groove, riding that throughout its four-minute runtime. It’s a bit predictable and doesn’t go anywhere new, but even so “Can I Sit Next to You?” manages to hit its target. [7/10]

Scott Zuppardo: Britt Daniel and company never, ever disappoint. At least not me. I’ve heard through the grapevine that this is the first record that has not one acoustic guitar note. If the new record sounds mostly like this minimalist neo-funk jam here, I suppose it wouldn’t be quite a turn from the last one or even the LP before that, which was my favorite album of the year in 2014. [7/10]

John Bergstrom: Like the video, “Can I Sit Next To You” is weird without any apparent underlying premise. But that doesn’t preclude it from being interesting, or even mildly funky. There are more than a few hints of Talking Heads here, which means it’s probably a grower. [6/10]

Steve Horowitz: Spoon discovers New Wave funk and comes up with an appealing ditty that makes one just want to dance. There is not much here that’s not on the surface. That’s a plus. Heaviness can be overrated. A simple beat and melody are an unbeatable combination. If the song needs to go somewhere to be complete as we end up sitting next to ourselves, there are worse fates. And if you can’t be with the one you love, well, you know the rest. [7/10]

SCORE: 6.83