2. Kill The Moonlight (2002)

Kill The Moonlight is Girls Can Tell’s moodier, more sophisticated cousin. The resplendent, reductive “Small Stakes” is Clinic’s entire career summed up in less than three minutes. The deservedly well-loved “The Way We Get By” is the poppiest song to ever use the word ‘taciturn’ — bouncy, rollicking, propulsive, it’s a little Mungo Jerry, a little Squeeze, and a dash of Plastic Bertrand. A kind of beatboxing provides the rhythm for “Stay Don’t Go,” which suggests an alternate universe in which Tom Waits is a hip-hop icon. “Jonathon Fisk” is a great punk song with a great punk-worthy lyric: “Religion don’t mean a thing / it’s just another way to be right wing.” From the Kinks-y “Don’t Let It Get You Down,” to the saxophone-abetted “You Gotta Feel It” to the deceptively epic closer “Vittorio E,” Spoon has rarely sounded as ambitious or playful, treating the mix as if stereo sound has just been invented and the band is eager to experiment with this new technology. Pointillistic, punchy, and weird, Kill The Moonlight is Spoon’s ‘date night’ record, if your idea of a date involves breaking into mobile homes, listening to Har Mar Superstar, and getting spooked by cryptic messages on dollar bills.