asically, Girls Can Tell is a rock album. At times it sounds like it could be posed for commercial radio play, well, at least if it was still 1970 something. I don't know why, but I get a decided 70s vibe from this album. Maybe because it's pretty traditional in its approach. It also reminds me of something my mom would like, so that could be it. And Spoon is from Texas, which I'm sure factors in someplace.


The album starts off with the eerie "Everything Hits at Once." The next three songs that follow are in the same vein as "Everything." They have that same strange, somewhat dark feel to them. The album starts to pick up the pace with "The Fitted Shirt," but doesn't quite achieve it til "Anything You Want." This is one of the songs that made me buy the album. A rock circus of instruments sets the stage for the song's protagonist to matter-of-factly dissect his breakup with his girlfriend. The next track, the smirking "Take a Walk," features the word "handjob," which I seriously had no idea was part of this song until I read the lyrics. Your mission: try to find it. (Seriously, you won't be able to.)


1020 AM is a nice departure from the previous tracks, although sometimes it sounds like the Moody Blues songs my mom used to make me listen to with her in the car. I'm a sucker for catchy songs, which is why I love "Take the Fifth." The song centers around a chick named Wendy, who's all that and all about rejecting dudes. This is where the take the fifth part comes in...the singer prefers not to admit his feelings for her to protect himself from falling "prey to her myth." The album closes with an instrumental track and the rainy "Chicago at Night," which allows the album to come full circle with the drama of "Everything Hits at Once."


Conclusion: While the CD doesn't have the most original sound, it will satisfy most rock cravings.