Spoon

This Austin, Texas, USA-based alt rock outfit was formed in 1993 by Britt Daniel (vocals/guitar), Jim Eno (drums), Andy Maguire (bass) and Wendel Stivers (guitar). Influenced by the likes of the Pixies, Sonic Youth, and Gang Of Four, main songwriters Daniel and Eno took their band's name from their favourite Can song (off the German experimentalists' 1972 release, Ege Bamyasi). Stivers soon left leaving the remaining trio to record their debut, Telephono, despite not having signed a recording contract. By the time the band signed with the Matador Records label Maguire had also departed, leaving the core of Daniel and Eno to work with a series of supporting musicians. The duo built a following in their home country, touring with such alternative kingpins as Pavement and Guided By Voices, among others. Around the same time as their debut album's release, Daniel began issuing solo recordings under the alias Drake Tungsten, as Spoon signed with the major label Elektra Records for 1998's second release, A Series Of Sneaks. Their tenure with Elektra was an extremely brief and tumultuous one, as they left the company after only a single release. They issued a series of stop gap singles, including 2000's "The Agony Of Laffitte", which took aim at their former label. The following year saw the release of Spoon's excellent third long-playing release, Girls Can Tell, on the independent Merge label.