The Underdog - Spoon

July 2007 Edition - Track 10
Album: Ga Ga Ga Ga Ga (Sample/Purchase)
Label: Merge
Release Date: 7/10/07
Referral: Andrea Canter - KCRW DJ of The Lab
www.myspace.com/spoon

This song strikes a personal chord with me because i'm a sucker for the underdog in films, sports, cartoons and now in everyday life. I remember on a friday evening in June i was leaving work and i needed to print some copies of the FoundTrack July cover art. Our office color printer wasn't working so after getting a quote from kinko's over the phone i then went down the street to the local mom and pop print shop that my dad's mortgage company used to use for their home appraisals before they bought their own color copier. The mom and pop shop didn't look like they've done a great job adapting to the times, with AOL dial up and old computers from the early 90's. More importantly, their pricing wasn't going to beat kinko's. I tried to negotiate and told the married couple that if they can't beat Kinko's then i'm forced to go to them. They knew they wouldn't make any money to compete with kinko's pricing so they surrendered to the lost customer. I was then on my way to the kinko's and several miles past the local shop when i started thinking about how I'm an entrepreneur myself and self-employed. I have big competitors and it's frustrating to hear that people would rather purchase from one of these huge corporations instead of supporting their local businesses. Then i heard Spoon's "The Underdog" and it had clinched my u-turn to drive all the way back to the same mom and pop shop to support them although i could have saved some money, i'd rather help these guys while they're struggling to keep their business alive. The song couldn't have came at a more appropriate time. Now when i look at the July cover and i see that fat kid on the left I know that the underdog's bark has been heard.

Spoon is an incredible band. Their new album is one of my favorites of the year and also one of the most awkward titles to say aloud. If you get a chance, blockbuster (officially became a verb after they worked the in-store exchanges) Stranger than Fiction. Speaking of underdog, the film didn't receive enough cred in the awards last year. It features original music from Britt Daniel of Spoon and superb music supervision from Brian Reitzell. In fact their are several Spoon songs in the film and a soundtrack that i will support at my next Amoeba visit.

Check out the Stranger than Fiction trailer here. Music from the trailer includes
Spoon -"The Way We Get By"
Electric Light Orchestra - "Dont Bring Me Down"
The Pretenders - "Stop Your Sobbing"
(www.soundtrack.net)