Let’s get this out of the way: Lucifer on the Sofa might be the best Spoon album in a decade, which is saying something because even their off days are better than most bands’ highlights. But this time, frontman Britt Daniel has made a record that sounds like the kind of thing you’ll be nostalgic for while you’re still listening to it. “That’s high praise,” he says, genuinely flattered. “We did want to make a record that felt good to put on… that felt good blasting out your radio.”
It’s a bold move in an era when most bands are trying to sound like they’ve been trapped in a sensory deprivation tank since 2019. But Spoon? They came to play. “There’s just not enough great rock and roll records being made right now,” Daniel says. “We just got in a good flow. We really worked on the show. The band was playing great together. We thought, let’s make a record that sounds like a band playing in a room.”
Mission accomplished. From the Springsteen-glow of “Wild” to the straight-up soul groove of “The Devil & Mister Jones,” the whole album pulses with human sweat and tube-amp electricity. That last one, by the way, came from a voice memo. “My friend Andrew Cashion sent me a voice note—just him whistling on top of an acoustic guitar,” Daniel explains. “It turned into something a little more swinging… I was working on it while I already had this page of lyrics about Mr. Jones sitting around.”
Ah yes, Mr. Jones. Rock’s favorite shady character, now starring in yet another track. “I’m super aware of the legacy of Mr. Jones songs,” Daniel laughs. “And I’ve never heard one I didn’t like. Mine’s a bad man too. No illusions there.”
But it’s not all devils and Joneses. There’s also “On the Radio,” a track so tailor-made for nostalgia that it practically comes shrink-wrapped with a Columbia House catalog. “Growing up in Temple, Texas, the radio felt like a lifeline to the outside world,” Daniel says. “You’re a kid, stuck in your room, bored. Then you hear a DJ talk and it’s like—they’re talking to me. That was comforting.”
Of course, he made his share of mixtapes too. “Yeah, later on, I definitely made those tapes off the radio.” He smiles, almost surprised to remember. “There’s a lyric on this record about cassettes and records… it’s kind of about a breakup. Like, what do you do with all this stuff that reminds you of them? Maybe it’s just my age that I’m still talking about cassettes. Or maybe it just rhymed well.”
Still, the album isn’t just about looking back—it’s also about reckoning with the parts of yourself you’d rather leave behind. That title track? It’s not about Satanic panic. It’s about Britt Daniel on a bad day. “Lucifer on the Sofa is me at my worst,” he confesses. “The character I can become in times of anxiety or stress. The song is about getting past that guy and getting back to the real me.”
That little exorcism must have worked, because Lucifer on the Sofa is one of the most alive records Spoon has ever made. And the best part? There’s more. A lot more. “We worked on something like 42 songs,” Daniel reveals. “Honed it down to ten. Some we finished and I never want to hear again. But some of them? They’ll come out.”
As for the ones that didn’t make the cut? Don’t worry, he hasn’t forgotten the fine art of the B-side. “I’ve always liked EPs, B-sides, all of it,” he says. He even shouts out Soft Effects—the five-song gem from 1997—as one of his favorites. “It came right after my least favorite record we did. Something was happening. We were figuring it out.”
And if Lucifer on the Sofa is any proof, he’s still figuring it out in the best possible way. Especially if Mr. Jones doesn’t stick around too long.
Watch the interview above and then check out the videos below.
