I found the interview with Spoon interesting for a number of reasons. First, it is a wonderful example of what working creatively in a collaborative group can look like. I also really like the idea of imitating a pre existing style to enhance your own. Lastly, I appreciated the point of view of the band’s sound mixer, Dave Fridmann regarding post production in the creative process.

In any group, there are different roles members play. Some of these roles are more prominent, but each are important and vital to the group. While Britt Daniel and Jim Eno were the initial founders of Spoon, the band has grown to include a group of creative individuals who each bring ideas and talent to the table. Working together in a creative endeavor is much more difficult than a task like data collection or research. Creativity is a very individual thing. No two people will have the same idea about how to approach a project. While this can often cause conflict, when worked through productively, this conflict can produce work that is even better than the work of an individual.

Britt Daniel brings an interesting concept the the band. When approaching a new idea, he asks his band members to join him in trying out the material they have so far in the styles of other musicians. The band finds this very helpful in the creation of their own style. While emulating others, they find pieces of the style that work for them and incorporate it into Spoon’s style. I think this is a very interesting method of exploration and I look forward to trying it.

For the post production process of their music, the band places the responsibility with their sound mixer, Dave Fridmann. Fridmann speaks about his role in an interesting way. He says that it is his job to set out a banquet for the band, let them choose their favorites, and then toss out everything else. In order to get to this point, Fridmann will often take time working where he kicks the band out of the studio, This gives him the chance to work objectively, analyzing each piece of the project and determining the best course of action. He tries everything and then along with the band, decides what is best.

I learned a lot about Spoon’s approaches to the creative process and I think that I will benefit from implementing them in my own creative work.