College radio favorites Built to Spill are nearing completion of their fifth studio album. The band's follow-up to 1999's Keep It Like a Secret will be released this fall, according to the group's record company, Warner Brothers.

The Boise, Idaho trio have again been working with producer Phil Ek, who manned the console on Keep It Like a Secret and last year's Live, a concert album compiling performance excerpts from their 1999 U.S. tour.

The popularity of Keep It Like a Secret earned Built to Spill -- singer/guitarist Doug Martsch, drummer Scott Plouf, and bassist Brett Nelson -- an ASCAP "College Radio Award" last May.

JOHN D. LUERSSEN
(January 27, 2001)