Customer Reviews

Supergrass

5 star:		(33)
4 star:		(18)
3 star:		(4)
2 star:		(0)
1 star:		(3)

 

 

how good this CD is. However, I will try. Since "I Should Coco", their music has evolved over time from a happy-go-lucky, quirky, bouncy, teenage Brit-pop, to a thoughtful, self-introspective, more mature, finely-tuned, highly-melodic, clever Brit-pop. "Moving" is a prime example. Since my mind is blanking on superlatives, I'll leave it at this: it's an import CD worth owning!

Everything about Supergrass (the album and band) is fresh. Loud guitars, popping bass lines, loads of handclaps, and a lead singer that sounds a ton like Mick Jagger equates to fun intelligent brit-pop-rock. Avoiding the rainy, mellow moods of Travis and Coldplay and the pulsing ambient-rock of Radiohead's and Blur's last albums, Supergrass's sound echoes brit-rock of days passed: Rolling Stones, the rockier stuff of The Beatles, The Kinks. It has the same quality of those three bands; it's in-your-face while at the same time being melodic. Each song is great, but the highlights are "Moving" "What Went Wrong In Your Head" "Pumping on your Stereo" and "Mama and Papa." Moving is a pounding song about the need to stay in constant motion to avoid facing emotional pain. It is similar to their single, "Late in the Day" in that it starts off really simple with lead singer Gaz Coombes singing alongside an acoustic guitar, and then after a minute, the popping bass lines, loud guitars, and handclaps come in. It is probably the best song on the album. "What went wrong in your head" is very Rolling Stones-ish. It starts off with its catchy chorus: "what went wrong in your head, while we sat in our beds." and then a "la, la la" interlude follows that is very reminiscent of the Stones. "Pumping on your Stereo" is the song most people in America have heard, due to its inclusion in the Road Trip soundtrack and the groundbreaking music video that featured Supergrass in puppet outfits. It is such a brilliant mix of pop song-writing expertise that anyone with an ear will immediately respond to its rousing guitar riff. "Mama and Papa" is truly a beautiful song. Devoid of the loudness of the previous tracks and Gaz Coombes's brash, Jaggerish voice, it recalls more modern influences like Blur's "No Distance Left To Run" and Radiohead's "No Suprises" and tenderly recalls a childhood longing as they sing "I miss My Mommy and I miss my Daddy won't you please bring them back home."

The other great thing about Supergrass, apart from the fact that their songs rock, is that their musical success is a collaborative effort. Although Gaz Coombes is clearly the lead singer, the other band members, bassist Mick, and drummer Danny sing "Beautiful People" and "Mama and Papa." Quite frankly, the band would not be what it is without the musicianship of these three guys (not to mention vital keyboard work from Gaz's brother). As a jazz-trained bass player, I know a good line when I hear one, and Mick Quinn's expert playing is so accompolished that it is just as much a focus of the song as the guitar.

If you liked their previous stuff (like I Should Coco and In it For the Money) I would definitely check this album out, since it is more lyrically deep and more catchy than the work on the aforementioned two albums, which are also worth hearing too. For those who aren't very familiar with Supergrass, I highly recommend that you get caught up in the music of this highly talented British band.

(note: I would give this 5 stars, but I feel that Supergrass are still capable of better things in the future, as great as this album is.)

Supergrass are one of the few British groups making pop music with no strings attached. That is not to say they are a better group than say Blur, but Supergrass have a kind of simplicity that lacks in even the best of Britpop groups.

First single Pumping on Your Stereo is a fine example. A hook ridden, Stonesesque rocker with wonderfully throwaway lyrics. (Life is a cigarette/You Smoke to the end) At first the song comes across as simple but after several listens the chorus will be ingrained into your skull forver. Opener (and second single) "Moving" opens with Gaz Coombes singing gently over some middle of the road string section about how "the days all feel the same." Then the chorus kicks in with its funky bassline and vicious guitar hooks. This is one of those rock songs that makes you want to get up and go and smash things.

The word "maturity" has been used a lot when describing this album. Sure, there is no Strange Ones, Mansize Rooster or Alright here, but personally I would never want the group stuck making punk records in 1994 a la "I Should Coco." "Shotover Hill" (a mature song) is a wonderful Kinksy ballad that is deeply affecting and What Went Wrong in Your Head? is hooky but not throwaway fluff either.

Each of these songs is beautifully structured and are all memorable in their own way. "Mary", "Beautiful People," "Jesus Came From Outer Space" and especially the Lennon-like Mickey Quinn penned "Mamma and Pappa" are all classics.

Supergrass are a rare breed of group. They make simple, perfect pop music that can be played anytime of day in any mood. (Like Canuck group Sloan.) There is no other British group that is this simple and enjoyable: Blur are great but arty, Oasis are too concerned with ressurecting the past, Radiohead can't do anything without a social comment, The Manics are too concerned with the big issue, Pulp love witty observational tunes, Travis and Embrace can't stop spilling their hearts out, Suede love the urban feel a little too much and Mansun are too far down the road to obscurity to come back.

All of these groups are fantastic, Supergrass are not geniuses but they do know how to make timeless music that is charming because of its simplicity.

From the very start this album hooks you with the first track MOVING. Rather than talk about the album song by song, which would far exceed the maximum of 1,000 words, I have decided post a picture. I figured that a picture is worth a thousand words and would save lots of time... Perfect!... I have just realized that you can't do that. If you could though, I would post a picture of a gold fish, or a golden retriever. Or perhaps a bar of gold, because that what this album is. GOLD! It is chalked full of tracks that you and your frieds can lesten to, or dance to, or pogo stick to. This is definitely some of thier best work. Thank you for reading my review, I hope it was very helpful.

Please, don't take this review wrong. I give the album 4 stars because it is great music and it's better than just about anything out right now. However, I was disappointed when I first heard the album. "I Should Coco" and "In It For the Money" are two of my favorite albums ever, and when I heard the first single "Pumping On Your Stereo" I was expecting a somewhat similar album to the other two. However, "Supergrass" is a drastic change from the past. They really have grown up apparently. The punk rock influences on the first two albums are virtually gone on this album. Despite the disappointment, the album is still excellent and grows on me with every listen. I really like the songs "Eon," "Faraway" and "Pumping On Your Stereo." Overall, I would recommend this album to Supergrass fans and all British pop fans in general. It is a good album and it is definitly worth buying.

With this brand new album, Supergrass pulls the ugly little duckling trick, you used to laugh at them and believe they'd never make it to superleague Brit Pop, with Oasis, Blur, Pulp and Radiohead. But here they land right at the top. Unbelievable melodies, pace, grace, an album that flows flawlessly from beginning to end.

I like this eponymous release much more than previous Supergrass albums. Kicks off with "Moving", which starts off slow and mysterious with lots of interesting chords, and has a hard-rocking chorus. Then you get the beginning part again with a beat. Great stuff! "What Went Wrong in Your Head" is like Beatle-pop for the nineties- arguably among the catchiest tunes out there today. Just hearing it makes me want to clap along with the band. "Jesus Came From Outer Space" is another winner, again with the interesting chords, has like a rock-opera/show tune sound to it. "Faraway" is another standout song. A great introduction to Brit-pop.

I have recommended this CD to most of my friends. Supergrass has a surprisingly unique sound for a group which has fallen (unfortunately) into the mass of recent Brit Pop releases.

Without sounding like a rehash of earlier talent, they created an album that you know you love after just one listen. Their songwriting is unmistakably British, sounding occasionally like groups such as XTC, Oasis, Jason Falkner and even the Rolling Stones.

Each track is as good as the last. It's been over a year, and about 50 CD purchases, since I've gotten so much enjoyment out of a new album.

You'd think it was a debut album, being self-entitled, but this was actually Supergrass' third studio release and, I would contend, their best. The semi-focused, college-band bounciness of their first outing, "I Should Coco," gave way to the full-out, punk-fun assault of "In It For The Money," and then this. It begins with a lilting, melodic, and atmospheric entre into "Moving," but don't think they've gone soft: Soon the wall of sound comes crashing down into a funky chorus, and you remember who you're listening to. Sonically, lyrically, musically more mature than its predecessors, "Supergrass" features a wealth of stand-alone tracks, but to discuss them individually is to sell the album short, because it has that special brand of "Dark Side of the Moon" full-length playability that few albums achieve. You don't put it on to hear one song; you put it on and let it play. Then, if you're like me, you let it play again.

For those raised on "Alright" from the "Clueless" soundtrack, don't worry: This is fun stuff, but from a more fully-developed band hitting their stride. The subsequent "Life On Planet Earth" was a disappointing follow-up, but it is to be hoped that Supergrass has a few more albums like this one still in the tank. If not, so be it. At least I caught this ride.

(P.S. Turns out, they had plenty left in the tank: Check out 2005's "Road to Rouen.")

In this jaded world of indie-rock predictability and teen-pop banality, Supergrass has risen above the fray and has established itself as "the" Brit band all others wish to be. Like Radiohead and Manic Street Preachers, Supergrass has continued to evolve sonically and lyrically, suggesting that in the end, they will stand the brutal test of time in this fickle rock universe. "Supergrass," the band's third album, is a breath-taking phantasmagoria of organs, power pop guitars and old school rock sensibility filtered through a dance rock aesthetic and glossy new technology. The strength of the album is that the band has allowed their musicianship to bend and sway into diffrent song stylings yet they remain grounded in pure old rock and roll. "Moving," the lead off track is an amazing dance-rock number that is built on solid r & b melody and heart-stopping, booty-shaking tempo shifts. Other stand-out tracks on this stand-out album are the Cars-like "Pumping on Your Stereo" and the Bowie inspired "Faraway." But however many influences Supergrass may have, the band never mimics their idols. The songs stand on their own because the sound that they create is so joyous and earnest that they live and breath on their own. What is frightening about "Supergrass" is that along with the jaw-droppingly good "I am Shelby Lynnne," it is one of those rare things - a perfect album from start to end. It is gorgeous and lush, angry and somber, danceable and rockin'. It is the messy beautiful music your mind would create if you were a 21yo in London at 4am in the morning with ten too many beers in your system. Supergrass may seem like angry, little, dirty boys but underneath the greasy hair and beer-stained baseball shirts is a group of prodigal sons that may very well be the savation of rock as we know it! Stellar and stunning work!