Superdrag

来自美国纳西州东部的小镇诺克司的一只乐队,他们的风格被定义为Power Pop,这是由于他们的音乐有着优美的旋律,以及带有强烈迷幻色彩的噪音吉他。当时，许多人都是通过一首名为“Sucked out”的单曲认识他们的。当然，Superdrag拥有的不仅仅是这一首优秀的单曲，在这之后，著名的唱片公司“Elektra”与他们签约。Superdrag最开始只有John davis一个人，当时他在家中录制了一些小样，之后便着手组建新乐队。他曾经参与过不少乐队，并从中找出了吉他手Brandon Fisher、贝斯手Tom Pappas、以及鼓手Don Coffey。就这样，Superdrag像所有的乐队一样，开始在小型酒吧中演出。可能跟他们优美的旋律以及富有迷幻色彩的吉他噪音有关吧，很快，他们便有了一批固定的铁托儿，知道他们的人也越来越多。乐队的大部分作品都是由Davis创作的，他对旋律的感觉来源于一些早期的具有先锋气质的Pop-Rock乐队的影响，如：The Beatles、The Zombies、Tommy James and the Shondells以及Big Star等等，而模模糊糊的带有浓厚迷幻色彩的噪音吉他则是对我们熟悉的My Blood Valentine的模仿，还有不规则的编曲，是在听过Build to Spill后得到的启示。每当Davids听到那些乐队的作品时，总是会有一些灵感被激发，他就把这些小动机录下来，之后经过整理，就有了现在的成熟的作品。94年Superdrag的首张单曲由Darla唱片推出的，那首单曲在当时非常受欢迎，但不知道为什么，本以商量好的EP却被公司推迟发行。到了95年POWER POP突然成为了时尚，而时尚的缔造者便是Superdrag94年就该发行的EP，公司依然是Darla唱片。
Though many have dubbed Superdrag a punk-pop or power pop band, their music has shown itself to be atop of the aforementioned genres. Taking as much influence from the British Invasion-style pop of the Beatles and the Zombies as My Bloody Valentine and Hüsker Dü, their songs have always combined melodicism and noise in fully distinct fashion. While many have compared frontman John Davis — no relation to the Jonathan Davis of Korn or John Davis of Folk Implosion — to Big Stars Alex Chilton in terms of his throaty vocals, often cynical lyrics, and major-minor chord progressions, the history of the two Tennessee-based groups have shared many parallels in terms of being a bands band that has often gone misunderstood.
With members Davis, guitarist Brandon Fisher, bassist Tom Pappas, and drummer Don Coffey, Jr., having played together in various outfits, including Punch Wagon and 30 Amp Fuse, the guys eventually molded into the Used in the early 90s. Featuring Davis on drums, Pappas on vocals and guitar, Fisher on lead, and Chris Hargrove on bass, Coffey was eventually recruited to get behind the kit as Davis left to pursue Superdrag — a vehicle for his songs. Though Davis was fully competent toward playing all of the instruments on his originals (as proved on circulated home demos), he enlisted the talents of Fisher, Pappas, and Coffey so the group could play live. Constantly gigging beyond their hometown of Knoxville, Superdrag quickly became a buzz band through their release of 1995s The Fabulous 8-Track Sounds of Superdrag on Darla Records. As the EP received rave reviews in publications like CMJ, a major-label bidding war eventually followed with the band heading to Elektra Records.
Releasing Regretfully Yours in the summer of 1996, Superdrag found a highly positive response despite many looking to write them off as a one-hit wonder. With first single Sucked Out becoming a major radio hit on both alternative and crossover stations in addition to becoming an MTV Buzz Clip, sales of Regretfully Yours eventually pushed to a moderately successful 300,000 despite the failure of follow-up single and video Destination Ursa Major. Playing hundreds of shows in support of the record, the group found itself a highly renowned touring entity, though many of Davis new songs were showing themselves piano-based and darker: the antithesis of the jangly rock that Superdrag was known for among the mainstream.
Recorded in Los Angeles with producer Jerry Finn — of Green Day, Rancid, and blink-182 fame — Head Trip in Every Key was more of a conceptual album as it featured well-thought orchestrations. While the other members served their usual roles, Davis played the piano, organ, theremin, and sitar in addition to his usual being as a guitarist. Although solid pop/rockers like Hellbent and Do the Vampire were radio-friendly and did receive minor play, powerful and emotional cuts like She Is a Holy Grail and The Art of Dying (an ode to The Tibetan Book of the Dead) more so represented the vibe of the album as each clocked in above five minutes. In fact, Shuck & Jive featured a Beach Boys-esque bridge with Davis himself doing five-part harmonies. Though reviews in many cases were the strongest ever seen by the group, Elektra Records was all but enthusiastic over Head Trip in Every Key. Little if any support was given upon its March 1998 release, as funding for a Do the Vampire video was revoked and given to a more commercial techno act. Minimal touring support was provided and the group found itself off the road quickly.
Disgusted with the failure of Head Trip in Every Key, Superdrag independently released Stereo 360 Sound — a compilation featuring original demos, alternate versions, and unreleased tracks — on their own label, Superdrag Sound Laboratories. Feeling up on their success on a smaller scale, the quartet happily returned to the studio as they recorded at Nashvilles Woodland Studios for a yet-to-be-titled third LP (on a newly signed two-album extension). However, endless pressures from their label to write hit songs led them to grow tired of working with Elektra and ultimately demanded to be dropped, which happened months later. Grown frustrated with the groups situation, Pappas left in 1999 to fully pursue Flesh Vehicle — a Rolling Stones-meets-Johnny Thunders power trio featuring him as songwriter — though Davis, Fisher, and Coffey did play on Flesh Vehicles full-length disc Elastic Prose (released later in the year on Green Point Music Works). Wasting no time, Superdrag added Sam Powers, bassist and songwriter from the Nashville-based Who Hit John, to their full-time lineup.
Opening up their own Stealth Studios, Superdrag recorded In the Valley of Dying Stars with the aid of producer and longtime friend Nick Raskulinecz, who had worked with the group on all recordings since their 1993 inception. Released in the fall of 2000 on the New York-based Arena Rock Recording Company — a company that began with exclusively putting out Superdrags N.A. Kicker 7 single — In the Valley of Dying Stars combines elements of both Elektra releases, having its fair share of lush arrangements mixed in with the feedback-enhanced pop that first achieved Superdrag their fame. Two years later, Superdrags rowdy rock ways were found on the Last Call for Vitriol album. The following tour found them promoting the album heavily while it climbed the college radio charts. In May 2003, Superdrag announced the departure of Powers. He wanted to spend more time with his family, and the rest of the band did too, fueling rumors of a split.