Supergrass: Supergrass : Music Reviews : Rolling Stone

Album Reviews

Supergrass are one of the few English bands that actually sound like themselves rather than a blurry Xerox of somebody who's selling more records. They're more of a fully digested distillation of nearly all things Brit rock, from the Kinks to the Sex Pistols. Gaz Coombes, Mick Quinn and Danny Goffey started out punky and playful on 1995's I Should Coco and aimed for moody maturity with '97's In It for the Money. The delayed U.S. release of last year's Supergrass finds the trio attempting a shotgun synthesis of those earlier efforts. The lil' dumb hook of the self-descriptive rocker "Pumping on Your Stereo" lodges in your ear within seconds, but elsewhere, Supergrass' middle-ground methodology produces pleasant power pop that's rarely quite powerful or pop-y enough. A rainbow of retro arrangements -- organ-led psychedelia on "Mary," symphonic prog rock on "Born Again" -- can't compensate for middling emotions, muted performances and songwriting that's merely good when it should be gorgeous, gorilla-size or at least goofy. (RS 839)

BARRY WALTERS