Late arrivals in the Seattle music scene, SUPER DELUXE helped get some respectability back to the town after torturing our ears with Candlebox and L.A. imports Hole.
Borrowing more from '70s power pop like Cheap Trick and the Raspberries, Super Deluxe were far removed from the existential abyss of their peers. The group only released two albums from the mid-to-late '90s before napping during the rap-metal regime.
Newly oiled and waxed, Super Deluxe rocket from the garage with guitar flailings but Brendan Blake's soothing, nice-guy vocals are always easy on the ears. Not abrasive enough to be hard rock but too edgy for the pop label, Super Deluxe's five-track EP "Lolita" will charm your sister while giving you a sturdy kick in the arse.
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Although I expected something a little more racy with a title like "Lolita" (read the book or watch any of the movies), Super Deluxe do not disappoint, flipping through one uptempo rocker after another, leaving you thirsty for more. "Enough Is Enough" is the highlight for me, summoning '60s psychedelia - or is that Echo & the Bunnymen's "Do It Clean" that I hear? On "Knockout," Blake sings about a lovely lass and her jerk boyfriend, kind of like the Fountains of Wayne's "Leave the Biker."
Not a wasted opportunity on this disc, which is merely an appetizer for Super Deluxe's upcoming third album.
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