It’s been a hot minute since Superdrag made the catch-all “Alternative” genre seem fresh again with 1996’s Regretfully Yours. Singer John Davis’s anguished howl on hit single “Sucked Out” was jarring enough to make you think twice about buying those Dishwalla tickets. After a string of under-the-radar albums, multiple lineup changes and an official band breakup in 2003, Superdrag is back. And as Industry Giants proves, the Tennessee four-piece is every bit as angry, unpredictable and downright listenable as they were in the 1990s. If not more so.
Album opener “Slow to Anger” is anything but, with Don Coffey Jr’s ratatat kick drum egging on a snarling vocal from Davis before a single chord is heard. “Everything’ll Be Made Alright” harkens back to 1998’s maniacally multi-instrumental “Head Trip in Every Key,” with its sitar-drenched intro giving way to the typically aggressive power pop Superdrag is known for. Unsettling? Maybe. Exhilarating? Fuck yes. Bassist Tom Pappas adds fuel to Coffey Jr’s fire on “5 Minutes Ahead of the Chaos,” and gamely assumes the role of lead singer on standout track “Cheap Poltergeists.” But what really gives Industry Giants its blistering fury is the guitar blitzkrieg provided by founding member Brandon Fisher. While Davis’s guitar work is more than capable of standing on its own (as evidenced by his recent stint with adult contemporary icon Allison Moorer), Fisher’s all-out assault makes heavy hitting tracks like “Filthy & Afraid” sound like the band has four guitarists.
Davis has said that Industry Giants may well represent the band’s most focused songwriting to date. Second to last track “Aspartame” proves that he may be right. Kicking off with the power riff to destroy all power riffs, the song quickly gives way to a bone-crushing verse and chorus before laying back into a reggae-tinged breakdown - providing a rare, eye-of-the-storm moment for Davis to showcase a sliver of vulnerability. It’s a bold move, and it works. The same can be said for the rest of Industry Giants.
--Kenyon Phillips [March 23, 2009]
