Supersona - Supersona

Supersona

Supersona
self-released; 2016

3.8 out of 5

By Mike Przygoda
​

The self-titled album Supersona by Supersona is an excellent combination of hard rock, soul and funk that is performed with precision. Of particular note is the bass playing on the record, which is melodic, soulful and clever throughout.

The album opens with “Effigy” made up of loud psychedelic guitars and drums and a hip groove in the vocal line. There’s a Red Hot Chili Peppers vibe throughout in the funky/metal approach though without rapping. The influence continues through “Show Your Teeth” led by triangle-ish hits on the off beats over a disco groove. The falsetto in the chorus is quite powerful. The song in general could be a bit shorter in the verses; it tends to ramp up a lot without reaching the peak until much later. “Obsessed” is led by the bass, subtle organ, acoustic strums and tremolo guitar notes. The vocal line is extremely melodic and quite catchy and is nicely complemented by the beautiful chiming guitar countermelodies that weave their way in and out of the voice before stretching out into a new motif. 

“King Me” is an epic composition based off of a heavy riff in 6/8. The counterpoint between the bass and voice in the first verse is exceptional never intruding, only complementing each other.  The rest of the band eventually filters in with trippy backbeat guitar hits, some drum flourishes near the end of the song and some clever diminished runs in the guitar solo. The bridge has an edge to it but the chorus is not quite as strong as the verses before it, and over all the song could be edited a bit to be made tighter and more effective.

“Sorry, Not Sorry” is an up-tempo rocker with a head nodding riff, great build and some harmonized guitars. The instrumental interlude led by contrapuntal bass is very cool and sets an interesting tone before opening up into a flashy guitar solo that’s a little unorganized.

“The Stranger” has a hardcore intro before opening up into an extended percussion feature making good use of the shaker while the drums erupt in a fantastic display of talent and restraint. There are a few lyrical interjections but mostly the song is mostly about the bass groove and the ping of the bell of the cymbal, which sets up an interesting timbre. The addition of the tambourine in the chorus is also an effective gesture adding to the thrash.

“Cerulean Blue” has some Panic At The Disco! vocal inflections throughout. The song is a shuffle but with a slight hesitation at the end of the bar, which gives an interesting lope. The Pink Floyd-ish bridge/interlude is cool and leads into an excellent thoughtful guitar solo. The album closes with “7th Day” a funky minor bluesy song that moves to shuffle and then to epic metal. The transitions are sudden but performed with such conviction that they never seem awkward or forced.

​Overall that’s one of the greatest strengths of this band to commit to the groove, riff, or lyrical line they are delivering and giving it 150%.

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