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The Supersuckers testify to 'The Evil Powers of Rock 'n' Roll'
Friday, September 10, 1999 By Ed Masley, Post-Gazette Pop Critic
When last we saw the Supersuckers live, they were out on the road in support of an album that found the boys' irreverent punk-rock attitude a surprisingly comfortable fit for the lonesome prairie twang of tunes like "Barricade" or the title cut, "Must've Been High" (with backing vocals phoned in from a tour bus by their smoking buddy, Willie Nelson).
The tour and the album were genius.
With: New Bomb Turks, Hellacopters, Zen Guerilla.
Where: Club Laga, Oakland.
When: Tomorrow at 6:30 p.m.
How Much?:$10; 412-323-1919.
But the boys have had their fling.
They're back to rocking now.
And few have rocked with more abandon than the Supersuckers do in the opening seconds of the band's return to rock, "The Evil Powers of Rock 'n' Roll," with the amps that go up to 11 pushing 12 and lead vocalist Eddie Spaghetti testifying, no doubt ironically, "Oh my soul! They got a hold of me! The evils powers of rock 'n' roll! So get on up!"
There's plenty more where that came from to ease the worried mind of any fan who thought the boys had gone forever country.
And about those worried minds, Spaghetti says they didn't mean to leave you hangin' high after "Must've Been High."
The plan was to follow in up in four months with a rock 'n' roll record.
But then, the major-label deal with Interscope went south.
And now, it's been two years without an album.
"We left a lot of confusion behind," says Spaghetti, "like, 'What kind of band are they now?' "
You'll find your answer in spades on "The Evil Powers" and maybe even more so at the show tomorrow night that brings the band to Club Laga to headline a rock 'n' roll dream date with support from New Bomb Turks, the Hellacopters and Zen Guerilla.
"It's killer," says Spaghetti of the lineup. "It's great to bring good rock bands out with you. It makes you work it."
And speaking of work, "The Evil Powers" would have been out sooner but the band was forced to re-record the album in April with Kurt Bloch of Fastbacks/Young Fresh Fellows fame producing.
It gave them exactly "the kind of record we wanted to make from the get-go," Spaghetti explains, "but the major labels weren't having that. They want you to use somebody with a name and spend a lot of money and do it like they're used to having it done."
And so, the label set them up with a big-name producer from back in the day who's worked with Cheap Trick, Molly Hatchett, Ted Nugent and others who probably haven't shared a stage with New Bomb Turks.
"It was fun to do the record," says Spaghetti, "but it came out kind of sterile and safe."
Even so, they didn't want to have to re-record it.
"But [Interscope] just wouldn't give it to us. They kept saying they were gonna give it to us and they never did. So we said '[Forget] it, we've got to get on with our lives,' grabbed Kurt and went and rocked it out. It's like spending $50,000 on pre-production and then recording for $5,000."
The album won't be out until Oct. 19.
In the meantime, there's a brand new Supersuckers anthology out on Sub Pop, the brilliantly titled "How the Supersuckers Became the Greatest Rock and Roll Band in the World." The album art is great, but what's inside is even better, stocked with cuts from all the Supersuckers' Sub Pop albums as well as a fistful of rarities.
"What I like about it best," Spaghetti says, "is the second half. It kind of assembles a bunch of odds and ends from soundtracks and b-sides and singles and all that kind of stuff. So I think it's better than your average compilation. The first half is just the stuff you can buy on our records but the second half is what I like to call the gravy."
It may not be for everyone, though.
As Spaghetti himself is the first to admit, "It's pretty much for people who have embraced rock 'n' roll as their personal savior."
Hallelujah.
Cut: The Supersuckers -- The Heathman, Dancing Eagle, Eddie Spaghetti and Dan "Thunder" Bolton -- play Club Laga tomorrow.
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