Superhopper Does This Sound Exciting Yet? CD

"Does This Sound Exciting Yet?" is the newest offering from Superhopper. Hailing from the bars of Saint Paul, Superhopper continues the booze-fueled legacy of the twin cities music scene by delivering loud, fast and catchy-ass rock and roll. Starting with the full throttle of New Fresh Midwest to the mournful notes of resignation in the album closing What It Takes, "Does This Sound Exciting Yet?" sounds off on dealing with the day to day realities while trying to find time to spend on one's dreams.

Is Superhopper doing it...for the love? That's a trite notion in 2004, and one that's usually couched in prose or artful spoof. And yet, there's really no other way to characterize the St. Paul-based combo's startlingly non-pretentious sound. They adhere furiously to the three minute (or less) ruckus pop song, and lead guy Kermit Carter yaps happily vacant placeholder lyrics that only tackle the tough subjects, like rock & roll buttons, or wondering what ever happened to Laraine Newman ("Blame it all on Chevy Chase!," Superhopper screams). There's some vintage punk residue here -- Undertones, Buzzcocks -- particularly in the smashed-together scraggle-rock of "I Am Scheming" and "New Fresh Midwest" (which debunks the validity of those three words in its shoutalong chorus). But for the most part, Superhopper seems built from old-fashioned (i.e. the 1990s) American guitar rock -- Fastbacks, Mudhoney, Treepeople. Matt Piasecki's organ also adds a lot to this doin'-it-for-the-love equation, helping album highlights "Hoodoo Voodoo and the Paranoia," and "Something Real Cool" get away with all the huge, ham-fisted melodic shifts, as well as the little breakdowns, where his keys add some sizzle to Superhopper's distorted Midwestern beefsteak. Does This Sound Exciting Yet? might be the year's most perfectly-named album -- it encapsulates Superhopper's boisterous rock racket, its eager anticipation of the next riff, and the wry winking and nodding that prove there ain't nothing going on but the love. ~ Johnny Loftus

Superhopper: Nicholas Shuminsky (vocals, guitar, synthesizer, tambourine, sound effects); Kermit Carter (vocals, guitar, sound effects); Alan Smithee (vocals, keyboards, shakers, tambourine, sound effects); William Muller (bass, sound effects).