Much of the rock world in 2009 was dominated by two supergroups. Chickenfoot ruled the
first half of the year, debuting in February and releasing their self-titled album in June. In
August, Them Crooked Vultures took the baton, releasing a self-titled album in November.
Both albums did well on the Billboard charts, but fan reaction has been mixed. This month,
Staff Picks is tackling the broad subject of supergroups (defined as a group comprised of
members who are famous for other, successful groups) with a broad query.
STAFF PICKS
Orange… broader in
scope than his last one,
Heaven Is Creepy, but
just as mesmerizing.
Give us a few words on supergroups.
There have been some great ones, but given
how much the record business has changed, I
wonder if they’ll continue to have the kind of
impact they once did.
Chris Kies
Associate Editor
What am I listening to?
Tool, Undertow. I love
digging into a band’s
back catalog to hear their
evolution as a musical
force. Undertow is definitely a raw kick in the
pants worth dusting off.
Give us a few words on supergroups.
I’ve never been satisfied with supergroups.
In theory you’d think they’d be amazing, but
like in sports, sometimes a team full of superstars doesn’t always equal greatness.
Nick Ireland
Marketing Director
What am I listening to?
Bruce Springsteen,
The Rising
Give us a few words
on supergroups.
Supergroups are cool with me. That’s how we
got the Traveling Wilburys—Harrison, Lynne,
Petty, Orbison and Dylan… awesome.
Joe Coffey
Editorial Director
What am I listening to?
Tierra Negra & Muriel
Anderson, New World
Flamenco. Most artists
experiment with different palettes; Muriel experiments with different spectrums.
Give us a few words on supergroups.
*Yawn.* They’re usually like all-star jams:
despite the number of legends on a single
stage, the jam usually sucks. Them Crooked
Vultures could actually change this trend.
Gayla Drake Paul
Acoustic Editor
What am I listening to?
The Decemberists.
Great songwriting and
engaging delivery—I
take back every nasty
thing I ever said about accordions.
Give us a few words on supergroups.
If a supergroup comes together to create
completely new stuff and doesn’t just do a
half-assed rehash what the individual members
were famous for (or what some record label
thinks is marketable), then they’re alright.
Brandon Brinson
Multimedia
Communications
Specialist
What am I listening to?
Seventies German
Metal: Scorpions’ “In
Trance” and UFO’s “Phenomenon.”
Give us a few words on supergroups.
Fantastic when they work (Audioslave,
Alter Bridge), still good but underwhelming
when they don’t (Them Crooked Vultures,
Chickenfoot). I think that both Chickenfoot
and TCV will figure it out; their first albums
just didn’t live up to the hype in my mind.
Rebecca Dirks
Web Content Editor
What am I listening to?
Paramore, Brand New
Eyes. Not being a big
“girl power” person, I
didn’t think I’d be so into this year’s release from
pop-rockers Paramore—but damn it’s catchy!
Give us a few words on supergroups.
I think that often the most interesting part
of supergroups is checking out the musical pairings. Who would’ve thought in 1997
that Taylor Hanson (Hanson) and James Iha
(Smashing Pumpkins) would be in a pop
group together (2009’s Tinted Windows with
Bun. E. Carlos and Adam Schlesinger)?
Jordan Wagner
Staff Writer
What am I listening to?
Depeche Mode, Sounds
of the Universe… easily
my favorite album of
theirs since Violator.
Give us a few words on supergroups.
I’ve found that supergroups rarely live up
to the hype they garner, yet I believe that
Fantomas’ Directors Cut is the perfect example of a supergroup achieving the pinnacle of
what they’re capable of.
Guest Picker
Bruce Kulick
KISS, Grand
Funk Railroad
What am I listening to?
Them Crooked Vultures
debut disc… very cool combination of Queens
of the Stone Age and Zeppelin undertones.
