Netherlands-based vintage heavy rockers Supersonic Blues release their debut album, It’s Heavy, on Jan. 10 through Who Can You Trust? Records. And while one would not accuse the awaited eight-tracker of being inaccurately titled, the heaviness is really just scratching the surface of what they have on offer as a band. From the first blowout fuzz of lead cut “High as a Kite,” the Den Haag three-piece of guitarist/vocalist Timothy Aarbodem, bassist Gianni Pau and drummer Lennart Jansen throw down a retro-ist gauntlet that few acts outside of some lost ’70s private press archive could ever hope to match. With close compatriot Laurens ten Berge at the helm and Guy Tavares (The Mercury Boys, ex-Orange Sunshine) bringing Motorwolf tutelage and flair to the master, Supersonic Blues turn raw edge into aesthetic purpose and whatever format one might hear it on, their overmodulated-sounding grit is a dead-on accompaniment for their songwriting.

To wit, “High as a Kite” itself with its bareknuckle hook, or the fuzz-funk of “They See Me Comin'” and the sub-motorik biker chug of the title-track, which is also the longest inclusion at just over seven minutes. So much of what Supersonic Blues do is about the vibe and from the way “They See Me Comin'” roughs up its solo section in its second half to the quick, tape-running-out fade at the end of “It’s Heavy,” there’s live energy across the record that “Crawlin’ Back” and the winding “Got No Time for Trouble” answer on side B. It’s not Pentagram worship, and it’s not Graveyard or Kadavar worship. While one could hardly say Supersonic Blues are the first band to try to harness a sound directly reminiscent of the era of heavy rock’s birth, I’ve heard few do it with such a level of buy-in or accomplishment, and even more than the band’s 2017 debut 7″ Supersonic Blues Theme b/w Curses on My Soul (review here), It’s Heavy finds individual expression in the familiar backdrop of microgenre.

They cover “Phantom Child” from New Mexican heavy rockers Lincoln St. Exit‘s sole LP, 1970’s Drive It!, and include a bonus take on 13th Floor Elevators‘ “Reverberation,” both of which feel right at home alongside “Got No Time for Trouble” or the two-minute strut of “No Good for Conversation” that presumably leads off side B of the vinyl. In the tones of Aarbodem and Pau and the far-back stomp of Jansen‘s drums, Supersonic Blues‘ originals are obviously well schooled in the spirit they’re attempting to capture — and, I’d argue, capturing — but to listen to “It’s Heavy” or “They See Me Comin'” or “Crawlin’ Back,” the impression they make isn’t just about production value. It’s Heavy is bolstered by its recording on stylistic terms, of course, but “It’s Heavy” is an ace jam, and “They See Me Comin'” is memorable from its first bounce onward. Same goes for the heavy blues of “Got No Time for Trouble” and “High as a Kite.” You may in fact be transported through time, but it’s hard to know if you’re going back or forward by the time they finish with “Reverberation.”

It’s Heavy was finished in late 2019. It’s been waiting for release ever since. I’ll tell you straight out, I’ve had the record since early 2020, and I’ve yet to put it on and regret it. I’m not sure what more I can than that, other than that if Supersonic Blues wanted to go ahead and make a follow-up on a shorter turnaround, that’d be just fine too.

Enjoy “It’s Heavy” on the player below, followed by some comment from Aarbodem, links, etc.

Dig:

Timothy Aarbodem on “It’s Heavy”:

I think Guy suggested it as the album title, since it’s bold, maybe a bit tongue in cheek and sorta self-explanatory. Almost like a slogan, “Hey, how does the album sound? It’s Heavy, man!” We like the visual aspect of it.

We rehearse in this small warehouse kinda place, next to a skatepark. By that time, it was really still a ‘room’ inside the warehouse, and our buddies placed their studio gear in there. Now they (The Womb Studio — Tijmen, Laurens and Domenico) built a proper studio in there together with Gianni (SB bass player). they managed to get some funding for it. It’s a privilege to rehearse there as well, but back then when we recorded it, it was still nice and ‘primal’ — all analog studio gear.

When recorded, we went to Guy Tavares for his take on it. His style is wild, but we love it. We finished it late 2019, early December I think, but yeah, then shit hit the fan in 2020, so we were not really in a rush to release it. But we’re happy how it turned out, record cover came out beautifully. It’s still ‘standing’ as an album, to our perception. Even if it has been a while hehe. Quite some positive stuff happening now at the SB-camp, more on that later.

PRE-ORDER HERE:
https://whocanyoutrustrec.bigcartel.com/product/supersonic-blues-it-s-heavy-lp

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Tags: Den Haag, It's Heavy, Supersonic Blues, Supersonic Blues It's Heavy, The Netherlands, Who Can You Trust? Records

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