Covid –19 caused a lot of frustration for musicians. Stuck in lock down, unable to tour to promote recent releases idle hands were often put to the devil’s work. For Oslo’s Superlynx, having recorded Electric Temple their third full length in Summer 2020 they had some time on their hands. Rather than rest on their laurels waiting for the album’s release in April of this year the trio of Pia Isaksen vox/bass, Ole Teigen drums/vox and Daniel Bakken guitars chose instead to record a quartet of covers by their fave artists and top this off with two tracks from the album sessions that did not make the final LP release.
So rather than just a stopgap what Solstice contains is some dreamy, stoner doom takes on tracks by Saint Vitus, Black Rebel Motorcycle Club, Nirvana and (wait for it) Nat King Cole.
I think it is only fair to start with the original tracks on here first as it is my inaugural intro to Superlynx and I think I should judge them on their own compositions first.
All I can say is, if Reorbit and Cosmic Wave did not meet the requisite grade for the last full length then I need to seek out Electric Temple post haste!
The former track is a smoke drenched slab of psych stoner melancholia – Pia’s vocals drip from the riffs like dew off a branch. Each word lingers before falling languidly. There is something gnarly in the riffs that give it a rock n roll edge rather than a complete stoner vibe.
Cosmic Wave has a bit of an Eastern flavour by way of Hawkwind – a spacey hip swayer of a track. Lots of groove. I definitely need to get the album. Sorry I just popped to bandcamp to pick it up. I can relax and review the cover tracks now.
First up is a Wino classic- Born Too Late from the classic Saint Vitus album of the same name. Of the four tracks covered here this is my least favourite. It feels that Superlynx were hindered a bit by both the tracks simplicity and the reverence in which Saint Vitus are held within the scene they are part of. It is not a bad version by any means just not very interesting. To be honest I don’t find the original that interesting either. Still heavy is as heavy does and this certainly sounds heavy.
Where things get more interesting is where Superlynx take on tracks from outside of their home genre and look to those adjacent. “Spread Your Love“ by BRMC is a staple of Indie clubs and adverts but here the T-Rex meets White Stripes stomp is transferred to a slightly menacing psyche rocker which still kicks arse but in a more absinthe round a camp fire in the woods rather than pint of lager top in the student union bar way.
Love em or hate em Nirvana’s Nevermind made a huge impact on the music world and “Something In the Way” captured the feel of that album much more than the MTV beloved Smells Like Teen Spirit did. The bassline on this cover is reduced to loooooooong rolls and the drum build as Pia explains why being pescatarian is OK is huge. A truly great version that slips and slides its way across your ears.
“Nature Boy” may seem a little leftfield being a cover of a track that Nat King Cole first released in the roaring twenties. However, Grace Slick covered it in a psychedelic way with The Great Society in 1965 and I wonder if that is where the Norwegians got their inspiration. Bowie covered it on the Moulin Rouge soundtrack as well. The song is shot through with sadness and a grandiosity that gives the original the feel of a bond theme some 30 something years before 007 landed on the screen. Superlynx definitely do it justice here. It sounds huge , the vocals are pushed back a little in the mix to let the drums and guitar line really shine. “The greatest thing you’ll ever learn. Is just to love and be loved in return” Ain’t that the truth. Well this boy has been enchanted by Superlynx’s take on slow, low, groovy goodness.
(8.5/10 Matt Mason)
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