Formed in Seattle, WA in 1995, Super Deluxe was welcomed as an anecdote to the bleak lyricism and heavy-metal aggression of the Emerald City’s grunge dominion. Elevating garage-rock guitar crunch with power-pop hooks and lavish harmonies, Super Deluxe invigorated what was becoming a bloated and monotonous Seattle music scene with modern-rock radio hits like “Famous,” “She Came On,” and the acoustic ballad “Years Ago.”
Consisting of vocalist Braden Blake, guitarist John Kirsch, bassist David Roberts, and drummer Chris Lockwood, They produced several CD’s including their first acclaimed 1995 debut album “Famous,” which was released on the indie label Tim/Kerr Records. Rolling Stone magazine quickly sang its praises, hailing it “groovelicious.” Its success impressed executives at Warner Records so much, they signed the group, remixed and remastered “Famous” and reissued it as the first release under a new moniker, Revolution.
Super Deluxe has never been afraid to wear its pop influences on its collective sleeve. Lead vocalist, guitarist, and primary song writer, Braden Blake explained; “Pop derives from ‘popular’, which can have negative connotations, especially in the indie world, despite obviously illustrious origins in the early pop from the Beatles, the Hollies, the Byrds and bands like that I bands that defined the genre of guitar pop. We’ve consciously developed our music to incorporate some of the elements that made those bands great.”
Songs from “Famous” were featured on various movie and television soundtracks, and also appeared on several compilation CDs. Super Deluxe spent the next few years touring the U.S. and Europe to support “Famous” and their follow-up album
“Via Satellite,” which was something else entirely – a confident exuberant work of pop art from a band that was just beginning to test the limits of its creative abilities.
After two critically acclaimed albums on Warner Bros., a few years of non-stop work, the band took an extended break which, as they often do, became indefinite. There were creative issues and personal problems. But they continued to make music individually and with side projects.
Recently, they got back together to see if there was still a spark and found things flowed easier than ever. They culled from demos and wrote material and planned to create what by now would be the eponymous ‘third album,’ to be released this time on the Control Group label. As a gesture of good faith to long-enduring fans, Super Deluxe released an EP as a prelude to their upcoming full-length. The suggestively titled Lolita (named after Vladimir Nabokov’s infamous classic novel) is a five-track EP that finds the group cranking the amps but retaining the toe-tapping melodies and upbeat vibes that have always separated them from their gloomy contemporaries. “Knockout” is true to its name, an immediate smash on Seattle’s alternative rock institution KNDD-FM (107.7 The End) and landing in the station’s most-requested Top 10.