Superchunk – I Hate Music
Merge Records
★★★★ (out of 5 stars)
Coulda fooled me. I Hate Music, the most recent entry in Superchunk’s two-decade-plus career, is gorgeous and liberating enough to stand next to anything else they’ve ever done. This is delightful indie rock candy; thick gooey guitar layers substitute for peanut butter while singer Mac McCaughan’s sweet vocal smoke satisfies like rich creamy chocolate. You could plug “Breaking Down” or “Your Theme” or any other freeing track featured here into your weekend road trip playlist, but the whole fershluggin’ thing is a perfect soundtrack for any spontaneous new adventure. It’s romantic; it’s freewheeling; it’s fun. It could be a Clearasil commercial, but don’t take that as an insult. The playful punk rocking on “Staying Home” is my final summer crush, right behind the Chunk’s cute-as-a-button opener, “Overflows.” Hey Superchunk, don’t forget to write when school starts.
This article appears in Aug 14-20, 2013.