Like Time Out Chicken 'n Biscuits or the Cat's Cradle, Superchunk is a Chapel Hill institution. And like most institutions, it got that way because it did something consistently well.
The stalwart rockers have been cranking out their distinctive brand of amped up power-pop for more than a decade now, wowing audiences across the country and the globe.
The band was almost solely responsible for catapulting Chapel Hill onto the national cool map with its 1990 single "Slack Motherfucker." On Here's to Shutting Up, the band's eighth full-length album, Superchunk continue its commitment to excellence. The record also continues Superchunk's evolution so evidenced by 1999's Come Pick Me Up.
The record's rich, layered compositions -- at times beautiful, at times rocking, at times both -- are the sounds of a band confident in its maturity.
For the past two albums Superchunk has gradually turned down the volume, replacing kinetic energy with increased ingenuity. With Here's To Shutting Up, the band has arrived at what it was striving for before -- a fully developed new Superchunk sound. The distorted guitars, driving bass and bombastic drums are still there, but now strings, organs, acoustic guitars and even a lap steel fill things out.
McCaughan's voice, which reached a surprisingly high falsetto on Come Pick Me Up, has dropped a few notes. Even though it's still higher than anything on older albums it works well on this record. The falsetto seemed a little strained and not sure on Come Pick Me Up, but McCaughan seems confident in his vocal range now.
