What We Did Last Summer

by Jason DamasThe story of the Supernaturals was a common one in the late '90s: a band has a few releases that sell well, they have record company troubles and face increasing ambivalence, and they fade away. However, unlike many of their peers, the Supernaturals persevered, trudging through the difficult years and re-emerging with a new set of songs regardless of whether anyone was actually paying attention. So with all that time off, one might expect either a major return to form or a radical shift in direction, and each is about half-true here. While both of their first two albums were collections of modern guitar-based Brit-pop gems -- sure, they were silly, but they were also fun -- here the Supernaturals refashion themselves as marginally more serious synth poppers. Synthesizers gurgle and shine all over What We Did Last Summer, but all of the window dressing only serves to emphasize how the songs themselves are basically the same as before. Sure, there is the more downbeat material (evidenced by the weary-but-hopeful "Elle" and "Finishing Credits") that is the calling card of all the post-record-company-troubles albums, but underneath the plastic surface of songs like "Easy Life" and the title track are the same characteristics that made the first two records work. And this new format doesn't always work -- the downright awful Village People sound-alike "Life Is a Motorway" (which was inexplicably released as a single) kills the pace of the album halfway through. But the real debit is just that even though fans will certainly love this album -- and they've waited for it -- it's unlikely that anyone else is going to really need a band who suddenly sounds like Bis on ritalin. But this isn't intended as a bid for chart success, and when placed with the first two albums it fares well, even if it's not the place to start.