The Christian Manifesto

GENRE: POP ROCK

LABEL: INPOP RECORDS

RELEASE DATE: JUNE 24, 2008

RATING: 3.5 OUT OF 5

Nutshell Version:

Superchic[k]’s latest effort “Rock What You Got” briefly dips into the waters of Imogen Heap and electronica while keeping their signature feel-good introspective lyrics and pop-rock vibe. Longtime fans will appreciate the stylistic ventures and how the album has taken on a sharper production value. Overall, “Rock What You Got” is a solid release that propels Superchic[k] in the right direction and further down the path of soundtrack success.

Full Version:

Superchic[k]’s latest effort “Rock What You Got” briefly dips into the waters of Imogen Heap and electronica while keeping their signature feel-good introspective lyrics and pop-rock vibe. Longtime fans will appreciate the stylistic ventures and how the album has taken on a sharper production value. Overall, “Rock What You Got” is a solid release that propels Superchic[k] in the right direction and further down the path of soundtrack success.

About three-fourths of the album offers ingeniousness progression with songs like “Crawl” “Hey Hey” and “Hold” while the rest is unimpressively formulaic because it sounds like repackaged versions of some of their better songs. You could almost label “So Beautiful” as part 2 or part 3 of “One Girl Revolution.” On the other hand, “Breathe” offers a beautiful synthesizer ballad reminiscent of Imogen’s Heap’s “Hide & Seek” that gracefully takes on a life of its own and leaves you stirred in its own special way. I expected a little more from the title track “Rock What You Got” we are left with a glimmer of what could have been brilliant. The “Alive Prelude” and Dave’s guitar solo are completely unnecessary and somewhat annoying.  Superchic[k] needs to take a page from TobyMac’s book and make their extras a little more creative and meaningful so they won’t come off sounding like fillers. And although the new remix of “Stand In The Rain” is good, I would have appreciated another original song instead.

With all this said, Superchic[k] is still my favorite band and even favorites are not without faults. I know I can still count on Superchic[k] to bring meaningful lyrics that are like little self-confidence boosts with their “be yourself” mantra that illuminates their style. Die-hard Superchic[k] fans will view “Rock What You Got” as a must-have and will appreciate the band’s new artistic voyage. New fans might be best served by listening to their early work first to fully appreciate Superchic[k]’s journey from humble garage band to shining examples of quality CCM that you can easily suggest to your friends.

Track Listing

1. Rock What You Got           

2. Alive Prelude           

3. Alive           

4. Hey Hey      

5. Hold            

6. Breathe       

7. So Beautiful

8. Cross The Line        

9. One More   

10. Crawl (Carry Me Through)            

11. Stand in the Rain (Symphonic Mix)            

12. Dave Ghazarian: Guitar Hero