Description
Super Deluxe is the full-length debut album by the American noise pop band Morella’s Forest, released on Tooth & Nail Records in July 1995. The album was recorded at Neverland Studio in Nashville, Tennessee; with Chris Colbert of Breakfast with Amy fame and Steve Hindalong of The Choir producing. The track “Hang-Out” was as well released as a CD-single featuring 3 non-album bonus tracks recorded during the same sessions.
Super Deluxe is part of the first group of Tooth & Nail albums co-produced by Steve Hindalong and Chris Colbert – all in 1995: Morella’s Forest, Luxury, and Joe Christmas. (These bands actually were mutual fans of each other, and did shows together as well.)
The music on ‘Super Deluxe’ is like a piece of candy that has a hard shell with a sweet liquid center. With delightfully distorted guitars washing over undeniable hooks, T&N’s first signing fronted by a woman will remind some of Lush, Hoi Polloi or even a bit of the Cranberries. There are no lyrics printed on the album sleeve, and the wall-of-sound mix sometimes makes lead singer Sydney’s vocals a bit a hard to decipher. But one senses that, as with bands like Cocteau Twins, cracking the code is half the fun.
Beneath the noise and distortion are substantial guitar hooks, which are built layer upon layer by Morella’s guitarist Shawn and augmented from time to time by co-producer/engineer Chris Colbert. Also helping engineer and contributing an ethereal background vocal to one track is the Throes‘ Bill Campbell. Anchoring the band are bassist Christopher and drummer Nate, whose ability to weave their intricate yet unobtrusive parts in and out of the melodies enhances the dreamy, hypnotic nature of this splendid album. It’s also worth noting that the cover, designed by Thomas Wolfe and photographed by Wolfe and Norman Jean Roy, is one of the most striking and creative of the year. [Bruce A. Brown, CCM, January 1996]
Morella’s Forest is a band from Dayton, Ohio. Their music is very interesting to listen to. It’s beautiful and swirling dreamy chords with beautiful female vocals, much like My Bloody Valentine. Their songs are built over an odd backdrop of experimental noise. I think this band is just awesome. The songs on Super Deluxe are pretty fuzzy. It’s like, would someone please get rid of all that static? No, it’s not bad, it’s actually extremely cool. Kinda like a cross between Starflyer 59 and the Cranberries.
I especially love the catchy choruses and the noise effects. My favorite tracks are «Hang-out», «Superstar», and «Puppy Luv», all of which are rather up-beat. But the ultimate song on the disc is «Oceania», which is so slow and beautiful that it could put a skater to sleep in just seconds. It’s a rather moving song, written like a lullaby. I love it. Very emotionally intense. This CD is available from Tooth & Nail Records, and if you like great music, buy it.
Morella’s Forest’s second album, Ultraphonic Hiss, consists of much more poppy songs and much less shoegazer noise. It’s still good, but not in the same way that Super Deluxe steals the cake. [Andrew Olson, Opus]
Lost in Ohio Promo, Vinyl Re-issue
Morella’s Forest made dream-pop music that seared the skull in sugar and screeching fuzz. The singer’s bubbling sweetness was matched by a racket of guitar noise, an Animal-istic drummer and a bassist well-versed in electro-funk and Peter Hook’s high-necked melodies. Hailing from Dayton, the same city that introduced the world to bands like Guided By Voices, Brainiac and The Breeders, they released four well-received albums that brought worlds of shimmering dream-pop conjured by a quartet of rust belt wizards.
Their debut album Super Deluxe was their noisiest and most spontaneous sounding release. After heavy stints of touring, the band holed up in the studio with engineers Christopher Colbert, Steve Hindalong and Bill Campbell. Two weeks later the band had enough material for Super Deluxe. The songs drew immediate comparisons to bands like My Bloody Valentine, The Breeders and label-mates Starflyer 59.
Super Deluxe – originally released July 11, 1995 – opens with «Hang Out». High-pitched feedback punctuates the drummer’s frenetic rat-a-tat and the guitar’s rhythmic scrape as Rentz sings over the noise: “You’re familiar, I’ve seen you before/ Where do you go when you hang out?” As a lead single, «Hang Out» is punchy, yet disaffected – a distinctly ’90s combination if ever there was one. But as you move through the aptly titled «Lush of Spring», the sassy «Superstar», the New Order-y ballad «Oceania» and the shoegaze-candy crunch of «Puppy Luv», it’s clear that MoFo had much more pop craft beneath the sonic assault.
Looking back 26 years later, the songs sound as fresh and earnest as they did when they were first released. Lost in Ohio is excited to announce its reissue in both orange and green swirled vinyl! Original engineer Christopher Colbert crafted beautiful analog remasters for the vinyl edition, and lacquers were cut by Lex van Coeverden at European shop The Vinyl Room. The packaging features extensive liner notes from NPR Music’s Lars Gotrich and a recreation of the iconic Hot Wheels photos courtesy of Ohio-based photographer Nikki Nesbit.
> Apple Music (https://music.apple.com/us/album/super-deluxe/716425489)
CD tracklist:
01. Hang-Out – 2:47
02. Lush Of Spring – 5:03
03. Wonder Boy – 4:30
04. Superstar – 2:51
05. Oceania – 6:17
06. Fizzle Kiss – 4:40
07. Puppy Luv – 2:58
08. Glowing Green – 4:08
09. Star Gazer – 4:26
10. Curl – 4:36
Note: Simultaneously released on cassette and CD by Tooth & Nail Records. Remastered by Chris Colbert and re-issued on 12-inch vinyl LP by Lost in Ohio in 2022, pressed on 180g Green Swirled vinyl and Orange Swirled vinyl (limited to 250 copies each).
A full-page advertisement for various new releases on Tooth & Nail Records, including the Morella’s Forest album Super Deluxe, was featured in the July 1995 issue of CCM Magazine.
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