QR Music Review: Superorganism - Superorganism

Bursting seemingly from out of nowhere straight to the forefront of the indie pop scene, Superorganism’s jovial, shiny-smooth debut album deftly blends jangly, semi-psychedelic guitar-synth instrumentation with an unexpectedly melancholy, yet perfectly congruous vocal performance delivered by up-and-coming seventeen year old frontwoman Orono Noguchi (or ‘OJ’, as she refers to herself).                                                                                                               

The production on Superorganism is nothing short of impressive, and serves the atmosphere the band is attempting to capture perfectly. Overall, the album’s sound is polished and clear, and owing to this the album is very easy and relaxing to listen to. However, the album is not restricted by this and often the synthesisers and guitars descend together into chaos which holds the listener’s attention. The band’s use of vocal samples supplements the atmosphere of the album on many of the tracks, waxing and waning between pandemonium on tracks such as SPRORGNSM and the chill tranquillity of the more downbeat Nai’s March.          

Instrumentally, the album appears on the surface to draw from numerous influences. It is immediately obvious that Superorganism’s indie-pop predecessors, such as Passion Pit and Pale Waves, have made a clear mark on their sound. However, the album does stretch itself beyond this admittedly narrow and constrictive genre, with hints of psychedelia, dance music, and even early 2000s dubstep (think Skream, not Skrillex) rearing its head throughout the album. The pop-influenced guitar sound goes hand in hand with the thumping synth and bass on tracks such as It’s All Good to create music reminiscent of acts such as Ratatat and Washed Out, and musically, Superorganism is sure to appeal to fans of these artists.                      

Perhaps the most striking facet of Superorganism is Noguchi’s pensive vocal delivery and lyrical cynicism. Songs such as Nobody Cares and Everybody Wants to Be Famous take an objective look at the context in which the album was conceived, an age in which the Internet dominates popular culture and superficiality permeates almost every aspect of society. Noguchi’s style seems to have more in common with the more melancholy side of modern indie rock, and contrasts sharply with the largely upbeat sound of the album. But it the seamless coupling of these opposing forces that serves the album so well, and truly makes Superorganism stand out amongst the countless other artists currently churning out sterile and uninteresting electronic indie-pop.       

Perhaps the album’s most prominent weakness derives from one of its strengths; Superorganism is an album best enjoyed whole, as opposed to listening to the songs non-consecutively and separate from each other. Indeed, the album does occasionally fall victim to routine, however, as this is Superorganism’s first true foray into popular music, it will likely take the band time to become more fluid as a unit and venture into more experimental territory.

Overall, Superorganism is an immediately attractive and enjoyable album that is uniquely able to hold a listener’s attention throughout. The main draw here for many may be the unconventional harmony of the idiosyncratic instrumentation and Noguchi’s melancholic vocals. The album’s weaknesses are outweighed by its strengths, and the content shows great promise for Superorganism’s potential in future recordings.

Superorganism play BBC Radio 6 Biggest Weekend in Belfast on Saturday 27th May. Tickets available now. 

By Luke Dodds