Supernaughty – Apocalypso
Ripple Music – 2025
Rock, Stoner, Metal, Grunge
Rated: ****
They came in on the second spot of the August Doom Charts. And you could state without any qualms they’ve returned with a vengeance after their damn fine Temple album from 2020 not even charting for some weird and possibly insane reason! It’s Livorno, Italy’s very own Supernaughty and the old school rockers have called their new album Apocalypso! It’s their third release and first under the grand banner of Ripple Music. Known for channeling the spirit of classic stoner rock through a distinctly gritty, Mediterranean lens, Apocalypso is here to grunge that all up and propel you ever forward. Almost forty minutes of forward motion in fact, where they’ve refined their seemingly haphazard rock into a high-octane, fuzz-drenched ride that balances brawn with surprisingly compelling storytelling.
As opening track Poseidon commences you immediately hear the quartet tap into the DNA of desert and stoner rock, infusing it with a metal drive and a grunge attitude. The promo text name drops a few acts and you can indeed easily think of a mix that uses the sunburnt grooves of Kyuss, the whiskey-fueled swagger of Orange Goblin, and the melancholic edge of Alice in Chains. And then really mixes them all to produce one mighty Supernaughty sound. Familiar, yet fresh: a bit sludgy, fuzz-soaked riffs dripping with attitude, anchored by a rhythm section that pulses like a V8 engine in overdrive. And then there are the lyrics, which makes it all purr and typically Supernaughty. Veering off into wild territory, in the best way possible. Vocalist Angelo Fagni delivers tales that feel pulled from warped sci-fi comics, low-budget horror flicks, and introspective fever dreams, all wrapped in his unmistakably gritty, expressive delivery. There’s humor, paranoia, and you can even feel some raw emotion buried beneath the fuzz, as he visualizes whatever he sings about, and it works. Listening to third track Amsterdamned, realizing that someone outside of my native country might actually have seen that movie, and how they expertly translate the submerged menace, giving Jaws a run for its money, feels like a victory all on its own.
Production-wise, the record is tight without losing the raw edge that makes Supernaughty’s sound so visceral. Recorded and mixed in Italy by Nicola Giorgetti and Matteo Barsacchi (Mr. Bison), then mastered in Sweden by Karl Daniel Lidén (Dozer, Greenleaf), Apocalypso sounds massive, the kind of album that demands to be played extra loud, preferably while driving way too fast down a desert highway or the winding Italian coastal roads, dodging vespas and honking at everything and everyone. Supernaughty are on route to become a force in the European stoner scene, and with Apocalypso, they’re not just part of the scene, they’re leading the charge. This album ready for the road, this album is a fuzz-drenched triumph, soaked in swagger, sweat, and sci-fi weirdness. Supernaughty, a sexy ride from start to finish!
(Written by JK)
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