Super Chic[k] "Last One Picked"

Title: Last One Picked
Category: Alternative
Artist/Group: Super Chic[k]
Rating: 3.5 / 5

High School Real One and Lonely So Bright (Stand Up) Hero Na Na Song 4 Tricia (Princes and Frogs) Wonder (If She'll Get It) I Belong To You Rock Stars We All Fall

When I bought Superchic[k]'s latest Cd "Last One Picked," my wife said to me, isn't that "teeni-bopper" music?

Well, yes and NO.

Last year, I listened to their first Cd, Karaoke Superstar at a local christian book store (actually, the store wasn't local - it was 45 minutes away from where I lived, but there's no store in Philadelphia that carry a large selection of christian music - thank God for online stores!), and they immediately got my attention. First off, their name Superchic[k] stood out. Why the name? And why the "[k]"? Second, their tongue and cheek style (their cd cover) - they obviously are having fun, as opposed to trying to look "cool". Third, there was an asian guy who looked like one of my old college roommates. And finally, their smart lyrics. These guys made me smile.

It apparently made alot of people smile because songs from their last album were featured in the films "Legally Blonde" and "The Glass House”", as well as MTV’s The Real World, ESPN’s Winter X Games, ABC’s Alias, NBC’s Providence, Felicity and many more.

On the surface, this is just your average girl-front garage band with something to say. But what they say, why they say it, and how say it, makes all the difference.

So what's in a name? The word Superchic[k] is a gender-neutral term used to describe a life style and a mind set - "when you've gotten to that place in life where other people's opinions don't hold you back, don't keep you from trying things, when you are happy with who you are, when the only opinion that really matters to you is God's.....then you are a Superchick!!"

If you've ever had the misfortune of being "picked last" (by your peers) in anything, then you know how devestating it is, especially if you are always picked last. For most people, high school was such an ackward time in their lives, with braces, the hair and the clothes...most would rather pretend it never happened. Back in the day, movies like "Sixteen Candles" and "The Breakfast Club" were required viewing for all incoming college freshmen....because they dealt with how inspite of our difference (stereotypes), we can all get along: outcasts/druggies, geeks, jocks, AV club, mathletes, marching band, cheerleaders, etc, etc. But I guess things haven't really changed.

The lyrics to the title track "High School" is interesting, because I'm sure we all know people who are still "in high school" (I'm reminded of those at work who hang out at the entrance to the office/hospital cooler/cafeteria, who make fun/comments about the people who pass by). It has the refrain "the rules and the ways of high school."

if someone puts you down, that's so high school
someone talks behind your back, that so high school
thinking you have to get them back, that so high school....
some people never change after graduation
believing any light you shine makes their's lesser
they have to prove to everyone that their's is better....
we've got all bad year book photos
which we've forgot to let go
and just like acne our insecurity
should be something we left with the jv
so here's to letting go of year book photos....

In many ways, high school does mime society. But the song also has a message of how one can move-on from high school. And to prove it, the members of the band have their high school yearbook pictures in the back of the album insert!

Say's lead singer Tricia Brock: "Our lyrics talk a lot about self-esteem, not being afraid to try and even fail at things, and then having the strength to get up and try again......but the people in this band have all led very different lives, and we all have things we feel God has put us through and put in our hearts to say to youth and just people in general!!! So I think that we have so much to offer, because our message isn't just one thing. We hope to be a band of people who are real to the kids, so that they see we all struggle with things, and that you can get through anything with God. We don't claim to have all the answers to life, but we hope to help people find what they really need, a growing, contagious love for God."

In "Real," Tricia Brock sings with the authority and assurance about being real. Girl power real. "I'm a super fortified hundred proof girl with a band and I'm a velveteen rabbit made of steel with a plan....cause I won't be what I can't be....approval is your sword, popularity your crown, but I'm not one of your subjects, you can't bring be down...." This is ministry. They are talking about going against what the world (the commericals and the magazines) values: your looks, the type of car you drive, etc. It's use of the phrase "not one of your subjects" is insightful. After all, when we worship something, we bow down to it, and become it's subjects. Whether its beauty, money, grades, family, your (good) reputation, or whatever it is that drives you, that is your "god."

"So Bright", reminds me of the Waitresses (a one-hit wonder band). The song is about the inherent boardom of living day to day, from one thrill to the next. It's what happens when one doesn't have a purpose in life - there's nothing worth living for, so everything is about "just going through the motions" of living. The refrain keeps reminding us that "[we] are meant to shine so bright, so bright, so bright..."

"We All Fall" reminds us that we are not perfect. It's okay to fail. What's important is not to stay down, but to look to God and to get up and go on.

Many of the songs are directed towards young girls. I guess it makes sense, since Superchic[k] is a girl-front band, though Max, a dude, is the "wizard" or "mad scientist" of the band (re: songwriting and producing). Sometimes, the Cd seems too smart and repetitious (thematically), almost at the risk of sounding bland. Also, a few of the songs give some simple answers to some deep subjects.

For example, the lyrics to "So Bright" are good, but fails to explain how and why we are "so bright" -- because, let's face it, not everyone is going to be "bright". In fact, those who reject Christ will be decidedly "dark". To paraphrase C.S Lewis (in his essay, "The Weight of Glory"), we are all on the road to becoming and realizing our final selves: either we are going to become beautiful beings with a radiance such that if we were to meet our future selves now, we would want to fall on our knees and worship it; or we are on the road to becoming hideous monstrosities, and if we were to meet our future selves, we would cringe and run away from it in horror....

In spite of these short comings, I highly recommend this Cd and this band. This is not a worship album, so don't expect all the correct theology to be present in each song. The purpose and the mission of the band is to reach young people with a positive message. If you are a parent with young teens, you should really check these guys out. Young women in our culture face some incredible spiritual attacks, and they need all the encouragement they can get in terms of following Christ, and thus being true to themselves (their future glory-self).

Expect to hear these guys at a mall near you.

Let me just end by quoting a past Superchic[k] band member (I don't know his name). I found this quote in one of Superchic[k]'s many fan websites:

So take care superchick nation, live for God in the hope of his return. Be who God made you and remember "Aim big, fall often, and fall forword in to the arms of God." One tribe one vibe.

I like that. Peace.

Check out their website: www.superchick.net

Discography