Go South EP

The six-track Go South is different from their first album as besides singing together as a group, each member has his own solo song as well. Coming Home kicks things off with each singer singing an individual verse before coming in together for the chorus and the rest of the track. We already know that they sound great by themselves, but when they sing together, it blows you away. Their voices complement each other’s so well that you can easily pick out each singer’s distinctive vocals while sounding cohesive together at the very same time.

Lo Ta Yu then begins the string of solo tracks with Hand Holding, my hands down favorite track of the entire EP. It’s a good old authentic rock song to feel rebellious to. It has all the elements of a great rock anthem with Lo’s gravelly voice resembling the late great Johnny Cash’s, an electrifying guitar solo, and crowd-pleasing chants. The third track is A-yue’s Art of Love, a lighthearted and playful song perfectly illustrated by the trumpet playing. After that is There’s Light by Emil Chau, followed by Jonathan’s Song from Jonathan Lee. Both of these are slow and passionate ballads that draw from their usual gigs as beloved solo singers. These slower tracks show the versatility of the band, they can do the soft songs just as well as they do the hard-hitting ones.

The band regroups for the final track along with some children who provide backup vocals. The problem with having a strong album is that one tiny imperfection in an otherwise good song will make it the weak one and this is certainly the case with Touched. While the piano and strings are quite fitting for the mood of the song, a Mandarin folk song suddenly pops up in the middle. It's out of place and makes for unnecessary background noise that can’t be ignored as you can hear snippets of it here and there.

Go South is a complete album by SuperBand. Every aspect of the record from vocals to instruments (the guitar-playing in particular) is expertly done. Then again, you wouldn’t expect anything less from a group with over 100 years of combined music experience. The EP is most likely the last album from this group of super friends for some time and it definitely leaves listeners wanting more.

by Leon Lee