San Ta Gatia is Super Stereo’s newest album to date. It has 8 powerful tracks that have elements of punk, alternative, grunge, and shoegaze. Let’s do a deep dive and read why you need to listen to San Ta Gatia.
Let’s start with Airport. The track’s intro has a melancholic/magical feel. The guitar’s distorted reverb effect gives it a coming-down-from-the-heavens feel. The overall sound of the track can pass off as an intro that the band U2 would use. It’s much more heavier but without a doubt, it’s already there.
I have to be completely honest. This is my first time reviewing an album in a completely different language but that didn’t hinder me from executing this review. Music is the same language that we use. The way we express it changes.
The bass player carried the track, Like Cats. The bass line and the mix suit perfectly in the mix. I can hear that Pbass tone and on this track, the player is using a pick which is perfect for this particular track. The bass lines complemented the drum pattern and that overdriven added with reverb guitar tone.
That subtle feedback on the guitar followed by that tad bit fuzz rhythm guitar tone on the latter part of the track just hits the spot. The vocal scream in the latter part of the song is perfectly mixed in the track. It’s not in your face but it’s felt deeply.
The third track, Line for Tomorrow is a testament to that Greek shoegaze sound. it’s a track perfect for moshing. the mix was purposely edited to not be in your face. It doesn’t hurt my ears, unlike other shoegaze sound mixes that are just in your face. It’s the shortest song of the album as well.
The intro to Every Time has the same feel as Freak on a Leash by Korn but what made it different is the bass line. The bass player created this simple yet effective bass line that made the track groovy. The song has this underlying guitar lick that creates depth to the track. When the electric guitar skank came in, it added more grooviness to the track and honestly, even though I can’t understand the lyrics, it made my head bop. Truly, music transcends regardless of its language.
And now I understand. Almost all of the intro on this album starts with this Ambient sound. That is Super Stereo’s sound identity. That’s what sets them apart. The overall sound of Wonderful Evenings feels easy and outgoing but they didn’t compromise. It still has the Super Stereo sound.
Knives started with the Super Stereo ambient sound followed by the hauntingly beautiful ambient guitar lick and the reverb vocal sound. As the song progresses, the ambient sound becomes heavier and heavier giving this broken aura feeling to the overall track.
The track Outro is different compared to the previous ones because it starts with this bass drum pattern accompanied by this naked-sounding guitar lick. This track is perfect for that outro feel hence the title. The track has this underlying grunge feel to it mainly because of the guitar riff. The guitar patterns on this track are the same pattern that Kurt would be playing in Nirvana songs.
In the latter part of the track, the ambient sound came in creating this chaotic but heavenly sound.
And lastly, on the bonus track of the album, Easy Victim, Super Stereo decided to change the mood and gave us this energetic and powerful track. The overall feel of the track is different compared to the previous songs in the album. Easy Victim is a more in-your-face sound. The bass line complemented the guitar riff and the syncopated drum pattern in the intro.
Overall, listening to San Ta Gatia is a one-for-the-books kind of experience. I’m not exposed to the language but by just listening to the instrumentations, It became clear to me that whatever or however the language is, music can and will transcend in ways you and I can’t imagine.
I only hope that the next album or EP is in English so that international fans alike can enjoy the Greek indie shoegaze sound.
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About the Author
He has been in the music industry for two and a half decades. Currently, he plays bass guitar for a rock-reggae band called EnjointPh and a funk-fusion trio called Banky. He also hosts a podcast titled Usapang Musiko with Ervin Besana, which explores topics such as music, arts, and philosophy.
