Superdrag — Industry Giants

Superdrag were a cynical bunch from the get go. The Knoxville, Tenn. group's breakout single, "Sucked Out," was a scathing indictment of flavour of the month bands buoyed by frontman John Davis' pitch-perfect whine of "Who sucked out the feeling." So it was unsurprising that their own fall into one-hit wonder status occupied a large portion of their lyrics on subsequent records.

Industry Giants is the group's first record since they reformed after a four-year break that saw Davis kick booze, find God and release a pair of Jesus-inspired solo albums. Given the aforementioned circumstances, it's a minor miracle the band were able to set aside whatever differences they may have had and write a dozen new songs. That the final product rivals the band's major label heyday is astounding.

While the record lacks a "Sucked Out" or "Do The Vampire" that might bring them back to mainstream ears, every track is a winner filled with enough distorted hooks to take you back to 1996.

And then there's that whine. Davis rips a drawn out "Yeah" — probably one of the biggest cliches in rock — halfway through barn-burning opener "Slow To Anger." But the singer makes the cry all his own, injecting it with both excitement and melancholy, and reminding you just how much you missed this band.