Superfood - Bambino

Birmingham duo Superfood have had a difficult couple of years. The release of their debut was followed by losing half of the quartet’s members, but a signing to Dirty Hit records gave the band the renaissance they so needed. Dom Ganderton and Ryan Malcolm were never afraid to be a little bit different, and long-awaited Bambino does anything but let them down.

Opening track ‘Where’s This Bass Amp’, like lead single, ‘Double Dutch’, is sample-heavy, energetic, and announces the album with infectious vibrancy. Already released ‘Unstoppable’ has a tinge of reggae and ska, the drumbeat dripping with dub. The three instrumental tracks ‘wibble mntn’, ‘c is for colour’, and ‘lov’ cauterise the album with seamless artistry. This is clearly a record that has been meticulously written, planned, and produced; its creative prowess has definitely not been ignored.

While the album loses something in its last couple of songs, the experimentation and bold hybridity of its initial tracks (‘Double Dutch’, ‘Need A Little Spider’, ‘Where’s This Bass Amp being standouts) makes up for it. The album ends on silky, funky, groovy tune ‘Clo Park’, and leaves its listener both grotesquely full yet also starving for more of Superfood’s immense reinvention.
Considering the band “wanted to give up several times” during the making of this album, it’s a vivacious offering, showcasing a very exciting future for the two-piece.

Superfood have grown into one of those real hybrid bands, a band whose technicolour indie is transfixed with its neighbouring genres. A seamless conversation between indie, dub, hip-hop, has resulted in a tightly written album, with no two songs even similar in sound. With Bambino, Superfood are bringing something monumental to the dry state of guitar music.

8.5/10