Day After Day is an ambitious attempt to write about a song every day in 2024 (starting on Jan. 4).
The Candidate (1991)
For a brief shining moment in the early '90s, guitar-based indie rock got its due. It wasn't just Nirvana and Pearl Jam, but plenty of others who broke through, if only for a short while. For Chicago's Urge Overkill, that came in 1993 when they signed with Geffen Records, but they had been building momentum for a few years prior.
The band was formed in 1986 by Nathan Kaatrud (who went by the stage name Nash Kato) on vocals and guitars, Eddie "King" Roeser on vocals/guitars/bass and Pat Byrne on drums. The name Urge Overkill came from a phrase in the Parliament song "Funkentelechy." The trio released an EP, Strange, I..., that was recorded by Steve Albini. The band's full-length debut, Jesus Urge Superstar, came out in 1989, produced by Albini and with a new drummer, Kriss Bataille. It's loud, unpolished noise rock, but you can hear the melodies buried within.
1990's Americruiser was produced by Butch Vig and found the band getting a little more commercial with their sound, adding some Stonesy rock to their punk foundation. Jack Watt played drums on this album, which had a college radio hit with "Ticket to LA." For their next album, Urge added John Rowan (aka Blackie Onassis) on drums and recorded The Supersonic Storybook, which came out in 1991. It was produced by Albini and named by Jim Ellison of Material Issue, a friend of the band. Onassis brought some power to the drums while Kato and Roeser broke out some big arena rock riffs to the table. The band also embraced irony, wearing matching UO medallions and smoking jackets and embracing a '70s hipster vibe that the punk scene they came out of didn't always appreciate.
"The Candidate" was sung by Roeser, who had a gruff rasp of a voice, and featured a monster riff.
"I am the candidate, I hope you're voting for me/Candid candidate, making promises so easily/I am the candidate/But I'm not your favorite son, you say/I hope you come out on election day."
As we sit gripped by yet another insane political cycle, it's easy to forget that there were always questionable political candidates. Especially in Illinois, which is renowned for its corrupt politicians, so maybe the Urge guys were reflecting on local candidates.
"I am the candidate, but you don't need me/Looking down like a satellite, oh how I wish I could see/I am the candidate/But I'm not favorite son, you say/I hope you come out on election day/I've got all these people that I call friends/Can't believe what I've done/I'm just a criminal lost on my own/I've got to run, got to run, got to run, got to run/I'm running."
The Supersonic Storybook is an excellent album, featuring other great songs like "The Kids Are Insane," "Today is Blackie's Birthday" and "Bionic Revolution." The band opened for Nirvana on the Nevermind tour and then recorded the EP Stull in 1992, which featured the Neil Diamond cover "Girl, You'll Be a Woman Soon" and "Goodbye to Guyville" (which inspired the title of Liz Phair's great debut).
This was enough to get the band to leave their label Touch and Go for Geffen, which released Urge's 1993 album Saturation. The album's first single, "Sister Havana," was a catchy riff-rocker that got immediate airplay on radio and MTV. The band opened for Pearl Jam on the Vs. tour and the album ended up hitting #146 on the Billboard 200. My brother and I saw them play at the Paradise in Boston and they were amazing.
There was some backlash from the Chicago punk scene after UO went to a major. Albini especially would rip into them with vigor, but I don't think the band cared about being called sellouts.
Before their follow-up release, the band contributed "Take a Walk" to the AIDS benefit album No Alternative and then Quentin Tarantino used Urge's "Girl, You'll Be a Woman Soon" in his breakthrough movie Pulp Fiction; the song ended up going to #59 on the Billboard Hot 100.
UO was poised to take advantage of this success, but by the time Exit the Dragon came out in September 1995, it seemed like the public forgot about them. I picked it up when it came out and I liked it, but it was definitely a little darker than Saturation so there was no immediate single like "Sister Havana." It just sort of came and went, and Kato and Roeser began fighting, leading to Roeser exiting the group. Kato and Onassis stayed, and UO moved to Sony's 550 Music in 1997. It wasn't until 2000 that Kato released a solo album called Debutante, on which about half the songs were written with Onassis.
Kato and Roeser reformed UO in 2004 without Onassis, who had been struggling with a heroin addiction. They played some shows but didn't release a new album until 2011's Rock & Roll Submarine. In 2022, they released Oui. Last year, Onassis died at the age of 57.
UO definitely pissed off some punk purists, but I always enjoyed them. And those old albums hold up, especially The Supersonic Storybook.
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