Record of the Week: Superstoker by Belle Reve

This record is a near and dear one. And brand new too! Meet Superstoker, Belle Reve’s debut album. Featuring Sterling Salzberg on guitar and lead vocals (Mute Issue), Chris Hayslip on bass and backups (The Singularity), and some guy banging away on the drums from Get Dead and Los Dryheavers, this record is something I think we’re all pretty proud of. With what started as a Craigslist ad from a guy with a bunch of songs, to a talk over some beers, I have been lucky enough to call this three-piece my brothers from other mothers for a couple years now and couldn’t imagine a more talented and solid pair of dudes to play music with. A little bit self-loathing, a little bit pop-punk, and a whole lot of heart, Superstoker musters a San Francisco vibe with visible Florida roots (Salzberg’s home state). Chris and I distinctly remember hearing Sterling’s songs for the first time and going “shit, these are really, really good” (five of which you can hear on this record). To get to collaborate and support his work and hear it all come together on Superstoker has been awesome.
While it took us… awhile… to make this record, the collaborative process (and pizza and beer to keep the creative juices flowing) proved to be worth it. And these boys are pros when it comes to getting down to business once the tape is rolling. While it’s not always awesome to be in the engineer seat and behind the drums for the same project, in this case we made it a good time and recruited a little help from a not so little name when it was my turn to play. Bay Area production legend and all around good guy, Matt Kelley (Tupac, Jello Biafra and The Melvins, La Plebe), was rad enough to engineer the drums. Thanks Matt! Check out his hearty list of credits at www.mattkelleyaudio.com. We also recruited the lovely vocal stylings of Jill Morris (The Young Go Hards) for the duet track “You and Me”. Thank you Jill, you made us sound so pretty.
Mostly tracked at (surprise) SF’s Motor Studios, on the SSL 4000 E/G+, I was able to really get the punchy sound that this record deserved. We finished up and mixed with Patrick Hills at Earth Tone Studios in Sacramento, then let the magic marinate. Released for maximum nerdiness on May 4, 2018, Superstoker is now streaming on Apple Music, Spotify, and Bandcamp. I love this record and I hope you will too.

https://open.spotify.com/album/2t86M4AE0vgZQLscWp3Tw9?si=KwL0KjgxSZWb-NGTCc_tpA

Check out Superstoker on Spotify!