Supergrass was a popular Britpop group in the 1990s. Although they never reached the successful heights of other bands from that scene like Oasis, Blur or Suede they still had a massive hit with “Alright” that was seemingly everywhere in 1995:
They kept expanding their sound over the next decade. By the time they reached their final album before breaking up,2008’s Diamond Hoo Ha, they had pretty much disappeared from the charts. Their last single was “Bad Blood” that is probably best remembered for its inclusion in the soundtrack of the video game Need for Speed: Undercover:
After the breakup, two of the members of Supergrass (vocalist and guitarist Gaz Coombes and drummer Danny Goffey) formed a 2 piece cover band. They called themselves The Hot Rats (inspired by the Frank Zappa album of the same name).
The Hot Rats didn’t cover any Frank Zappa songs as far as I know, but they did primarily focus on songs from 1960s and 1970s classic rock (although there are a few notable exceptions to this rule). They released one studio album in 2010 called Turn Ons which is today’s pick!
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If there’s one word to describe Turn Ons it would be “fun”! They stick mainly to a garage rock style (not unlike the early works of The Black Keys). They do put their own spin on the material and they playing is very tight and professional, but the whole record has a goofy charm. You can tell both musicians are having a great time recording these songs.
A great example of what their modus operandi was is their cover of “Drive My Car” by The Beatles. They even made a very comedic video for it:
The album opens with “I Can’t Stand It” (originally by The Velvet Underground). They made a music video for that song too:
Another highlight on Turn Ons is their take on Gang of Four’s “Damaged Goods”:
I mentioned earlier that they didn’t exclusively stick to classic rock. The first single they released was “(You Gotta) Fight For Your Right (To Party)” by The Beastie Boys! Here they are performing it on The Late Show in 2010, shortly after the album’s release:
They also stopped by The Late Late Show with Craig Ferguson where they played Elvis Costello’s “Pump It Up”. It is a pretty raging version of that tune.
They also played live, including an incredible performance at Glastonbury Festival. This was actually in 2009 before Turn Ons came out and was kind of a preview of what was to come. Their set included “Love Cats” by The Cure and “Love Is the Drug” by Roxy Music. Both songs ended up being on Turn Ons as well.
Unfortunately, this flurry of activity for The Hot Rats was short lived. By 2011 both members moved on to other projects.
Fortunately, the band re-released a deluxe edition of Turn Ons in 2020 that featured some bonus tracks along with an excellent full live concert from Tokyo in 2010.
One of the bonus tracks is a bonkers cover of Kelis’ “Milkshake” they recorded specifically for the deluxe edition that needs to be heard to be believed:
Their cover of “Drive My Car” was also included as part of a Hugo Boss commercial, which is kind of incredible. I guess it was cheaper than getting The Beatles version?
Turn Ons is a joyous record by a band that sounded like they were having the time of their lives. I reach for it when I need a familiar pick-me-up which is something that is much needed in 2026.
