Superchunk

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Superchunk (left to right): Mac McCaughan, Jim Wilbur, Jon Wurster, Laura Ballance.

Superchunk is an indie rock band from Chapel Hill, North Carolina, consisting of singer/guitarist Mac McCaughan, guitarist Jim Wilbur, bassist Laura Ballance, and drummer Jon Wurster. Initially, the band went by the name Chunk (original drummer Chuck Garrison received some junk mail with his name misspelled as "Chunk" Garrison, and the name stuck), and their first single was released under the Chunk moniker. [1] After adding the "Super" prefix to their name, the first official Superchunk single, "Slack Motherfucker," followed in 1990. Both releases were well-received, and Superchunk would release its debut self-titled album in 1990 to more critical acclaim. In spite of the ensuing bidding war that emerged between major record labels in the aftermath of the album's release, Superchunk decided to stay independent, sticking with Matador Records for their second, just as critically-lauded LP, No Pocky for Kitty, followed by a collection of singles, Tossing Seeds and another pair of well-reviewed LPs, On the Mouth and Foolish.

McCaughan and Ballance launched Merge Records to release the band's future albums, as well as other indie-rock acts, including Lambchop and The Arcade Fire. They continued touring and recording, appearing on the Lollapalooza tour and having a minor hit in "Hyper Enough" (from Here's Where the Strings Come In). In 1999, Superchunk released Come Pick Me Up.

The band has not released a new studio album since 2001's Here's to Shutting Up, and their most recent tour was in support of the 2003 compilation Cup of Sand. Their most recent show was played at Cats Cradle in Carrboro, North Carolina.

McCaughan has also recorded several albums as Portastatic. Initially a solo project, Portastatic has evolved into a full band, which currently includes Superchunk's Jim Wilbur as a member.

[edit] Discography

Superchunk (Matador, 1990)
No Pocky for Kitty (Matador, 1991)
Tossing Seeds: Singles 89-91 (Merge, 1991)
On the Mouth (Matador, 1993)
Foolish (Merge, 1994)
Incidental Music 1991-95 (Merge, 1995)
Here's Where the Strings Come In (Merge, 1995)
Indoor Living (Merge, 1997)
Come Pick Me Up (Merge, 1999)
Here's to Shutting Up (Merge, 2001)
Clambake Vol. 1 (Merge, 2002)
Clambake Vol. 2 (Merge, 2002)
Cup of Sand (Merge, 2003)

[edit] Trivia

Drummer Jon Wurster once appeared in a sketch on Late Night With Conan O'Brien playing a replacement for regular drummer Max Weinberg.

Wurster is also one half of the comedy team Scharpling and Wurster, along with Tom Scharpling, comedy writer and host of The Best Show on WFMU.

Comedians Janeane Garofalo and David Cross appeared in the video for Superchunk's "Watery Hands" single.

Singer Mac McCaughan and bassist Laura Ballance used to be romantically involved, and their break-up in the first half of the 1990s nearly destroyed the band.

In addition to his Superchunk duties, at one point Mac McCaughan also served as the drummer in the original incarnation of another band with its roots in North Carolina, Seam.