Superdrag’s Pop Is Without Peer

And now, presenting this week’s Next Big Thing, performing original rock for this week’s Really Hip Gig: Superdrag. The youthful quartet will headline a show tonight at the Coach House in Santa Barbara. Also on the bill are Jeremy Toback and possibly the house band for the nearby Spearmint Rhino strip club, the Lapdancers.

Though the members are only in their early 20s, Superdrag has been around since 1993, touring relentlessly. This time out, they’re pushing their latest release, “Head Trip in Every Key.” The diligent local scenester will already know the band, since it has previously gigged at the Ventura Theatre and Nicholby’s in Ventura.

Superdrag features songwriter John Davis on guitars and vocals, Brandon Fisher on guitar, Tom Pappas on bass and Don Coffey Jr. hitting those drums. The Knoxville-based band not only has neither drawl nor twang, it has no songs about trucks, Mama and whiskey. Rather, it plays peerless power pop not unlike the British Invasion bands of 35 years ago, or before any of the band members were born. Superdrag even sports some of those Beatles-friendly haircuts. Don’t look for an Allman Brothers-Superdrag gig anytime soon.

“Of course there is such a thing as Southern Rock, and people think of bands like Molly Hatchet, .38 Special and Lynyrd Skynyrd, but I don’t know if we really fit into any of that,” Davis said in an interview.

“People hear the songs, then they’re really surprised to find out we’re actually from Tennessee. I guess we’re pretty loud when we play live, but with some pop melodies. When people think of Tennessee, they usually think of Nashville and country music.”

Neither Memphis nor Nashville, musically speaking, Knoxville is a college town, perhaps more famous for Volunteer football and recent top NFL quarterback pick Payton Manning, who probably has more money than Superdrag.

“Lately, there’s been a lot of big rock stars coming through Knoxville, but as far as the local bands, I don’t know. We’re kind of on the bottom end of the world there. Payton Manning? He has more money than God.”

Superdrag, a name Davis came up with in class, started five years ago after the members were in various bands together. As Superdrag, they had an indie release that started sufficient buzz to get them signed with Elektra Records. Their debut disc, “Regretfully Yours,” garnered all sorts of favorable press, plus one of their videos, “Sucked Out,” was a big MTV hit.

“I guess our video we made didn’t hurt,” Davis said. “That’s the only way to get through to people these days.”

That album took a whole two weeks to record. Superdrag spent nearly a year on the new one. It shows, too. In addition to their buzz-saw guitars and Davis’ pop-savvy vocals and pointed lyrics, there’s plenty of other stuff going on, such as Hammond organs, string arrangements and even a mellotron, a keyboard instrument made famous by Mike Pinder of the Moody Blues.

“I think there’s more interesting playing on the new one, and we spent a lot of time perfecting it,” Davis said. “In the studio, we got to try a lot of things we couldn’t do on stage, but there was no more pressure on us apart from the pressure we put on ourselves.”

So these days, Superdrag is doing the Usual Rock Star Thing, driving around in a van, trying to make as much money as Payton Manning. Other than that, the road is a lot like, well, the road.

“Sometimes we’re stuck in the van for three days, but I still enjoy it,” Davis said. “The conditions are different every time, but basically we’re going back to clubs we’ve already played in before. To help pass the time, Brandon and I have been getting into crossword puzzles--the one from the New York Times. That’s the hardest one, but we do it in pencil.”

Next up for Superdrag? More of the same, then more of that, too.

“We’ve been together for five years. We all get along with each other and there haven’t been any big conflicts so far. Hopefully, we’ll just be doing more touring and try to play as much as possible. After that, we’ll start to work on another album.”

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If I had a faster car, a richer girlfriend, or both, here’s some other live gigs I’d be checking out in Santa Barbara:

TONIGHT: Brad Nack & Eric Eisenberg (Roy).

FRIDAY: Patrick Landreville & Blues Deluxe (Matty’s Lounge), Spencer the Gardener (Dargan’s Irish Pub), Cocktails From Hell (NYM).

SATURDAY: Cadillac Angels (Deano’s Pizza), Ska Daddyz (Calypso), the Maneaters (Dargan’s Irish Pub).

SUNDAY: Johnny Oxnard & the Ranch Hands (Matty’s Lounge).

BE THERE

Superdrag, Jeremy Toback and the Lapdancers at the Coach House, 110 Santa Barbara St., Santa Barbara, 8 tonight, $8. (805) 962-8877.