After… Read Full Bio ↴Superbus is a five-piece French power pop band formed in 1999.
After a trip to the USA in 1999, Jennifer Ayache went looking for musicians to make a group. She met Michel Giovannetti, a guitarist, and François Even, a bassist, who already knew each other from another group, and formed a new band. They started out as a three-piece before 2 other members joined. Those two were later replaced by Guillaume Rousé (on drums), and Patrice Focone (on guitar). Rousé quit the band in 2005 and was replaced by Greg Jacks, drummer of the band No One Is Innocent.
The band got their name from the Latin word "superbus", meaning proud, supposedly when lead singer Jennifer Ayache stumbled upon that word while browsing a Latin dictionary.
Superbus' style is reminiscent of a vast array of bands, from No Doubt to Weezer, Creedence Clearwater Revival and Sublime.
In 2002, Superbus released their debut album, "Aéromusical".
The track "Tchi-cum-bah" was the demo which caught the interest of David Salsedo, allowing Superbus to make a full album.
The band's second album, "Pop'n'Gum", released in 2004, was produced by David Salsedo from Silmarils.
The track of the same name as the album was featured in a commercial for the Malabar chewing gum.
In 2005 they won the Best French Act award at the MTV Europe Music Awards. Superbus also made a debut in Guitar Hero III with their song Radio Song, featured as an unlockable bonus song. According to the Sikoras, Superbus are the founders of 'girl noise garage rock', a genre involving garage rock mixed with girl noise.
In 2006 the band released their third album "Wow" which reached number 6 on french album charts.
A year later Superbus released their first dvd Superbus Live A Paris which features videos from a year and a half of touring.
In 2009, Superbus released their fourth album "Lova Lova". The reissue of the album included a cover of Blondie's "Heart of Glass", which was originally a bonus track for the 2006 album "Wow".
In 2010, Superbus released their first best-of compilation album, "Happy Busday", which had "Mes défauts" as the lead single of the album, while also including 3 tracks (On s'aime, Eddy, Téléphonie) which are made for the album.
In 2012, Superbus released their fifth album "Sunset". The album's recording took in place in Los Angeles.
The album's lead single was "All Alone" , a video was released for it in June 3.
The album included a cover of The Buggles' hit song Video Killed The Radio Star.
After Sunset's tours are finished, the band members did different projects. The lead singer, Jennifer Ayache went on her solo project and made her first solo album +001, bassist François Even started the band Mr. Freak, drummer Greg Jacks reformed his former band, The Dukes.
In 2016, Superbus recorded their sixth album "Sixtape". The album's name is a reference to the album's number.
The album had three singles: "Strong & Beautiful" and "On the River", and "4 tourments". Tracks "Strong & Beautiful" and "On the River" also have a piano-driven acoustic version.
In January 2020, the band released a new single named "Silencio", this single is released under the label Verycords, a division of Warner Music France. Silencio became the lead-off track on their EP XX released Mar 6, 2020.
Video Killed The Radio Star
Superbus Lyrics
Jump to: Overall Meaning ↴ Line by Line Meaning ↴
Lying awake intent at tuning in on you.
If I was young it didn't stop you coming through.
Oh-a oh
They took the credit for your second symphony.
Rewritten by machine and new technology,
and now I understand the problems you can see.
I met your children
Oh-a oh
What did you tell them?
Video killed the radio star.
Video killed the radio star.
Pictures came and broke your heart.
Oh-a-a-a oh
And now we meet in an abandoned studio.
We hear the playback and it seems so long ago.
And you remember the jingles used to go.
Oh-a oh
You were the first one.
Oh-a oh
You were the last one.
Video killed the radio star.
Video killed the radio star.
In my mind and in my car, we can't rewind we've gone to far
Oh-a-a-a oh
Oh-a-a-a oh
The lyrics to Superbus's song Video Killed The Radio Star are a tribute to the idea of radio and how it was replaced by the TV in the late 20th century. The song opens with the singer reminiscing about listening to the radio back in 1952 and tuning into a particular station. However, as technology progressed, the power of the radio declined as television became more popular. The chorus of the song reflects this idea, with the line "Video killed the radio star" being repeated twice.
The next verse speaks of how musicians who were once valued for their talents were replaced by machines and new technology. This is a nod to the introduction of video clips, which allowed viewers to see the performers as well as hear them, thus shifting the focus from audio to visual entertainment. The final verse brings the audience to an abandoned studio where they are reminded of how much has changed since the radio's heyday. In this verse, the singer refers to the "jingles used to go", reflecting the nostalgia associated with hearing old songs that were once constantly advertised on the radio. The final chorus hammers home the idea that there is no going back, as we live in a world where visual media has taken over.
Line by Line Meaning
I heard you on the wireless back in Fifty Two
I heard you on the radio in '52.
Lying awake intent at tuning in on you.
I was so focused on listening to you that I couldn't sleep.
If I was young it didn't stop you coming through.
Even though I was young, your music still impacted me.
They took the credit for your second symphony.
Others took credit for your work.
Rewritten by machine and new technology,
Your music was changed using new technology.
and now I understand the problems you can see.
I now understand the issues you faced.
I met your children
I met the next generation of your family.
What did you tell them?
What kind of advice did you give them?
Video killed the radio star.
The rise of music videos overshadowed the radio.
Pictures came and broke your heart.
The prominence of visual content hurt you emotionally.
And now we meet in an abandoned studio.
Now we're meeting in a deserted work space.
We hear the playback and it seems so long ago.
Listening to old music brings back memories.
And you remember the jingles used to go.
You recall how the commercial jingles used to sound.
You were the first one.
You were the pioneer of music videos.
You were the last one.
You were the last to experience success solely through radio.
In my mind and in my car, we can't rewind we've gone too far
We can't go back and change the past; we've moved on too much.
Contributed by Christopher C. Suggest a correction in the comments below.