1) A German progressi… Read Full Bio ↴At least four bands have been called Superior:
1) A German progressive metal band existing from 1992 - 2007
2) An American Progressive Hardcore Band
3) British artist Su Goodacre
4) Dutch Hardcore band
1) German progressive metal band:
Founded in 1992, Superior is one of the few bands over ten years old that still has the same line-up. A mere eight months after Superior was founded, they released their demo "Timeshift". This demo contained an early version of the song "Tomorrow's Eve", which was to be included on their first album "Behind". "Timeshift" is a documentary of the changes that Superior underwent, who are, to this day, open to all kinds of musical influences. Until the middle of 1994 the band toured mainly in southwestern Germany and the more they toured the more they were convinced that it was due time for them to release their first self-produced CD. It took them a year to work on the compositions, arrangement and the concept of the album. In 1995 they recorded "Behind" in the Roko Soundstudios, close to Frankfurt/Main. The album consists of 10 songs that are progressive heavy rock. The lyrics are about the bigotry of society, the media, politics and reflections of personal everyday-life experiences of the individual members of Superior. Due to the themes the sound is heavy and aggressive, including epic and very melodic passages. The most important elements are heavy, driving guitars, complex piano and string arrangements and the powerful voice of Michael Tangermann. When the album was completed the band signed a contract with Hamburg label L.M.P., which got in touch with various record companies. In the fall of 1996 Superior signed a contract with Modern Music/Noise, which has the rights for the entire world, excluding France, where ARCADE/C.N.R. Music takes care of the band's interests. Shortly after signing with Noise Records, Superior toured Germany supporting Virgin Steele and Angra in such well-known venues as Hamburger Markthalle, Zeche Bochum and various others. Unfortunately after the fifth show, keyboardist Jan-Marco Becker hurt his hand severely and even had to be operated on during the tour. Angra's frontman Andre Matos spontaneously offered to rehearse some of the keyboard parts and Superior was able to continue touring, even though somewhat handicapped. After the tour Superior was forced to take a prolonged break, waiting on their keyboardist to recover. They couldn't join several tours offered to them by their record company and just didn't have the chance to promote their newly released album properly. In the middle of 1997, when their keyboardist had recovered, they began touring again, starting of with a short tour through France, where they also did some unplugged sessions, once again proving their diversity of musical styles. Following this, they did several shows in Germany, while already working on the material for their new album. In the midst of getting ready to record they did a tour through France with Vanden Plas and then got ready for the pre-production of "Younique". Finally, from the middle of March through the middle of May 1998 they recorded, mixed and mastered "Younique", once again in the Roko Soundstudios. The new album was neither a duplicate of "Behind" nor was it entirely different. It was the further development of their musical style; heavy riffing, typical for SUPERIOR, diverse keyboard arrangements and sounds, very complex and individual instrumentation, acoustic guitars, sitar-sounds, brass arrangements and saxaphone solos, everything that makes rock interesting. Very diverse musical influences, ranging from Latin, Funk and Classical music all the way to Jazz were arranged in the extremely heavy and powerful sound. To sum it up, "Younique" was an album that kept on going where "behind" ended. Although most important magazines worldwide celebrated “Younique” as a milestone in progressive music, the album divided fans into two camps, one being fascinated and the other one shocked. Immediately after the album´s release Superior started to perform live again. In 1999 several great shows followed in Germany, France, Netherlands and in Belgium. Definite highlights were the concert with Angra and Stratovarius at the Parisian “Zenith”, celebrated by 5.000 fans, and their liveshow at Progpower festival in the Netherlands. Another great event `99 has been the acoustic tour through France, where Superior once again proved their receptiveness to various musical influences. In the following months Superior and Noise records agreed that the style of the band´s music just didn´t match together with the company´s politics and their strict adherence to true metal style. At the same time the musicians and their French label NTS records decided to cooperate for a further SUPERIOR-album, which turned out to be a concept album about religious fanatisism with all its consequences down to terrorism. At the time the guys didn´t know how close they would come to truth. From January 2000 until May 2001 Superior worked on lyrics and music for “ULTIMA RATIO”. The recordings at the ROKO soundstudios took the following six months. They`ve been only interrupted by the ProgPower Festivals in the Netherlands and the USA, where the band presented some of their brandnew songs, which have been welcomed enthusiastically by the audience. “ULTIMA RATIO” is less experimental than “Younique”. The arrangements are clearly structured, and the dominating characteristics are the extremely heavy guitars, beautiful piano playing combined with the great melodies coming from Michaels powerful and emotional voice. But most of all the band’s members fulfilled a dream they shared since Superior was founded: to bring a soundtrack to reality, to create a movie for the ears by composing and arranging a concept album transformable into a cinematographic thriller. “ULTIMA RATIO” is the exposure of crime, complex images, agitation and suppression as cloaked by welfare and graze.
2) An American progressive Hardcore band
Formed in Omaha, Nebraska
3) British artist Su Goodacre signed to Virgin Records in 1997
This Superior consisted of Su 'Superior' and Lee Knott (ex It bites) and released 3 singles Coma (known for its Karl Bartos (ex kraftwerk) remix), Faster Than You and Being You. An album Germ Free was recorded but remains unrelased. Their song Polaroid Millenium was featured on the The Saint soundtrack.
Ultra
Superior Lyrics
Jump to: Overall Meaning ↴ Line by Line Meaning ↴
To give you welfare
To bring you grace
You´re my seed
And you are my blood
You're sacred to me
And peace you need -
This is not your way!
I don´t want
To smell tomorrow´s
Darkness again
(Pre-chorus:)
They are doomed in disaster
If you believe in me -
Now go, destroy their world for me
(Chorus:)
Wherever you go - I´m always around you
Whenever you cry - I´ll always be there
Whatever you fear - I´ll always protect you
Wherever you are - I´m always with you -
Rely on me!
You and I -
In perfect union
We´ll take their fight
I don´t care
If fate´s against me
As justice is mine
Don´t bind your hearts
With chains of beauty
When pleasure's pain
Time is hot
For revolution-
For victory!
(Pre-chorus:)
And still their demons
Try to surround us
And still they´re howling-
It´s time to spread the word of war!
And don´t bind your hearts with their chains of beauty
Because too much pleasure just causes you pain
Resisting their values means war against violence
And you are my army of wisdom and truth
The opening lines reveal that the singer is assuming the role of a savior, offering welfare and grace to their "seed" and "blood," which suggest that they are in a position of power over the addressee. They are offering up protection and guidance, promising to always be there to offer support whenever the addressee is in need. The lines "Love you want and peace you need - this is not your way" suggest that the addressee may not have been living in accordance with these values, which leads to the implication that the singer has the power to guide the addressee's choices.
The pre-chorus and chorus build upon this idea, revealing the singer's desire for the addressee to join their cause of "destroy[ing] their world." The line "Wherever you go - I'm always around you" reinforces the idea that the singer has a possessive and controlling relationship with the addressee. The lines "You and I - In perfect union - We'll take their fight" suggest a sort of partnership, but one that is unequal and authoritarian in nature.
However, the bridge somewhat subverts this dynamic, encouraging the addressee to resist being "bound by chains of beauty" and to fight against the values of those around them. The final lines, "And you are my army of wisdom and truth," imply that the singer sees themselves and the addressee as being the sole arbiters of what is right and true, reinforcing the oppressive dynamic between them.
Line by Line Meaning
Here I am
I am present and ready to help you
To give you welfare
My intention is to provide you with a good sense of well-being
To bring you grace
I aim to bring elegance and charm into your life
You´re my seed
You were born from me
And you are my blood
You and I are connected by our familial bond
You're sacred to me
You hold great value and importance to me
Love you want
You desire love
And peace you need -
You require peace to live a fulfilling life
This is not your way!
Your current path does not lead you towards your desires
I don´t want
I don't desire
To smell tomorrow´s
To experience tomorrow's
Darkness again
Negative experiences or emotions
They are doomed in disaster
Those who do not believe in me will face destruction
If you believe in me -
If you have faith in me
Now go, destroy their world for me
Take action against those who do not believe in me
Wherever you go - I´m always around you
I will always be present in your life, no matter where you go
Whenever you cry - I´ll always be there
I will support you and provide comfort when you are sad
Whatever you fear - I´ll always protect you
I will shield you from your fears
Wherever you are - I´m always with you -
I am constantly by your side
Rely on me!
Trust me to assist you
You and I -
We are connected
In perfect union
We are in complete harmony with each other
We´ll take their fight
Together, we will confront those who oppose us
I don´t care
I am indifferent
If fate´s against me
If destiny is not on my side
As justice is mine
I will achieve justice, regardless of fate
Don´t bind your hearts
Do not restrict your emotions
With chains of beauty
Do not become attached to superficial appearances
When pleasure's pain
When seeking pleasure leads to negative consequences
Time is hot
It is time for change
For revolution-
For a significant and lasting change in society
For victory!
For a triumph and success in our efforts
And still their demons
The opposition is still present
Try to surround us
They are attempting to encircle us
And still they´re howling-
They shout insults and threats at us
It´s time to spread the word of war!
It is time to recruit and prepare our supporters for battle
And you are my army of wisdom and truth
You are my chosen supporters with knowledge and honesty on our side
Contributed by Aiden D. Suggest a correction in the comments below.
Ben Hancock
That section took me 5 days to backpack. I can’t even imagine the exhaustion of going non stop. Great job man!!!
crispydumpling
Thank you! The winner crossed the line in like 21 hours…now that’s mind boggling!!
J McD
This video had it all. Intrigue, thrills, amazing SHT scenery, scary night scenes. All filmed by some crazy guy with a GoPro. Well done sir.
crispydumpling
Thank you!!
Arnaud Daix
Thanks, great video, good coverage of the whole course. I am not familiar with the beginning so was nice to see through County Road 6. I'll be there in a few days!
crispydumpling
Thanks! I was planning on being out there but got Covid so won’t risk it. Good luck out there!
Joyati Debnath
Nicely done! Congratulations!
crispydumpling
Thanks!
Todd Scott
Great video and now I have another race on the bucket list.
crispydumpling
Thank you! Superior is special, I’d highly recommend it