Supergroups are having a bit of a moment right now. This year alone we’ve had the heart-tugging expertise of Boygenius, the madcap rap of JPEGMAFIA and Danny Brown’s SCARING THE HOES and the superb leftfield hip hop of Billy Woods and Kenny Segal raising the collab game to new heights. On paper, Mock Media appear destined to join this illustrious bunch. The group, a combination of members from Crack Cloud, Pottery and N0V3L, enter the arena with bonafide supergroup credentials.
Unfortunately though, Mock Media II, their debut full-length, fails to reach the heady heights of 2023’s best collaborative efforts. The album runs on a tried and tested mix of standard garage rock ditties (‘Louis Won’t Break’ and ‘Madness) and angular, post-punk bops (‘Modern Visions’ & ‘Father Of That Crime’) which, while pleasant enough, flatter to deceive more often than not.
While there is a strong feeling of familiarity throughout the album, that’s not to say that it’s without its fun moments. When Mock Media loosen up they show that the potential is there. The surreal ’70s TV jingle of ‘Rambo’ and the wonderfully spooky synth filled ‘ILL’ are real highlights, suggesting there could be more to come from this lot, if only they learn to lean further into the weirdness.
In the past, by simply being a perfectly acceptable – if slightly unmemorable – album, Mock Media II would be seen as something of a supergroup triumph, but in an increasingly impressive field, the group have delivered a collection of songs that falls short of the mark.
