The Supervillains

The Supervillains is a five-piece reggae, ska/punk band from St. Cloud, Florida. The band has released nine studio albums.

History

Formation and ''Self-Titled EP'' (1996–2000)

During the summer of 1996, Floridian high school friends Scott "Skart" Suldo on guitar/vocals and Dominic "Dom" Maresco on drums/vocals started playing together under the name 'The Supervillains'. The duo released their self-titled debut album EP in 2000.

''Horseshoes and Handgrenades'' and ''Jahmerica'' (2002–2004)

In 2002, the band released their second self-produced studio album, ''Horseshoes and Handgrenades'' with new member Jonathan "Smally" Cestero on saxophone.

Then, they released their third album, ''Jahmerica'' in 2004 on Prairie Dawgin' Records, paying homage to their reggae roots.

With members coming and going over the years, including a horn section ("Smally" on sax and new member Ricardo "Cardo" San Jose on trumpet being the longer-mainstays), the band is self-described "Florida-bred swamp reggae rockers".

''Grow Yer Own'' and ''Massive'' (2006–2008)

After touring with Pepper, they were signed to their label, LAW Records and released their fourth album ''Grow Yer Own'' in 2006.

After the addition of bassist Dan Grundorf, the band released their fifth album, ''Massive'' in 2008.

''Postcards From Paradise'' and ''Robots EP'' (2011–2012)

On February 8, 2011, they released their sixth album, ''Postcards From Paradise'' on their own label, Rah Rah Rah Records. This was the first time the band worked with producer Brett Hestla who mixed and engineered the album, as well as provided backing vocals on the single "Free".

They released their first EP (and seventh album), titled ''Robots'' on May 1, 2012, featuring songs about robots in different settings (i.e. Limbo, Purgatory or Hell).

''Volume 8'' (2013)

The band is currently signed to LAW Records and continue to tour and perform with other groups from the label. The Supervillains were formerly signed to Rah Rah Rah Records, with whom they released their eighth studio album ''Volume 8'' on April 9, 2013. The album featured many special guests including: Leilani Wolfgramm, Charlie Bender of The Spitvalves, Blak, Antonee First Class, and saxophonist Jeff Richie of The Toasters, as well as Brett Hestla who once again produced the album.

''Nice Things'' (2017)

Wanting to concentrate on programming and production, Dan Grundorf permanently handed over the reins to former Abandon the Midwest bassist B.J. Hall, the band's long-time stage/guitar-tech and tour bus driver, as well as being signed to the band's own label, Rah Rah Rah Records. With Hall on board, the band released their ninth studio album ''Nice Things'' in 2017, back on LAW Records.

The Supervillains was one of many reggae and punk bands that was featured on ''The House That Bradley Built'', a tribute to Sublime and the Bradley Nowell family's non-profit "Bradley's House", which was released on January 15, 2021. The band covered Sublime's song "What Happened", listed on disc 2 of the deluxe edition of the album.

''Drones EP'' (2021)

On November 26, 2021, The Supervillains released their second EP, ''Drones'', a direct follow-up to their ''Robots EP'' from 2012. It was recorded in a barn during the lock down of the COVID-19 epidemic. Drummer Dom Moresco summed up the EP in one sentence, "The ''Drones EP'' is like a 25-minute-long movie for your ears." He added, "It's meant to be listened to in its entirety, you'll laugh; you'll cry, and you'll wanna listen to it again."

Also, in a two-month anticipation of the ''Drones EP'', the band released a stand-alone single titled, "Daisy" in ode to the Vaudeville-era song the operating system "HAL" rebooted to in Stanley Kubrick's film, 2001: A Space Odyssey.

Tours

The Supervillains have been a supporting band on tour with reggae, punk, ska bands: Pepper, Slightly Stoopid, Dirty Heads, Fishbone, NOFX, Streetlight Manifesto, Mu330, Inner Circle, Authority Zero, the Expendables, the Mad Caddies, Less Than Jake, The English Beat, and Catch 22.

Musical influences

In a 2016 interview about who influences them on writing original music, Dom answers, "We group up, listening to a lot of music ranging from grunge to punk, hip-hop, and reggae. We have been influenced by The Suicide Machines, Sublime, Operation Ivy, The Skatalites, The Toasters, and The Beatles."

Collaborations

They have collaborated with artists such as Jack Ruby Jr. and Jeff Richey of The Toasters, Kyle MacDonald of Slightly Stoopid, and Kris Bentley formerly of Inner Circle.

Lineup

Current members

*Scott "Skart" Suldo – guitars, lead vocals (1996–present)
*Dominic "Dom" Maresco – drums, backing vocals (1996–present)
*Tom "T-Rex" Moulton – keyboards (2012–present)
*B.J. Hall – bass (2017–present)
*Joshua Senften – saxophone (2017–present)

Past members

*Jonathan "Smally" Cestero – tenor saxophone, flute (2002–2013)
*Dan Grundorf – bass, sampler, programming (2008–2017)
*Ricardo "Cardo" San Jose – trumpet (2006–2009)
*Nathan Anderson – saxophone (2011)

Discography

Studio albums

Extended play (EPs)

Singles

References

External links

Official SiteThe Supervillains on MySpace The Supervillains on FacebookRah Rah Rah RecordsLAW Records

{{DEFAULTSORT:Supervillains, The
1998 establishments in Florida
American musical quintets
American ska musical groups
American reggae musical groups
Musical groups from Orlando, Florida
Musical groups established in 1998
People from St. Cloud, Florida
American reggae rock groups