Despite the fact that I'm sifting through all these great releases from this year to get the Gremmys together, there's actually a good chunk of vintage stuff in here, including ANOTHER big batch of new-to-the-show 45s. Also brand new stuff from Diabolico Coupe, Les Agamemmnonz, and the Gnarly Ones.
Here's last week! 12-7-15
I missed the debut album from this Italian quintet, so this took me by surprise. Diabolico Coupe play modern-traditional surf with sax and for the most part stick to the straight-and-narrow surf sound: no spy, Western, etc. That's fine, because they're very good at it. The guitars trade off between each other well enough to the point where I found myself tuning in and out of different guitar parts, listening to different layers of the sound.
I enjoyed Les Agamemnonz's debut 10". It had a good trad sound, a lot of very drippy reverb and a somewhat restrained energy that worked out well. They keep that up with Au Revoir, though they expand a bit. "Vulkanizer" (which really masters the thud from the Astronauts' "kuk") and "El Tremblador" are a bit more menacing than I remember from this band, and they pick up a wild west sound on the last three tracks. Tickling one of my favorite spots is "Tre Grazie", a great take on the Peruvian chicha sound.
Everything that The Tremolo Beer Gut has released so far has been quality from start to finish, and this is no exception. This is a live album, all one take or as their drummer put it to me "All is recorded on the same night and all we recorded ended up on the LP". And it sounds exactly like a live album ought to: crisp, all parts audible, energetic, and with the sound of the room clearly audible. They all sounded pretty faithful to the album versions to me, except with more hootin' and hollerin' from the crowd and the band.
B11 have a playful, experimental approach to surf, with an almost jazzy atmosphere to it. The wonky, showy guitar licks remind me of Double Naught Spy Car or even Shadowy Men. They pick up a bit with a more traditional surf song at the end with the title track "Surf My Spy". Give it a listen-see.
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