Reviews

Post date: 07/24/2016 - 09:25
Robotron - Robotron Versus The Invincible and Indestructible Reptilicus

Robotron is a project by Bjørn Hovland featuring 7 tracks of monstrous fuzzed out tough surf. While a lot of these projects where one member writes and plays many parts tend to sound stripped down, this gives no indication based on the music itself. Partially because this was hardly a bedroom recording: Bjorn hails from Norway, the album was mixed in Brazil and mastered in Seattle!

The kaiju-style imagery of the album comes through in the music: its aggression oscillates between...Read more

Post date: 07/20/2016 - 07:55
The Grave Robbers - Grave Diggers EP

The Grave Diggers play generally aggressive punk-influenced surf with tinges of horror surf. Those tinges are especially noticeable in the back-to-back Ghastly Ones covers. But this is a pretty fun record, they definitely know how to keep up a great energy and pump out a lot of sound for a threesome. Ontop of nice guitarism, they have a bunch of small little tweaks, sound effects, and quirks that add another level of interestingness. This isn't exactly the flashiest cover art -- with...Read more

Post date: 07/18/2016 - 07:32
The Grande Bois - Surf Salvation

The Grande Bois have been a pretty ambitious group since their first release and they're just as inventinve and frenetic on their third LP. Though their album art often deals in horror movie camp, they don't really come off as a horror surf band (especially on sleepy tracks like "Shy Groove", a straight sunset surf tune). Rather, they roll around in strange fiction tropes with playfulness. It gives them a good variety, sometimes playing it straight and sometimes getting pretty goofy and...Read more

Post date: 07/17/2016 - 18:51
King Ghidora - Curse of Poseidon EP

King Ghidora's been on my radar for a while, but I never caught wind of any prior releases apart from reverbnation updates and the like. Even if it's 3 songs, I'm glad to finally have this band in my library. King Ghidora hail from the Man or Astro-Man branch of the instro family tree, and I reckon they probably prefer the later material. KG's style is aggressive but progressive, with tracks 2 and 3 stretching into prog-psych-surf territory at 6 minute lengths. That's long for surf! The...Read more

Post date: 07/14/2016 - 07:15
Sys Malakian - Drifting With The Tide

So while I've highlighted albums on this stie, I didn't pay much attention to the solo work of that band's guitarist Sys Malakian. Drifting With The Surf leaves the chicha influence behind and sticks with a pretty trad surf sound. There's a good amount of variety, though even on the...Read more

Post date: 07/12/2016 - 07:28
The Mermers - Get Swell Soon

This is the debut EP from this Gainesville foursome. From the beginning I get a strong Ghastly Ones vibe, but as the record progressed I think they started to slip a bit more into their own sound. The organ work on this is a lot of fun, especially on "Party Grave" and "Blood Barrel". The guitar sometimes gives me some early Man or Astro-man flashbacks, but on the whole they don't compare that closely. With long track lengths (for surf) and some distinct mid-song changes, this sometimes plays...Read more

Post date: 07/11/2016 - 07:21
Amphibian Man - Waves EP

Ukraine's most prolific surf musician strikes again! Waves is a more sunny, trad surf approach but with a relentless energy. There's a greater focus on melody, though with oodles of speed and intensity kept in the mix. If you're a fan of 13th Magic Skull, I think this will be right up your alley, but it should appeal to a lot of surf fans in general.

If you missed it, I peeled back the curtain on Amphibian Man a bit in an...Read more

Post date: 07/07/2016 - 07:30
The Crowkeepers - Witches of the Rock

The Crowkeepers were on my radar because of guitarist Bill Simms from Shoot the Pier - a two-person moody surf group he did with his daughter. The Crowkeepers keep a similarly somber tone to them that seems to loom even over the more upbeat tracks. It never really roars, much more likely to creep. They really lean into that sound on the album title track "Witches on the Rock", and I think it works well. As a live band and not a bedroom project, this isn't quite as dressed up with recording...Read more

Post date: 07/05/2016 - 08:10
Os Pontas - Fuzz Jungle

I don't think Os Pontas are trying to rise to the top of the surf guitar virtuoso ladder -- they're all about fuzzed out primitive jungle sounds. Plenty of groups pull off primitive the natural way: by sucking, but Os Pontas walk that tough line of careful sloppiness -- sort of like early Black Lips records to step out of the instro realm. Fuzz Jungle is a fun record for stompin' around. The guitar speaks in a crass lizard brain language and the organs whirl to a Stax soul sound. The best...Read more

Post date: 06/29/2016 - 07:38
The Mullet Monster Mafia - Surf 'n Goat 7"

Brazil's The Mullet Monster Mafia have been busy! Earlier this year they released a vinyl picturedisc called "", which is a reissue of their first two albums. They also just recently (I'm a few weeks late!) released a 7" called Surf n' Goat on Drunkabilly Records in advance of a huge European tour that's underway right now....Read more

Post date: 06/28/2016 - 07:26
Aaron and the Burrs - A Burr for All Seasons (and other tunes)

Aaron and the Burrs have been quiet for a little bit... missing out on some synergy opportunities with the broadway hit Hamilton! Eh, probably not.

This still sounds a lot like the Aaron and the Burrs we've heard for a while, sort of eleki-style with the lead guitar high-pitched and often quite staccato though with some sludgy punk guitar filling it out. Kinda similar to Beware the Danger of a Ghost Scorpion but a little more restrained. I do think there's a bit of a recording...Read more

Post date: 06/18/2016 - 09:34
Los Venturas - Miles High

This is the last entry of the month of Green Cookie Records. Within a few weeks, they've released Los Venturas, The El Caminos, The Aqua Barons and on their subsidiary label Surf Cookie they released Bamboogie Injections and a repackaged Surfoniani record. I'm guessing this is all leading up to Italy's Surfer Joe festival happening this weekend.

In the past I really haven't given Los Venturas the attention they deserve. I know a lot of people enjoyed their past two releases ...Read more

Post date: 06/18/2016 - 09:14
The El Caminos - Behind the Surf

I've wanted to look into the El Caminos past their excellent Del-Fi Release Reverb Explosion, but their other releases aren't terribly cheap for an American to find. So here we have a compilation of unreleased tunes from before that record. Some of them are familiar: alternate takes that found their way onto other El Caminos records, some are covers. It's good trad surf, though nothing that quite jumps at me like Reverb Explosion did. It's great to have...Read more

Post date: 06/18/2016 - 09:13
The El Caminos - Behind the Surf

I've wanted to look into the El Caminos past their excellent Del-Fi Release Reverb Explosion, but their other releases aren't terribly cheap for an American to find. So here we have a compilation of unreleased tunes from before that record. Some of them are familiar: alternate takes that found their way onto other El Caminos records, some are covers. It's good trad surf, though nothing that quite jumps at me like Reverb Explosion did. It's great to have...Read more

Post date: 06/17/2016 - 19:59
The Kaygles - Sunstroke EP

Here's one I almost passed by completely. Between the - I'm sorry but - terrible album art and the genitalia joke in the band name, I figured this would be some awful snotty garage-style surf rock a la Wavves. I took the risk though, and was immediately bowled over by some top-notch honkin' sax over a surf beat. This the good stuff: well produced trad surf with memorable melodies, nice big guitar sound backed up by some smartly accenting bass and keys. The first two tracks definitely...Read more

Post date: 06/06/2016 - 07:42
The Aqua Barons - Southeast Stompers

After 6 years and only two tracks on a Green Cookie compilation to show for it, Greece's The Aqua Barons have released their first LP. Though drawing on trad sounds, there's some very distinct creativity in here that really stand out as their own: from the loosely floating lead guitar in "the Lonely Siren", to a killer mix of fuzz and surf guitar in "Harbour Love" and some unhinged wildness on "Abandon Ship". The closer "Last Sunset" is a fun track as well, starting as cooled-off drifter but...Read more

Post date: 06/03/2016 - 07:36
The Wave Chargers - Wave Chargers EP

This is the debut release from the Wave Chargers, a fearsome foursome from France that play some pumpin' trad surf. For their first release they sound amazingly tight, with some killer interplay between the two very capable guitarists, rousing drumming, and stirring bass. They can really stir up some great energy and with memorable melodies as well. My favorites are a toss-up between "La Revanche du Kuromaku" and "Flip-Side", but they're all solid. Recording is a bit lo-fi, which I'm not...Read more

Post date: 06/01/2016 - 08:01
Bamboogie Injections - Wild Dandelion Stomping

One of the first groups on Green Cookie's companion label Surf Cookie Records, we have Bamboogie Injections from Russia (formerly under a different name that they have effectively swept under the rug). It makes an impression quickly though, with some frighteningly fast picking on the first two modern surf tracks. Thankfully for arthritic concern, there's some speed variation on this, with "Dandelion Wine" especially making for an interesting mix of mid-tempo song-writing, swirling keyboards...Read more

Post date: 06/01/2016 - 07:22
Urban Surf Kings - LIVORNO

Italy's Surfer Joe Festival is in 15 days, and to commemorate it Urban Surf Kings have put out their 14th release: the live set at the 2015 Surfer Joe Festival, named LIVORNO after the city it's held in. The recording is straight off the mixing board that went to North Sea Surf Radio and features songs spanning their entire double-decade career.Read more

Post date: 05/23/2016 - 07:55
Ninchi Surf System - Demo Drysurf 2

When Ninchi Surf System say "Drysurf" I think they mean desert dry. This release is predominantly spaghetti-western toned, though not in a directly Morricone-imitating way. They have a modern surf tone that isn't too riff-heavy, almost jammy or progressive at times, but also with a lonely WIld West mood -- while still keeping an upbeat pace. It's much more refined than their previous demo recording and even redoes their song "Western Hole". Both recordings are up on bandcamp: Demo Drysurf is...Read more

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