Modern surf is always a large category because most of us by default are modern people doing modern things, creating modern works. So it's always going to be a big category. And its not really something you can define: it's not traditional surf, it's not too aggressive, but it's still surf, and that amorphousness also means that there's a lot of things that you could call "modern surf". So what I'm getting at here is hoo boy, do I have a lot of things on here. And when I have this many things you might think "well did anything not make the cut? Absolutely, there were a lot of good and even great surf records not on this list, a few that felt like snubs, and the crazy thing is I wanted to cut more. But the thing is, I couldn't! I felt like nearly all of these in their own way had a claim for the top spot. And especially interesting, they all brough something unique to the table, not even an opportunity for one to "cancel another out".

And I guess that's a good problem to have. So here are TWELVE very interesting and excellently crafted surf records, and one that after a LOT of thought, I decided I liked the most. In no specific order except for the last one.

60's surf music is magical, and while countless people have modified it and expanded it, nobody has ever replaced it. For some, it's a guiding light to strive towards. I think that was the idea behind these albums, at least to some extent.

The first Gremmy category is a bit of an outlier, as it doesn't really pertain to surf music itself. Album art! However, I think surf as a genre has had a pretty strong visual identity over the years, dating all the way back to its inception. The value of this feels even stronger now that so many bands are simply generating pictures of a surfer riding a huge wave 5 feet from the shore (why is it always like that?). Plus, The Grammys have this category, why shouldn't I?

Finally, we've been done with 2025 for a whole month and I'm ready to roll out the 2025 Gremmy Awards. These are my favorite surf releases of 2025, divided up into several categories so that I'm not comparing apples with oranges. Except I definitely am and you shouldn't take these categories too seriously. You shouldn't take any of this seriously, it's just one guy's opinions.

So it's May and my attempt to finish the Gremmys earlier each year is clearly going in the opposite direction despite this being the easiet category. I barely have to do anything! I simply call upon some friends in the surf world and see what they think of this year's crop of surf music so that they may either validate my opinions or alleviate the guilt I feel from omitting certain releases. I'd like to point out that the blame for the tardiness lies on me, and that a few of these were submitted 1-3 months ago.

This is a category for things that don't fit into other categories or that I feel need to be mentioned as notes about the year. Some of these show up year-to-year, some don't. It's freeform!

This category is probably the most questionable one, but also very fun. Especially this year. The records that go far enough off the beaten path of surf that they don't seem eligible to be discussed in the other categories, but shouldn't go unmentioned. While they're not judged on how weird they are, hearing something new is always fun.

This can also be a hard one to judge since there's basically zero apples to apples comparison. So I try to remind myself of my guiding principle for each category: what do I think I'll listen to and enjoy the most?

Since most of us reading a website are living in modernity, this is the most general category. Music that's certain surf, but influenced, even if not overtly by modern music. As a result, it tends to be the biggest category, and with 8 honorable mentions and one winner this year, that seems to be the case.

I don't really care when people say stuff like "Dick Dale was the godfather of Heavy Metal". Surf music, as far I can tell, is when rock & roll musicians really started to embrace loudness and aggression. It's not a stepping stone to other loud forms of music, it's the dawn, and whatever came afterwards simply came later. And part of why I say this is because just as metal, etc can take influence from surf, surf can grab back too. This is the category for bands that focus on that aggressive sound.