In 15 years we've seen many sides of Trabants. Since straightforward surf twistin' on their debut, they've jumped to spaghetti, psychedelics, library, and blues... and then psychedelics again. Last year they released their Mantra 7" which was an absolutely stunning fuzzed-out hazed-out burnout that employed every trick in the 60's psychedelic book to excellent effect. And that was a bit of a hint of things to come as they announced their next LP, Mantra.

2026 is shaping up to be a banner year for instro, and one of the things that makes that possible is not just releases from established surf acts, but breakout LPs from relative unknowns. For example, the debut LP from Finland's The Cruel Seals, who I otherwise only had heard a live EP from in 2022, and I had misread their name to match the song popularized by The Ventures (though originally by The Dakotas).

In the 2024 Gremmy Awards I gave Mick a made-up "Best False Dick Dale" award for his song "Seashore", and that album in general showed a very strong sense of compelling surf tone. Two years later we have another surf record, which is notable because his first record was not! But in a short time of being a surf musician, Mick has covered a lot of ground, and Nightmare Twang is a savage statement of surf sound.

Despite my 15+ year long radio campaign, surf music has never caught on in New Orleans, and my chances to talk about a local group are rare. In fact, Gitkin is not surf. It's the sort of passport psych* similar to groups like Khruangbin, Glass Beams, and BALTHVS, and it's been working! Once a side project from Brian J Gitkin's role in Pimps of Joytime, Gitkin (as a musical entity) has become a bigger focus, with major festival spots and international tours.

The Babalooneys are keepin' it hot! It's been just under two years since they slipped in with their surf traditionalists' dream LP Late to the Party. And Goin' For It has no intention to mess with a successful formula.

Right off the bat "Waveline" starts with one of those chords that flushes your ears with a feeling. It's a great all-arounder -- upbeat, pretty, with intricate guitar and a little bit of sax to keep things light.

The Desolate Coast's previous album Without a Planet felt like it was destined to be a hidden gem of surf music. While I don't have an issue with calling them "surf music", I found myself thinking "The Cure" more than "Dick Dale". There was a melancholy mood to the record, though not without some explosive pent-up bursts, and a unique approach to a three-guitar attack with a low-mid-high formation.

Today is Bandcamp Friday, which means bandcamp is taking no commission on sales on their site, so most of your money goes to the artist. Paypal, of course, still takes a cut. Sometimes in the past I've done Bandcamp roundups where I write a bunch of rapid-fire reviews as suggestions of new things you can buy. But lately I've started doing my Storm Surge Splashes which have kind of been doing the same thing just not on Bandcamp fridays.

That said, I haven't been able to keep up with those in the past few weeks. In fact, most of the reviews you see here started as a Storm Surge Splash. Anyway, basically what I'm saying is you can find even more recommendations in those. But for now, here's some new fun things that have come out.

Good Thursday to you, fine folks of surf.

Clearly the 2025 Gremmy Awards have not yet begun, but I've got two categories about 90% written so maybe they should have by now. I'm thinking within a week they'll start and hopefully continue steadily from there.

I get how it can be. As you release more material, you run out of ideas. You fall into what's comfortable and your music sounds routine. You lose the spark of when you first started the band. At least I think that's how it goes. Mark, what's your secret for going in the opposite direction? How come each record is at least 5% better than the last one?

The first Frigidaires album Play it Cool was released on January 1st, 2024, so while we didn't have to wait long for that first good surf record of the year, I wasn't able to give it my full attention as I was consumed with holiday travel and Gremmy Season. Not the case here, though certainly not at an un-busy time (I'm trying my best to keep up with great releases!), Hot Vacation is not only poised before things get too Halloweeny, but it's had time for marinate for those that picked it up early at Surfguitar101 Festival.