Phil Dirt - Reverb Central - PO Box 1609, Felton, CA 95018-1609 USA Anvil Head - Horizon Shine
 | Horizon Shine is an mp3 album downloadable from Anvil Head's website. Some tracks appear on other releases, others are unique to this set. While only tangentially related to surf, if your game for instrumental rock with originality and drama, I think you'll fine this enjoyable. |
Picks: Lazy Train, Pulse, After Hours, Stomp, Beachcomber, Industrial Sunset, Victory Season, Robust Engagement Mechanism, Wrong For Too Long, Storm Circle, Surf Engine, The Antidote To Despair
Track by Track Review
Reggae (Instrumental)
"Lazy Train" is an ethereal reggae instro. Its sensual backtrack and flowing lead lines haunt and please. This is a very enjoyable, easy moving song that's part reggae, part modern rock.
Rock (Instrumental)
Haunted imagery, muted echo guitar, and an almost tropical bass and beat. "Pulse" is tribal, well developed, and both heavy and light. Great production and percussion.
Surf Grunge (Instrumental)
"After Hours" slowly moves on tremolo vibes over spatial strings. The guitar comes in to play lovely lines and big bluesy notes. Imagine Jeff Beck with MJQ. It's kinda like that, but wholly original.
Surf Grunge (Instrumental)
Big rock chords and ethereal keys, with spooky bridges and beautiful piano lines. "Stomp" moves through a number of changes that, by all rights, should not coexist. Cinematic and cool.
Rock (Instrumental)
Coastal images of two-lane highways and roadsters with the sunset on the right. "Beachcomber" is just a really nice traveling song.
Reggae (Instrumental)
Spooky industrial reggae with wah wah and a hypnotic pulsing beat. "Industrial Sunset" seems more about tribal ambiance than melody. Still, it's sensual and cool.
Surf Grunge (Instrumental)
Great "Ready, Steady, Go" (Generation X) chords and drums grind a wonderful frenzy of crunch, while a gentle melody unfolds. "Victory Season" is a wonderful track spanning decades and generations. Very listenable, and great for an highway drive.
Robust Engagement Mechanism Surf Grunge (Instrumental)
Metal crunch and pump, with a heavy, deliberate sound. "Robust Engagement Mechanism" is robust alright, and the airy keys give it a graveyard feel. This is fun and dangerous too.
Surf Grunge (Instrumental)
Spooky keys, dramatic,sparse chords, and industrial drums. "Wrong For Too Long" is metronomic as it cycles through circular guitar lines with a classical feel. Then crunchy fuzz chords limber in. Very interesting.
Surf Grunge (Instrumental)
Booming, reverberating, and dangerous, "Storm Circle" thunders and then plays in a reggae vein. It's a well conceived and executed blend of different styles that unexpectedly work very well together.
Surf (Instrumental)
Written and arranged in the general style of the eighties bands that risked doing an instro in a surfish vein, "Surf Engine" uses a minimal melody. more like a riff and a rhythm. That said, its eighties feel is warm and familiar. This is a fun track with a very modern sound.
Rock (Instrumental)
On the fast side, with spooky ambiance, "The Antidote To Despair" is driven by a relentless beat. The melody floats on foggy notions between very big metal danger breaks. Nice contrasts.