Phil Dirt - Reverb Central - PO Box 1609, Felton, CA 95018-1609 USA Apollo 13 - S/T
 | Apollo 13 seem to be one of those bands that has the drive and the will, but not quite the writing skill to carry off surf. The melodies are under developed, and the trio format creates problems with the lead being too one dimensional as it tries to fill the voids. Encouragement is in order, but their not ready yet for a CD. |
Picks: Krabbeninvasie, Scholledans, Gore Grobbebol
Track by Track Review
Krabbeninvasie Surf (Instrumental)
Derived somewhat from Bruce Morgan's "Exotic," but heavily morphed, this is mostly power garage injected with reverb. The riff doesn't really stick in RAM much beyond the end of the track.
Scholledans Surf (Instrumental)
Basic riff rock with reverb, unmelodic and a bit too relentless. The ideas are good, but need more fleshing out. The glissandoed break is dramatic and powerful, but it isn't enough to overcome the rest of the track. Some of the problem is the much too busy lead that doesn't allow for spaces while it tries to fill the voids normally carried by the rhythm guitar.
Surf (Instrumental)
"Gore Grobbebol" is an exotic extra short bit of reverb progressionism supported by cool percussion for all of one verse. Too bad it's so short, because it's the highlight of the single.