Phil Dirt - Reverb Central - PO Box 1609, Felton, CA 95018-1609 USA The Irridescents - Bali Ha'i c/w Swamp Surfer
 | This single does not display great musical prowess or stellar writing. It does display an honest garage surf performance as t was back then. While not essential, the a-side is very endearing and just plain cool!
The Irridescents were from Los Angeles. They also recorded as The Stompers. This is their lone single, which saw release on three labels, Hawk, Infinity, and Oldies, in that order. They existed for just two years. Members were Mike Ferraro (rhythm), Collin Field (bass), Tom Vigil (sax), and Tom Hall (drums). There were a number of lead players, none of who's names survived. |
Picks: Bali Ha'i, Swamp Surfer
Track by Track Review
Surf (Instrumental)
This is a totally coy rendition of the most familiar theme from South Pacific. "Bali Ha'i" is difficult to do without being cutesy, but the Irridescents manage to pull it off. Tribal, twangy, surfy, and very cool.
Surf (Instrumental)
"Swamp Surfer" is a low key thing with some tasteful guitar twang. It's pace is lazy for surf, fast for swamp. The melody riff is easy going and the whammy chords all island surfy.