Phil Dirt - Reverb Central - PO Box 1609, Felton, CA 95018-1609 USA  | This is the first CD from a new band. They harbor alternate reality surf visions, blending mariachi, jazz, and beat generation sensibilities into a whole new sub genre. It ranges from interesting and vital to so-so. There are a few vocals as well. Solid first issue. |
Picks: Spy/Da, Chupacabra, Sting Rays, Felix, Nado Con Marina, Snake Charmer, Killin' The Rabbit, Spys Are Blue
Track by Track Review
Surf (Instrumental)
A surfy instro with an infectious melody and a chunky backtrack, overlaid by shouts of joy and occasional almost mariachi horns. This is quite the listenable track, fun and spirited.
Surf Jazz-n-Roll (Instrumental)
The evil mythical creatures prance in a jazzy beat generation way across the nightmares of the believers, with plaintiff cries of "Chupacabra." Fluid fun and soulful glee grace this track.
Surf Jazz-n-Roll (Instrumental)
Whammy and sparkle combine with a simple but effective progression melody to create a very solid track. It has a bunch of heavily effected weird voicings that are spooky enough to actually add to the track instead of detract from it. Really nice track. Moody and eerie.
Surf Jazz-n-Roll (Instrumental)
A "Midnight In Moscow" like track. Horn led, jump-jazz based, and fun.
Surf Jazz-n-Roll (Instrumental)
A slow distant horn foreshadows a plucky guitar intro to a horn track with a semi Tijuana Brass edge and cool damped surfisms. This is actually quite a nice track.
Surf Jazz-n-Roll (Instrumental)
A shimmering vibrato guitar delivers a mystical Middle Eastern melody, like a faster "Sounds Of Mecca" (Blazers), but with a more intense vibrato. Very cool, and chill raising.
Surf Jazz-n-Roll (Instrumental)
Jumpin' riffin' chord dominated track that seems mostly like a backtrack waiting for a lead, even when the horns come in.
Surf Jazz-n-Roll (Instrumental)
A sultry jazz-n-roll blueser with no particular direction. Not very interesting.
