Phil Dirt - Reverb Central - PO Box 1609, Felton, CA 95018-1609 USA The Surf Coasters - The Soundtrack From Runabout
 | This is the first soundtrack album from a modern surf band. I'm really curious to see how the tracks on this CD fit into the film... The Surf Coasters continue to be one of my favorite surf bands, even though they are branching into some non-surf territory. This CD contains two solid surf tracks out of seven total, all instrumental. |
Picks: Theme From Roundabout, The Winner, Start Inaction, Space Crickets, Big Buzz, Dolphins '97, Endless Brightness
Track by Track Review
Surf (Instrumental)
A thick fuzzy guitar in a chunky and repetitious structure... lots of guitar compression and metallic tones.
Surf (Instrumental)
Sci-fi keys and major fuzz in a lumbering behemoth of a tune. The gated snare is quite annoying - hearkening back to the bad production and club sound of the mid eighties. Without seeing the film, I don't know if there's a cinematic purpose for this. Otherwise, the song has a friendly air about it.
Surf (Instrumental)
With a writing style reminiscent of Paul Johnson, this fast paced number has plenty of edge and vibrato. Like the Packards with space noise keys added and a minimalist melody.
Surf (Instrumental)
The influence for the opening verse seems to be "Journey To The Stars." It's a cool pounding tune, and the first appearance of a heavily surf oriented track on this CD.
Surf (Instrumental)
An ugly grind progression and some double picked aggressive guitar work, but doesn't quite deliver the goods.
Surf (Instrumental)
Surfisimo! This recut of "Dolphins" is marvelous! Again, the Paul Johnson writing influence is clear, reminding me a bit of "Andele" or "Side Two." Fast paced fun.
Surf (Instrumental)
This is a very slow near-ambient mood piece, probably effective in the film, but not too attention grabbing without the visuals. It's pretty and soft, and uses smooth guitar tones. The distant keys work well with the lead.