Phil Dirt - Reverb Central - PO Box 1609, Felton, CA 95018-1609 USA The Swiv-O-Matics - Charm City Surfer
 | My goodness, have the Swiv-O-Matics ever grown! This is a very well developed set of new music from a band that refuses to recognize the boundaries of genre labels. Exceptional and unique material here, not from main street, but from the outskirts of town, where the suburbs meet the woods at the edge of the continent. Great stuff! |
Picks: Charm City Surfer, Innocent Lee, The Woman In Skin 13, Semi Loads From Mexico, (She Came From) Planet Stripper, Neckbone, Wahoni, Elekicity, Hag In A Black Leather Jacket, Scott, Stairway To Hampden, Swiv Winter, Dundalk, France, Journey Of The Drawer
Track by Track Review
Surf (Instrumental)
Well, this is quite a grand CD opener! Great drums, rumblin' bass, and two fine guitars playing an infectious riff off each other with precision. Big whammy, shorebreak, and a very friendly sound.
Surf (Instrumental)
"Innocent Lee" is in a spy mode, with a bit of quirk and keyboard suave. Vibrato throb shimmers while the trench-coated shadow-lurkers plot and scheme.
Surf (Instrumental)
Vibrato shimmer and whammy cord warmth mark this surf journey. "The Woman In Skin 13" is both fluid and angular, with a deliberate island charm and a sense of misadventure.
Surf (Instrumental)
A soft vibrato shimmer oozes a warm Mexican afternoon. This very pretty song is quite captivating. There's a gentle flow and a sense of seaside travel. "Semi Loads From Mexico" has a bit of an evening coolness to it, yet is like a relaxed suntan in progress on a forgotten Baja beach. Very cool!
(She Came From) Planet Stripper Surf (Instrumental)
Traditional surf underpinnings mixed with fuzz and vapor charm, like a tuff variation on the idea that Les Black Carnations exploited in "Echo Flower Blues." This is a great surf adventure, with reverbed fuzz and vibrato exclamations. Very cool!
Surf (Instrumental)
Whammy chords dramatically pour from a big guitar sound. On the thick side, and chorded for the surf, "Neckbone" is a little like a surfified Link Wray song. Cool track.
Surf (Instrumental)
Throbbing stereo delayed vibrato delivers a stilted melody with thick textures and warbly edge. "Wahoni" is a pretty interesting song with a slight espionage feel.
Surf (Instrumental)
This is a bouncy track with a slightly Los Straitjackets on the bus with the Ventures sound. Big chords and shorebreak whammy, with loud drama.
Hag In A Black Leather Jacket Surf (Instrumental)
A catchy, punchy thump and a very cool rhythm underpin "Hag In A Black Leather Jacket." It's a most unusual track with a fascinatingly simple riff driven by the highly unique arrangement. Yikes!
Surf (Instrumental)
Danger on the shore as a storm lurks just beyond the outsiders. The vibes-keys create a "Riders On the Storm" reference while the great drums and bass grumble gnarl the inbound weather front. very cool!
Surf (Instrumental)
With a bit of the Shadowy Men On A Shadowy Planet drama, the Swiv-O-Matics make this song into an angular and dangerous event. With big sound and almost military drama, "Stairway To Hampden" rises like an inbound storm surge.
Surf (Instrumental)
Slow edgy vibrato shimmer and a moody bass line call from a dangerous corner of the shoreline, where the docks are empty late at night, and safety is just out of reach. Moody and throbbing with anticipation of the unseen.
Dundalk, France Surf (Instrumental)
Swirling evil lurks in the narrow roads of "Dundalk, France." Not much of a song - more like a scene setter. It crosses right into "Journey Of The Drawer."
Surf (Instrumental)
More like earlier works, "Journey Of The Drawer" is a pumping relentless progression with tuff drums and effects. Psy-fi weirdness and uneasy doings.