One of the odder and more wonderful bands to emerge from the surf music revival, the Mermen race between high-octane surf anthems and spaced-out blasts of psychedelia. Neither their albums nor their live shows follow any sort of expected or ordinary path, and the band has made many sincere attempts to get away from the surf music label. Based in... [+] Read More

One of the odder and more wonderful bands to emerge from the surf music revival, the Mermen race between high-octane surf anthems and spaced-out blasts of psychedelia. Neither their albums nor their live shows follow any sort of expected or ordinary path, and the band has made many sincere attempts to get away from the surf music label. Based in San Francisco, the band has developed a broad cult following, encourages tapers, and has developed a strong relationship with radio, resulting in numerous radio broadcasts, some of which were compiled for The Mermen Live at the Haunted House (1994).

The Mermen came together almost by accident in 1989, when guitarist Thomas was 35. He was working in a San Francisco music store and experimenting with demo recording equipment, although he didn't really consider himself a musician and had never played in a band. Before long he was joined by bassist Allan Whitman and drummer Martyn Jones, neither of whom fit any kind of pre-determined image of surf musicians (both men, like Thomas, were in their mid-30s), helping to propel the band away from its surf guitar roots, despite the first album, Krill Slippin' (1989, CD reissue in 1995), being essentially a pastiche of surf music to that date.

Their next album, Food for Other Fish (1994), saw a dramatic shift in the overall Mermen sound, as Thomas allowed himself free reign to improvise and try a variety of different sounds and techniques, aided by a huge rack of effects boxes and a floor full of effects pedals. The wall of sound generated by Thomas, combined with the distinctive work of Whitman and Jones, brought about comparisons with Sonic Youth alongside those to Dick Dale. Both of these descriptions are effectively limiting, however, as the Mermen sound does a good job of defying description -- while the band can do the surf music sound as well as anyone, they are even more adept at pushing into sometimes experimental spaces that take in everyone from John Coltrane to Pink Floyd.

Their following continued to grow in the year between the release of Food for Other Fish and the original 1995 release of A Glorious Lethal Euphoria, a 72-minute tour de force originally released by Toadaphile Records. The album drew widespread attention, selling out its first runs. The activity drew the attention of Mesa/Bluemoon Records, a division of Atlantic, who proceeded to sign the band, releasing a revised version of A Glorious Lethal Euphoria later in 1995. An EP, Songs of the Cows, recorded in three days in the midst of a tour was released in 1996. Besides the "official" CD releases, the Mermen have also released a number of limited-edition cassettes featuring early, live, and radio station performances, as well as The Mermen Sing Merry Christmas to You. Taking some time to craft the official follow-up to A Glorious Lethal Euphoria, the Mermen finally returned in 2000 with the full-length The Amazing California Health and Happiness Road Show. ~ Steven McDonald, All Music Guide [-] Hide

As the name would indicate, the Surf Punks combined two emerging sounds of the late '70s -- punk rock and surf revival. The band, fronted by Dennis Dragon, personified the surf's up, lighthearted West Coast attitude -- they were even featured in a PBS documentary demonstrating "California Beach English." The Surf Punks' irreverence, immaturity,... [+] Read More

As the name would indicate, the Surf Punks combined two emerging sounds of the late '70s -- punk rock and surf revival. The band, fronted by Dennis Dragon, personified the surf's up, lighthearted West Coast attitude -- they were even featured in a PBS documentary demonstrating "California Beach English." The Surf Punks' irreverence, immaturity, and skepticism of outsiders came shining through in songs like "My Beach," "No Fat Chicks," "Teenage Girls," and "Locals Only." The band's self-titled debut in 1979, made on their own Day-Glo label, became a cult classic. Epic came calling and the Surf Punks peaked with My Beach in 1980, before sinking into self-parody. ~ Ron DePasquale, All Music Guide [-] Hide

Best known for supplying the theme song to the popular TV comedy show The Kids in the Hall, Toronto's largely instrumental trio Shadowy Men on a Shadowy Planet originally formed in 1984, consisting of members Brian Connelly (guitar, keyboards, backing vocals), Reid Diamond (bass, lead vocals), and Don Pyle (drums, backing vocals). The band... [+] Read More

Best known for supplying the theme song to the popular TV comedy show The Kids in the Hall, Toronto's largely instrumental trio Shadowy Men on a Shadowy Planet originally formed in 1984, consisting of members Brian Connelly (guitar, keyboards, backing vocals), Reid Diamond (bass, lead vocals), and Don Pyle (drums, backing vocals). The band merged punk (à la the Dead Kennedys) and surf (à la the Ventures) sounds together to create a highly original style, resulting in a steady stream of EPs/singles issued throughout the mid- to late '80s. These included such quirky titles as "Love Without Words," "Wow Flutter Hiss '86, Schlagers!," "Live Record With Extra Bread and Cheese," "Explosion of Taste," and "Reid Does Neil."

By 1989, a local comedy troupe (and friends of the band) was given their own TV show, Kids in the Hall, which used the Shadowy Men on a Shadowy Planet track "Having an Average Weekend" as their theme song. In 1990, the trio issued their debut full-length release, Savvy Show Stoppers, which was a compilation of material from their earlier singles. Two more releases followed shortly thereafter, 1991's Dim the Lights, Chill the Ham and 1993's Sport Fishin' (the latter of which was recorded by Steve Albini), but by 1995, Shadowy Men on a Shadowy Planet had split up. The former members went on to other projects: Diamond and Pyle joined forces once again in Phono-Comb, while Connelly worked with Neko Case's Boyfriends and Atomic 7. In early 2001, Diamond passed away after a battle with cancer. ~ Greg Prato, All Music Guide [-] Hide

As part of the surf revival movement of the early '90s (Shadowy Men on a Shadowy Planet, Laika & the Cosmonauts, the re-emergence of the great Dick Dale, etc.), Auburn's Man or Astro-man? specializes in a slightly different variation on the genre, self-described as space-age surf. Formed in 1992, the quartet originally consisted of members who... [+] Read More

As part of the surf revival movement of the early '90s (Shadowy Men on a Shadowy Planet, Laika & the Cosmonauts, the re-emergence of the great Dick Dale, etc.), Auburn's Man or Astro-man? specializes in a slightly different variation on the genre, self-described as space-age surf. Formed in 1992, the quartet originally consisted of members who went by such off the wall aliases as Birdstuff (drums), Star Crunch (guitar), Dr. Delecto & his Invisible Vaportron (bass), and Electronic Monkey Wizard (on something called alternate-universe bass), Man or Astro-man? combined the classic surf sounds of the '60s along with the quirky humor and approach of such groundbreaking groups as Devo. The group issued albums at an extremely brisk rate throughout the '90s (a few of which were engineered by renowned punk/alternative guru Steve Albini) -- 1993's Is It...Man or Astro Man?; 1994's Destroy All Astromen!!; 1995's Project Infinity; 1996's Experiment Zero; 1997's What Remains Inside a Black Hole, Live Transmissions From Uranus, and Made From Technetium; plus 1999's EEVIAC: Operational Index & Reference Guide. The group has been able to successfully overcome the defection of two original members (Dr. Delecto and Star Crunch), as Man or Astro-man? pressed on into the 21st century with such further releases as 2000's A Spectrum of Infinite Scale, plus a pair of releases in 2001, the limited release A Spectrum of Finite Scale and the compilation Beyond the Black Hole, the latter of which combined What Remains Inside a Black Hole along with B-sides and outtakes. ~ Greg Prato, All Music Guide [-] Hide

The San Francisco-based Aqua Velvets began creating their own distinctive style of original surf rock in the late '80s. The group came from the epicenter of the late '80s/early '90s new surf-rock movement, taking their inspiration from musicians like Dick Dale, the Shadows, the Ventures, Link Wray, Arthur Lyman and Ennio Morricone. Their brand... [+] Read More

The San Francisco-based Aqua Velvets began creating their own distinctive style of original surf rock in the late '80s. The group came from the epicenter of the late '80s/early '90s new surf-rock movement, taking their inspiration from musicians like Dick Dale, the Shadows, the Ventures, Link Wray, Arthur Lyman and Ennio Morricone. Their brand of surf-rock incorporated elements of Latin and Mediterranean music, psychedelic, rockabilly and even some of the newer "lounge" music. The Aqua Velvets consisted of Miles Corbin (songwriter and guitars), Michael Lindner (bass, keyboards and accordion), Hank Maninger (guitar) and ex-Rubinoos drummer Donn Spindt. The quartet's excellent self-titled, self-produced 1992 Riptide/Heyday Records debut was recorded in phases over a four-year period after working hours in the Porsche garage where Lindner was employed as a mechanic, where the natural echoes created by the concrete floor and high ceilings created just the right amount of natural reverb. Three years later, the group returned with Surfmania on WEA/Atlantic, followed by 1996's Nomad on Milan Entertainment/BMG. Guitar Noir appeared in 1997. Their music also appeared in the film Jury Duty, the documentary Surfer Girl, and the CD-ROM Surf 101. ~ Richard Skelly, All Music Guide [-] Hide

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In the vast wasteland of the music biz, artists of truly original vision are rarer than hen's teeth. Shadowy Men on a Shadowy Planet -- Canadian punk rockers hailing from Toronto, Ontario -- have nonetheless managed to create a style uniquely their own. Quirkily eccentric it is, drawing inspiration from old sci-fi and drive-in horror film... [+] Read More

In the vast wasteland of the music biz, artists of truly original vision are rarer than hen's teeth. Shadowy Men on a Shadowy Planet -- Canadian punk rockers hailing from Toronto, Ontario -- have nonetheless managed to create a style uniquely their own. Quirkily eccentric it is, drawing inspiration from old sci-fi and drive-in horror film scores, but their confident approach makes the music instantly accessible. Almost without exception, they play in minor keys -- adding spice and intrigue with unexpected melodic twists. The galloping guitars, loping bass, and crashing drums each speak with voices so powerful that the lack of a human one goes unnoticed. Their enthusiasm is infectious; their naive sincerity charming, and their self-deprecating humor a refreshing change from the industry norm. This, the band's first CD release, collects tunes from five previous seven-inch vinyl records released from 1985-1988 on the group's own Jetpac label. In fact, the first three songs Shadowy Men ever waxed -- "Our Weapons Are Useless," "Bennett Cerf," and "Having an Average Weekend" -- still remain among the group's finest recordings. "Weapons" is a high-voltage march of the aliens, "Bennett Cerf" is a killer tune with just the right amount of string-bending and wah-wah bar, and "Weekend" (the quintessential Shadowy Men track) gained fame as the theme song for the television comedy series The Kids in the Hall. Most of the CD's other tracks are of similarly high caliber. Still primarily an underground phenomenon, Shadowy Men on a Shadowy Planet are one of the finest bands ever spawned north of the 49th parallel. Their music is unique and tongue-in-cheek. Not only good listening, but great fun. ~ Stansted Montfichet, All Music Guide [-] Hide

Guitar repairman extraordinaire Steve Soest, and his three Orange County, California surf/ho-daddie cohorts, strap on and plug in to the vintage gear, delivering a set of strictly instrumentals that sound like they were all cut in 1962. There's a real unpretentiousness and straightforwardness about the group's playing on this 17-track collection... [+] Read More

Guitar repairman extraordinaire Steve Soest, and his three Orange County, California surf/ho-daddie cohorts, strap on and plug in to the vintage gear, delivering a set of strictly instrumentals that sound like they were all cut in 1962. There's a real unpretentiousness and straightforwardness about the group's playing on this 17-track collection that gives their retro take on the material here a refreshing edge; they're playing this music this way because they're into it and have the form fully mastered. There are highlights galore with great takes of "Journey to the Stars," "Ghost Riders," "Shake 'N' Stomp," "Bumble Bee Twist," and the fuzzed-out-to-the-max "Nervous Tic," closing things out with the beautiful acoustic-based "Peace Pipe." There's retro and then there's just flat right and the Torquays truly deliver the goods on this disc. Consider this the great lost Del-Fi or Capitol surf album for the late 1990s. ~ Cub Koda, All Music Guide [-] Hide

One would bet that at least two of the members of Man or Astroman? would have been in line a month in advance for The Phantom Menace if they weren't so busy on their advances to conquer planet Earth. And they have that potential with Deluxe Men in Space, which is a prequel to Experiment Zero, their first full-length on Touch and Go. Even if this... [+] Read More

One would bet that at least two of the members of Man or Astroman? would have been in line a month in advance for The Phantom Menace if they weren't so busy on their advances to conquer planet Earth. And they have that potential with Deluxe Men in Space, which is a prequel to Experiment Zero, their first full-length on Touch and Go. Even if this EP consists of just two original Man or Astroman? songs -- the remainder being two covers and two tracks of experimental noise -- it defines their characteristic sound of spaced-out surf-rock. ~ Mike DaRonco, All Music Guide [-] Hide

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