SURFIN' INSTRUMENTALS RULE OK!

The most exciting and most interesting new music of today is instrumental guitar music. There are many bands performing and recording 100% instrumental numbers and the "sounds" are all basicaly inspired mainly by surfing instrumentals, but also by other great instrumental recordings of the early 1960's.

There follows a short list of a few of the bands who have recordings issued during the last few years or so. In my opinion these bands are all fantastic.

the Neptunas the Boardwalkers
the Huntington Cads the Tiki Tones
Impala the Hillbilly Soul Surfers
Los Straightjackets the Looney Tunes
the Treble Spankers Jon & the Nightriders
the Eliminators the Fathoms
Satan's Pilgrims Shig & Buzz
the Falcons El Caminos
the Surfin' Spacemen Husky & the Sandmen
Slacktone Aqua Velvets
the Space Cossacks Fifty Foot Combo
the Supertones Surfaholics
Laika & the Cosmonauts Mark Brody & the Beaver Patrol
Blue Stingrays Death Valley
the Torpedoes Vice Barons
¡Los Meltones! Sanblasters
the Volcanos Dragstrip
There are some interesting points worth noting.

These 90's bands are inspired by various instrumental recordings of the early 1960's. Some people might say that they have simply copied those 1960's recordings. I think it is more accurate to say that they are inspired by that 1960's style.

When the 60's bands released albums they usualy had a large percentage of vocal numbers and even the instrumentals were frequently still in the 50's rock and roll style of instrumental. Now in the 90's the bands listed above are totaly avoiding vocal numbers and the music they play is inspired by the best recordings of the 60's. So, as I see it, they are taking these great, and long neglected 1960's music styles and refining and distilling some of the best qualities and features of the music of the sixties.


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