4/27/07 - SPF-4,
TarantinosNYC,
Clams at Surf Night in Stamford CT
Hey all -
Just wanted to chime in here on the NESMA group list about what a great time we
had at Surf Nite at Jimmy's Seaside in Stamford, CT the other night.... been
trying to get to this message for the last couple days, but confounded workweek
keeps getting in the way.....
First and foremost, Bob D gets a big hurrah for starting up another much needed
surf-club-scene, this one in CT!
Just pitching a bar owner on the idea is a big step in a process, and now the
ball is rolling.
I think it was the owner who was tending bar at some point during the night, and
digging the surf sound - it was all thumbs up, all around.
Build it! Build it!
Secondly, Bob's taking his own personal time and dedication to do this for some
music, and a scene that he loves.
Thirdly he had some kickass Euro-trash garage and whatnot playing between sets
that was totally bitchin'. (And I checked out this WCNI show today and that was
totally cool as well).
So I guess onto a quick review?
I had a great Caesar salad with Salmon - the menu at Jimmy's is excellent... I'd
encourage all Surf-Niters in the future to make time to get some food at the
place... really good... I appreciate the tip from Dano Clam last week !
Then the music started - we played a bunch of new originals and warmed up the
enthusiastic crowd...I think we sounded pretty good. We thank the Clams very
much for switching sets with us on short notice, that was very cool.
Next up was the fabulous Tarantinos NYC! Surf/Spy/Spaghetti Western is
delivered up in swank style. They played some great classic stuff and some
originals too... They have a great sound with the lead guit/amp combo of
Jetstar/Vox.
Add in some farfisa-type sounds, a solid bass groove, and the jazz style
drumming and you've got a full package. One particular fave was Green Onions...
I think they may have done a great version of Surfrider also. Fun fun fun, and
a good depth of sound happening. (http://www.myspace.com/tarantinosnyc)
Then it was time for CT's own The Clams !
What can you say about this trio that hasn't been said before? The first thing
that comes across is the laid back feel. Dano's single 12" (12", right?)
speaker sounds totally awesome, defined, and has just the right tone. He proves
you don't need a 2-guitar setup to do surf right. Brian was back there laying
down the backbeat on the zebra stripe kit, and Knickers (who I found out is just
up the road from me in Enfield) holds it all down on the P/J bass... these guys
(& gals) play a lot of shows, and they have a good, tight, but laid back and
groovy sound. They brought us through a whole bunch of surf classics and some
originals too,...they had the place dancing and bopping. (http://www.myspace.com/theclamswedontsing)
And speaking of dancing - how about those Clamdiggers??!! They dance, they
sing, they play sax - awesome !
GoGo boots and tambourines and pure unadulterated appeal, methinks.
Good to see Negative Ed from 9th Wave there also!
And of course I save the best for last -
What would a show like this be without the ever elegant and enthusiastic BLUE
STINGRAYE!
Dazzling MC of the evening, and all around general cheerleader of the NESMA
scene, y'all.
I also wanted to thank Sandy for the new double cd NESMA comp ! What a great
directory of the diversity and musicianship of surf on the East Coast, man!
Totally a slice in time...I bet this thing will be a surf classic into the next
century. I had a long drive home that night and it was just great with that
playing and not knowing what was coming next through the speakers.... just
totally digging it - bravo! Great sound.
(...and just a note on our track, btw: I don't know how it happened, but the
track is listed as 'Crystal T'.....the actual track on the CD is the song 'Surfin
St. Helens' though - not a big deal, but keep that in mind, and maybe do a write
in, lol)
So again another great night of surf on the E Coast! I am honored to be a part
of it (and I know Dave, Rob, and Craig feel the same).
Hopefully tomorrow night I'll be traveling to the soon-to-be-no-more Kirkland
Cafe for the killer lineup of The East Coast
Tremors (Cape Cod), The Preston Wayne Four (Worcester), The Skull Surfers
(Boston) (whom I have not seen yet) and our buddy
Jason James
(Worcester) and his hell-bent-for-whiskey
Baystate House Rockers.......
until then - cheers
Tony/SPF-4
