October 18, 2003 - NESMA Surf Summit, New London, featuring The
Clams, Surf Squad, The
Atomic Mosquitos, and 9th Wave
The First NESMA Surf Summit in Connecticut was the most fun I have had in a
long time. The evening started out with a lovely dinner at the Rosado Ranch in
bucolic Mansfield, CT. Mike Rosado opened his home to not only the other 3 bands
and his bandmates that evening, but also his friends and NESMA supporters.
Dinner was delicious and so were the tiki drinks. Mike was kind enough to open
up the official 9th Wave Booze Suitcase for the happy occasion. Nothing wets
your whistle like a Blue Tiki Cocktail with your dinner, followed by the yummy
brownies cooked up by Sandy. After all this, there was just enough time to head
home, slip on the go-go boots and head to New London for the NESMA Surf Summit!
I only had to drive 30 minutes to New London, but a big NESMA thank you
goes out to the Mike from the Recruders who traveled from Staten Island. There
were also two young men who drove up from Long Island to hear the east coast
surf that night. You know you're in in for a good show when folks drive 3 hours
for a 4 hour show.
The first band to hit the stage that night were The Clams (aka "We Don't
Sing"). They really set the tone for the evening with flaming tiki pots, a
rotating disco ball, The Clam Diggers (dancers) in leopard print, and the band
sporting surfalicious Hawaiian shirts. They started the night with Pipeline,
which every band also covered that night, each in their own way. This was
followed by two originals; "We are the Clams" and
"Crustacean". It was the first time they had played Crustacean in
public and the tune was thoroughly enjoyable. I think the Domino's guy
like it too! (They do deliver anywhere!!) However, the savory aroma did not
distract the band as they dove into "Spy Clam Chase" a tribute to 9th
Wave's Spy Man Chase. It's so obvious that The Clams truly have fun on stage,
with Jim's energetic lunges, Dan's smooth delivery, and Phred's solid beat. The
set ended with two favorite TV tunes that got everyone dancing, the themes from
Spider Clam and Bat Clam.
A quick and efficient set change brought Surf Squad to the stage. They started
out by handing out complimentary earplugs to the audience. This three-piece
combo (Vinnie, Freddie, and Mark) was amazing. I think the gentleman sitting
next to me put it quite aptly when at the end of Nitro (the set opener) he
exclaimed "F*** Ya' !!" Vinnie not only has the "Dick Dale"
persona down, he also has the ability to make the music his own. When
Vinnie started double picking his intro to "Taco Wagon" he exclaimed
it was "better than sex" (and it was good for me too). And
because interaction with the audience is important I have to let everyone know
that his funny stories about his friendship with DD was a nice addition to the
music. The highlights of the set had to be Miserlou, Esperanza (One of Mike
Rosado's favs) and a sweet slow finish, "The 3rd Stone From the Sun".
It's said that imitation is the highest form of flattery. If this is true, then
Dick Dale should feel honored. Surf Squad put on a great show and I can't wait
to see and hear them again.
And finally, the band I came to see, because they came so far to play for us,
The Atomic Mosquitos were up at bat. They are a lively quartet - lead, rhythm,
and bass guitar with a strong drummer backing them up. It's obvious how
comfortable they are with one another as one song smoothly flowed into another.
They stared out with a hard fast tune off their upcoming CD, " Slaughter
Beach". The Atomic Mosquitos played a nice variety of exotica, spaghetti
western, and they had some fun with a surf-y version of Elvis' "Are you
Lonesome Tonight?" They played a total of four songs from their soon to be
recorded second CD: Mr. Exterminator, Toxic Train, Beach Blanket Inferno, and
Slaughter Beach. The set ended with an Atomic rendition of "Miserlou"
that had all the wahine's shaking it up on the dance floor. I feel comfortable
saying that the Atomic Mosquitos are one of the finest additions to NESMA's
ranks.
9th wave fired up the reverb for the final set of the night. They were the most
visually pleasing of all the bands and ripped the doors off the hinges by
opening with the title song from the third CD, Hurricane. This was followed by
the tasty tune that is the title song from their fourth album, Time Tunnel, a
must have if you like your surf with a splash of hot rod. Then 9th Wave did
something no other band had done that night, ….they sang! Or should I say
Oceana sang everyone's favorite, "Waffle House", a tribute to
waitresses and grits everywhere. There is another vocal song that night that
deserves mentioning as well, my personal favorite, Negative Ed's
"Deadbolt-type" version of Surfer Joe. Other highlights that night
were: Last of the V-8's (a hard fast ride), Spy Man Chase, Creepy Crawler
(spooky-surf guitar complete with a zombie dancer) and Atlantic Surfer, a
pleasant reminder to take a listen to 9th Wave's second CD. They also ended
their long set with "Miserlou" which got everybody shaking their asses
one more time. Every time I see this band I am more impressed with Dan's sharp
skills on the drums as well as Sandy musical versatility, and Mike's ability to
pull everyone together with his fine chops.
All in all it was a phenomenal four hours of surf, spy, hot rod, exotica, and
spaghetti western. The next NESMA SURF SUMMIT - Dec. 13, New York City. Save the
date - I highly recommend going.
Aloha,
Blue Stingraye
proud member of NESMA and
official NESMA reviewer
