April Birthdays 
I've been greatly enjoying the new Messer Chups best-of collection "Spook-o-Rama" (released by MuSick Recordings and Guitaracula Records). Messer Chups have risen to the very top of the international surf heap in the past 10 years, earning an enviable following - all due to VERY hard work, constant touring around the world and a TON of recording and releases! I've got some 3-4 of their CDs but I'm pretty sure they have even more than that. Well, for anybody that's been looking for a one-stop introduction to the band, this is it! Their unique mix of traditional surf, rockabilly, horror-surf, and occasional plain experimental weirdness (especially evident in their early days, I believe) is all on display here. 28 tracks on two STUNNING translucent blue LPs (26 on the single CD - both formats have exclusive tracks) demonstrate the wide variety of their music through the years, but it all still very much sounds like THEM!
Oleg has established himself as an absolute master of surf guitar- as well as surf guitar TONE! That immaculately-reverbed goodness is evident on every track here. Svetlana is of course the perfect bassist for this band, both in terms of her musicianship supporting the music in exactly the right way but also her image being such an important part of the whole. And every drummer they've had through the years has been simply incredible!
My favorites on this collection are primarily their trad-surf tunes, which I think are really among the very best of the entire surf revival. You just can't argue with the sheer excellence and perfection of "Hilu Tikula", "Aquanatic Business", "Padre Pizzicato", "Back to Bermuda Triangle", "Magneto" or "Agent Tremolo". Those are my favorites, but I'm sure every surf music fan will have their own favorites among all these great tracks. For anybody who has not yet checked out the mighty Messer Chups, now is the perfect time to do it - since there is now finally the perfect place to start!
Ivan
Lords of Atlantis on Facebook
The Madeira Official Website
The Madeira on Facebook
The Blair-Pongracic Band on Facebook
The Space Cossacks on Facebook
The Madeira Channel on YouTube
