Surfer Blood

Surfer Blood are five guys from West Palm Beach who don't surf and sound as though they'd rather be hanging out at the Smell in L.A. Recorded in a U of Florida dorm room, Astro Coast is one comprehensive debut that acts like a zeitgeist for the last couple years in music. Like an all-inclusive resort getaway, Surfer Blood cram as much into their buffet as they can to satisfy the tourists. Beginning with two grunge-filled power pop appetizers ("Floating Vibes" and "Swim"), they follow it up with a course of tropical punk on "Take It Easy." Some shoegaze and slacker-ish lo-fi influences trickle into "Harmonix" and "Neighbour Riffs" like side dishes, while "Twin Peaks" sneaks some shuffling Afro-pop rhythms into the driving stream of college rock. And so on. Sounds tricky and even disastrous, but Surfer Blood make this smorgasbord work as their own, mixing affecting vocals with enough hooks to land that nasty Great White on the album's cover. That's no easy feat.