Davie Allan & The Arrows - Fuzz Fest (Atomic Beat)
"After perfecting the sound that's been dubbed 'Biker Fuzz' for soundtracks to Roger Corman's biker flicks of the sixties, Allan is known worldwide as the 'King Of Fuzz'."
Davie Allan & The Arrows have been around for over 30 years, recording surf and biker instros for albums and B-movie soundtracks. Led by the fuzz guitar stylings of Davie Allan, this collection of 15 tunes was influenced by choppers, sci-fi movies, and Henry Mancini. Two of Mancinis compositions are featured here: "Experiment In Terror" and "The Party". If you like your instro-rock rough and rowdy, Davie Allan has the tunes for you. (The Continental #1)

Eddie Angel - Casbah/Beyond Zone X 7" (Spinout) This new Spinout 7" has two cuts taken from Eddie's Guitar Party LP - Casbah and Beyond Zone X. Both cuts are excellent - as is just about everything he's done. My only beef is that if you have the Guitar Party LP (or MuSick's reissue on CD) there is no reason to buy this. It doesn't even come with a picture sleeve. However, if you haven't heard any of Eddie's solo recordings this is an excellent introduction. (Continental #5)

Eddie Angel - Eddie Angel's Guitar Party (MuSick)
"Eddie Angel brings the rock back to rock n' roll with plenty of swing, surf, and primitive beat to keep you shakin' and stompin' along!"
I gotta say, this is definitely one of the best releases of 1997. Eddie Angel, member of literally hundreds of bands (including Los Straitjackets, The Neaderthals, The Panasonics, and The Planet Rockers) and founder of Spinout Records, has released a full length CD of his solo recordings. You know it's gonna sound good when you see it was recorded at Toe Rag studios. Ten of the tunes were written or co-written by Eddie, including Caveman and Itchy Chicken, which have become Los Straitjackets standards. I also dig Beyond Zone X, which is a cool sci-fi surf tune, and Werewolf, which features a snarling werewolf trying to rip open your hi-fi speakers. With fifteen recordings in all, this release is a MUST HAVE for surf and instro fans everywhere. (Continental #4)

The Aqua Velvets - Nomad (Milan)
"Luxurious, sensual rhythmic, flowing, mysterious, adventurous, romantic, evocative, shimmering, powerful."
The Aqua Velvets' sound is hard to pin down. One minute they are ripping through a surf number, the next they're laying down a relaxing lounge number. Throw in Latin rhythms and a little spaghetti western and you get quite a CD. Often compared to The Ventures, they share that bands knack for blending different genres of music into a collection that is quite pleasing to the ears. It's nice to hear someone stretching the limits of surf music. One of my favorite new releases of 1996. (Milan Entertainment, 1540 Broadway, 28th Floor, New York, NY 10036.) (The Continental #1)

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