The Mermen
Krill Slippin'

LA RECENSIONE

All in all, wave surfing remains, at least in our parts, still partly a niche sport. The Mediterranean Sea, being an inland sea, allows for its practice for a good part of the year without returning that constant frequency found in the Canary Islands, bathed by the Atlantic Ocean and constantly exposed to the Trade Winds. Nevertheless, Sicily, Sardinia, and Tuscany have some of the best spots where it can be practiced with satisfaction.

Surf-mania originated in the 60s on the sunny coasts of California where people danced on the beaches to the rhythm of “Pet Sounds” by the Beach Boys.

Even though it is more accurate to speak of surf music as a true genre only with names such as Dick Dale, the one who perhaps contributed more than anyone to the cause, using his instrument in a fluid manner, creating that typical wet guitar effect with generous doses of reverb. Other notable names at the time were Link Wray and The Ventures who, along with the aforementioned, created a real movement.

As is often the case in the history of music, this instrumental sub-genre of rock ‘n’ roll experienced a revival in the 1990s, aided by the recovery of a classic such as “Misirlou” by Dale, which, along with others, was included in the soundtrack of Tarantino’s Pulp Fiction.

The Mermen are a Californian power trio composed, at the time of this debut dated 1989, of Jim Thomas, Martyn Jones, and Allen Whitman.

They take up the lesson of a guitar master like Dick Dale, adding drops of psychedelia that will be more present starting from the subsequent “Food for Other Fish.”

Nature, the sea, and the mountains should be respected and not underestimated. One must always remember that we are only passing guests in these environments that should be left intact as we found them.

The spirit of the ocean can be gentle, but it can become stormy in just a few moments.

The music of the Mermen essentially lives with this dual nature between sweet caresses on the shore and brisk electric currents pushing offshore. I like to mention here “The Goodbye,” the closing track that, with a very fitting riff and its touch of melancholy, manages to move, making the mind travel back to its places of the heart. Mine is called Cofete Beach, a long wild beach, off the tourist routes, located on the Jandia peninsula, in the deep South of the island of Fuerteventura. A remote place that requires a minimum of spirit of adventure and adrenaline to reach it, a place that reconciles you with your spirit and puts you on the path to peace and inner harmony.

“Ocean Beach” is the soundtrack of sunsets over long stretches of desolate sand that stretch for kilometers, where the dominant sound is the waves crashing ashore. Despite some lengthy sections, it contains a handful of moments that will delight those who, in sports as in music, seek vitality.

Key tracks: The Goodbye, Krill Slippin’, Splashin’ with the Marmaid