The Breakers: A Seahorse Of A Different Color (2024)

Chicago-based surf/psychedelic/garage/punk trio The Breakers, who comprise Jim Abrahams (guitar), Marc Lockett (drums) and Jayson Slater (bass) are back with their new album, ably abetted by Dan Klapman (saxophone), Gary Kretchner (trumpet), Jeff Bond (guitar), Neil Hansen (bagpipes) and Craig Williams (keyboards). Opener “Salute: has little to do with surf, and a lot to do with feedback-drenched over the top guitar garage, and is a great introduction as we psyche ourselves up for what is to come. The rest is recognisable surf rock, but it has taken on an aggressive and very garage edge which makes us think it is coming straight to us from some very pissed off surfers from the Sixties who have been listening way too much to Link Wray and want to grab that garage and distortion and make it their own.

I tend to think of surf music a light and summery but this is dark and menacing, quite oppressive at times, and feels as if it is coming to us from an industrial area as opposed to the beach. There is an aggressive direct nature to it, and if The Amboy Dukes had been an instrumental surf band I can imagine Ted and the guys producing something like this. I have only heard one other album by these guys, and I am sure that was quite different to this, which has a nasty dark heaviness which makes it very intriguing indeed.

Rating: 7/10