Listen to this playlist on Spotify.
By Dylan Kuzelka
This skuzzy, psychedelic grunge playlist is inspired by surf rock and the film Lords of Dogtown. Don’t let names like “Run to Your Mama” or “I Wanna Be Forgotten” scare you from this hard hitting mix of fuzz and reverb. With influences ranging from Kurt Vile to The Stooges, this playlist covers a variety of genres while the distinct distortion and layers of guitars bring cohesiveness to the collection. The slight changing in drum styles seamlessly transitions from experiment rock to raucous garage punk and then ends in a neo-psychedelic cool down.
Song Title / Band Name
1. Goatman / Goat
Starting the song with a philosophy quote is like the that first ‘woah’ moment on acid. It sets you up to appreciate all the details. Then there is this blast of energy snapping you into a dreamlike state…a dream of people in masks dancing around a bonfire.
2. Run To Your Mama / Goat
3. Golden Dawn / Goat
With the high energy going through to this track, and the plucky clean guitar solo followed by the fuzzy rock guitar solo, you will be dusting off that air guitar of yours and put it good use.
4. Black Magick Started Jacket / Al Lover
This song drops the hand drums and ups the distortion on the guitars to move away from spirit dancing and more towards banging cymbals in the garage. Watch out for the hidden sounds and layers of instruments or you will be hypnotized.
5. Smoke Filled Thrills / Al Lover
The wavey feeling between your ears will be rocking you side to side, and the added ‘wah’ of the guitar is reminiscent of old school surf rock.
6. Groove Is In The Heart, California Girls / Crocodiles
This song is so surf rock you’ll picture yourself standing in a convertible with your swimsuit on and your arms held high while driving to the beach. Notice the use of the keyboard organ while this track lulls you into a daydream.
7. My Sunshine / Ty Segall
The intro guitar is almost the exact same as in the Crocodiles song, making the transition to this garage punk style a lot less unexpected. To see this song live would be so much fun, standing up and thrashing around with the smashing of the cymbals and drums.
8. Girlfriend / Ty Segall
With the embodiment of the California surf culture, this song takes you, “drops in, smacks the lip, WAHPAAAA! Just get pitted, so pitted”. This is a great listen and the lyrics are so catchy you’ll wish you had a girlfriend to make them all the more meaningful.
9. Velvet Itch / Bass Drum Of Death
By this song the music styles have changed a lot, but the flow of the playlist holds your excitement through this song. The vocals from Bass Drum of Death are skuzzy, catchy and so fun to jam to.
10. I Wanna Be Forgotten / Bass Drum Of Death
This song is punk as funk and I wish it was longer.
11. Snake Hands / Al Lover
Brings the energy in hot from the previous song and cools it down a tiny bit with some experimental guitar and vocals.
12. Pulse / Lo0p
The energy has cooled off by this track, and the exaggerated wobble and panning from side to side starts to introduce more spacey and psychedelic rhythms to the mix while holding onto the grungy and fuzzy reverb of the guitar from earlier.
13. Entrance Song (Raindance Version) / Phosphene Nightmare / The Black Angels
Catchy vocal chanting with lots of volume and space to move around add to the spacey reverb of the sustained bass and guitar chords.
14. Meat Step Lively / Thee Oh Sees
This upbeat song brings back the tambourine and high pitched guitar riffs. The surprise jazz flute mixed with the surf guitar at the end redirects the playlist from psychedelic back to surf punk.
15. Velvet Days / Fungi Girls
16. Dogon Genesis / Lumerians
This song mellows out the drums and introduces some heavier synths to the playlist. The clean guitar mixed with some occasional echoing sounds, start the descent to the end.
17. Tawazula / Lumerians
18. The Astral Transit Authority / Outrageous
19. I Dream In Neon / Dirty Beaches
20. Bardo States / Salvia Plath
