Surfer Blood

Surfer Blood

29 April, 2010
by: Jameslspoonfed

Dude. Was Point Break really that bad?

Despite a name which appears to point to some sort of anti-aquatic-sports-based death metal, Surfer Blood are a far less scary proposition. Instead, the Florida natives represent a fairly novel take on the ever-escalating 'nu-wave' surf-rock thing, mixing '70s/'80s power-pop à la Cheap Trick with the usual chirruping guitar work, doo-wop melodies and songs about, erm, surfing. With the band gearing up for an imminent headline tour of the UK, culminating in a show at Heaven on May 12, we talk to John Paul Pitts about politics, Prince, and Point Break. No, really, Point Break.



Our Live Music Editor says he caught you at SxSW and you were super awesome. Any good stories from the fest? Catch anyone else you liked?

We got to see Best Coast who I had never seen before – I'm a huge fan of her music, so it was cool to catch her set. I got to see the Pains of Being Pure at Heart and meet everyone in the band, so I’m looking forward to our US tour with them in June. SxSW was totally crazy and exhausting, but a ton of fun.

Let's cut to the chase. What’s worse: fielding endless questions about Weezer (thanks Pitchfork!) or endless questions about surfing (yawn)?

I think the Weezer comparison is a little off-base, but you can't tell how people are going to respond to your sound. I'm personally not insulted by the Weezer comparisons though, I think the ‘Blue Album’ and ‘Pinkerton’ are both incredible records.

As far as surfing goes, it’s not something I really think about a lot… looks like a lot of fun if you know how to do it.

On that note, if you are surfers, can you give us some tips? We don’t have the sea in London, but I’m told it can be found somewhere near the coast, so we might try it sometime...

Watch out for the fins when you wipe out – they're sharp. Also, surf wax can give you a rash, so wear a wetsuit. 

As for 'Surfer Blood', if we had to ‘remove’, say, the whole cast of Point Break, could we count on you for back-up?

We actually have Point Break on VHS in our van. I fell asleep half-way through though. I'd have to watch it again if I was going to make a decision to wipe the entire cast off the face of the Earth. 

Surfer Blood Twitter: “Prince just got out of a limo and gave us the peace sign”. WOW. Is he really that short in real life? Was he dressed in purple? Details please. 

We played a show at the 7th Street Entry in Minneapolis, home of the artist formerly known as PRINCE. Yes, he is short and no, he was not wearing purple. He did smile at us though. I hear he's really good at basketball.

Any other celeb-spotting you'd like to share with us?

TJ saw Kiefer Sutherland on the streets of New York. I saw a guy who looked like Spike Jonze, but it turned out to be a mistake. Tom swears Mike Myers was at our show in Los Angeles. We also saw Debbie Harry when we played Bowery Ballroom. 

While we're covering all the big issues: We’ve got a general election (for Prime Minister) coming up over here, but barely any bands seem to give a crap these days. What one thing would you do if you were in charge?

I would have clearer labeling on food packaging – there needs to be more information readily available to the public. Consumer consciousness is crucial if a free market economy is going to avoid slipping into fascism.   

Serious stuff over, phew. More importantly, if you could go back in time and stop one single record being produced, what would it be? Don’t worry, we won’t tell. 

Everything happens for a reason. If I were to do that it would change the arc of history and things might suck or be weird. Haven't you ever seen 'Back To The Future' man? The last thing I want to do is create (another) parallel reality.

Surfer Blood play The Garage on May 12. ‘Astro Coast’ is released on June 7. Thanks to Keong Woo at Family LTD.

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Jameslspoonfed