Phil Dirt - Reverb Central - PO Box 1609, Felton, CA 95018-1609 USA
The Penetrators - Kings Of The High Speed Weekenddotdotdotdot
artworkThe Kings of the High Speed Weekend issue their first CD, and it's a grand expose of their wonderful writing and playing. The covers are good, but it is their original tunes that shine, especially "Wind Beneath My Kilt." This is a must-have CD.
Picks: Carl's Bad, Night Of The Drunken Cheerleaders, Melodie's Dilemma, Baja, The Wind Beneath My Kilt, Lamento A Go-Go, Stampede, Unknown, Last Of The V-8 Interceptors, Hubba-Hubba

Track by Track Review


Carl's Bad dotdotdot
Surf (Instrumental)

Cool rhythmic surfin' chunka chunka...

Night Of The Drunken Cheerleaders dotdotdot
Surf (Instrumental)

Joyous instro-oggle anthem. So simple, it's brilliant!

Melodie's Dilemma dotdotdotdot
Surf (Instrumental)

Grand melodic rhythmic chord driven infectious swellness... but then that describes the band too! This is one of those songs that just sticks with you. Dramatic and sad and very VERY cool!

Baja dotdotdot
Surf (Instrumental)

The Lee Hazelwood's standard played with a plucky coolness. Quite different than either the Astronauts' classic cover or Al Casey's original. Reverent, but not a copy.

The Wind Beneath My Kilt dotdotdotdotdot
Surf (Instrumental)

It had to happen. Scottish surf... more Scottish than the Chantays' "Scotch Highs." Yeow! This is just so infectious. It gets lots of calls on my show, and I understand totally. So, there is no way to avoid the charm and creativity of the Penetrators, and when they cut this wonderful merger between surf and Scottish traditional music, well... The last time anyone came close to this sort of thing was when the Amboy Dukes cut "Scottish Tea" on their seminal Journey To the Center Of Your Mind album. This is pristine, melodic, endearing, and leaves you feeling warm and fuzzy. A must have track! Awesome, boys!

Lamento A Go-Go dotdotdot
Surf (Instrumental)

"Lamento A Go-Go" is a slightly sad whammied tune with a very cool melody with twinges of spaghetti western or antipasta surf. This is a slightly sad number with a suave almost movie theme quality to it. Very melodic and engaging.

Stampede dotdotdot
Surfabilly (Instrumental)

The Rockabilly classic instro with lots of vibrato. Not as hot as Jon & the Nightriders, but damn swell.

Unknown dotdotdot
Surf (Instrumental)

The Vy-Dels tune with a ska happy energy. Very nice version, gentle, and minus all the piercing energy of the original.

Last Of The V-8 Interceptors dotdotdot
Surf (Instrumental)

A bit like "Melodie's Dilemma" but not as interesting.

Hubba-Hubba dotdotdot
Surf (Instrumental)

Cowboy twang and cactus bounce. The Austin cow surf funk of this song is more than just a little infectious. Pure joy!