“Surfing Strange” is the second album made by the Swearin, indie band from Philadelphia, composed by Allison Crutchfield (vocals, guitar), his twin sister Katie Crutchfield aka Waxahatchee, Kyle Gilbride (vocals, guitar) Keith Spencer (bass) and Jeff Bolt (drums).
Muses are the same as the album debut (it’s name was “Swearin”, as the band itself): Pixies and Breeders. Same players but different way of play. If “Swearin” (2012) was a quite dynamic album, “Surfing Strange” (2013) plays in the defense line but with the same intensity, with a still effective result.
After the good start of 2012, many have been waiting for this second album with pretty high expectations, which have not been disattended. “Surfing Strange” gives us a further taste of what is the real potential of this band.
The real strength of these guys are to create curiosity with great pieces of music, such as “Gold Dust In The Sack” and “Watered Down”. They also want to create some of the most intimate and confessional lyrics ever, such as those in “Loretta’s Flowers” and “Curdled”.
Very particular are songs like “Melanoma” and “Echo Locate”, which seemingly calm but are ready to explode, thanks also to the sweet voice of Allison Crutchfield.
At the end of the disc is quite spontaneous to demand: when will the next one? Of course, we’ll always expect always something more.
As said by Allison Crutchfield at Stereogum “In the first album all the songs wer over, in this album ( Surfing Strange) not all are necessarily finished”. Basically, a different way to approach to the music which does not disappoint at all.