The newest album from Florida's Surfer Blood is full of American indie that's tuneful and melodic. The stuff here is direct, and there's little that isn't enormously appealing. While the material is not necessarily breaking new ground, Carefree Theatre is a release that's easy to love.
"Desert Island" and the exuberant "Karen" bounce around on the back of crunhy guitar-riffs, and buoyant keyboards. "Parkland into the Silence" and "In the Tempest's Eye" are a bit faster still, shades of The Cure circa Head on the Door working their way through these numbers. Surfer Blood have a knack for incorporating elements of classic alt-rock in their brand of music, even as a number like "Unconditional" suggests that this is a really a power-pop band at heart. Still, call it what you want, but the blend of crunchy chords, soaring hooks, and summery harmonies is a fantastic one when Surfer Blood are the ones doing the mixing.
Carefree Theatre is out on Friday via Kanine Records.
More details on Surfer Blood via the band's official Facebook page.
[Photo: Victoria Sanders]