The rush of riding ocean swells and partying on the beach got a soundtrack in the early 1960s with the invention of surf rock. Guitarist Dick Dale ruled over that wavy West Coast sound in a heyday that also begat The Chantays, The Ventures and The Surfaris. And when surf rock receded, it didn’t totally go under: Punks, goths and new-wavers picked up the twangy strings and snapping beats.
Uma Thurman and John Travolta dancing shoeless to Dale’s “Misirlou” in 1994’s Pulp Fiction added fuel to a bubbling surf rock renaissance, boosting the profiles of Los Straightjackets as they jammed in Luchador masks and Man or Astro-Man? as they shot the curl with oddball sci-fi energy.
Out of that tradition hail The Surfrajettes, four women from the surfing hotspot of, uh, Toronto, Canada — proof that surf rock quickly became more about vibes than location. Bandmates since 2015, guitarists Shermy Freeman and Nicole Damoff, bassist Sarah Butler and drummer Annie Lillis dress up in matching beehive hairdos and go-go boots like they’re Phil Spector’s next great discovery. On their Web site they wonder, “What’s thicker, our eyeliner or our guitar strings?”
“When not on tour,” the official bio adds, “the group is busy woodshedding in their secret beach hut, sewing new miniskirts, debating vintage gear, and daydreaming about performing in a Quentin Tarantino movie.”
They don’t sing, but surf-rockers rarely do apart from the exhilarated shouts of Dale’s “Misirlou.” Their 2022 debut full length, Roller Fink, is a fun collection of original compositions and surf-ified classics like Blondie’s “Heart of Glass” and The Beatles’ “She Loves You.”
“When a song comes on, we think, ‘Could this be a surf song?’” Damoff told LA Weekly. It’s a quest that started with their very first single when, in 2018, The Surfrajettes found a way to transform Britney Spears‘ “Toxic” into a surf instrumental. On tour with Reverend Horton Heat, The Surfrajettes kick off a retro double bill that’ll have everyone dancing like rock lobsters.
The Surfrajettes open for Reverend Horton Heat 7pm Sunday, May 19 at Respectable Street in West Palm Beach. reverendhortonheat.com ~ David Rolland
