The Volcanics: The Lonely One
  
The Lonely One
Review by: Emma Jade Gunn
The Volcanics. There. I said it. THE VOLCANICS! There! I YELLED it! Quick, someone find me a rooftop because I'm going to have to go LOUD on this band's incredible styling and dexterity.
The Volcanics aren't just a surf band. You're going to get some party music, some vintage rock 'n' roll and some scary good ... oh, Beetlejuice! ... what I'm trying to say is that The Volcanics have taken surf music and added to it in a way that beat the socks right off of my wiggling feet.
So here I am, walking around without shoes or socks, trying to shake the feeling that I've just heard one of most awesome sounds to hit surfdom in years ... when I have an epiphany. I don't need to shake that feeling because it's the ear candy on The Lonely One that gave me the feeling in the first place.
 The Volcanics are like spending a night cruising a bit over the speed limit with a belly full of food and a margarita at the end of the road.
And here they are (clockwise from top-left) -
Frankie De La Torre - Lead Guitar/Vocals
Mark Yzaguirre - Rhythm Guitar/Vocals
Jimmy Schiavone - Drums/Vocals
David "Whitey" Andrews - Bass/Vocals
Well, where did I enter the building? Oh, yes, at the door marked, "The Volcanics Veraciously Rock Righteously Right In Here." Good sign. Perfect, even. Accurate since these dudes are not just adept, they're creative and one hell of a good time, to boot.
Nothing is better than this. Nothing. Listen in and you'll get a real honest-to-Poseidon thrill.
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Kanack Attack - Hmmm, it seems I was once told that a kanack attack is the lazy, tired feeling you get from eating too much. Well, since I love to eat and Lazy is my other middle name ... Gimme Cheetos! Gimme brownies! Gimme a pint of beer. Woohoo! Oops, I was wrong. I shouldn't have stuffed my face. I expected to get mellow, man. I expected to hit the sack. No way was that going to happen with this particular Kanack Attack flooding my aural taste buds. It's relentless. It's driving. It's heavy with instrumentation that could split the sun in two chunks and send it veering into Mars. What we have here is an ATTACK of the KANACKS! What we have here is double picking that's as deep as the Mariana Trench! What we have here is anti Kanack Attack!
The Lonely One - Uber cool title track. The riff on The Lonely One is huggable. I know that doesn't seem to make sense ... however, it's a fact, Jack. Here and there surf rock lovers run across a tune that's surfy, but still perky, party, huggable fun. So, I hereby proclaim, "We're taking perky, party, huggable fun away from cheerleaders! We hereby decree that forevermore it shall mean surf music with brightly played notes, fun drums, and the perfect combination of double picking and twang!" And that's the new rule. Pass it on.
Keg Party - Once upon a time, in an ice-filled bathtub far, far away, there was an entire keg of beer that two hardy souls intended to down in one weekend. They might have succeeded, too, if Keg Party had been blasting through the speakers of their record player. The beat is as cool as a sweating keg on a hot California beach. A mondo tribute to beach parties of days past and future, the lyrics add a funalicious dimension to the instruments. You just gotta love a keg party with great sing-along songs and people hooting with delight. Bingo! Keg Party is the right song for the right party, so let's hit the beach!
High Altitude - Dig that great opening! Frankie De La Torre, who wrote this track, probably didn't have skydiving and bungee jumping in mind when he set pen to paper, but you could jump out of airplanes and off bridges to this baby... and. not. even. wince! The guitars rev so high you wouldn't be able to catch them with a Ferrari. The drums are so sure and quick they're like Secretariat on caffeine. You can do anything to High Altitude - except sit still.
Green Room - Caught in the tube of a humongous wave, flopping about, riding high, riding low, surfing by the seat of your pants, taking full advantage of that rash guard, you, my friend, are in the Green Room. Don't worry. The Volcanics have your back. Just follow the solid surf lead and move to the drums for a smooth ride. Easy ... except maybe at the 54-second and two-minute marks when someone on shore pulls out their camera and discovers a shark photo-bombing you. Nah. Easy does it. Like I said, The Volcanics have your back.
Del Rey - Man alive, Del Rey is awesome. Hot guitars, hot sticks, hot everyfreakingthing to regale the senses. Del Rey is one of those songs that pulls you anywhere you want to go and, woo, it's FAST! Who needs to burn rubber on the asphalt when you have a longboard and the The Volcanics paying tribute to one of the best places on the planet? Now, that's what this chick calls HOT!
Moonlight Serenade - Glenn Miller, you've been served. Beautiful and languid, this is dreamy grab-your-partner-up-close dance music. Track 12 has a vocal version of this instro treatment. Listen, though, I'm telling it right. Glenn doesn't own the perfect Moonlight Serenade song anymore. This is it.
It's Alright - Marty McFly and I jumped into a DeLorean the other day and pushed a few buttons. Next thing I knew, Marty and I were dancing to It's Alright. No. Wait. Maybe I made that story up. I could have. Then again, it's entirely possible it's true considering how ingeniously The Volcanics transport listeners to other eras. Just get a load of the drum opening and that hot guitar chorus!
Superior - More excitement happens in the first thirty seconds of Superior than most songs have in their whole treatment. This is a treat instead of a treatment. A guitar lover's delight, Superior is a picker's dream come true. I'm getting out of breath just listening to Jimmy Schiavone pound away on his drums. Superior is only 1:55 long, so set it on repeat!
Trick Shot - Can you do an Alley Oop trick shot on a surfboard? I can do an "Oops!" I'm missing the Alley somewhere, though. But with this high-voltage track, I bet I could Alley all over the Pacific! From the very beginning there are quintessential surf sounds - steady, heady, surf beat drums and lightning fast, reverb-laden guitars. When The Volcanics hit 2:18, I'm already electrified, but that double picking just plain shoots and hoots. Trick Shot is Mondo Surf! More! More! More!
The Baron - Baron Manfred Freiherr von Richthofen is out to shoot down, shut out and shut up Snoopy and his Sopwith Camel doghouse! Fly, Snoopy, fly! To tell the truth, when the insert said The Baron was influenced by John Scott Trotter's Breathless and Randy Holden's Mar Gaya, I said, "What?!" But, to update the phrase "Holy Moly"... Jiminy Cricket stuck on a Fender pick guard with Gorilla Snot, that is one outfreakingrageous combo and I am totally enamored! Enamored as in an armored Sopwith Camel couldn't pull me away from this track. Totally, as in totalrific hard core intsro sounds of eargasmic power. The best. That's all. Just simply THE BEST. Do NOT, I repeat, Do NOT twitch because you'll miss something incredible if you do.
Moonlight Serenade (Vocal Version) - Gina! May I just say, "Wow, okay, that rocks, you're fantab, I love it, yes, you, Gina!" Falling in love to Moonlight Serenade is a great idea. Falling in love with Gina Georgette's voice is a given. This bombshell's voice is da bomb. Okay, I know that's a really old saying, but seriously! It fits so good with this super good, super super ... ah, you know what I mean! One of the most unique and delicious voices to come down the pike in decades, you can listen to Gina backed by The Volcanics' incredible playing until forever is over and then still refuse to turn it off.
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I only have one question. Since you guys are so absolutely fabulous, why call this CD The Lonely One? I know you have roughly a billion fans out there just waiting to meet you at the beach! I also know I'm never going to be lonely with you around because ramping your music out of my window is going to bring droves of friends. It's that kind of party!
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| The Volcanics: The Lonely One |
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| 01)??Kanack Attack |
Frankie De La Torre |
2:35 |
| 02)??The Lonely One |
Frankie De La Torre |
2:53 |
| 03)??Keg Party |
Frankie De La Torre |
2:51 |
| 04)??High Altitude |
Frankie De La Torre |
3:08 |
| 05)??Green Room |
Frankie De La Torre |
2:33 |
| 06)??Del Rey |
Derek Nakamura |
2:31 |
| 07)??Moonlight Serenade |
Frankie De La Torre |
2:24 |
| 08)??It's Alright |
Frankie De La Torre |
2:02 |
| 09)??Superior |
Frankie De La Torre |
1:55 |
| 10)??Trick Shot |
Frankie De La Torre |
3:32 |
| 11)??The Baron |
Trotter, Holden, De La Torre |
3:08 |
| 12)??Moonlight Serenade (Vocal Version) |
Georgette, De La Torre |
3:25 |
RECORDED AT King Street Recording Studio
ENGINEERED BY Mark Yzaguirre
AI songs written by Frankie De La Torre and arranged by The Volcanics, except "Del Rey" written by Derek Nakamura, and "The Baron" arranged by De La Torre influenced by 'Breathless" written by John Scott Trotter and "Mar Gaya" written by Randy Holden. Lyrics to "Moonlight Serenade" written by Gina Georgette. Al songs performed by The Volcanics.
VOCALS ON "MOONLIGHT SERENADE" Gina Georgette
CD CONCEPT Derek Nakamura, Gina Georgette, The Volcanics
CHARACTER ILLUSTRATIONS, DESIGN AND LAYOUT BY Gina Georgette
PHOTOGRAPHY BY Anna Maria Manzo and Liza Beltran
KEG PARTY CHOIR Molly Hunter, Chrissy Eldred, Edwin Carrillo, Adrienne Gray, Gina Georgette |
The Volcanics
? The Volcanics 2013
All Rights Reserved
A Double Crown Records Release
www.doublecrownrecords.com
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Review by: Emma Jade Gunn
? Emma Jade Gunn 2014
All Rights Reserved
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