Surf Psych

tagStarted 1963Peak 1965-1968Last big hit 1968

Located in 1 route

Surf's reverb and twang stretched into hazy, mind-bending territory: drenched echo, ragas-meet-the-beach modal runs, exotic percussion, and long hypnotic instrumental drift. Keeps surf's wet guitar tone but adds tape effects, drone, and a trippy, oceanic spaciousness pointing toward acid rock and the cosmic.

History

Evolved mid-1960s as surf instrumentalists absorbed psychedelia. The Sandals' moody soundtrack to 'The Endless Summer' (1966) and Davie Allan's fuzz-heavy biker-film instrumentals stretched surf toward hypnotic exotica. Davie Allan & the Arrows pioneered the 'fuzz guitar' instrumental; the strain dissolved into full psych and acid rock by 1968.

Defining artists

The SandalsSpotify YouTube
Davie Allan & the ArrowsSpotify YouTube
The CenturionsSpotify YouTube
The MermenSpotify YouTube
The SentinelsSpotify YouTube
The MarkettsSpotify YouTube

Essential listening

Theme from The Endless Summer — The SandalsSpotify YouTube
Blue's Theme — Davie Allan & the ArrowsSpotify YouTube
Bullwinkle Part II — The CenturionsSpotify YouTube
Out of Limits — The MarkettsSpotify YouTube
Latin'ia — The SentinelsSpotify YouTube
Cyclelon — Davie Allan & the ArrowsSpotify YouTube

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Sources

Wikipedia: The Endless Summer (soundtrack)
AllMusic: Davie Allan & the Arrows
AllMusic: Surf