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Surf the Web

by Satanic Puppeteer Orchestra

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sszepe
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Ross Pullen
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1.
Six Reasons Why Clickbait Titles Actually Work 01:45
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And now, here are the six reasons why clickbait titles actually work...
2.
I Should've Asked Jeeves 01:45
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You feeling lucky? You feeling lucky? You feeling lucky? I should've asked Jeeves You feeling lucky? You feeling lucky? You feeling lucky? I should've asked Jeeves
3.
Let Me Guess Your Password 02:28
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12345678, password, password1, qwerty, welcome, 111111 but backwards, Let me guess your password, Let me guess your password, admin, letmein, sunshine, dragon, 111111 but backwards, Let me guess your password, Let me guess your password, qM??]ZpS6;}~, Let me guess your password, Let me guess your password, passw0rd but with a zero, Swordfish because of Groucho, Your memory sort of stinks, You just use forgot password links, Let me guess your password, Let me guess your password.
4.
Pier Pressure 01:59
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Can you feel it? Pier Pressure
5.
Gone Phishing 02:34
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Fishing for compliments, Fishing for facts, Fishing for acceptance, Or a bot who'll interact, Fishing for followers, Fishing for fame, When I say I'm ready, Shout your mom's maiden name. I'm so ready. I've gone, I've gone, I've gone phishing, No bait on the hook that I cast, I've gone, I've gone, I've gone phishing, Not going, to throw, this one back. Fishing with banners, Fishing with spam, Fishing with comments, And those DM scams. Fishing for followers, Fishing for fame, When I say I'm ready, Shout your first pet's name. I'm so ready. I've gone, I've gone, gone phishing. No bait on the hook that I cast. I've gone, I've gone, gone phishing, Not going, to throw, this one back.
6.
Like and Subscribe 03:11
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Like and Subscribe
7.
Dear CAPTCHA 03:10
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Dear CAPTCHA, I don't think you even know what a crosswalk is. Dear CAPTCHA, I lied. I am actually a robot.
8.
Boredwalk 02:55
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Scrolling this loop, Of doom and gloom, So little substance, So much to consume. All night and day, Around the clock, I can't escape, This boredwalk.

about

As if the obvious needs restating: the world we live in is absurd. Need proof? Put the disc you now hold in your hands on the closest stereophonic bauble and let its cheeky play on “surf” music plunge you into the conceptual funhouse that is our virtual contemporary reality.
Actually, some of it, like the song “I Should've Asked Jeeves,” pines for the good ol' days of the World Wide Web mach one. “Let Me Guess Your Password” and “Dear CAPTCHA” are lighthearted titles, as well, if slightly demented productions. The rest of Surf the Web leans more heavily into the dark side of online brainwashing. Particularly in epithets such as “Six Reasons Why Clickbait Titles Actually Work,” the album's opener, which features an A.I.-generated voice in the OK Computer vein over an organ-grinding stomper—part retro-surf, part-haunted house soundtrack. “Like and Subscribe,” while satirizing the favorite pastime of social media, is simultaneously a variation on “The Theme from 'The Munsters.'”

In the tradition of novelty-surf records like Shock! Terror! Fear! (1965) by Frank E. Stein & his Ghouls, XXX Party (1999) by the Phantom Surfers, and Psychsploitation (2009) by Satan's Pilgrims, this new disc by the Satanic Puppeteer Orchestra filters the theme of modern technology through the tribal throb of instrumental rock music. To be certain, there've been attempts in the past to marry the two, including the space-age anthem “Telstar” by the Tornadoes (1962) and its moog synthesizer offshoot, “Passport to the Future” (1970), by Jean-Jacques Perrey. There was also “Sunset Sound” by Gershon Kingsley, c. 1969, which applied analog synths to a lazy Endless Summer vibe, and Kraftwerk's clever Beach Boys nod on 1975's pre-synthpop hit “Autobahn.” Where Surf the Web turns this approach on its head, however, is by being about technology while largely steering clear of digital aesthetics. Which makes its subversive take on the internet even more of a critique.

In the end, if this album makes you laugh at the stupidity of the people around you who spend all day, every day with their faces in a smart phone, mission accomplished; and if it gets you to put your device down for half-an-hour and dance your head off, even better. It's just nice to see surf music still kicking and screaming in the 21st century!

Brian Chidester
March 22, 2023

Brian Chidester is a creative historian with a background in curation, documentary filmmaking, and journalism. He has written articles for The American Prospect, The Atlantic, L.A. Weekly, Paste, and The Village Voice and is the author of Pop Surf Culture: Music, Design, Film, and Fashion from the Bohemian Surf Era (Santa Monica Press). Chidester is also the director of the feature-length documentary As the Wind: The Enchanted Life of Eden Ahbez and curator of the art exhibition Appeal to the Great Spirit: Designing the Beach Boys. He lives in New York City.

credits

released May 4, 2023

with
Nick Buchmiller (music) on all tracks
Scott Schramp (guitar) on all tracks
John Roy (saxophone) on 7

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Satanic Puppeteer Orchestra San Diego, California

Absurd satire? Experimental performance art? A glimpse in to our robotic future? A novelty act gone too far? Comedy gold? Yes. Join mad scientist Professor B. Miller and singing robot SPO-20 as they take you on an infectious musical odyssey. Their brand of quirky electronic rock songs is like no other. ... more

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