October 31st is upon us! But before you deck yourselves out in face paints and costumes, and grab your candy-carrying receptacles for the annual Trick or Treat night, we encourage you to check out some fresh Halloween hijinks from our good friends The Currie Brothers – who offer an appropriate soundtrack for things that go bump in the night.
For those of us located in the upper regions of the North American continent, Halloween is not really synonymous with hollering “Surf’s Up,” but if you’re looking for some “Ghoulish Garage Thrash Surf Rock,” Gravenhurst, ON duo Rob and Andrew Currie are happy to oblige. Don’t assume for one minute that your ‘trick or treat’ escapades have to be accompanied by Bobby Pickett’s “Monster Mash,” Ray Parker Jr’s “Ghostbusters,” or Michael Jackson’s “Thriller.” No, if you are looking for some kooky, spooky surf tunes this Halloween, “No Go-Go The Bogeyman” is a must for tonight.
“Andrew and I grew up watching shows like The Addams Family, The Munsters, and Eerie, Indiana, which formed our love of the weirder and darker things in life at an early age,” Rob shares. “We tried to blend those themes with our love of the instrumental guitar rock of the 50s and 60s – to recreate the vibe as much as we could utilizing my ever-growing collection of vintage ribbon mics and old weird recording gear.”
With Rob handling all guitar and bass duties, along with Omnichord (and Hammond organ on “He’s All Eaten Away”), and Andrew taking care of drums and percussion, the duo called upon their good friend and musician Kristian Noel Pedersen to add keyboards on a pair of tunes – adding some extra “Boo-galoo” to both the title track and closing number, “Witch! Witch!” “Mr. Christmas, Kristian, plays some spooky keyboards on a few tracks, and yeah, he brought the creeps,” Rob adds. “It’s always a pleasure to work with him.”
When it comes to the creativity of The Currie Brothers, “the devil is in the details” – an appropriate metaphor on this given day – as the duo overlook nothing here to create some fun and creepy ambience. Kicking off with some “For Whom The Bell Tolls” vibe and some cracklin’ crows, “The Visitor” offers plenty of ghoulish groans and eerie extras that immediately transport you to a moonlit graveyard or haunted funfair ride. Thumping bass lines and creepy cries open the title track, painting pictures of the ghostly goings-on as you ring doorbell after doorbell in the search of sweet treats.
Be sure not to miss the arrival of Dracula and his barking canine companions during “He’s All Eaten Away,” as Andrew’s quick tempo drum beats and Rob’s ringing guitar tones bring this super-scary surf track to life. And adding the freak to the fourth and final track, “Witch! Witch!” the muted angry-mob effects recall images of Boris Karloff and Lon Chaney Jr. from those classic early 40s Frankenstein and Wolf Man movies, for this particular listener. Pedersen’s creepy keys are not to be missed here.
“No Go-Go The Bogeyman” is available to stream for free on Bandcamp – so go ahead and spook your neighbors with a little Halloween-inspired surf as you go door to door on their turf tonight. Trick or Treat shall never be the same!
Album Artwork: Blushing Bandit – Currie Brothers image used with permission.
The British guy that crossed the ocean and crash landed in central Pennsylvania (to quote Greg Keelor, “And I wonder what am I doing here?”). As the youngest of four siblings, exposure to music from a very early age nurtured my passion and appreciation for many musical genres. Continuing to discover some amazingly diverse and talented musicians based in Canada, I gravitate to live music experiences and remain devoted to spreading the word about such a vibrant music scene.
