Surfer Blood - Swim (Live on KEXP)

[acsdx]

needs more cowbell

[thejustinramirez13]

Goes well with weed and pizza.

[fdalkjfdsalkj]

everybody in this band looks like an 8th grader with the exception of the cowbell guy

[TomWhiteHasEmail]

I dig this.

[ThreeCrowns]

Does that percussionist insist on looking like the biggest hipster asshole?

[Guitarmaster332]

@ThreeCrowns shuddup

[wseefried]

@ThreeCrowns if hes ripping mad cowbell....hes obviously not a hipster...hipsters dont know how to play instruments...they pretend they do. Quit ripping on hipsters if you dont know what one is.

[JustABSide]

@ThreeCrowns You don't know him. Need I say more?

[mosaothegreat]

@ThreeCrowns pretty much all "percussionists" who are in indie rock bands look like that

[heavensfence64]

@ThreeCrowns Don't be dissin' on Redfoo like that

[manhuntruler2]

wtf happened 2 rock music? what the fuck happened 2 Seattle?!

[halloikbenbjorn]

@562native wow, i always have that!

[whpriol1]

This sounds like Weezer.

[dfgreen14]

@562native yes

[562native]

don't you just hate it when the top 2 comments are replies and u gotta go back and look for the original comment to see what all the fuss is about?

[XmummraX]

the percussion bloke looks like something out of sesame street

[WaitingForBudd]

more cowbell?

[IIIonamatch]

1:06 is sweet

[coinvolti]

this sounds like a great soundtrack song! 

[BuddyRider]

Why is everyone saying the sound of this performance is bad? I think it sounds great!

[ShitShyShoes]

i want to punch their percussion guy.

[StairwayToHevin]

@ShitShyShoes ...why?

[deepapo]

i dont like the song, but i like the live thing....

[ckrenik]

if you want CD quality, listen to the CD, i love hearing how bands sound different between live and CD, its almost two different versions.

[StairwayToHevin]

@ckrenik exactly! i like when bands do down to the wire versions of their songs but its amazing to see their process even if it sounds totally different.

[nzwwefan]

Hipster Chick 1:42

[markdonat]

does anyone know what guitar pedals they use?

[gokolink]

@markdonat im pretty sure one of them is an electro harmonix stereo memory man with hazarai. Its a looper, a multi-tap delay, an echo with reverse... according to this electro harmonix booklet i have.

[Awsomeness14]

The radio station needs to stop commenting on what people have to say its their opinion lighten up

[jerrytheman1987]

why cant people just enjoy the music and bands, and shut the fuck up, damm fans can be annoying sometimes, the radio station do their job..

[pancitandcouscous]

marccooooosss! :)

[N1590]

i actually like it without the reverb. it shows that this band has balls in this auto-tuned day and age. plus, it helps me focus on more important things. like the guy with the fro.

[Coolby29]

I think they sound great, THANK YOU KEXPRADIO FOR BEING EXACTLY WHAT I NEED.

[ZidaneFTW]

1:04 best part

[Badondrums]

Probably not the best drummer of the world, but the best drummer for and (awesome) band like Surfer Bood

[bearsloverussia]

The Drummer looks exactly like my Friend. I'm assuming it is him but with some sort of time paradox.

[GuitarPornTV]

It sounds so different without the reverb on his voice but its still a great song.

[spikesonthebrain]

This has more views than the official video... because it is better.

[JustABSide]

@spikesonthebrain Dude I wasn't even the biggest fan of it at first, then I watched this and fell in love. Now it's an unhealthy obsession.

[TheChubbyKid]

True talent is found Live on KEXP!

Found your new slogan, I demand free tacos. 

[Kleasone]

why no reverb ?

[JustABSide]

@Kleasone Because it's not needed.

[stankler]

without the reverb!

[qwertykid94]

i think i actually prefer this song without the reverb...

[TheGodMan69]

this is too dope. i underestimated this band

[toastguy182]

Its how it sounds on the album......kexpradio please keep it coming

[oldmillstream1978]

They could be a future one-hit wonder (if this becomes a hit).

[Walkr]

im loving the lack of reverb

[jumpkenny]

The awesome dude who plays keys and cowbells! FTW!!!

[TJsalami]

the sound quality is shit. it's been compressed when uploaded to youtube. it's not the physical recording thats the problem.

[TheDinosauce]

Everyone should shut up moaning. This video is good.

[pediamuusika]

I dislike it, because "Surfer Blood" reverb makes it sound different than other bands. But not in this video.

[stankler]

frickin awesome.love album too

[MaxwellMurderx7]

Maybe their goal was to piss of the people who spend their days ranting on youtube instead of going out there doing something creative like writing a song. If you don't like the mix listen to the studio version.

[knoxville020]

Can someone tell me what pedals they are using?

[TheWhiteSpruce]

@knoxville020

Left to right

Boss Chromatic tuner

Electro harmonix Holy grail

Electro harmonix memory Man with hazarai

not sure what the black one is

hope it helped

[xawno113]

@TheWhiteSpruce Closest I can tell about the black pedal on the far right is a Plush Drive, but those are apparently green.

[jazsper123]

the lead singer ate out my girlfriend

[jdemenna]

@jazsper123 Mine too! that ragamuffin...

[stankler]

it doesnt need reverb.although as a wiseman once said.the opposite of a great truth is also true..the book of reverb....but ah .i just heard them first time and i am bettin they are big guided by voices fans.thats my 5 cents worth for the night

[miguelovic]

fro dude FTW!!

[DZBskateboarding]

i enjoy no reverb. raw talent.

[TheWildenNord]

1:08- the scream from the dude with the fro is awesome!! hes got great energy! then the cowbell solo! probly my new favorite song.

[aalexandriaisnervous]

shweeeeeeet

[pwbrittain]

Needle In the Camel's Eye?

[ohande]

one of the best bands i've seen live

[JustABSide]

With or without reverb, it sounds amazing. I love the energy the dude with the fro has =P

[bloodezach]

Reverb makes a massive difference for vocals. Still love it though.

[SimonClubDeParis]

i think this video proves they don't need reverb really. you can whine about reverb but at the end of the day it's a live performance in a studio and the intention was probably not to be like album version.

[pimpamhenk]

needs more cowbell

[theoroc]

sounds cool without reverb

[JBProductions100]

Wow. I do agree that they should have the echo like on the CD.

[hdvianna]

I saw Jerry Garcia in this video! xD

Cool music!

[HerrAmn]

Needs more reverb.

[brosauce69]

i like how there are two normal kids and one WEIRD ASS GUY

[OmfgItsLeon]

Love the part 1:08-1:40 <3

Percussionist is awesome !

[santri85]

They are VERY good live... saw them a week ago in Manchester. This video doesn't do them any justice... everyone has an off day and they still sound pretty good!

[Akon127]

I hope that lead singer thanks modern technology daily, because only a studio can help his voice.

[Soul74]

Its nice they let that homeless guy play percussion.

This has got to be the weakest rhythm section in rock history.

[bflav1]

hahahaha cowbell guy goess hard !! I love it

[nodnarbtron]

His singing reminds me of Ian MacKaye.

[shordy311]

not bad live , rekkon

[Steve11384]

Without the reverb his voice sounds like absolute shit. I love astro coast so much, im just going to pretend i didnt watch this.

[Waitingtoolong]

Their guitarist is great. Can barely tell a difference between recording and like. Quite an impressive feat!

[redjess1206]

i actually like not having the reverb on the vocals it makes it sound more natural

[stoplying]

THat chick has a face for radio.

[HONKEYdelic]

hahaha these guys rock and look like they are havin fun

[sallyann11691]

i love how they sound like a sweet band id hear in the garage next door...its a good thing!! reminds me of good summer memories and sunshine! chiiillllllinnnnn :D

[deviat3]

These guys are fucking rubbish.

[vowtosi]

@deviat3 keep it to yourself, or at least state it as opinion. I like them and I'm sure that I'm not the only one.

[weggles]

@vowtosi Don't be a cunt. It's a comments field not "Shower the video with praise" field. The dude doesn't like it. Obviously it's an opinion. Would slapping "In my opinion..." infront of his comment make it better? when talking about music it's assumed to be opinion given the subjective nature.

[vowtosi]

@weggles chill. i'm not trying to offend.

[CarltonBankz1]

whose the guy playing that weird drum thing from 1:08 - 1:35 ?

[silverblue73]

alright, so this is something i've thought about a lot... the first listen... you know, the first time you hear a song, and every version after that seems to be wrong somehow... well, i'm telling you, this is the first time i've listened to them, and this song is the f-ing cat's tits.

[greendaykicksbut1231]

I love indie music

[willwh1993]

quality cowbell solo

[Gronko123]

I don't know, I like the rawness of it without the reverb, can't wait to see them this summer

[sea58]

mmmm more resonance. revervberation. don't feel it without the linger

[OConnor800]

the singing is not that bad and so doesn't matter. it comes down to whether the song is good or not.

[OConnor800]

the singing is not that bad and so doesn't matter. it comes down to whether the song is good or not.

[jimjamkillsnerds]

The cowbell solo bit should be this loud on the album!

[rosiechanel]

this makes me want to organic produce and read my che novel.

[nookie1916]

pat benatar is gonna be pissed when she hears hit me with my best shot with these terrible lyrics

[AdamoMoreno]

@nookie1916 Seriously it sounds just like it.

[sensodyneuser]

these guys are gonna be known-great performance for a claustrophobic setting

[followHimnotUs]

it's the single type song off their album, so it's gonna sound poppy, just admit that it's catchy and go kill yourselves.

[socrates1818]

Boring band, no offense

[napaloo]

bad vampire weekend ripoff....just god-awful.

surfer BLOOD. VAMPIRE weekend. we get it . you suck!

[smokeweedndoshit]

@napaloo cool story bro

[TypicalEnglish]

very..very..very..very bad connection

[kjell1632]

That is a really lame connection. And Surfer Blood is awesome.

[evangarcia92]

This band is one of my favorites right now.

[kkatrinamorenoo]

I thought this performance was okay, they're so much better live, very energetic!

[donbergholdt]

the cribs rules

[chaoticjesus]

Bland as fuck. the percussion was the highlight by far.

[asienkany]

cool

[505Viking]

......meh

[princecharlessex]

The riff is the same that this song "Lou Reed - Sweet Jane"...

[JustABSide]

It's the Velvet Underground, and no it sounds nothing like it man. Sweet Jane starts higher up, and has a minor in there at the end.

[panner300]

I personally know the percussionist, from elementary school all the way through now. Awesome band. You go guys.

[philphie]

omg you are so cool

[Throw2Kill]

fuck yeah indie rock

[futbolref1]

siiiiiiiick band.

[BethPessoa]

reverb please

[raarset1]

o god lmao

[gongorastv]

@BethPessoa yess

REVEEEEEEEEEEERBBBB PLEEEEEEASE

[TheSasha555]

If Pitchfork says this is cool than I like this a lot.

[spikesonthebrain]

@TheSasha555 Now THAT'S originality.

[profchaos33]

@TheSasha555 im also a pitchfork sheep! high five!

[AtomicVHPunk]

@BethPessoa nooooooooooooooo!! =O everybody always has reverb, it's cool to hear a band without! Sounds facking awesome!

[sensodyneuser]

@BethPessoa its not the lack of reverb its the terrible sound engineering. Idk if this is what it sounded like over the airwaves but the whole thing- especially his vocals sound like theyre disappearing into a sock filled with soundproofing. Terrible mixing

[kexpradio]

@sensodyneuser, it's easy to be an armchair critic. Our engineer works with literally hundreds of bands in our studio and each has its own challenges. A young band may not be as prepared to sound their best in a half hour setup and live performance on air. Granted the room isn't very bright, but listen to our other in-studios before you judge our engineer!

[ilexgp64]

@kexpradio I worship you for working at KEXP. If it wasn't for John in the morning I would never get out of bed.

[sensodyneuser]

@kexpradio there is a suffocation of ambiance in this video that is not present in your other videos- like Final Spins who has a similar sound. Something went wrong with this recording and its your fault and its obvious

[kexpradio]

@sensodyneuser, the band was present during soundcheck. They were making the calls. It sounds they way they wanted it to sound. End of story. 

[headsosikk]

@kexpradio dont sweat it dog.this band is fucking lame.reminds me of sugar ray meets art garfunkel mixed with dashboard confessional and a severely drunk afro pop band who have just smoked dmt.actually that sounds awesome and these dudes are boring.

[JustABSide]

@headsosikk Judging from the way you form sentences, you sir, are the individual on DMT. Shut up. Dashboard confessional were considered one of the original "emo" bands, how does this sound emo in the slightest?

[greatestxgift]

@JustABSide Dashboard Confessional were not considered one of the original "emo" bands at all. Original emo had been around for over a decade before Dashboard was ever around. Where you little kids get your information from?

[JustABSide]

@greatestxgift i'm 19, but anyways. yes, the genre was around before dashboard confessional, hence why i said one of the original, and not THE original. emo as we know it today is different from the mid 80's emo, in the context i used it in it was correct.

[headsosikk]

@kexpradio sounds like the opposite of good.period.end of sentence.

[JLoose1982]

@sensodyneuser shut up asshole

[sensodyneuser]

@kexpradio do me a favor and listen to Surfer Blood on HearYa Live- its about the 5th or 6th video down when you type them into UTUBE- thats how they sound

[amaurylandia]

extraordinary new band

[tommyrow203]

This years Vampire Weekend?

[ebaums9000]

i hope not

[j1mschm1dt]

I love this, but they need to keep the reverb on the vocals when they play live.

[PenguinJockey]

They'll never be mistaken for Motorhead, but I find the awkwardness kind of endearing...

[RockandRollandSports]

the bassist is such a fucking michael showalter

[bentharsel]

@RockandRollandSports hahaha so true

[bigman1225]

hahaha, so true.

[IkeaPasta]

Not having stage presence doesn't equal not having talent. Two of the guys really do look like kids though.

[happybunnyhahausuck]

i like the music and style, but the guys voice is bring me down, he has no talent for singing, sounds like hes screaming and tone deaf

[mattaki]

@happybunnyhahausuck welcome to indie rock!

[funlovingmonkey]

These guys suck... so incredibly generic and unimpressive. Very surprised they are getting so much attention, especially from p4k. Good for them I guess.

the standing percussion guy is awesome though

[tbaier101]

Saying other bands suck sucks.

[hightimesbruce]

They sound so incredible and macho on the record. However, most of that is the reverb that makes the vocal sound like it just HITS you. Without, they sound like shit.

[LowLevelHum]

wow, f**king wow!

[hightimesbruce]

This song just isn't the same without the reverb on the vocal.

[BethPessoa]

i was thinking exactly the same thing, where are the holy grail's fiesta?

[pointsofhonesty]

so true

[TheRealPitchWhite]

Agreed. That's what made them stand out for me.

[hightimesbruce]

It sucks too, because I can imagine a bunch of people not getting into them because of their live 'issues'. Just throw some live vocal reverb (ala Grizzly Bear) on top of this and it'd be fine!

Although, it does says a lot that these guys can't show the same machismo-aggression without a production effect. If you look at a singer like, for example, the lead singer of The Walkmen, lol, he never needs any fucking reverb.

[TheRealPitchWhite]

I hate to be the guy that bashes shit on youtube but I can't help it. When I heard this song I got really excited about music for the first time in forever however further googling of them has left me bored. They shoulda made 12 songs just like this one and used reverb live and I would have loved them. The poor kid can't sing and they're just too immature musically and physically that its awkward live. But the recorded version of this song rules and I'm an asshole so what do I know?

[hightimesbruce]

Yeah, that and they have ZERO personality or presence. The guy on their secondary percussion: Are you fucking kidding me? Not to mention that their rhythm guitarist looks completely lost. . .:/

[TheRealPitchWhite]

Every interview is them defending against accusations of sounding like Weezer. Just take it as a compliment and don't pretend to be geniuses. I think they sound more like Rooney but again what the fuck do I know? The guitarist is my favorite part. His horror is adorable. The percussion dude is annoying. Nothing worse than a band that only has one weird looking guy rocking out. If they all looked like Brian Wilson (fat and old) instead of highschool fanboy nerds I might have loved them.

[dpowanator]

why do you care about what they look like? listen to their music don't worry about what they look like.

[mattaki]

@TheRealPitchWhite: pavement had gary young. no points off to them.

[tenaciousE21912]

@TheRealPitchWhite Really? There's nothing worse than having one weird looking guy rocking out? I can think of a lot of things, like one guy in the band who sucks, or an entire band of people sucking... but one guy having fun is the worst possible thing?

[ANDYGLOV3R]

Amazing video! I love the percussion at 1:10

[DanMichelFerrisIII]

how old are these guys?

[cabangbangq]

college kids from florida. crazy isn't it?

i saw them in san francisco with japandroids and they didn't look older than many people at my school (sophomore in high school)

[ItHappens117]

that sounds like a great show