Les Agamemnonz are one of the most unique and special bands in surf music, and if I were to choose one word to sum them up, it would be playful. If you see them live, you'll get it, dressed in classic-era tunics, barefoot, perhaps with a fun gimmick like a Trojan horse. They bounce around and look like they're having a ball. But they're also playful in a sense that they toy with the "rules" and expectations of this genre, perhaps a little bit more with each release, and the results are almost always excellent.
Die Sommerreise translates to "summer trip", and that's reflected in the cover art showing their van (and by the way, that's a painting, not a photo), videos, and of course the music itself. For instance the track "Terrazza Mascagni" is a reference to the checkerboard coastline terrace of Livorno at Surfer Joe Summer Festival. There may be other specific references within that I don't know, but I do feel the theme. You might think "whoopdie doo, you themed a surf album around summer", but this is so far off from a wet and wild adventure, instead more focused on the quiet wonder of travel.
And I really mean quiet. Amateurs played with dynamics but this album is about as un-loud as any surf album I've heard. Right from the first track "Sfumato", electric guitar is matched by acoustic guitar is joined by sort of a pots-and-pans style percussion, and I suspect that's upright bass as well. It's very light, folksy, maybe even a bit jazzy. And if you're thinking that's the calm before the storm, the second track may add a traditional drumkit, but slows it down! But it's a very pretty song, starting with prickly reverbed plucks, then going into a bit of a lazy waltz, adding piano, then finally everybody coming together into a swirling dance.
"Davet" has a swingin' mod dance beat but a bit of a classical guitar feel to it, and a haunting organ bit. Much like the previous track, it builds to a stomping payoff.
And as if things got a little loud, "Der Mondmann" has a pompous march to it with a bit of quirk to it -- feels like the theme to an old British comedy like Monty Python. "Der Mondmann" translates to "The Moon Man", and I tried to guess at what the inspiration might be there as it feels very specifically composed, but that's just too broad.
The initial single and title track retains a lot of the quiet and acoustic guitar of the previous tracks, but the quick strumming brings a bit more adventure and excitement to it. I get why it was the single -- it probably combines the most elements of what this album does.
The aforementioned "Terazza Mascagni" bellows with the clearest surf sound so far, though it's also such a free-flowing and light-hearted song, swelling to a romp almost at a whim.
"Gel Gel Gel" is really funny because for a moment they sound like another "Les" band -- Les Robots. They brought in Graham Mushnik on the ondioline, which I believe Les Robots also use, and that slap-back baritone guitar (sorry if I'm wrong about that) gives a real sci-fi feel. I'm not sure I would have made a connection between those groups before, but I love them both and I do think they share similar approaches to their music. It's also very funny seeing Mushnik here, as I just reviewed another album he popped in on a week ago.
Much like Les Robots' oeuvre, "Dieppe" evokes a big Joe Meek feel to it, particularly The Tornados. It even starts with a rocket sound! ...but more like a bottle rocket. Dieppe, France's main significance seems to be a failed allied beach front invasion against the axis. That... does not feel like what this is about to me, with what sounds like joyous fireworks and sea gulls. I'm trying too hard, it's a fun song.
"Le Vieux Manteau" (The Old Coat) is a really interesting song. Very tragic sounding, which is something that surf groups almost never go for, and certainly not to this dark of a degree. It does pick up into a bit of a death march, but does not turn around. While it's not my favorite track, it's very striking, and weirdly I think it speaks to their playfulness -- "let's see how dark we can go".
It finishes with "Canon" which probably ties "Terraza" for closest to a traditional surf song, though certainly not in certain elements such as the very creative drumming patterns.
Die Sommerreise is a very interesting record, and likely one to throw some fans of their 2010's output for the loop. But there's no shortage of good surf records that sound like surf records, and there's not much that sounds like this! It's earthy, it's experimental, it has flashes of joy but balanced by sadness and emotions in-between. I'm writing this review after leaving the theater from watching Teenage Sex & Death at Camp Miasma, and I knew that the point of the film whizzed past me, but I knew it was beautiful, fun, and I knew that it was getting at a nugget of something I hadn't seen much, if at all, in that medium, even if I couldn't quite wrap my hands around it. I feel much the same way here. There's clear intent and probably some obfuscation of that intent, but maybe the fun is scratching away at what they're "saying" and piecing it together with bits of what you know about your own experience. While I and you piece that together, they further cement themselves as one of the most unique and interesting groups that you could (perhaps with less confidence than earlier) call "surf".
Surprisingly, I'm not finding this on bandcamp at the moment. I'm not sure if vinyl is currently ready but you can pre-order through Hi-Tide.
