Last week, KCRW DJ Garth Trinidad played a brand new track by the Long Beach, CA surf-rock trio Tijuana Panthers called “NOBO.”
On its surface, it’s a perfect lazy summer day stroll through vintage Southern California pop but beneath the low-fi buzz lay something a bit darker and distorted. Sort of a perfect euphemism for the city of Long Beach in general. With driving bass-line and drums in place, the song sets up a few traded guitar riffs, perfectly timed out.
The new album, enigmatically titled Wayne Interest is a step forward from the garage-punk sounds of previous releases, aided in part by the guiding hands of producer Richard Swift from his studios in Oregon. There’s a palpable difference in this new album, which adds another layer into the ever unfolding story of these characters.
Wayne Interest is out June 3rd on Innovative Leisure, but you can stream “NOBO” below!