Surf Punks

True to their moniker, the Surf Punks fused the punk rock and surf revival styles that were both surfacing in the late 1970s. Fronted by Dennis Dragon, the band captured the carefree, waves-are-up spirit of the West Coast and even appeared in a PBS documentary illustrating “California Beach English.” Their irreverence, immaturity, and distrust of outsiders surfaced clearly on tracks such as “My Beach,” “No Fat Chicks,” “Teenage Girls,” and “Locals Only.” Released independently in 1979 on the band’s own Day-Glo label, their self-titled debut quickly attained cult-classic status. Epic soon signed the group, and the Surf Punks reached their commercial peak with My Beach in 1980, only to be dropped after Dragon skipped a major concert to go surfing. They returned to the independent route for the synth-pop-influenced Locals Only, issued in 1982 on Hot Curl Records, then paused briefly before re-emerging in 1987 with Oh No, Not Them Again! The combo delivered its final release, Party Bomb, in 1988.