The Tremelo Beer Gut – You Can’t Handle The Tremelo Beer Gut

What’s in a name? Well whatever is in a name The Tremelo Beer Gut is one that sticks in the mind, it also suggests a self deprecating view of a band of a certain age producing retro surf with a slight touch of garage inspired fuzz, well that’s not a million miles away from the truth, although given their debut album was released over two decades ago they must have a been a younger version of The Tremelo Beer Gut at some point. If this was just an extensive collection of surf instrumentals then there wouldn’t be much more to say, but as they have recruited a stellar collection of guests, including members of The Ravonettes, Psyched Up Janis, The Jon Spencer Blues Explosion, Heavy Trash, Pussy Galore, Boss Hog, Pussy Galore, The Sonics, The Boss Martians, The Huntington Cads and The Courettes, this is an album that’s more akin to an all star beach party.

The band’s latest full length, You Can’t Handle The Tremelo Beer Gut, is old school, however, as The Tremelo Beer Gut were the first band to release a mono recording at the dawn of the new millennium this should not surprise anyone. Neither should their “if it ain’t broke don’t fix it” approach, something that is highlighted by the fact that they’ve used the same band photo on every single release, with only the colour filter changing. Is this a bad thing? There are bands in every genre who find their niche and unflinchingly stick to it, this approach didn’t do Motörhead, Ramones or The Fuzztones any harm, and The Tremelo Beer Gut are amongst that single minded collection of bands who are dedicated simply to doing what they do best without any deviation.

You Can’t Handle The Tremelo Beer Gut is an album that leaves you with the feeling that somewhere out there there is a Quentin Tarantino movie that’s missing a soundtrack, a description that could also be applied to any of the bands previous recordings. If you’re a fan of atmospheric reverb heavy twangy vintage surf with a faint whiff of contemporary garage fuzz then this could be your new favourite album. You Can’t Handle The Tremelo Beer Gut carries the echoes of everyone from Phil Spector, Brian Wilson and Dick Dale to John Barry, Henry Mancini and Ennio Morricone, it’s also one that aligns with their contemporaries who have clustered together on the album, as well as outfits such as The 99 Degree and The Sinclairs.

You Can’t Handle The Tremelo Beer Gut will be released on the 18th June and can be pre-ordered via Crunchy Frog Records.