altrok main 7/10/2001

for July 10, 2001

Reach The Beach
by Sean Carolan

Time, and tide, have once again conspired to give rise to the beachgoer's dilemma: What music, for the love of all that's holy, am I going to bring to the beach with me, so that I may annoy all around me with my superior musical tastes? (This discussion will, by necessity, exclude Goths, who are very rarely seen at the beach, for fear of vaporization.)

All this assumes you'll be taking the hero's route: a sound system just under the weight at which you'd need a derrick to position it next to your towel, with sufficient power to churn nearby sand into glass (and the battery power to support it.) If you're simply bringing a Walkman with ear headphones, you'll never hear the he-man approaching to kick sand in your face, so the only real choice is a public display of audible affection.

Now for the music, which depends on your attitude: fly in under the radar, or take the beach with air, sea, and land support.

Flying in under the radar requires a taste for that which could pass for mainstream music, except of course that it is superior. You're probably safe with Beatlesque Brit-pop here, with nouveau mods thrown in for good measure. (Are Oasis nouveau anymore? Oh, well, nevermind - try Anderson Council instead.) Throw in some of the popish stalwarts from the first new wave, some XTC or Buzzcocks, and you'll be indistinguishable from a Toyota commercial (and just as well edited.)

For a command presence, try young-loud-and-snotty. The Clash will never fade as a source here, and while you're at it, keep an eye out for new stuff from Rancid, who will never repay the debt they owe the Clash.

Which brings us to audience participation. What do you do to keep the entertainment flowing as the UV index goes to 11? Let us know at summertime@altrok.com and we'll see if we can reach some kind of consensus on what makes a truly superior beach mix; conversely, we'll have something good to argue about over volleyball. Results will appear this time next week, or whenever we get around to it - we're flexible that way.