When a young Los Angeles surfer named Dick Dale began playing the SoCal beach circuit in the late '50s, he wasn't trying to reinvent the wheel; he was looking to create a sound that mimicked the roar and crash of the Pacific Ocean. Aided by prototype equipment courtesy of six-string guru Leo Fender, Dale single-handedly invented the much-mimicked surf-guitar style that imbued the soundtracks to almost every '60s beach flick and kick-started the careers of countless imitators. More than three decades after its initial release, Dale's early hit "Miserlou" became the signature song of PulpFiction. The Tarantino connection helped launch a comeback that shows no signs of abating; the prodigious Dale continues to tour with the regularity of artists half his age. Pairing the six-string luminary with rockabilly upstarts the Silvermen seems prudent. The KC trio's latest effort, IncendiaryLuminary, offers a rollicking, roller-coaster ride through a number of boisterous genres, blending uppity blues, country swing and barn-burning rock into a contagious (and highly danceable) mixture that jumps, jives and wails.
