For over a decade, Anthology Recordings has revived and unearthed rare album collections and reissues for the good of vinyl hounds and culture junkies near and far. Their Surf Archive Series focuses in on the left-of-center golden days of surf, which manifests itself today through touch points like fashion and board design, to the aesthetic at corner surf shops and, of course, current surf docs and their accompanying soundtracks.
These iconic films and their ‘of-the-moment’ soundtracks include: Morning of the Earth (Falzon), Crystal Voyager (Greenough/Elfick), Litmus (Kidman) and more... And - through the work of the Brooklyn label house - they’ve justly seen the light of day and received the proper outlet for consumption up and down the coasts (and beyond).
We recently caught up with label founder, Keith Abrahamsson, on the heels of two new reissues (the Witzig directed Sea of Joy and Evolution), and got the general scoop on what they’re all about.
Aquarium Drunkard: Give us a brief bio... Where you at? What are you up to? I believe you're in NY - how's the surf?
Keith Abrahamsson: I'm here in Brooklyn...transitioning into Fall, waiting for the swell to show up. We had a little taste this past weekend.
AD: Let's get to the root of the Surf Archive Series. How did you get interested in these soundtracks...was it the films? The artists? Inspired by the surf? Lay it all out from inception to where we're at today.
Keith Abrahamsson: I suppose it was all part of my evolution as a music fan. I was pretty OCD about the fuzzy, heavy jams for awhile there...maybe 12 years ago or so, and dove deep into the more 'collectible' end of the spectrum. You can't really get outta that world without bumping into bands like Tamam Shud, Sky Oats, Peter Martin & Finch, etc. Once I got hip to those bands, I just kinda let myself fall further in and I discovered my love for many of these soundtracks. Once I hit upon Morning of the Earth, I was just completely melted (in a good way).
I didn't think to start reissuing them until 3 or 4 years ago and knew MoTE had to be first along w/ the Greenough/Elfick classic, Crystal Voyager. We've had some strong support and enthusiasm from lots of folks in the surf community and beyond, which has allowed us to continue with our vision of getting as many of these great soundtracks back onto LP as we can.
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