Something exotic may well be in the air; we sense a possible mini-revival of this fascinating and peculiar genre of music. The totem for both the exotic sound and lifestyle was the Tiki, the Polynesian icon that became the decorative novelty through the late 50s and 60s.
Here, urban archaeologist Sven Kirsten has dug through his vast musical and image-based collection to bring together classic and less well-known players and pictures from the scene. The 52-page booklet is crammed with rare sleeve art, girls and gods. The CD itself features 17 cocktails of gentle surf, Hawaiian sounds and loungey oddness. After quite a gentle start, things warm up and get very interesting with spooky cues such as I-Ha-She by Marais & Miranda, and hip swingers the likes of Hilo Boy by The Mary Kaye Trio.
Along with the obvious composers, this release offers up the educated and more obscure recordings, making it a delightful and hip introduction to the sounds, history and scene. Just a shame they chose to use computer-generated sleeve art instead of one of the stunning archival images from the little enclosed booklet. Let’s hope the gods aren’t looking.
