ITALIAN SURF ACADEMY - Marco Cappelli (guitar) Damon Banks (bass) and Dave Miller (drums) – was formed by Marco Cappelli after long conversations with Marc Ribot about the roots of the electric guitar "sound". Although several classic themes are rearranged and de-constructed, the music is fresh and unpredictable. Through its irony, the music triggers memories that coexist with a very specific arti
stic vision:
“Back then (the 1950's through the 1970's) the U.S. was more than a geographic place … it was a concept that we dreamt of belonging to. The prairies, a cowboy on his horse riding into the sunset encompassed by that warm guitar sound with a lot of reverb … all of it. This image was made up by the American movie industry and redone in many movies with a “made in Italy” label, that was expressed in Italy and abroad by Italian directors. That’s why we decided to create the “Italian Surf Academy” as a project that represents this musical and visual concept". Intensively active since 2010 in Europe (Italy, France, Scandinavia) USA (New York, California) and Asia (China, Japan), ITALIAN SURF ACADEMY "paid its dues” by touring in rock and jazz clubs, as well as theaters around the world. PRESS:
“Think of Italian guitarist Marco Cappelli’s ITALIAN SURF ACADEMY as a mixture of Dick Dale and John Zorn, or perhaps a far-out musical crossbreeding of the Ventures with a mind-blowing, avant-garde jazz education. Whether you’re touring the seaside cobblestone streets of Calabria via Vespa scooter, or surfing the swells of Manhattan Beach, balance is crucial. And in this heady amalgam of 1950s and ’60s American surf rock, psychedelia and folkloric Italian melodies, Cappelli and his Italian Surf Academy have embraced that concept wholeheartedly… It’s the musical equivalent of pouring Peroni into pineapple juice, and the resulting concoction is …"oh-so-tasty!”
- Hillary Brown, Downbeat Magazine
"A fascinating exploration of engaging music."
- Jim Fusilli, Wall Street Journal
“Take one Italian guitarist active in the Downtown Improvisation and New Music scene – combine with youthful influences of movie music and Spaghetti Westerns – mix well with a love of ’60s Surf Sound (think The Ventures, Beach Boys, etc.) bathed in reverb – anchor with a solid rhythm section of bass and drums.. and you get the Italian Surf Academy! Certainly the baddest bad Morricone you’ve ever heard – as well as themes from other ’60s Italian soundtrack stalwarts such as Piero Umiliani, Riz Ortolani, Carlo Rustichelli, Armando Trovajoli, and Luis Enriquez Bacalov!….”
- Bruce Lee Gallanter, Downtown Music Gallery, NY
