Surf city – Surf City EP

Surf City's backwards-looking NZ rock comes off not redundant but absolutely charming. Even at a brisk and easy-to-miss 20 minutes, the six-song EP provides pure pop nostalgia but also a reminder of what some may have missed the first time around. Heck, even the disc's brevity feels like a throwback, as does the fact that this set of rousing guitar-pop sounds like it could have been recorded in an actual garage. All that's missing is the crackle of vinyl for the illusion to be complete. How far the group can take its second-hand facsimile is another matter entirely, but for the time being, Surf City's pleasure for pleasure's sake approach already has me pining for more.Pitchfork 7.4 -Joshua Klein