Surfbort have a rare gift in punk music — they carry as much fury as light, instilling optimism through packed moshes. Backed by her loud band, vocalist Dani Miller fizzes around onstage, gleefully sporting a dyed mullet, sketchbook tattoos, and makeup that lands somewhere between The Fabulous Stains and Divine. Even when they’re living in darkness, love and acceptance fill the room.
“That’s everything,” Miller told AP in 2021, having just released Keep On Truckin’. “I realized early on that being onstage, it’s not really about me fully… It’s about everyone feeling good, being themselves, letting go of all the crazy shit that’s thrown at us in life. The reason I do this makeup and scream into the moon onstage is to inspire other people to feel free to do whatever they want.”
Read more: Spiritual Cramp: Growing up punk
They’re still the same band — brash freaks trying to spread a little joy and hope in a demanding industry. Following their Linda Perry-produced LP, the West Coast punks hopped on Descendents and Circle Jerks’ split tour, signed to TODO Records — founded by Pooneh Ghana, Meesh Halliday, and Simon Halliday — and recorded their third album, Reality Star, out on Friday. Before it arrives, their latest single, “Hot Dog,” previews their unwavering, zany cool alongside an equally wacky video.
Directed by Ghana, the visual captures the very ethos of Surfbort — warm, unpredictable, a little strange. You have to see it to believe it. It also stars an eccentric cast of characters: Jesse Rutherford of the Neighborhood, Dead City, BONAVEGA, Zumi Rosow of the Black Lips, Bella Ferrada, Lex Orozco-Cabral, Mz Neon, Brad Oberhofer, Chandler Burton, Lizzie Armanto, Faerybabyy, Hatti Rees, Holly Silius, John Bryars, Sloane Lenz, Glo Marie, Chelsea Morgan, Maxwell Robinson, Nick Arnold, Riff Cuellar, Rider Garbarino, and Tara Spky. Spot them all below.
Pooneh Ghana
Pooneh Ghana
Pooneh Ghana
Pooneh Ghana
Pooneh Ghana
Pooneh Ghana
Pooneh Ghana
Pooneh Ghana
Pooneh Ghana
Pooneh Ghana
Pooneh Ghana
Pooneh Ghana
