Post #510820 by tiki mick on Fri, Feb 12, 2010 12:41 PM

Never mind, I got it to work finally.

Well, you want feedback, so I will give it. I think the world needs to come up with a different category of music, to set apart from true exotica. This is very good music, very well done...but in my opinion, it is not "exotica". If I had to label it, I would say it is "exotic surf". More surf then anything else. I think your music will be very well recieved by tiki centralites, and it is enjoyable and pleasant sounding. My issue is that for me, exotica was always jazz based. Denny, Lyman, Baxter...these guys were first and formost jazz musicians. Their music reflects that harmonic complexity inherent in jazz music. To this day, I believe only the Stolen Idols and the martini kings are playing real authentic exotica. The rest of the bands (most of which I enjoy a LOT) are playing a hybrid of exotica and surf, leaning more towards surf. That's not a bad thing, and I think it is actually more appealing to those music fans that grew up on rock, not jazz. So, this is possibly a new category of music. I think the originators of what I would call "exotic surf" might possibly be the Tikiyaki orchestra, as they employ the sound of surf guitar mixed with the birdcalls, percussion and vibraphone tones of true exotica.

I realize there are people that would debate me on this opinion, but I say in response that Martin Denny rarely if ever employed twangy surf guitar in any way. Exotica's main instruments would be piano and vibes/marimba...or in the case of Baxter, lush sounding strings.

That being said, for what you are doing it is really quite good! Please forgive my candor, I am a purist when it comes to tiki culture.