Surf Curse is an American

indie Indie is a short form of "independence" or "independent"; it may refer to: Arts, entertainment, and media *Independent media, media free of influence by government or corporate interests *Indie art, fine arts made by artists independent of commer ...

surf rock Surf music (also known as surf rock, surf pop, or surf guitar) is a genre of rock music associated with surf culture, particularly as found in Southern California. It was especially popular from 1958 to 1964 in two major forms. The first is inst ...

band formed in 2012 in

Reno, Nevada Reno ( ) is a city in the northwest section of the U.S. state of Nevada, along the Nevada–California border. It is the county seat and most populous city of Washoe County, Nevada, Washoe County. Sitting in the High Eastern Sierra foothills, ...

, and now based in Los Angeles. The band was formed by

Nick Rattigan Nicholas Foster Rattigan (born August 6, 1992) is an American musician, multi-instrumentalist, journalist and music video director from Reno, Nevada. He currently releases music under the moniker Current Joys. He also is the drummer and lead si ...

(lead vocals and drums) and Jacob Rubeck (guitars), and now also includes Henry Dillon and Noah Kholl. The band achieved mainstream success after their song " Freaks", written in 2011 and released in 2013, became popular on the

short-form video Short-form content (also known as short-form videos) are short videos, often from movies or entertainment videos, that are published on platforms like YouTube Shorts, TikTok, and others. Short-form content has become popular among young people, ...

platform

TikTok TikTok, known in mainland China and Hong Kong as Douyin (), is a social media and Short-form content, short-form online video platform owned by Chinese Internet company ByteDance. It hosts user-submitted videos, which may range in duration f ...

in 2020.

History

Surf Curse was formed in 2012 by

and Jacob Rubeck in

, under several other names including "Buffalo 66" in reference to the film of the same name. The band soon moved to Los Angeles, where they played at

The Smell The Smell is an all-ages, alcohol and drug-free, punk rock and experimental music venue in Downtown Los Angeles, California. The Smell, notable for its DIY ethic, is home to many of the area's avant-garde performers and artists. The venue is main ...

, a club that welcomed bands with similar sounds to that of Surf Curse's

punk Punk or punks may refer to: Genres, subculture, and related aspects * Punk rock, a music genre originating in the 1970s associated with various subgenres * Punk subculture, a subculture associated with punk rock, or aspects of the subculture s ...

. There, they became a part of the local all-ages punk scene. Rattigan continued working on his solo project, performing as Current Joys. Also in 2013, the band independently released the EP ''Sad Boys'' and their debut album ''Buds''. The latter featured the song " Freaks", written in 2011 when Rattigan and Rubeck were both aged 18. The band established a growing Los Angeles fanbase, allowing them to play at the October 2016 Beach Goth Festival before an audience that included non-local attendees. Their second album, ''

Nothing Yet ''Nothing Yet'' is the second studio album by American Indie music, indie surf rock band Surf Curse, first released on January 13, 2017, by Danger Collective. Background Nick Rattigan and Rubeck described ''Nothing Yet'' as a reflection of t ...

'', was released in January 2017 through Danger Collective. Rattigan and Rubeck described ''Nothing Yet'' as reflecting their lifelong influence by movies, saying that the song "The Strange and the Kind" could fit on the soundtrack of a modern '' Dazed and Confused''. The band remained somewhat successful, albeit underground, through the 2019 release of their third album, ''

Heaven Surrounds You ''Heaven Surrounds You'' is the third studio album by American indie surf rock band Surf Curse. It was released on September 13, 2019. Background The record was the first written following the bands relocation from their hometown Reno, Neva ...

''. This third album was praised for Rattigan's vocals and its lead track "

Disco Disco is a music genre, genre of dance music and a subculture that emerged in the late 1960s from the United States' urban nightclub, nightlife, particularly in African Americans, African-American, Italian-Americans, Italian-American, LGBTQ ...

", with its fast pace compared favorably to

Vampire Weekend Vampire Weekend are an American Rock music, rock band formed in New York City in 2006 and currently signed to Columbia Records. The band was formed by lead vocalist and guitarist Ezra Koenig, multi-instrumentalist Rostam Batmanglij, drummer Chr ...

's debut, but criticized for reliance on clichés within its lyrics. The lyrics of the album's final song "Jamie" and its repeated line of "I love the people in my life, all my friends keep me alive" have been identified as particularly moving. With the onset of the

COVID-19 pandemic The COVID-19 pandemic (also known as the coronavirus pandemic and COVID pandemic), caused by severe acute respiratory syndrome coronavirus 2 (SARS-CoV-2), began with an disease outbreak, outbreak of COVID-19 in Wuhan, China, in December ...

and ensuing lockdowns in 2020, Surf Curse were unable to continue performing live. However, in 2020, the song "Freaks" began drawing attention on the

platform

. The song's

angst Angst is a feeling of anxiety, apprehension, or insecurity. ''Anguish'' is its Romance languages, Latinate cognate, equivalent, and the words ''anxious'' and ''anxiety'' are of similar origin. Etymology The word ''angst'' was introduced in ...

y lyrics, particularly "I am just a freak", made it compatible with TikTok meme formats that played it in the background. "Freaks" has been described as a "soundtrack orwhatever you're cringing about", though its second life on TikTok has been distinguished from other songs that saw a resurgence on the app. Generally, songs that received renewed interest through TikTok had been recently featured in movies of television shows, unlike the relative obscurity that "Freaks" had enjoyed. Rattigan said he would have also been happy with the song gaining traction had it been featured on the soundtrack to the then-upcoming film '' Avatar: The Way of Water''; Rubeck joked that the unusual variety of videos featuring the song—including gardening tutorials and

thirst trap A thirst trap is a type of social media post intended to entice viewers Sexual arousal, sexually. It refers to a viewer's "wikt:thirst, thirst", a colloquialism likening sexual frustration to dehydration, implying desperation, with the afflicted ...

s—meant they "had to just stop watching them". The two said that they neither understood nor used TikTok. The popularity of "Freaks" came almost simultaneously with accusations that Rattigan and Rubeck engaged in sexual misconduct with fans. Danger Collective severed ties with Surf Curse at the time of the allegations. An anonymous allegation against Rubeck was retracted and two against Rattigan were similarly deleted; both band members denied the allegations. In August 2020, Rubeck stated: "There hasn't been a moment in my life that even comes close to what was described in that post." The allegations were made around the same time that Burger Records, which had organized the 2016 Goth Beach Festival, folded during a wave of similar allegations in the Southern California punk scene. After being rereleased as a single in May 2021 following the band signing with

Atlantic Records Atlantic Recording Corporation (simply known as Atlantic Records) is an American record label founded in October 1947 by Ahmet Ertegun and Herb Abramson. Over the course of its first two decades, starting from the release of its first recor ...

, "Freaks" reached number 64 on the UK Singles Chart and number 17 on ''

Billboard A billboard (also called a hoarding in the UK and many other parts of the world) is a large outdoor advertising structure (a billing board), typically found in high-traffic areas such as alongside busy roads. Billboards present large advertis ...

Hot Rock & Alternative Songs Hot Rock & Alternative Songs (formerly known as Rock Songs and Hot Rock Songs) is a record chart published by ''Billboard (magazine), Billboard'' magazine. From its debut on June 20, 2009, through October 13, 2012, the chart ranked the airplay of ...

, eight years after it first appeared on ''Buds''. The song is RIAA certified Platinum and, , has more than 1 billion streams. ''Billboard'' recognized Surf Curse as the second-ranked artists of 2021 in their category New Rock Artists. Following their signing to Atlantic Records, Surf Curse added bassist Henry Dillon and guitarist Noah Kholl to their lineup. Dillon and Kholl had toured with the band before the pandemic; Rattigan said of adding them: "I think the sort of the connection that me and Jacob felt with each other when we started the band, we also felt with Noah and Henry." As a now four-member band, Surf Curse released '' Magic Hour'' in 2022. As with their other album covers that featured the band members, all four are featured on the cover art of the album. The album's release had been preceded by the band performing at

Coachella Coachella (officially called the Coachella Valley Music and Arts Festival and sometimes known as Coachella Festival) is an annual music festival, music and arts festival held at the Empire Polo Club in Indio, California, in the Coachella Valle ...

in '' Wizard of Oz''–themed attire and the launch of the album's lead single "Sugar". The band began their North America tour for ''Magic Hour'' with a concert in

Las Vegas Las Vegas, colloquially referred to as Vegas, is the most populous city in the U.S. state of Nevada and the county seat of Clark County. The Las Vegas Valley metropolitan area is the largest within the greater Mojave Desert, and second-l ...

on October 30, 2022, where each band member was dressed as a different iteration of

Elvis Presley Elvis Aaron Presley (January 8, 1935 – August 16, 1977) was an American singer and actor. Referred to as the "King of Rock and Roll", he is regarded as Cultural impact of Elvis Presley, one of the most significant cultural figures of the ...

. ''Magic Hour'' was received positively by critics, who identified its lyrics as more creative and a positive evolution of the band's sound and talent. Similar to "Freaks" virality on TikTok, a new TikTok trend emerged using the band's 2019 single "

" in 2024 where two people would dance to the song leaning back and forth to each other along the beat. This trend led the song to number one on the TikTok ''Billboard'' Top 50 and its debut at 91 on the ''Billboard'' Hot 100 charts in September 2024.

Musical style

Surf Curse's music has been described as

lo-fi Lo-fi (also typeset as lofi or low-fi; short for low fidelity) is a music or production quality in which elements usually regarded as imperfections in the context of a recording or performance are present, sometimes as a deliberate stylistic ch ...

, garage pop, surf punk,

post-punk Post-punk (originally called new musick) is a broad genre of music that emerged in late 1977 in the wake of punk rock. Post-punk musicians departed from punk's fundamental elements and raw simplicity, instead adopting a broader, more experiment ...

, surf pop,

indie rock Indie rock is a Music subgenre, subgenre of rock music that originated in the United Kingdom, United States and New Zealand in the early to mid-1980s. Although the term was originally used to describe rock music released through independent reco ...

indie pop Indie pop (also typeset as indie-pop or indiepop) is a music genre and subculture that combines guitar pop with a DIY ethic in opposition to the style and tone of mainstream pop music. It originated from British post-punk in the late 1970s and s ...

, and

jangle pop Jangle pop is a Music subgenre, subgenre of pop rock and college rock that emphasizes jangle, jangly guitars and 1960s-style pop music, pop melodies. The "jangly" guitar sound is characterized by its clean, shimmering and Arpeggio, arpeggiated ...

. The band's live performances have been characterized as "bedlam" and "bonkers", with Rattigan saying that a particularly energetic set at

Pappy & Harriet's Pappy & Harriet's Pioneertown Palace is a western-themed, barbecue restaurant and musical venue, music venue near Joshua Tree National Park in Pioneertown, California. Accessible from California State Route 62, the restaurant lies four miles nor ...

resulted in the venue banning the band. Jaan Uhelszki, co-founder of ''

Creem ''Creem'' (often stylized in all caps) is an American rock music magazine and entertainment company, founded in Detroit, whose initial print run lasted from 1969 to 1989. It was first published in March 1969 by Barry Kramer and founding editor ...

'' magazine, approvingly described Surf Curse as having a "party-tastic kind of music".

Members

* Jacob Rubeck – guitars, occasional lead vocals (2012-present) *

– lead vocals, drums, percussion (2012-present) * Noah Kohll – guitars (2020-present) * Henry Dillon – bass (2020-present)

Discography

Studio albums

EPs

Singles

{, class="wikitable plainrowheaders" style="text-align:center;" , + List of singles, showing year released and album title ! scope="col" rowspan="2" style="width:12em;", Title ! scope="col" rowspan="2", Year ! scope="col" colspan="10", Peak chart positions ! scope="col" rowspan="2" style="width:12em;" ,

Certifications Certification is part of testing, inspection and certification and the provision by an independent body of written assurance (a certificate) that the product, service or system in question meets specific requirements. It is the formal attestatio ...

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IRL IRL may refer to: Arts and media * ''IRL'' (2013 film), a Swedish drama film about a high school student tormented by peers * IRL (2019 film), an American drama film about "the ups and downs of online dating and modern dating" * ''IRL'' (album), ...

! scope="col" style="width:2.5em;font-size:90%;", LTU
! scope="col" style="width:2.5em;font-size:90%;", POR
{{cite web , url=https://portuguesecharts.com/showinterpret.asp?interpret=Surf+Curse , title=Discografy Surf Curse , publisher=portuguesecharts.com , access-date=July 9, 2021 ! scope="col" style="width:2.5em;font-size:90%;", SK
! scope="col" style="width:2.5em;font-size:90%;", UK
! scope="col" style="width:2.5em;font-size:90%;", WW
, - ! scope="row", "

" , rowspan="3", 2019 , 91 , , 14 , , — , , 100 , , 57 , , 60 , , — , , — , , 56 , , 183 , *

RIAA The Recording Industry Association of America (RIAA) is a trade organization that represents the music recording industry in the United States. Its members consist of record labels and distributors that the RIAA says "create, manufacture, and/o ...

: Gold{{cite certification, region=United States, artist=Surf Curse, access-date=January 7, 2024 * BPI: Silver{{cite certification, region=United Kingdom, access-date=March 15, 2025, artist=Surf Curse , rowspan="3", ''Heaven Surrounds You'' , - ! scope="row", "Midnight Cowboy" , — , , — , , — , , — , , — , , — , , — , , — , , — , , — , , - ! scope="row", "Hour of the Wolf" , — , , — , , — , , — , , — , , — , , — , , — , , — , , — , , - ! scope="row" , " Freaks"{{efn, group=upper-alpha, "Freaks" appeared on ''

Buds In botany, a bud is an undeveloped or Plant embryogenesis, embryonic Shoot (botany), shoot and normally occurs in the axil of a leaf or at the tip of a Plant stem, stem. Once formed, a bud may remain for some time in a dormancy, dormant conditi ...

'' in 2013, but was not released as a single until 2021. , 2021 , —{{efn, group=upper-alpha, "Freaks" did not enter the ''Billboard'' Hot 100, but peaked at number 17 on the

Bubbling Under Hot 100 Bubbling Under Hot 100 Singles (also known as Bubbling Under the Hot 100) is a chart published weekly by ''Billboard'' magazine in the United States. The chart lists the top songs that have not yet charted on the main ''Billboard'' Hot 100. Chart ...

chart. , , 10 , , 95 , , — , , 60 , , 25 , , 112 , , 45 , , 64 , , 136 , * RIAA: 3× Platinum * BPI: Platinum , ''Buds'' , - ! scope="row", "Sugar"{{cite web , url=https://open.spotify.com/track/3Tuz3Ec6n03nPTAa5knMm8?si=05699a6d714941ac , title=Sugar – Single by Surf Curse on Spotify , website=Spotify , date=March 30, 2022 , access-date=March 30, 2022 , rowspan="5", 2022 , — , , — , , — , , — , , — , , — , , — , , — , , — , , — , , rowspan="5", ''Magic Hour'' , - ! scope="row", "TVI" , — , , — , , — , , — , , — , , — , , — , , — , , — , , — , , - ! scope="row", "Lost Honor" , — , , — , , — , , — , , — , , — , , — , , — , , — , , — , , - ! scope="row", "Self Portrait" , — , , — , , — , , — , , — , , — , , — , , — , , — , , — , , - ! scope="row", "Arrow" , — , , — , , — , , — , , — , , — , , — , , — , , — , , — , , - , colspan="14" style="font-size:90%" , "—" denotes a recording that did not chart or was not released in that territory.

Notes

{{notelist-ua

References

{{reflist{{Surf Curse Atlantic Records artists Indie rock musical groups from Nevada musical groups established in 2013 Musical groups from Los Angeles Post-punk music groups American surf music groups 2013 establishments in Nevada