The Surf Coasters - Surf Is Dead

The Surf Coasters are a Japanese surf band, started by Shigeo Naka in 1994. They continue to tour often in Japan and

abroad, where they have acquired a sizable fan base.

The band became known with their stint on the talent show television program, Ebisu-Onsen, a show very similar in

concept to the American program, Star Search), on which the winning band would receive a recording contract.

Although the Surf Coasters did not win the competition, their success on the show led to a loyal fan following. They

succeeded to make it into the final round of the competition, where they finished in second place; however, they still

received a record deal, which led to the release of their debut CD, Surf Panic '95, which, despite being an instrumental

album, sold well. The band also played that year with surf music legend and "King of the Surf Guitar", Dick

Dale, who was on his first tour of Japan. Reportedly, after the tour Dale referred to Naka as the "Prince of the

Surf Guitar."

Since then, the band has released upwards of twenty records, for the Columbia, Victor and BMG record labels, and have

become the number one instrumental band across Japan. Their sound has varied since 1995, including dancehall, acoustic

arrangements, blues, ethereal, and heavy metal. Naka has also gone on to record, with and without the rest of the band,

on other musical projects, including soundtracks for film and video games.

Though the group has not officially disbanded, they played their last shows together in November 2005. Naka has been

performing with an assortment of bands, including Ryouchi Endo and The Southern All Stars. Kurita has been playing bass

with his band Chill.