The Surfactants

2012/05/09

[Photos] Homegrown 2012 (Kip Praslowicz)

Some awesome photos by Kip Praslowicz from our Homegrown 2012 set. Thanks, Kip!

2012/05/08

Look Who Made The Current's Highlights of Homegrown

"BRAIN DOES NOT COMPUTE."

Big thanks to Andrea and Ben from The Current!

2012/05/03

2012/04/30

VIDEO: "Aussenseiter"

A video for our "Aussenseiter" song, part of the Homegrown 2012 Music Video Festival, by Anders Narum and Richard Narum.

2012/03/20

SHOW: Homegrown 2012 - R.T. Quinlan's

HOMEGROWN 2012

May 5th
Saturday

R.T. Quinlan’s Saloon

9 p.m. Electric Graveyard Afterlife
10 p.m. The Moon Is Down
11 p.m. The Surfactants
12 a.m. Bratwurst

2012/01/16

SONG: "Shake" by Bull Feathers

New track from new project by old Marcus and GCC.

2012/01/04

PRESS: Five Local Bands to Watch in 2012

Check out the January issue of Duluth Superior Magazine. We were named one of Five Local Bands to Watch in 2012. (Step aside Low and Trampled By Turtles.) They also said some very nice things about the new album. Run, no, sprint to your local newsstand now and get a copy!

2011/12/19

PHOTOS: Lake Ave Cafe 12/17/11

Press

OUR DEAD BODIES

"...one of the most exceptional albums to come out of the area," —Reader Weekly

"...wields sounds like a deadly weapon...If you like bands like Depeche Mode or Nine Inch Nails, but you also have a taste for more obscure noise or electronic music, give it a try."
—Duluth Superior Magazine

"...a really unique sound and the energy is just crazy." —SoundOut

DIMINISHING RETURNS

"One of the most satisfying electro-hybrid albums we've ever heard - ever."—Perfect Porridge

"Their first album is perfect." —Adam Lazlo/Analog Electric

"...well-produced, expertly executed...All those traits are represented in equal measures on The Surfactants...a very smart, successful experiment in computer-driven genre mashing."—Chris Godsey/MNArtists

"The current album is amazing." —High Plains Drifter

"These guys mix electronics with standard rock sounds, which ends up sounding pretty good." —Rift Magazine

"If the songs on the band's MySpace site are any indication of what's to come, Duluth is a few months away from being kicked in the teeth." —...and the heroine screams help!

Bio

The Surfactants is a dark new-wave electro rock band formed from barren Minnesota ice and snow. Combining a love for old-school metal with a fascination for lethal saw-tooth waves, the band shoves a boot into the teeth of unsuspecting audiences.

Formed in 2005 by producer/drummer/DJ Zac Bentz, the band quickly found their own unique voice in a sea of abysmal synth-pop wannabees. Instead of adopting the cliche batch of '80s kitch, the band used their 20 years of on-the-road and in-the-studio experience to forge a new style of heavy, dueling guitars, stuttering beats, screaming synths and pounding bass.

The vocal style of Marcus Matthews is also something outside of the usual new-wave style, eschewing that fractured, nerdy, childish approach and instead falling closer into a grown-up Depeche Mode or Foo Fighters realm. This unexpected clash of styles has sent audiences reeling and critics into fits of adoring apoplexy.

Members:
Marcus Matthews - Vocals
Brett Molitor — Guitar
Greg Cougar Conley — Guitar
Eric Anderson — Bass
Zac Bentz — Drums, Programming
Steph Bentz - Live Keyboards

Albums
untitled 1 (2006)
untitled 2 (2007)
Diminishing Returns (2008)
Our Dead Bodies (2011)

Email
contact at thesurfactants dot com

SOME PAST SHOWS

05/06/11 - Homegrown Music Fest - Pizza Luce
03/12/11 - Club Underground
02/19/11 - Rex
10/30/10 - RT Quinlan's
07/10/10 - Teatro Zuccone
05/15/10 - Hoolie Fest - Shuga Records
05/08/10 - Homegrown Music Fest - Teatro Zuccone
04/10/10 - Big V's
04/09/10 - Club Underground
02/14/10 - Pizza Luce
12/31/09 - RT Quinlan's
12/12/09 - Norm's Beer and Brats
5/23/09 - Norm's Beer and Brats
5/1/09 - RT Quinlan's
4/3/09 - Norm's Beer and Brats
12/06/08 - Stasiu's Place
10/31/08 - RT Quinlan's
10/31/08 - World of Wheels
5/02/08 - Homegrown Music Fest, Pizza Luce
3/28/08 - Memory Lanes
12/15/07 - RT Quinlan's
10/25/07 - Club Underground
8/7/07 - Uptown Bar
7/14/07 - Red Lion
5/5/07 - Homegrown Music Fest - RT Quinlan's
1/25/07 - First Ave/7th St. Entry
1/5/07 - Pizza Luce
12/29/06 - Carmody's
12/9/06 - RT Quinlan's
11/14/06 - Nomad World Pub
11/9/06 - 331 Club
10/5/06 - First Ave/7th St. Entry
9/7/06 - Club Underground
9/15/06 - Java Joint
9/5/06 - Big V's
9/2/06 - Station 4
8/31/06 - 400 Bar
8/19/06 - Red Sea
8/7/06 - First Ave/7th St. Entry
7/15/06 - First Ave/7th St. Entry
7/13/06 - 400 Bar
7/7/06 - Twin Ports Brewing