Surf Zombies rockin’ in rhythm in time for Halloween

Horrors! You can only hear “Monster Mash” so many times before you brain turns to mush.

CD REVIEW

The Surf Zombies to the rescue.

This Cedar Rapids-based band has recorded the perfect soundtrack to your Halloween party or other haunted happenings, year-round.

The Zombies' trick is your treat. “Something Weird” is actually something quite wonderful. It's a collection of 21 tunes that sounds like “Night of the Living Dead” crashing “Beach Blanket Bingo.” I can totally see Frankie and Annette getting their grave groove on as Frankenstein's monster and his bride. Or the Munsters doing a twisted Twist.

The song titles reel you in before you even give the CD a spin. “El Funebre (The Hearse),” “I Fell in Love with a Teenage Vampire,” “The Buzzard Hop,” “Surfin' Ghoul,” “Electric Skull,” Rockabilly Boogie Man” and “The Zombie Stomp.” What's not to love about titles like that?

The music doesn't let you down, either. Eerie sounds emanate from dueling surf guitars, bass and synthesizer, with lots of reverb and drumming that will kick the cemetery dirt off your boots.

With no weak link in the chain to drag you down, here are some of the highlights: Creepy intro to “El Funebre (The Hearse),” breaking into a sort of punk vibe; pounding bass on “Dead Man's Alley”; “Twilight” worthy trippiness on “I Fell in Love with a Teenage Vampire”; “Route 66” nostalgia on “Road Rage” (or is that Route 666?); the speed metal undercurrent to “50cc”; punky sock hop rhythms on “Don't Let the Admiral Out” and “Surfin' Ghoul”; more creepiness from “Crawl Space Crawl”; blame it on the bossa nova in “Incognito”; Elvis back from the dead to swing his hip bones on “Rockabilly Boogie Man”; and the outerspaciness of “Aqua Waltz.”

It's all just a party waiting to happen, suitable for little ghouls, teenage werewolves and their mummies, too.