Ukexotic – A One Man Exotica Band From Nova Scotia Canada!

Mike Diabo has been playing surf music for a long time with his band Urban Surf Kings. (25 Years!) They are the longest running surf band is Canada. Not only can Mike play guitar, he can also play the ukulele. Mike decided to branch out on his own and do some ukulele driven exotica. Playing all the instruments, Mike released his album Ukexotic and it’s incredible! Here is Mike Diabo’s story …

What is the tiki/surf scene like where you live?

Mike- The surf scene Halifax NS, Canada is fairly small, but well supported. Aside from my 25 year old band Urban Surf Kings, the other mainstays have been a brother duo The Green Reflectors. Several surf bands have come and gone since we started in ’95 (I believe we were the first band to start up here). Due to the size of the scene there is a lot of cross pollination between surf, and rockabilly musicians and fans. There is a very established group of surfers here that hit the waves all year around.

As far as the tiki scene goes, there really isn’t one. Hopefully this will change with the release of this album!

What got you into playing surf and exotica music?

Mike- My first memories of Surf/ Instro music was through my mother’s copy of The Wild Angels Soundtrack (Davie Allan) when I was really young. Fast forwarding to the age of 14 I started to learn to play the guitar. Some of the first songs I learned to play were Wipe Out (The Surfaris), and Rebel Rouser (Duane Eddy). My cousin Theodore was learning to play the drums at the same time, and we spent many hours in his basement playing those tunes. I became really serious about playing surf after seeing Pulp Fiction (1994). Urban Surf Kings started in 1995 and has been going strong ever since.

My journey into exotica started later in life. My wife had a copy of Hawaiian Swing (Werner Muller – Phase 4) we would spin from time to time that was really cool. Later, while searching for 1st Wave surf records, I started seeing a lot of used exotica albums, and started exploring those. Some of the first albums I picked up were Martin Denny’s Quiet Village , some Esquivel, and other generic – Exotica platters. Around the time “Swingers” (1996) came out there was a nice little boom of exotica reissues that I grabbed including some more Esquivel, and The History of Space Age Pop series. I was hooked!

Who would be some of your influences?

Mike- In terms of Exotica I really like Martin Denny, Esquivel, 50 Guitars, and Werner Muller, of course. The History of Space Age Pop really had a big impact on me. Modern exotica bands that I listen to a lot are Combustible Edison, and The Tikiyaki Orchestra (featuring my pal Jonpaul Balak on bass).

For classic surf/ instro music it has to be Dick Dale, The Ventures, Link Wray, Davie Allan,The Revels, and The Esquires. Modern surf/ instro bands that I really love are Los Straitjackets, Eddie Angel, Surfer Joe, and The Kilaueas.

Can you talk about your surf band Urban Surf Kings?

Mike- URBAN SURF KINGS, play surf music, 1960’s style. Think the beach blasts of Dick Dale, the leather jacket rumble of Link Wray, and the biker fuzz of B-movie heroes Davie Allan & the Arrows.

The 25-year-old trio features Rev Hank (that’s me) on surf guitar, Crash Flagg on surf bass, and Inky on traps. They are officially the longest running surf band in Canada!

URBAN SURF KINGS have 15 releases to date, including their latest full length Astro Surf A-Go-Go (2018). They have won and been nominated for many music and film awards, and have appeared on a multitude of music compilations.

We have performed across Canada, Antigua, and at several festivals including Surf Guitar 101(2018, Southern California), and Surfer Joe Summer Festival (2009/ 2015, Livorno, Italy).

You just created an exotica album called Ukexotic where you play all the instruments! How did this project come together and what’s it about?

Mike- Aside from being a guitarist, I play a lot of ukulele (USK actually have a uke alter-ego). It seemed natural to combine my love of surf, exotica, and ukulele. In terms of this album, it all started when I went searching for a ukulele driven exotica/tiki album in the style of those great 1950s and1960s recordings, but didn’t turn up much. That was the impetus to record “Ukexotic”.

For the album I wrote some new pieces, rearranged some USK tunes and 1st wave surf tunes, and exotica-fied some of my friend’s compositions (Jon & the Nightriders, Surfer Joe).

The instruments featured on the release are my Tenor Uke (Red Sands Ukulele), my Mya Moe Concert Reso Uke, and my secret weapon, a CF Casey Weissenborn-style lap uke. With some percussion, bass, and jungle sounds added in, you have Ukexotic.

The album is released by the fine people at Sharawaji Records, with the artwork done by the uber-talented, multi-media artist Ed Beals.

The album can be purchased here: https://reverbranch.bandcamp.com

What does the future hold for you?

Mike- More surf, more uke, and more recordings. I’m toying with the idea of a space-themed Uke album in the vein of Astro Sounds From Beyond the Year 2000.

Anything else you would like to add?

Thanks for taking the time for the interview, and for helping spread the word about Ukexotic. It is greatly appreciated!