Trabants: "Mirage" (2026) Vinyl Review

Trabants is a Portland-based (though originally Boston-based, and then Los Angeles-based) band led by Eric Penna, delivering some delicious surf and pychedelic garage instrumental music. Isn't it fantastic to know that musicians are still making music like this? The group has been around for more than a decade, releasing cool albums like Highwire Surfing, Cinematic, Freakout and Nel Cuore Di Una Terra Selvaggia. The band's new record, Mirage, contains all original material written by Eric Penna. The group has gone through several personnel changes over the years, and for this album is made up of Eric Penna on guitar, percussion, bass, organ, and vibraphone; Dave Berkham on bass; Glenn Brigman on organ, electric harpsichord and tabla; and Anthony Brisson on drums. There are also guests on a few tracks. The band's name, by the way, comes from an East German car that was manufactured for several decades until the early 1990s, the word coming from the German word for "companion." Well, this music can certainly function as a good and fun companion in a time that seems generally diametrically opposed to fun. In a time when many people take things much too seriously, this music is like great gulps of fresh air. 

Side A

The album opens with "Track Zero." Here the machinery is getting in gear, preparing to launch. One pass, two, three, four, building energy with each circuit. And then it's over, a minute or so after it began.  But don't worry, because things really start moving, start shaking with "Hot Brew." This track contains a strong rhythm, and a guitar with the right amount of fuzz, skirting psychedelic territory. The other guitar part is eager to lead us in a dance. And why not? It shouldn't be long before the music has you on your feet anyway. Then we get into a 1960s surf world with "Mirage," which features some cool guitar work throughout the track. I love when this kind of music has some sort of exotic, foreign element or flavor, as it does at times here. It's music that could transport you, just as those waves could take you for a ride. And we know we're in good hands. It'll be a fun ride, sure, but we know we'll arrive safely. Pete Curry plays drums on this track.

"Purple Panther" is the track that initally got me excited about this record, and I imagine it will have the same effect on lots of folks. The band put out a music video for it several weeks ago, so check it out when you have a chance. It's clear from the song's opening moments that it's going to be a cool track, the way it kind of sneaks in. It very soon grabs hold, and contains some excellent work on guitar, a delicious rhythm, and some wonderful stuff on keys. This track also features guest Ron Dziubla on saxophone, delivering some great, raw, mean stuff, getting down and dirty at moments. What more could you want? If Quentin Tarantino hears this track, he'll certainly put it in a movie. I wish this track were longer. It comes in at a little under three minutes. It's followed by "Soul Garage A Go Go," which has a strong groove that immediately will make you think of certain soul hits of the 1960s (particularly The Four Tops' "I Can't Help Myself"). There is a good steady pounding, demanding that you cut loose. And we are treated to some excellent stuff by Bryan Murphy on trumpet, that instrument calling all the forces of nature to join us on the dance flow. This track contains a psychedelic ending.

"Mata Hari" has an especially cool vibe. It is another track that feels like it would be at home in a movie, that it should be part of a soundtrack, or score. There is something dramatic, something cinematic about it. It should be the theme music to a cool, but somewhat shady character, maybe a chick that the secret agent meets in a foreign land, like on the ski slopes or something. And watch out! She knows a little something, and has an undeniable allure. It's the sort of danger we'd willingly embrace. The music itself is seductive. Eric Penna plays vibraphone on this track, part of the track's cool vibe. The first side of the record then ends with "Midnight Bells," which also could be in a film, one of those 1960s numbers where a bunch of teenagers are dancing while lights melt upon their beautiful faces rather than a character's theme. There is a good energy to this one, and the track features some excellent guitar work, particularly toward the end.

Side B

Trabants open the record's second side in somewhat more serious territory with "Five Alarm." The music still is fun and has a great beat, but it feels like there is a darker energy at play, something lurking in the corners, in the shadows, adding a certain urgency. Perhaps that element can be ignored, if you just wish to dance. But one thing that can't be ignored is that great guitar lead, as it coils around your neck and slides into your ears. That's followed by "August Nights," the bass leading us into a delicious dance, a party where the psychedelics are in the punch, but things haven't gotten too weird yet. Everyone is still largely of this earth, moving to a beat all can hear, all can feel, swaying with a certain joy. But you are aware that this is the launching pad, and colors begin to play on the walls and ceiling. This is one of my favorite tracks.

"Fuzz 4 Daze" has a catchy guitar part. This track keeps everything moving, everyone dancing with its steady rhythm. Pete Curry plays both drums and bass on this track. I personally dislike numbers used in place of words in song titles (2 for "To," 4 instead of "For"), but the track is fun. And yeah, there is the right amount of fuzz here. The guitar pushes us onward. The band then takes us back into surf territory with "Hollywood Surf," a song with a delightful beat. It feels like a dance on the beach, where the whole world becomes that spot, and nothing exists beyond the horizon. It's so much fun dancing barefoot in the sand, as this music clearly demonstrates. Doesn't life feel good? I think we need life to become a dance again. Things have been too serious, too ugly for far too long.

There is a wonderful psychedelic vibe to "The Emerald Apricot," and yet it is still a fun song to dance to, the rhythm keeping us somewhat grounded, while the guitar pushes at the boundaries of reality in a playful way. There seems to be a dance within the song, as the different parts urge each other on, as the two guitar parts do in the second half. This track also features some great drumming, and is another of the record's highlights. The album concludes with "Mantra Part II." In 2024, Trabants released a single titled "Mantra" (and actually there is a note on the back of this record jacket that urges listeners to "play the two songs from our last 45" - "Mantra" and "Surfers On Acid" - between "Track Zero" and "Hot Brew"), and this follow-up takes us on a trip, with its strong eastern influence. There is some wonderful percussion on this track. This music makes me feel good. While it's nice to dance to, this track also has something soothing about it. And there is an interesting ending, as if suddenly we move backwards through our recent experiences, a strange winding backward, or winding down of the record's opening track. So I think we're left with no other choice but to play the record again.

Record Track List

Side A

1. Track Zero
2. Hot Brew
3. Mirage
4. Purple Panther
5. Soul Garage A Go Go
6. Mata Hari
7. Midnight Bells

Side B

1. Five Alarm
2. August Nights
3. Fuzz 4 Daze
4. Hollywood Surf
5. The Emerald Apricot
6. Mantra Pt. II

Mirage is scheduled to be released on June 12, 2026, and is going to be available on CD as well as vinyl. You can order it through Bandcamp.