Laika & the Cosmonauts - Instruments of Terror (CD)

All Music Guide

Laika The Cosmonauts are Finland's number one instrumental combo and with surf music legends like Dick Dale and Teisco Del Rey singing their praises, they are an outfit well worth checking out. While it seems these days that any retro-instrumental combo that turns the reverb control on their amps up past two gets lumped in a clump as a 'surf group, ' one listen to Instruments of Terror will make you realize that Laika and the boys have tapped in to that decidedly European-Spaghetti Western side of the equation. Their adaptions of TV and movie themes ("Mission Impossible," Henry Mancini's "Experiment in Terror," Bernard Herrman's theme from "Vertigo" and "Psycho" done here as a medley) are quirky, unique and delivered with style, while material like "Magic Bullet" or "Enchanted Rock" are nothing short of trance inducing.

- Cub Koda, All Music Guide