When travelling I make an effort to check out the local record stores to learn about the best local bands.  So this past January in Dunedin, New Zealand, I venture into Real Groovy Records and pick up a bunch of hard-to-find David Kilgour releases and ask the staff who their favorite local band is: they hand me a six-song EP by Surf City, describing it as recapturing the classic Dunedin jangle-pop sound while also incorporating more recent psych/shoegaze influences.  Well, that's music to my ears, and needless to say, this band was the soundtrack of the trip and of 2008.  I was hoping it would get proper distribution and thankfully Morr has picked it up so the rest of the world can hear these great, urgent tunes.