Carter Reeves, Formerly of Aer, is Now Surfer Girl

March 21, 2022

Singer, songwriter & producer, Carter Reeves, found success at an early age when he began touring nationally as a teenager with his best-friend, David von Mering. Together they operated as a duo known as AER from 2010 – 2016. These days, Carter has found a new path under the name Surfer Girl with a debut album coming via Ineffable Records.

Aer was alternative pop hip-hop that formed in 2010. In 6 years, Carter & David put out 3 albums, toured the US, Europe & Canada while opening up for the likes of Pepper, Dirty Heads, Sublime With Rome, Mac Miller & Chance The Rapper. Just this past February, their hit single, “Floats My Boat,” from their 2012 debut album, The Bright Side, was Certified Gold. By the end of May 2016, however, Carter & David announced their amicable split, ending the duo known as Aer.

After Aer, Carter moved to Los Angeles from New England on a journey of self-discovery pursuing a solo career as Carter Reeves in search of finding his own voice. After a few years of little traction, the world came to a stop March 2020 when the global pandemic hit while Carter was in Maine. “March ‘20 was a dark time,” Carter recalls in an Interview on his website. “It was frigid on the coast of Southern Maine, the world had been turned upside down, and I had no positive future as a musician. Two weeks later, I had crafted the debut ‘Surfer Girl’ EP as a form of escapism.”

Carter then sent the EP to Ineffable Records who, after a few months, responded back with the positive news that they would put out his 5 song EP, starting with the debut single, “Hero,” on October 16th, 2020. The self-titled EP followed May 7th, 2021 and sometime during the summer of 2022, we’ll see Surfer Girl’s debut album courtesy of Ineffable.

In response to the name, “Surfer Girl,” Carter explains: “As a mediocre surfer, and not a girl, I need you to know that our name is a homage to all the rad surfer women out there in the world. First and foremost, I was inspired by my incredible girlfriend, but also by our shared love for the Beach Boys, and their song ‘Surfer Girl.’ Without Brian Wilson’s sweet sweet melodies, I wouldn’t be the musician I am today. Let’s not forget that at the end of the day, your local surfer girl is an icon. A badass, free spirited athlete who anyone and everyone can look up to. It’s a vibe.”

Watch: Surfer Girl – “Bag of Bones”

Ultimately, Carter concludes: “The idea came to a friend and me, that maybe it would be creatively liberating to make a body of work that wasn’t what ‘I thought people wanted to hear’ but was exactly what I wanted to make. I grew up religiously listening to Sublime, Slightly Stoopid, Bob Marley and Peter Tosh. Combine that with the fact that in March 2020 I was exclusively listening to 50’s/60’s roots reggae, and you’ve got the inception of Surfer Girl.”

For Surfer Girl’s debut album, it’s expected to be 13 total tracks with guest appearances by Shwayze, Marcia Richards of The Skints, David New of The Hip Abduction, Jackson Whetherbee of The Elovaters, Little Stranger and more. Carter connected with the production duo of Left Coast Sound (Jungle Josh & David Foral of Dirty Heads) on a new song, while also spending time with producer & songwriter extraordinaire Johnny Cosmic who helped drive home most of the written album with Carter in the studio over a few days.

While we await news on this highly anticipated debut album, you can find Surfer Girl music on any of your preferred streaming platforms as well as a recent guest appearance on Cydeways Sept 2021 single, “Take Flight.” We’ve also seen on social media that Carter himself has been working on music with Hirie, for Hirie, in Los Angeles and Hawaii. Stay tuned & follow him at the links below.

Watch: Surfer Girl – “Hero”