Smooth reggae blues weaved with Wednesday’s warm rays at California State University, Long Beach’s South Plaza. The black slab of stage based the centerpiece to this semester’s first installment of ASI and USU’s Noontime Concert Series.
About 30 students came out to watch the four-piece from Huntington Beach belt out a series of classic Jamaican-based jams, as well as a few originals. Whether their music served as a convenient backdrop to a quick bite at the Nugget Grill and Pub or a free pass to some free afternoon entertainment, Headshine managed to capture the attention of students in between classes.
“We were just walking past, but we chose to sit down,” junior Emily Gilhooly, a marketing major at CSULB, said. “[The atmosphere is] pretty chill. It’s nice to sit in the afternoon and listen to it.”
Headshine is compiled of a lead singer Ras Soumakian, guitarist and keyboardist David Elizondo, drummer Austin Weber and bass guitarist Rikki Juarez.
“They’re very good with the crowd. They bring a very good energy,” sophomore Courtney Schwab, a nutrition major at CSULB, said. “I actually like their music.”
The Daily 49er pulled three of the members aside to talk inspirations, tours and what’s to come.
How would you guys describe your sound?
Elizondo: I would say it’s acoustic reggae rock with a slight bit of alternative-rock influence. We’re not doing roots, but we’re not doing Nirvana-rock—it’s a flavor of all of that. So it’s kind of like so-cal vibes with some acoustic reggae rock thing going on.
When and where did you guys meet?
Juarez: Craig’s List– we met through a Craig’s List ad. All Craig’s-List killers came together.
Elizondo: Ras was a solo dude and then he was looking for people, so he just started adding people. Honestly this was my first time stepping out and going on Craig’s list. I was always [relying on] whoever I knew, just word of mouth, but that didn’t work for me for the last ten years so I’ve got to go on Craig’s List and get the ball rolling.
Weber: This was in 2014, in the month of June.
Who do you guys draw inspiration from?
E: Catch Fire is like my go-to reggae band. But I listen to a lot of hip hop and it sounds nothing like our style … It’s different and [I] need a break. [Sometimes} [I] listen to a completely different style so [I] get inspired. And [I] apply that inspiration into what we’re doing.
W: We draw a lot of inspiration from a lot of different places.
Are you guys working on new music?
E: Everyday. I’m hoping by the summer we cut an album. Right now we have a five song EP on Sound Cloud.
W: We have new songs that we play live that we haven’t recorded. We’ve got some stuff in the works that need to be recorded, but hopefully we’ll get something out soon.
Which bands have you shared the stage with?
E: We’re currently opening for the Wailers, Catch Fire—some really heavy reggae bands.
Have you gotten a glimpse of the “rock star life?”
W: A little. We’ve dipped our little toes in. It feels good.
E: That’s one thing I don’t want to become. I don’t want to be that guy that thinks I’m better than anybody. It’s always a bummer when you meet someone that you’ve looked up to and they’re jerks.
Are there any shows you guys are looking forward to?
E: The 20th and 21st of this month we’re playing a beer festival in San Diego. Who knows what [genres] we’ll play with, but it’s [probably] going to be that vibe where it’s either like reggae or dance music or hip hop.
How far do you guys intend to take the band?
E: All the way. I’ would want to see the band go on tour with some big names. That’s our next goal, to get on a tour where are opening up for some huge band like Matisyahu or maybe Dirty Heads. We’re one of those bands where the singer is very serious about his song writing and he’s constantly writing. It’s almost like it’s his baby. He has this thing going, and we’re just throwing [our input] into what he’s doing.