A Day in the Rain with Earthship & Couch Dog
A few days before we left Northern California, we got an email from Shabang organizers that Saturday would likely bring us a soggy sky.
The festival signified a new bliss period regarding what California’s Rambler chapters are getting involved in and cross-chapter unity, and that began to fruit months before we were even invited out. Last fall, a spunky girl showed up to a Berkeley show and a list of names was written on her palm. A San Diego team member in attendance connected her to a Santa Cruz member, and she told us all about her escapades in San Louis Obispo’s music scene. Her name is Cadence, and you should check out her show on KZSC.
We met Couch Dog through Cadence at a Crepe Place show in Santa Cruz. We chatted about Shabang and an interest in working together. Their easy-going warmth came through immediately. Pablo offered to lend us an easy-up to house our booth for Shabang weekend.
On Thursday, the San Diego and Santa Cruz teams met at a historical home in downtown SLO rented out by friends of Cadence. We slept in the trunks of our cars after fetching the easy-up from Couch Dog. Friday was sweet and dry. The rain came as predicted on Saturday afternoon after a damp morning.
We booked it from our little HQ at the Silent Disco to the main stage to catch Earthship, a group of SLO locals, right after their set.
RAMBLER: Welcome back to Shabang! How does Shabang 2024 compare to the last one - vibes, crowds, energy?
Eli : I wasn't here at the last one so I have no basis for comparison, but I will say it is very cool playing here for the first time. Everybody's super nice. And I like the rain too. I mean, it might get all muddy and dirty, but I feel like it kind of fits our vibe.
Spencer: Well, now that we’re done playing our gear will be fine. Last year, we had maybe three-quarters of the people. Bigger stage. Better sound.
Cadence: Adoring crowd.
Lauren: I like flaunting the artist pass this year. Been really into that, like feeling real confident. I was really scared last year. This year was more chill. So it was nice.
RAMBLER: You guys were invited to perform at Shabang again this year. Did that feel validating in a way— like, “Oh, like they want us back again”?
Lauren: Yeah, I was definitely confused though.
Caitlyn: It was a big surprise but we’re so grateful.
Lauren: We're probably just nepo babies, but that's no big deal.
Chloe: Greg Golf is actually my uncle.
RAMBLER: What do you think is essential to creating a music community in a town like SLO?
Eli: Cigarettes. No, I think the scene here has become really healthy and it's because people are doing it themselves. Having a healthy DIY scene is, I think, crucial to having good music all around. There's a lot of bands and lots of bands popping up, throwing shows in backyards and doing their own thing. And I think that's the best thing that you could possibly do.
Lauren: I think that it's cool that there's less boy bands than before. There's a little more diversity this year too.
Cadence: Yeah, I was here in school for the last couple of years and then moved up to Santa Cruz. The shows that I've come back and seen this year have become genre-wise a lot more diverse.
Lauren: Yeah, less house show rock.
Caitlyn: It’s nice because there’s people that wanna listen, so it makes it easier to not fall into the same genre.
Lauren: There’s been a lot more acoustic shows, which I love.
Spencer: We’ve been playing for two years, and when we first started playing, a lot of interactions we had with bands were opening for whatever were kind of strange. It wasn't the friendliest feeling, but as time has gone on, it seems like people are friendlier now.
Lauren: We didn’t have any band friends, and now we’re band friends with Chloe.
Chloe
Spencer: Shoutout Amttrak.
Chloe : I’m Amttrak.
Lauren: Amttrak- Earthship merge.. Pretty sweet.
Caitlyn: That’s what was today.
RAMBLER: How does creating music in the SLO environment shape the sound, lyrics, etcetera of your music?
Lauren: Maybe the hills, the nature, but not the music scene.
Cadence: Two of the best house shows that I ever went to in SLO were you guys. Two backyard shows. They were fucking awesome. Thank you so much for being out here with us.
BIG UPS - EARTHSHIP
Our interview with Couch Dog took place under a cluster of umbrellas next to a hot dog stand. By 4 , the drizzle was steady and we had hidden our magazine copies.
Tasha
RAMBLER: So our first question: How did the tradition of the boxing gloves in the pit come about?
Pablo: So it was Battle of the Bands 2023, and we wanted to do something memorable. And we were like, “What the fuck are we going to do to stand out?” So we came up with the idea of giving someone boxing gloves and staging a fight in the middle of the pit, and it was a lot of fun.
Tasha: We did it for the song “Punch Drunk”. Our whole roll-out was boxing-themed. The cover was a boxer. We did little boxing promo posters. So we thought it was a good way to really amp up the theme.
Mac: Yeah, we've all been talking about how badly we want to fight in the Couch Dog pit.
Max: Rule one of the Couch Dog pit is you don't talk about the Couch Dog pit.
Cadence: Aw man, we’re gonna get fired.
RAMBLER: How does playing a festival compare to the type of shit that you guys normally play? Is it more like smaller venues and house shows, or has shit been changing?
Max: It's nice to feel important. We get treated like little princesses and we get to ride around on golf carts and have free drinks and that's really fun and nice.
Tasha: Speaking of this festival performance in particular, we're doing our same old shit but amped up like times three. We always have like one little fun Couch Dog surprise trick at our shows, but we have a lot for today because this is a special occasion. We want to really make it super memorable, and we were stoked about the five o'clock slot. We think that's an awesome time. So we really want to make the most of it. If you miss it, I'm sorry for you. Also, a lot of new music we've been working on is debuting today.
Pablo: It's been a lot of hard work and we're excited to finally play it.
Mac: Yeah, I have a feeling someone's gonna die in this Sofa Canine crowd.
RAMBLER: What do you think is most essential to creating a music community in a town like San Luis Obispo?
Josh: Inclusivity and safety.
Max: Number one, being nice to each other,
Tasha: I think, partially, the type of people in SLO lend themselves to that. It’s a town full of, pretty much just like old folks, and then the college students, and there's not a ton of stuff to do. It's not like a big city or anything. So the climate is like, a lot of people go to shows because that's one of the main things that's popping. People wanna go to them on weekends because it's, in my opinion, the best thing that's happening here.
Max: A good mix of being professional and responsible but not taking shit too seriously, at the same time.
Cadence: You guys find that balance really well. I think you guys have your shit together, but not in an annoying way.
Max: I appreciate that very much. I think it's important to be well rehearsed and well practiced and to know your shit, but also to be prepared for shit to go sideways because it probably will. And as long as that's not a big deal, then you could still have a good time.
Pablo: We're literally getting rained down right now, 13 minutes before our set.
Max: Our set is not in 13 minutes. We have 50 minutes.
Pablo: Fuck.
RAMBLER: What has been the best part of your weekend so far?
Max: We got to talk with Chris from Peach Pit, and Mikey as well. And they're super cool guys. Even though it's raining, I really hope they show up today.
Tasha: My favorite was seeing George Clanton on the side stage. He was so funny.
Cadence: We only saw like a couple of minutes of him. We really wanted to see Livin’ Loose. And then as we were walking away he was just cussing some guy out.
Tasha: He was like, he was completely off the rails. The music was great. And then in between each song he'd just stop for two minutes and say the most unhinged shit ever. But it was so funny.
Pablo: He was, like, doing standup. I'm a fan of his and it was cool to be in the front row. And then he poured a big bottle of water on me and I was really cold for the rest of the evening. But I loved it. I gave him permission.
Josh: I also love the Wilt set. Wilt was so amazing.
Pablo: Wilt. If you're hearing this, I want to play a show with you.
RAMBLER: How does creating music in the SLO environment shape the sound, lyrics, and energy of your music?
Max: If you look at the last album we released, it really is a microcosm of experiences I had throughout my time in college, in SLO. There's some other stuff sprinkled in there, and obviously I think the band as a whole brings together a lot of really unique influences which helps to create the Couch Dog sound. But the fact that SLO is a college town and there's nothing to do helps. My friends and Couch Dog, we kind of have to make our own fun.
Pablo: That's a lot of the spirit of what you hear. Most of us live together. So it's also very fun to be in that college thing, but not really. We're adults, but we still live together and we're making music. Josh comes and visits us every day. He does not live with us but it feels like it.
Mac: Yeah, honorary housemate! Every house needs one. It’s the fixture of a loving home.
Tasha: We got a couple of those. We have a small collection. We have a bunch of people staying over this weekend for the festival and I'm having so much fun. I love having a full house.
Max: Sleeeepover!
Josh: I'm excited for you all to hear the new music. It’s everything we got in store. So I'm sorry if you missed this set.
Cadence: We will have heard them first and we'll feel really honored. I'm so stoked to see you guys. Thank you so, so much.
RAMBLER: Any closing remarks?
Couch Dog: Woof, woof, bark, ruff.
Photos by Mario Fierro.
Earthship interview and edits by Cadence Baker and Mac Rogers.
Couch Dog interview by Cadence Baker and Mac Rogers. Edits by Cadence Baker.
Our thanks to Shabang for the support and wonderful opportunities.
Published on May 18th, 2024
