An Afternoon with Strawberry Fuzz
What do bands Red Hot Chili Peppers, the Black Eyed Peas, the Byrds, and the Beach Boys all have in common besides incredible music? A shared birthplace.
The city of Los Angeles has long been helmed as a mecca for musicians, both native and transplant. When examining Los Angeles’s rich musical history, it may seem as though the city provides rather large shoes to fill for young hopefuls. Luckily for us, up-and-coming band Strawberry Fuzz (or, as drummer Andy calls them, “the Fuzz) is up for the challenge. The Venice-based group, which consists of Alex Arias (guitar/keys), Colby Rodgers (vox), Dashel Dupuy (bass), Kris Miller (guitar), and Andy Warren (drums), spoke with Rambler! Magazine in an exclusive interview in preparation for their debut release, Wasting My Time.
When asked to describe the band in three words, their answer was “garage surf punk.” While rather simple, there may be no three better words to describe a group that has come into their own making beats in a, quite literal, garage on the beach. The band owes their creation to a happenstance backyard rager a friend asked them to play at. Colby and Alex, who lived a block away from each other and were the first to connect and begin playing together, said Strawberry Fuzz’s inception was a speedy one.
“We got asked to play a friend's backyard rager, and quickly tried to throw a band together. Kris had heard some demos at a friends house and wanted in. From there he brought in Dash on bass and Alex brought in Andy to drum and we were good to go.”
While the band frequently plays in their hometown on the West Side, Strawberry Fuzz is no stranger to the rest of the city of Angels. In the past year, the band has played shows at the Redwood Bar, The Echo, and Bardot, among others. The band’s familiarity with the city is evident not only in their venue selection but in their music as well. Their song “East of the 405” off their brand new 3-track teaser jokes about the band’s friends refusing to leave the West Side (a genre of person all too familiar to native Angelinos). Even when not singing directly about the city, that classic Los Angeles sound that has been refined for decades by rock greats is a highlight of the band’s music.
For guitarist Alex, music isn’t just a city industry, but a family one as well. Alex, whose younger sister Etta plays guitar and does vocals for the band Momma, spoke about his experience with music as the family business.
“As the older brother, I know my work musically got to her at a young age and her new explosion onto the scene has also help shape this band a lot for me. It’s great to have given each other inspiration at different points in our lives.”
And it seems like Strawberry Fuzz is gearing up for an explosion of theirs. Just a week before their debut EP, the group headlined Bottom of the Hill in San Fransisco, a historical venue that has featured the likes of Bright Eyes, Elliott Smith, Beastie Boys, the Flaming Lips, and many more. But the boys bear this massive accomplishment with humility, describing the experience as “really rad” (lingo fitting for a Venice-based band).
Perhaps the band already knows that their early performances at iconic venues will one day only be footnotes in their musical journey, one that both the boys and I are excited to bear witness to. Still, it seems unlikely that the members of Strawberry Fuzz are driven by their inevitable success in the rock scene. In their own words, “We’re pumped to see where this music will take us next.”
If you, too, are interested in seeing where Strawberry Fuzz’s music will take them, be sure to follow them on Instagram, Twitter, and Facebook.
Strawberry Fuzz’s debut 3-track teaser, Wasting My Time, is now available today, 11/23.