Davey Latter, Davey Allen, Jonny Perdue, Steve Stout, Zacc West.
By Ed Solt
Lost Beach’s moniker is partially inspired by lead singer Jonny Perdue’s surname, which means “lost” in French. But after playing in bands all over the LA music scene, the five musicians of Lost Beach found what they were looking for at home at the beach: their own distinct sound.
Lost Beach exists within the broadly-encompassing category of indie rock; their music is an inventive amalgumation of genre-bending sounds.
After eight years in California bouncing from band to band, Perdue, a native Texan, was fresh off the debut of his first solo EP, “Dark Heart”, when this band came together. He contributes his soulful voice and his bluesy undertones to Lost Beach’s sound.
Easy Reader editor Mark McDermott said it best about Perdue’s musicality. “What the instrument is called matters little, much like Perdue’s music is unreliant on genre classification,” he wrote. “It’s not Southern rock, though nobody but a Southern man could have made this music; it’s not blues, but nobody but a man immersed in the blues could have sung these songs. It is, perhaps, indie in the truest sense.”
The foundation of the band began years ago, when Perdue met and jammed with LA musician and producer Steve Stout (Lifehouse, Blondefire) while immersing himself in LA indie rock scene. Along the way, Perdue linked up with keys player Davey Allen. Allen plays in the newest formation of Eric Burden and the Animals, the former British Invasion blues based band known for their gritty cover of “House of the Rising Sun” featuring Burden’s deep howl and other hits. The three together create what Perdue refers to as part of the “lagging, jangley” sound.
The remaining members musical styles are the perfect contrast to the rest of the band. Banging anyway at the drums is the ageless Davey Latter (Arctic Monkeys, Everest, Great Northern), and providing the heavy baseline is singer/songwriter Zacc West. Both are heavyweights from Hermosa Beach, deeply influenced by the area’s punk rock foundation.
“We’ve got a very Americana feel coming from a soul place combined with a straight up backbeat with spurts of punk rock,” Perdue said. “With everything happening so organically, I thought to myself ‘Let’s keep running with this.’”
Lost Beach’s seasoned musicians expedited the creation process. As a self-produced DIY band, Perdue gives lots of cred to Stout’s involvement as a producer.
“We’ve been building a catalogue producing about one new song a week,” said Perdue. “Our goal is to release a new single every month until the release our first record later this year.”
One of their first singles to gain traction is “Weighted Sky”, which was released in June on Spotify and became a hit on college radio. It’s the perfect introduction to what Perdue refers to as “Cosmic Indie Rock n’ Roll.”
Lost Beach is playing with the Dustbowl Revival, a Venice Beach-based band that is a melting pot of bluegrass, gospel, pre-war blues, and New Orleans swing this Thursday, September 8th at Saint Rocke. Doors open at 6 p.m., show starts at 8 p.m. Tickets $15. For more info: SaintRocke.com ER
