ZuhG plays Saint Rocke – Chillin’, groovin’ vibes, mixed with high energy, jamming shows
When I hear the name ZuhG, it makes me think of the planet Gong, Daevid Allen and pothead pixies. Well, it’s not a mythical planet, and the potheads aren’t pixies; but there is one commonality shared with the fanciful world created by the founding member of Soft Machine and Gong…
“ZuhG means to be unlike others, and to do something different,” says Bryan Nichols of ZuhG. “We made it up. Be ZuhG… Live a ZuhG life.”
ZuhG is a prolific band from Sacramento who has surprisingly developed a solid fan base in the South Bay with their blend of reggae, jazz, funk, and jam music. Chillin’, groovin’ vibes, mixed with high energy, jamming shows connect well with many of the Bay’s own pixies and live music lovers.
“We have an overall peaceful, feeling good vibe,” says Nichols. “It’s all about having fun and doing what you love because you love it; not for money. For the love of music.”
Nichols plays guitar and sings, and together with the rest of the band it’s a eclectic mix of influence and output. There’s also JR Halliday (guitar), Mike Ruiz (drums), Jake Jarzemkoski (bass, vocals), Charles Wheeler (beatbox, MC), and Bot (saxophone).
“There is a good mixture of musical influence in ZuhG,” says Nichols. “Our bassist is a Dead-head… Bot on saxophone loves jazz… We all like classic rock and jam-funk bands, like The Doors and Galactic… We enjoy some hip hop, reggae, rock n’ roll… We might break out into a disco jam… little bit of everything.”
Living the ZuhG life helps prevent the band from feeling a need to sound one particular way, or follow suit with what’s expected of their sound. It allows their sound to flow as they feel it, wherever it comes from.
“We just make music that comes naturally,” says Nichols. “We don’t try to force out certain types of songs to uphold a genre. Whatever happens happens, you never know what you’re going to get.”
And it’s works. Since their beginning in 2008, when ZuhG started their own record label Sunflower and released the debut To Be Unlike Others, they have received solid local (Sacramento) air play, were named “Band of the Week” in High Times Magazine in 2009, have appeared in Relix Magazine, were on the front page of the Sacramento Bee, and earned a Sammies Award (Sacramento Area Music Awards) in 2010 for the Reggae/Jam/Roots Band division. It was also a great honor and stoke for them when one of their tracks was included on a compilation CD alongside the band Further, which includes members of Grateful Dead.
They have also attracted a handful of sponsors, including Sudwerk Brewery, Silver Surfer Vaporizer, and the South Bay’s very own Hippy Tree Clothing.
They’ve toured extensively along the west coast of California and Oregon, and have participated in numerous music festivals – including the Whole Earth Festival and Bobolink. Along the way they’ve shared the bill with such notables as The Dirty Heads, Mother Hips, Orgone, Iration, Zion I, Rehab, The Brody’s, and the South Bay-based bands B Foundation and Tomorrows Bad Seeds.
ZuhG has been so active they even opened their own ZuhG Life store in their hometown of Sacramento. It’s essentially an independent music store, as well as a hub for local artists and California-based clothing manufacturers to sell their craft – including Hippy Tree. Their refuge even offers music lessons for the local artiste.
Following the release of their second album Life in 2009 and Fish Tank in 2010, ZuhG is currently touring to promote their fourth and latest album Free Love, which came out this spring. They’ll be making a welcomed stop in Hermosa Beach to perform tonight, July 20, at Saint Rocke.
Nichols says Free Love is “a roller coaster ride full of musical genres and jams!” And as for its heart, he says, “Free love can mean a lot of different things… to us and for this album it means love is free… we should all enjoy each other’s company, respect people, be happy, and love each other.”
And as if you could expect ZuhG to sit still.
“We’re going to start working on our next full length soon,” shares Nichols. “It’s going to be called Field Trip, and we’re excited to get back in the studio and start recording more.”
ZuhG performs Saint Rocke, Wednesday, July 20 at 9PM, with Zen Robbi, Audible Mainframe, and Big Ol Hoodie 40 Monster. Happy hour with Ireesh Lal at 6PM. ZuhG’s also playing a house party in Long Beach July 21 – inquire about location on their facebook. Listen to ZuhG, Tomorrows Bad Seeds, and Lal Meri (Ireesh Lal) on DirtyHippieRadio.com.