Jared Watson and Dustin Bushnell created something incredibly unique in 2006, and ever since I first heard the song “Lay Me Down” on the radio, I knew I loved their sound. That song is a modern day Bonnie and Clyde story featuring a chorus sung by Rome from Sublime, but the music captures the brain forcing a relaxed combination of reggae and rock. That’s exactly what Dirty Heads is all about! Fusion of everything and anything they both enjoy, and it turned into a dream these boys couldn’t have even dreamed!
The headliner for this evening’s entertainment had some other incredible talents lined up before them, including The Green all the way from Hawaii and SOJA, but took the house down when they took the stage, kicking off with a song aimed at their fan base, “Franco Eyed.” The Orange County Reggae/Hip Hop/Rock/Rap fusion band got their mainstream start in 2008 with their debut album “Any Port In A Storm,” which featured some heavy-hitters in the industry and music scene. The album shows it, creating a musical journey through so many different genres. Slash, Beatles, Beastie Boyz, Sugar Ray, and many more acts are connected to that particular album…with that pedigree, one would reasonably wonder if they would be able to translate that sound on stage.
The three other members of the band, Jon Olazabal (Percussion), David Foral (Bass) and Shawn Hagood (keyboards) provide the unique sound the group is known for, but the addition of drummer Matt Ochoa on Drums gave the band more rock elements and an extra hand on stage. In short, they were definitely able to pull off the fast-paced lyrics, tight percussion, and smooth instrumentation at the Mattress Firm Amphitheater this warm July evening. The crowd loved it! They were primed and ready when “Dirty J” and “Duddy B” broke into their unique sound, with the stage on a red light, and plenty of smoke…uh, I mean fog. The excitement never died as they finished off their set with the song that got me started, “Lay Me Down.” Of course they did an encore…but it was cool to finish my story where it began. Check out their music…you’ll enjoy it.