Strawberry Fuzz Is the Sound of Punk Without Boundaries
Indie-punk band Strawberry Fuzz are no strangers to inciting a mosh pit and trashing your house. Staying true to the spirit of DIY, Strawberry Fuzz released their album Strongs Dr. that embodies all their surf-punk influences and grunge roots while tackling LA life and the underground music scene. Refusing to be defined by genre, the band stays experimental with their approach and lets the raw prowess of their high-energy take over, whether that’s playing sold out shows or in the studio.
Strongs Dr. is not confined by a single feeling, genre or sound. Hardcore tracks are accompanied by vocal prowess, playful lyricism and upbeat melodies that speak for the high level of production, creativity and energy put into each of their live shows.
This past fall, Strawberry Fuzz presented “Wasting My Time,” a three-song teaser produced by guitarist Alex Arias and the band themselves. Building on the reaction to 2021’s collection of raw demos, Fuzztapes Vol.1, the teaser found the band documenting their experience in the dirty underside of LA life, from sniping at the scene kids on the eastside of LA to calling out the elites of the Westside beach cities – as well as critiquing surf conditions. Strawberry Fuzz is back with Strongs Dr. that acts as a continuation of the Cali-surf punk channeled in their past releases, but even harder with more experimental elements. The band kicked off the album release with a sold out show at the Troubadour in LA.
“It's kind of just being ourselves. We're not trying to compete or anything like that. I feel like what makes us different is that our album’s not a hardcore punk record, but when you come to shows, it feels like a punk show,” Strawberry Fuzz says. “It’s not just a punk vibe or a rock vibe, like there’s a country song and an acoustic song. We’re not trying to be anything or anyone else. We’re just doing, I don’t lnow if it sets us apart, but it allows us to be us and enjoy it.”
Following the album release, Strawberry Fuzz played a sold out show at the Troubador in LA to celebrate the new era of music they’re entering into – bold, unapologetic and reckless.
[UNPUBLISHED]: Welcome back and thank you for talking to Unpublished Magazine. Last time we talked about how wild and cathartic your live performances are and how exciting being on the road has been. I would love to hear how the album release show at Troubadour went and how the energy of the crowd was.
[STRAWBERRY FUZZ]: It was fucking crazy. Playing most shows in Venice, we weren't sure how it would be at The Troubadour. We got our giant crew of homies on the west side and then we got a bunch of friends downtown, but it's pretty insane when it's sold out. All of our friends were going apeshit and throwing beers in the pit, it was crazy. The room was super sweaty, but there were also a bunch of new people that were singing the words which is pretty nuts. It was cool to see the growth because we started in backyards, house parties and rooftops in Venice, and all of a sudden we're in this iconic venue and sold out before the doors even open.
[UNPUBLISHED]: You guys played a sold-out show. How do you feel about the love from your listeners? Did you ever expect such a huge response?
[STRAWBERRY FUZZ]: No, the literal goal of the band was just to play the local bar scene, so I don't think any of us expected it to go that crazy or that fast even. It’s crazy to see the growth that happened in a year and a half. I've never seen anything like it. We have people coming to the show and I’m looking around and there's just punk kids and scene kids and fucking crazy leather boots, and I was like damn, this is tight.
[UNPUBLISHED]: Do you guys remember the first show you played as a band, tell me about that experience.
[STRAWBERRY FUZZ]: That was my favorite party we ever played at, it was tiny, it was in a space that’s smaller than my apartment at the side alley of a guy’s house. It was our buddy Casey’s birthday, who pretty much got the band started because of that. That still has to be my favorite show that we played to this day, and Troubadour being the second. That was the biggest rush I’ve ever gotten playing a show. There was a dude, not going to say his name, but he had a shoebox full of mushrooms and it was filled to the brim. He was walking around like 30 minutes before we played and it was a free-for-all and everybody there was high. It was sick. There were like 40 or 50 people in that small space and the energy was insane. Everyone was wearing wigs and weird fucking glasses and on mushrooms. It was trippy.
[UNPUBLISHED]: Your album Strongs Dr. just released, a huge congratulations is in order. What was the inspiration behind the album and what sparked the ideas for you guys?
[STRAWBERRY FUZZ]: We didn't really think of it as like recording an album but theme-wise, it's pretty much just like the same shit as the Fuzz Tapes, just hanging out with all of our friends partying, not taking it too seriously. No lyrics were written down. We would start singing in the mic, but making it sound better than the live shows. The first round of songs was like demos and was low in production. These are like bigger sounds trying to capture our live element, but the cool thing about it is that we’re not sitting there and trying to make songs connect. We’ll do the thinking about what we know and our experiences on the west side and the people we know. We just wanted to sound better this time around.
[UNPUBLISHED]: What is your favorite song off the album and why?
[STRAWBERRY FUZZ]: I've been partial to a song called “Corner Store” and I like it because it started as a band jam session like we're all just jamming and it's effortless. When we recorded it, we recorded the bass and the drums live at the same time, and it was like a new, experimental way of doing stuff. The final product sounds catchy and cool. “Corner Store” is my favorite one to play live because we put the most energy into it.
[UNPUBLISHED]: How do you guys think Strawberry Fuzz stands out compared to all other underground artists coming out of California. What are you doing to be experimental and keep people coming out to your shows, whether that's house shows or sold-out venues?
[STRAWBERRY FUZZ]: It's kind of just being ourselves. We're not trying to compete or anything like that. I feel like what makes us different is that our album’s not a hardcore punk record, but when you come to shows, it feels like a punk show. There’s mosh pits to even slow songs, which is weird, but we’re here for it. It’s a diverse grouping of songs. It’s not just a punk vibe or a rock vibe, like there’s a country song and an acoustic song. We’re not trying to be anything or anyone else. We’re just doing, I don’t know if it sets us apart, but it allows us to be us and enjoy it. For our next round of music, I want to add horns to some songs, I want a girl to sing a song with a raspy voice. I think everything is going to keep being unexpected and weird and whatever the fuck we’re thinking that day.
[UNPUBLISHED]: What are some key moments that have helped you guys evolve as a band and have contributed to your music style?
[STRAWBERRY FUZZ]: Even though we party super hard, we hold each other accountable to stay sober enough for the show. There was one show where Andy got wasted off tequila and on drums, every song was either way too fast or way too slow, and we're like ‘alright guys, we cannot be hammered.’ We try to hold each other accountable and not to get to those levels before we go out and perform.
[UNPUBLISHED]: How are you feeling in this current era of your career? What does the rest of the year look like for you that you would love to share with the magazine?
[STRAWBERRY FUZZ]: More tour. Definitely going to be working on new music inevitably. I'm pretty pumped for where we are. I wasn't expecting it to be where it is already. I think our goal was just to play in backyards and small venues, so it's pretty much like keep making music and playing with new bands and going to new places.
[UNPUBLISHED]: What's your favorite part of touring or playing live shows?
[STRAWBERRY FUZZ]: Being in the band. We have so much fun with van life.
[UNPUBLISHED]: Is there anything I didn't ask that you guys would want to add to the interview?
[STRAWBERRY FUZZ]: Just keep an eye out for more shows. We're just gonna keep playing and make more music and keep experimenting and keep making more shit.
