By Noe Gutierrez
The Four Twenty Bank & Swear Jar Presents RAS-1 with Special Guests
Mozaiq / Crucial Culture / Higher Heights / Rufus Jr. Friday, May 7, 2021
Doors open @ 5pm/Show starts @ 6pm
21 & over $10.00 Cover charge
Live music continues its steadfast return to the Coachella Valley with a reverberant Reggae show for the ages at The Four Twenty Bank at 296 South Palm Canyon Drive in Palm Springs, California featuring RAS-1 (Long Beach Dub All Stars and Shortbus). The event starts at 6 p.m. with doors opening at 5 p.m. It is a 21 and over event and has a $10 entry fee. To reserve tickets, please text (909) 435-9705.
Lineup:
6pm- Rufus Jr./ 6:30- Higher Heights/ 7pm Mozaiq/ 7:30- Crucial Culture/
8pm- Ras 1
Four Twenty Bank Dispensary and Lounge fittingly celebrated its grand opening and ribbon cutting on “4/20” and features a live event venue that will no doubt accommodate and perpetuate the need for live music in the Coachella Valley.
Coachella Valley Weekly connected with RAS-1 and all the performers to put in print their excitement for this particular show.
CVW: Reggae music is a conscious music that speaks about truth. Its messages of peace, love and unity are universal. What has Reggae meant to you and where do you see the multi-genre form of music going?
RAS-1: “Revolution. Positivity. Consciousness. A softer way than Punk Rock to get your message out there with the same heart and feeling. It already started Rap and Hip-Hop a long time ago by having U-Roy sing along to a record. And so, Reggae is the driving force behind a lot of things. I see it going throughout the musical future through all types of boundaries. Like, it’s been evolved with Rock, it’s been involved with Punk Rock, it’s been involved with Hip-Hop. I’ve never heard of ‘Reggae Jazz’ hahaha! I don’t know if that’s ever going to happen. I see it going as far as it would like to go. I see it going as far as people who like the influence of good music are willing to take it.”
CVW: You have this unique connection to Sublime having performed with members of the band in other projects as well as opening for them as a member of Jah Children. Overall, what can you share about Sublime & the impact their music and vibe has made on you and the world?
RAS-1: “I saw Sublime in a backyard party in 1990, I believe. My friend told me they had a good singer, and to go see them. I was so blown away by it that the next day I had a meeting with my friends, and we started a band called Jah Children. We stayed together about 5 or 6 years. Since then, I’ve totally loved playing Reggae music as opposed to just listening to it. Because, I had felt it was more of a Jamaican form of music, and it wasn’t for white people to play. But those guys opened the door for me to play it, and learn how to play. It changed my whole life dude! They changed my whole life. They made it so I can do all of these beautiful things I’ve done in my life. And it was bittersweet because we had to lose Brad to get the Long Beach Dub Allstars together, but it was such an awesome experience, and if I could, I’d give it all back to him so he could play his music live in a real capacity. But we can’t take it back, because it’s fucked up, and he died. It’s a reminder of his family, and my family and friends, and my musical past and future. I’ll always love Sublime, I’ll always enjoy it, and I’ll always give it up to those guys.”
CVW: Your mother, Dora Gail Smith, was a former member of the all-girl Long Beach Jazz quartet Dream. How has your mom influenced your passion for music and what do you want to say about her as Mother’s Day approaches?
RAS-1: “My mom influenced me because she raised me, and saw me playing her guitar, and singing with me. She’d come to my school when I was a little kid and sing with all of the kids there. She taught me my first chords, my first real chords. She taught me a bunch of songs, she knew a million songs. She only knew like five chords, but she knew a million songs. [If she was here] I’d say, ‘Mom, I want you to know that I’m clean and sober now, and I’m going to live longer, and I’m going to play my music and live my life better. I want you to know how much I love you and I wish you were here.’”
CVW: Artists have had to endure some strange times this last year. How have you coped with the pandemic and where do you anticipate being headed for the remainder of 2021?
RAS-1: “I have coped with the pandemic because I have a beautiful woman in my life, and we have, since the pandemic, become engaged to be married. She is a major part of…she kicks me in the butt every day and tells me what to do, hahaha! I’ve been doing my art, and I’ve been writing songs, I’ve been in the studio. I’ve been doing gigs here and there, when it was possible. I’ve been really blessed to have my fiancé in my life.”
CVW: You’re performing at The Four Twenty Bank on May 7. Do you have any previous connections to the Coachella Valley?
RAS-1: “I went to the first ever Coachella festival and I saw Jane’s Addiction. It was awesome! It was beautiful! The night sky, the mountains, the rim of the horizon with the moon behind it and the beautiful fuckin’ music. And I love Jane’s Addiction, so it was freaking insane! It was beautiful. Lovely countryside.”
CVW: Anything else you’d like to share with our readers and your fans.
RAS-1: “One thing I’d like to tell the readers and my fans is that I have a new album coming out soon. It’s all going to be street-wise rough-neck Reggae music from Long Beach with a hard edge and a Punk Rock etiquette. Just to love one another and be kind to each other and sobriety is worth it. Don’t buy a French bulldog because they are insane! Also please go follow me on Instagram here @_ras_1_instagram.com/_ras_1_“.
Mozaiq
Marc Diaz (lead vocalist) “We’re busy grinding it out in the studio at the moment working on releasing a few singles this summer and fall. Like many, we’ve utilized the COVID year to re-focus and revamp our music, writing several new tunes that will eventually form a full-length album, hopefully by the end of this year, or early 2022. We’re really hitting our stride with our writing now and we’re creating some of the best music we’ve ever done.”
Higher Heights
Mike Fernandez (lead vocalist/guitarist) “I’m very thankful to Jason Nutter for extending the invitation to Higher Heights to perform at the RAS-1 at the new 420 establishment. We are looking forward to reuniting with our fans. We will perform new songs that day. I want to thank CV Weekly for keeping up with the Coachella Valley music scene.”
Crucial Culture
Mario Quintero (lead vocalist/guitarist) “We are looking to get back into the swing of things with some new additions to the band bringing a new sound to Crucial Culture adding the valley legend Ruben Cancino on keys and Nick Vela on bass.”
Rufus, Jr.
Leigh (lead vocalist) “We are Rufus Jr. and come out of the Arizona desert. Formed from members of the Punk band Krovak during quarantine. We put together a psychedelic mix of Stoner Rock, Desert Rock, Reggae Beach Rock, and Punk. We are excited to come out and play with RAS-1 and friends! This will be the first time any of us have played in Palm Springs, so we are all ecstatic! I (Leigh) have been out numerous times to Long Beach and Anaheim to play with Jakob Nowell acoustically. We are excited to introduce new music and a little bit of a twist on the old ‘Desert Rock’ style to you! We will be playing outside at 5 p.m. while other bands will be on the inside stage. We will have t-shirts and patches available for sale. Come have a smoke with us, or just chill and let the music take you to another realm! It’s going to be a packed night of elevating music, good vibes, and good times. We have two tracks available on Spotify and a full set on our YouTube channel, both under Rufus Jr. Expect a full album by the end of the year.”
