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Sublime is comprised of Brad Nowell on guitar and vocals, Eric Wilson on bass, and Bud Gaugh on drums. The group all grew up in Long Beach, California and had been friends since childhood. They listened to many different types of music growing up and would later mix those influences together to create the unique sounds of Sublime. Their influences were but not limited to: Black Flag, Bob Marley, Minor Threat, Peter Tosh, The Clash, UB40, The Specials, the Skatilites, Pink Floyd, The Beatles, the Circle Jerks, Easy E, NWA, and Public Enemy. The three friends began playing music together in the summer of 1986 and then finally in 1988 the boys got together and created Sublime, a band that would mix rock, reggae, blues, ska, punk and rap and become the defining sound for the Southern California skate and surf crowds. The band didn’t seem to have a purpose. They played lots of house parties and played for cash or beer. They performed simply for the entertainment of others and to have a good time. They were often quoted as “a below average garage punk band that every kid wants to play at his party” on numerous websites such as www.subliminalsublime.com. The band continued to play aimless until they met Michael ‘Miguel’ Happoldt a local student at C.S.U.L.B. where Brad was working on a degree in finance. Miguel was a Communications major and had access to the school recording studio. It was there that Miguel became the bands producer and Brad and Miguel created Skunk Records. Later in the documentary dvd it would be said they created the label simply so the band could say “Skunk Recording artist Sublime at their shows. Between 1988 and 1991 the band would create numerous demo tapes, but only two of them went to public distribution in limited runs. Finally the band decided to release their music to the public on CD. Sadly this is also when Bud, who had been struggling with a speed and heroin addiction would go into rehab. Brad also decided to take a “year experiment in creativity” by trying heroin. He idolized rock stars that had used drugs for more creativity and used it as an excuse to try the drug. He was instantly hooked. It was supposed to be a one-year thing, but instead it turned into a 5-year war. During this year, Brad and the band released “40oz to Freedom” their first full-length release. The album was made for less than a 1,000 dollars. Two years, three vans, and five tours later, the album sold over 30,000 units. The whole time without a national distributor. The band sold the album out of the trunks of their cars. Soon the album would become the most successful independent label album ever recorded, and hit #1 on the Billboard Heatseakers chart. In 1994 the band recorded Chiva Kenevil a short demo tape that would evolve into their second and most experimental release “Robbin tha hood”. This album was mostly recording in abandon crack houses and various areas while Brad was at the height of his addiction. It wasn’t until 1995, 6 years after its first release, that the LA radio station KROQ picked up “40oz to Freedom” and began to play the song “Date Rape”.
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