Deth Coast is David Martinez (vox/guitar), KG Juarez (bass), Misael Lara (guitar), & Tyler Fries (drums).
KG: Back in the day Misa & I had a punk band called NO-self that didn’t go too far. It was fun but we had an ear for alternative & other genres… After that, we started looking for bandmates with variety.
ML: My background’s mostly Brooklyn punk. I fuck heavy with Dead Boys, but also The Ramones for their poppy fun take on the scene. Saw Best Coast live & I thought, ‘Dude, I’m never going to be that good.’ Around that time all my best friends started doing meth so I stopped talking to them… I’m not the best, but I don’t smoke meth. So it’s Deth Coast.
TF: We try to hone in on a blend of hardcore energy & indie songwriting chops.
I got that from your set. There’s ‘surf-punk’ or ‘pop-punk’ bands that are really just 33rpm indie records spun at 45, but you guys draw from a raw punk edge you almost have to be rooted in. It’s hard to find bands that balance those two well. Has an audience ever felt conflicted about your sound?
KG: Actually, our second show was this gig in Compton…
DM: Oh yeah! For context, the one before was in a backyard with just the homies, but this was in some obscure ass building. Every band playing was punk as fuck, & we’re like, ‘We don’t really…’ I mean we’re over here like ‘Señorita…’ (haha) We were really nervous & didn’t know if anyone was gonna fuck with us. Everybody’s dressed up like they’re ready to fight, spiked hair, nos in the corner…
ML: It looked like a Slipknot show.
DM: The four of us huddled up & Misa gave this pep talk about how they either fuck with us or they don’t; set our minds straight. We went up & started doing our thing… All those foos with spikes were digging our shit!
TF: One person had his face painted like a skull, dude was the nicest person there! Biggest compliment was when we played Cigarella; everybody had their phone lights up & he brought out his lighter. He was in the front of the crowd for our whole set & everyone else’s.
DM: This other time the homie hosted a Fiji water backyard show… One of our brother bands Sept was playing, just killing it. There was this big ass bear inside the crib from Ikea…
ML: I told the homie Dodi to get in the suit!
DM: He legit ripped it open, got inside, & ran into the pit. Punks started grabbing onto him so he got out & stuffing started flying everywhere. Straight tore it up. Fun as fuck, but it was a lot to clean up.
DM: When songwriting, someone usually just throws an idea out & sees if everyone catches onto it. If they do, sick. ‘We wrote a song..!’ You know? Sort of basic, but it works for bangers.
TF: Not one person takes a bulk of the writing. Once something’s in motion we really get surgical to make it the best we can.
KG: We also record everything at practice so we can remember what we’re doing. We’re sitting on a lot of unreleased tracks that aren’t exactly new but either need to be fleshed out or have only been played live so far.
Last question, why do you play music?
ML: I wanted to be a professional soccer player. Now I play music. I was really good, now I’m not that good. All the music I write is because I never made it as a soccer player.
KG: It’s invigorating, stimulating. Playing live for people, the whole creative process; it’s all very, very fun.
DM: It’s the only thing that’s ever caught my career interest. I’ve tried looking into school programs, science or whatever… Nothing, nothing, nothing, nothing makes me move like music, you know? It’s the only thing that makes sense.
TF: Same thing. I spent a lot of time in high school not knowing what I wanted to do, but when I got to senior year I said fuck it, I’ll do music. I always had a passion for it, I just never took it seriously. When I did I realized I really liked it. Now I want to do it as a career; be a music producer, do some mixing, maybe work in a studio… Or anything like that. It just brings me so much joy, especially playing for people. I love the energy.
DM: If we can bring the same kind of joy we feel to other people, that’s all that matters. Just being able to play shows & have somebody take something from our set… That’s kind of what drives us.
All clips by @yoxrx.
More Deth Coast at:
https://deth-coast.bandcamp.com/releases
https://www.instagram.com/dethcoast/
