Hi Rams, welcome back to Behind the Music! This issue we will be talking about one of the most influential bands of the 1990s, Sublime, and how they are continuing their legacy.
Sublime was formed in Long Beach in 1988 by Bradely Nowell (lead singer/guitar), Eric Wilson (bass), and Bud Gaugh (drums).
The band played their first gig on the Long Beach peninsula on July 4, 1988. This show started the Peninsula Riot where seven people were arrested.
Due to their eclectic music style, Sublime found themselves being rejected by every music label they reached out to. In 1990 as a response to their defeat, Nowell and Michael Happoldt started their own label: Skunk Records. Through this label, Sublime got their music out to a bigger demographic and started to get recognition on local radio stations.
Sublime started to gain fame for their musical abilities, playing larger clubs and festivals like the Hollywood House of Blues and the 1995 Vans Warped Tour. The band was briefly kicked off the tour for unruly behavior and multiple incidents of their mascot, a dalmatian named Lou Dog, biting the audience, skateboarders, and tour members. Lou Dog had a reputation for biting people including the stars of Sublime music videos and Gwen Stefani, lead singer of the rock band, No Doubt.
On May 25, 1996 tragedy struck with the death of Bradley Nowell due to a heroin overdose. This was just seven days after his wedding to Troy Denenkker and eleven months after the birth of his son, Jakob Nowell.
In 2009, the band adopted a new singer, Rome Ramirez, and a new sound with their rebrand: Sublime with Rome. They released three albums under this title, the most notable being “Yours Truly.”
Sublime with Rome never reached the same fame that sublime reached, but they toured reggae festivals like Cali Vibes and Beach Life.
On Dec. 11th, 2023, Jakob Nowell joined Sublime with Rome on stage for Positive Mental Attitude, a benefit concert for the lead singer of Bad Brains, H.R. (Human Rights).
People were enchanted with how similar Jakob sounded to his dad. His voice seemed to resurrect the good old days of Sublime. Later in Dec. 2023, Rome stepped down. This allowed Jakob to join the band and continue his father’s legacy, touring as just Sublime.
Since the announcement Sublime has booked many large festivals including “NO VALUES” and Coachella.
Zoe Andrade, a MBA senior, said she is excited to see Sublime at Coachella this year. “I think it’s different because he [Jakob] doesn’t sound exactly like Sublime, but I feel like it’s good that they are continuing the tradition of it [Sublime],” she said.
That’s all for now Rams, and remember to listen to what makes YOU happy.
Finn P Benitz • Apr 11, 2024 at 11:17 am
In the article, I found it very interesting finding out the history of the band that I wasn’t formerly aware of. I thought the writing was very concise and was very informative to Sublime’s influence on Long Beach specifically and their various pitfalls throughout their music career. I found it interesting that Bradely Nowell’s son is now continuing their legacy and would have liked to know more about their future plans. To clarify, will they just tour pre existing discography or are there hopes for new albums? Along the same lines, I would have also appreciated elaboration on certain aspects of Sublime’s history. For example, what caused the Peninsula riot and what about their electric music style resulted in their constant rejection by music labels? Overall, the article was very engaging and I loved reading about the band. It was nice to see recognition for the significantly influential Long Beach local band.
Sincerely,
Finn Benitz
Owen Waytas • Apr 11, 2024 at 11:14 am
On March 27th, Payon Miller wrote the article “Behind the Music: sublime.” This was a very well written article giving a brief summary of Sublime. I think the topic of Sublime was a great choice to write about given that they are a very popular band in from long beach, carrying countless fans throughout school including myself. I’ve been listening to Sublime my whole life and I always love learning more about the band’s history. I aready know a lot about the band but I love learning noew random little facts. One of the things I thought was funny and interesting was when it said that Lou Dog used to bite fans and even Gwen Stefani. Also, although I had already hear a bit about it, but it was cool that there was mention of Jakob Nowell joining Sublime and performing with them. This is so cool in my opinion that Jakob is planning on performing more with Sublime and I can’t wait to hear them perform more. Overall this is a great article and it was a fun read, with some fun facts and history of the band.
Isla Haffner • Apr 11, 2024 at 11:08 am
On March 27, 2024, Payton Miller wrote an article titled “Behind the Music: Sublime”. Miller discusses the ups and downs of one of the most influential bands of the 1990s, Sublime. The band’s origins and new singers are what made the band unique. Personally, I chose this article because my parents actually lived on the Peninsula next to the up-and-coming band, and to this day my father works with one of the member’s son. I’ve enjoyed listening to Sublime’s music since I was very little and continue to have a few of their songs on my everyday playlist. This article was very interesting, as I did not know of the band’s history and their replaced singer. The replacement of Bradley Nowell after his death seems wrong to me, as I could not imagine the music to be anything but the original artists. Overall, I enjoyed this article and thought it was well written and informative for those who may be new to the band.
Jensen Calderon • Apr 10, 2024 at 1:29 pm
On March 27th, Payon Miller wrote the article “Behind the Music: sublime,” an opinion piece that briefly goes over the history of the band Sublime. I feel like the subject of sublime is a good and strong subject to cover in the first place, considering that Sublime has such a big influence over Long Beach. For me personally it hit pretty close to home, as I grew up listening to them, and I feel like others like me felt similarly. I really like that the article goes into depth on their history and recognizes their influence, along with their influential features and collabs. The decision to add the personal photo of their own collection of Sublime albums was a nice touch. I feel like that helped me connect with the author a little more and made the article all the more worth it to read. The article has a good flow to it, it doesn’t drag out any one part or subject for too long, it’s short and sweet and to the point. The only issue was that she mentions that room was booted from the band, when he came out personally and said he stepped down.
pmiller • Apr 12, 2024 at 10:50 am
When using the term “booted”, my intention was not to convey that Rome was kicked out of the band, but instead to convey his departure in an expressional way. I can see how my wording may have been confusing though. I fixed this error, thank you for your feedback!
Allyson Richter • Apr 10, 2024 at 9:12 am
On March 27, 2024, Payton Miller published the article “Behind the Music: Sublime.” This is a very informative and well written article, giving a brief history of a band that started out in our very own Long Beach, then explained how their legacy lives on today. Sublime’s lead singer died in 1996, but Miller explains how the lead singer’s son has taken up the mantle today and continued with the band. This article filled me in on history with the band that I was not aware of and even included stories about their mascot Lou Dog, which made me laugh. I’m grateful Miller wrote this article because I did not realize Sublime was still active. The fact that Nowell’s son is singing for the band today is so cool to know, so I’m glad Miller wrote about it. Miller uses her own extensive knowledge as well as good sources to write an informative and fun Behind the Music article. Thank you Payton for this great story.
Nonya • Mar 30, 2024 at 10:52 am
This article is not even true though. Did you listen to Rome’s interview?
pmiller • Apr 8, 2024 at 11:21 am
What about my article do you find nonfactual, and what interview are you referring to? I strive to be as factual as possible with my writing and would love to watch it so I can remedy any misconceptions.