If you took parts of Nirvana, Carlos Santana and Bronco and filled a pinata, what you would get when it finally broke open would be Los Shadows. Originally starting off as a surf-punk band in 2015, the San Diego foursome has gained notoriety from their regional tours post-pandemic and will now bring their alternative rock/psychedelic cumbia sound to the Raccoon Motel in Davenport, IA for their End of the World Tour on September 9th. “Our first US tour was like two years ago,” explained guitar and synth band member, Pepe Gonzalez. “Now, we are like we need to put ourselves out there again, so we are doing this one.”
With their start in middle school as best friends, Gonzalez along with lead vocalist and guitarist Andy Saldana would eventually find themselves playing at local bars a few years later in high school. But their stage time at those venues were limited. “When we were fifteen, we would play at local bars and have to wait in an alley,” said Gonzalez. “We’d jump on stage and play and then had to get out.” Seven years later and with just five-hundred dollars in his pocket, Gonzalez made the decision to move to California to put Los Shadows on the map. And it wasn’t long until signs of stardom began to show up for the group. “It wasn’t one thing in particular,” explained Gonzalez. “It was more playing all the little venues, all the local big venues and seeing people wear your t-shirts. It was a slow progress of more people showing up and knowing your songs. That was a crazy feeling. There is nothing like it.”
Known for their trippy alt-rock/Latin style, having lived in Tijuana and other parts of Mexico, Gonzalez always knew that he wanted the music that the band created be something from their soul. “We’ve always done different genres,” said Gonzalez. “All of us were into new wave, so we started added more synthesizers, because we can’t be full Surf-punk. You can’t be full anything, you have to add a little bit here and there. We said, why don’t we look into ourselves and see what we grew up on, and reflect that.”
As the tour hits twenty-two cities in their month-long tour, Gonzalez looks forward to sharing the Shadows-sound to old and new fans alike. “Our main goal is getting out and meeting people and enjoying life with those people,” said Gonzalez. “A big part of the music things is just meeting new people and experiencing this thing called life. We are kind of stuck in this weird existence. Through music you get to jam out with your friends and other people who are experiencing life and the same things you like.”
For more information on Los Shadows or to purchase tickets visit, https://www.theraccoonmotel.com/#shows
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