A Sublime Moment: Iconic SoCal Rock Band Sells Out Red Rocks, Building Up To Big Year (Artist POV)

A lot has changed in music since the ’90s. The emergence of streaming and social media has forced most record stores to shutter, replaced radio as a primary source of artist discovery and elevated genres like country, Latin and hip-hop to unforeseen heights, a movement that has left people asking, “What is happening to rock and roll?”

It’s fine. Actually, rock is thriving, and Sublime is proof with founding band members Bud Gaugh and Eric Wilson adding yet another milestone to their illustrious careers: a sold-out show on April 21 at the iconic Red Rocks Amphitheatre in Morrison, Colorado.

“Red Rocks is such an awesome venue. It’s such a magical place,” said Gaugh, longtime drummer of Sublime. “If you ever get a chance, you need to see a band there because it’s a beautiful venue.”

It’s a memory that will forever stay with Sublime, which reunited in December of 2023 with the integration of guitarist and singer Jakob Nowell, son of the band’s former frontman and vocalist Bradley, who died in 1996 when Nowell was a baby. It’s also one that won’t soon be forgotten by everyone who put on the show, which still sold out despite it being postponed three days because of strong wind, rain and snow in the area.

“This is the purest inception of Sublime any of us will ever get to experience, unless of course you were lucky enough to witness the band while Bradley was here with us,” said Adam Stroul, a talent buyer for AEG Presents, which promoted the concert. “Jakob does a beautiful job of carrying on his father’s legacy while staying true and authentic to himself. We [AEG] are blessed to be able to play a small part in this next chapter of Sublime — one of the greatest bands of all time and one of my personal favorites.”

That excitement is shared by music fans across the globe who grew up with the band, many of whom can’t shake the fact that Nowell’s vocals are nearly identical to his father’s, whose soulful yet snarling voice has dominated West Coast radio waves for decades. It has made Nowell and the band go viral several times over the past few years, especially after a stellar Coachella set in 2024.

Gaugh even felt transported when he jammed with Nowell in the studio.

“It’s wild,” he said. “When we were in the studio the first time together playing, there was a moment where I closed my eyes and it felt like Brad was right there, hearing Jakob’s voice, the inflections of Brad in the voice in Jakob’s body.”

It can be heard on the live stage as well as on a track. Under the guidance of managers Kevin Zinger, Ivory Daniel and Joe Escalante of The Regime, the band released a new single, “Feel Like That,” last year, proving that they haven’t strayed from their trademark sound that fuses ska, punk and reggae. Sublime is also working on their first album since their 1996 eponymous LP.

A musical career wasn’t something Gaugh envisioned or even wanted for Nowell, admitting that he and Wilson “tried to steer him clear of that,” but the 29-year-old singer expressed musical interest at a young age. The self-taught artist carved his own path and played in bands like LAW and Jakobs Castle before joining Sublime.

“He’s his dad’s son,” Gaugh said. “It’s kind of crazy how it all came about. I jammed with Jake years ago for a mutual employer’s birthday party, and our styles were very different. So, it was never pushed on him, either from Eric or myself. I know that the fans really wanted it, and it had been talked about through the years. It was never contrived.”

The idea of getting the band back together with the son of their late vocalist wasn’t serious until the three performed at a benefit concert in Los Angeles in December of 2023. It was announced Nowell was a full-time member of the band a month later, and Sublime started booking sets in major festivals like Oceans Calling, Riot Fest, Point Break Music Festival and South Star Music Festival. Gaugh, Nowell and Wilson will continue to ride the festival circuit this year and are slated to perform at Bottlerock Napa and Boston Calling later this month as well as Warped Tour in D.C. on June 14.

Gaugh recalls taking the stage last year to perform for the Coachella crowd, who quickly embraced Nowell.

“It’s kind of like we’re sitting in the frying pan,” Gaugh said with a laugh. “I look over and say, ‘Jake, hold my hand. Come on. Let’s get out of here; it’s fucking hot.’ And we jump in the middle of the goddamn volcano, you know? Life definitely has a sense of humor, but it was amazing.

“I was nervous for Jake. I thrive on that stuff. Eric and I played pretty big shows here and there and have been around a while, so that stuff doesn’t spook me. It actually pumps me up. I knew Jake had never seen crowds that size before, so we were all anxious about that, but it turned out to be amazing and epic.”

The band — booked by Paladin Artists in the U.S. and Canada and Wasserman Music in other territories — is in the studio at the moment working on new material, and Gaugh told Pollstar that a new song is “about ready for human consumption” and should be out soon.

Before the new music drops, an expanded 20^th-anniversary edition of Look at All The Love We Found: A Tribute to Sublime will be released May 9, featuring covers by Zac Brown Band and Pennywise as well as previously unreleased covers.

“It’s a truly humbling experience,” Gaugh said. “When I first heard Fishbone’s version of ‘Date Rape,’ it killed me. I was like, ‘Wow, that’s how that song’s supposed to sound?’ I love those guys.”

A modest Gaugh is still surprised when an artist expresses their appreciation for Sublime in person. Before performing at Closer to the Sun fest in Riviera Maya, Mexico, Sublime ran into Post Malone backstage and took pictures with the multi-genre star. Gaugh then asked if he wanted to jump in and play “What I Got.”

“He was like, ‘Really? You want me to? Can I?’” Gaugh said. “I was super humbled that he was humbled, you know? This is such a gift that we’ve all been given here. Music is such an incredible tool in the way it makes people feel, the way it impacts.”

The same could be said about Sublime — the gift that keeps on giving.