All Ages

91X Presale begins 6/6 at 10AM

Live Nation presale begins 6/9 at 10AM to 10PM

Public onsale is 6/10 at 10AM

http://www.ticketmaster.com/event/0A0046B9EA4E399E

Q: Your thoughts on FBI Agent Johnny Utah? Do you think he should have let Bodhi go? What if he never would have blown his knee out at Ohio State? Would the Ex-Presidents have ever been caught? Tough Q's

A: Great question. Utah and Bodhi bonded through surfing and it was a great move on Utah's part to let Bodhi go. He knew Bodhi had no chance of surviving the waves of the 50 year storm and it was because Bodhi helped Utah become a surfer, that helped guide Utah's decision to let him go. FBI agent Utah would have gone pro without a doubt in my mind if he hadn't blown his knee at Ohio State, and thus the Ex-presidents would have remained free from law enforcement for many years after.

Iration is a Southern Californian based band that formed in 2006 when the members attended UCSB. All coming from Hawaii, the band has created a powerful sound that fuses reggae, rock and pop. They released their “Fresh Grounds” EP in February and have been touring all year, most recently as part of the Winter Greens Tour with Rebelution. I had a chance to sit down with Iration’s bassist, Adam Taylor, and ask him about how Iration came to be, their influences, marketing strategies and their next tour.

TC: You guys are all from Hawaii but met in Isla Vista, California. How did Iration form?

AT: Iration formed while we attended UCSB. It started as a hobby and then developed into our career.

TC: Do you pull a majority of your influence from Hawaii or where you live currently? How is that influence brought out in your music?

AT: Initially from Hawaii, but these days I feel like we’re influenced by our surroundings here in Santa Barbara and while on tour. It comes out in the way we approach creating songs and the way we perform live.

TC: You released your “Fresh Grounds” EP in February and are setting out on tour. What are you looking at to accomplish with this next tour? How will this tour be different than other tours you have been on?

AT: We want to bring out all our fans as well as gain some new ones. We want to play well and give the audience a really fun and memorable experience. We’ll be playing new material off our new CD as well as two covers that are really fun to play. We’ll also be experimenting with some acoustic stuff on this tour.

TC: Who would your dream tour lineup consist of?

AT: The Police, The Beatles, Black Uhuru, and Iration!

TC: You guys have played at many colleges, especially in California. Which college town has given you the best fan response? Why did you choose to play colleges as opposed to regular venues?

AT: Calpoly in San Luis Obispo is great and so is Northern Arizona University. We play colleges because you typically get a large built-in crowd and often times students that have never heard of you get exposed to your music.

TC: What is one of the craziest things you have had happen on tour?

AT: My amp had a power overload and caught on fire on the past tour. That was pretty crazy!

TC: What is your best fan memory?

AT: Hanging out with Kelly Slater on stage!

TC: Your band’s website is set up like a blog on the homepage. Did you design it this way in order to connect more with your fans?

AT: Yes. Social networking and having a strong viral presence is really important to us and it’s a great way to connect with fans.

TC: What are some of your favorite ways to reach out to your fanbase?

AT: We like using Fantourage and Fanbridge. Fans can ask us questions and post videos and photos from the shows.

TC: Do you have an online marketing strategy in place?

AT: We basically like to keep up a strong presence online and be in constant communication with our fans. It just comes down to us enjoying what we do, and we love to write back to fans and hear what they have to say online.

TC: How does your MobBase mobile app fit in to this strategy? What has the response been from fans?

AT: Fans love it. Its a great tool for finding out where a show is or listening to music. Its free on iTunes and the Android Market, so pick it up!

TC: If Iration owned a coffee company, what would be the name of your special blend and most popular pastry?

AT: Our drummer does own a coffee company on the big island of Hawaii, called Kona Homestead Coffee! If the others owned one, we’d call our special blend ‘Kona Gold’ and our pastry would be the Butternut.

Iration is currently on tour around California their next dates are:

• April 28th at The Avalon in Santa Clara, CA
• April 29th at the Phoenix Theater in Petaluma, CA
• April 30th at Audies Olympic in Fresno, CA.
• May 12th at the Ace of Spades in Sacramento, CA.
• May 13th at the Senator Theater in Chico, CA.

http://irationtheband.com

Photo credit: Fabrice Henssens

From the left: Joe Dickens (Drums), Adam Taylor (Bass), Micah Pueschel (Vocals/Guitar), Cayson Peterson (Keys) and Kai Rediske (Vocals/Percussion)

Following their widely successful 2010 album Time Bomb, Hawaii's infectious reggae influenced all-stars IRATION are back with a new five-song offering, FRESH GROUNDS, to be released via the band’s own label, 3 Prong Records distributed by INgrooves.  Available Tuesday, February 1 as an iTunes worldwide exclusive--full release Tuesday, February 8 on all other digital retailers--FRESH GROUNDS reveals IRATION’s growth both musically and lyrically while staying true to the sound their fans have come to know, love and demand.

 

From the opening track “Can’t Wait” to the peaceful, positive vibe of “Work It Out” to the rocking, guitar-driven “All This Time,” it’s clear FRESH GROUNDS--written and co-produced by the band, along with producer, mixer, engineer JP Hesser, who also helmed the board for Time Bomb and co-mixer Joseph King--hits all the marks. They slow it down with “No Letter” which showcases the band’s versatility and vulnerability. The final track  “Summer Nights” was digitally released August 17, 2010 and debuted at #2 on the iTunes reggae singles chart in the U.S.  The carefree, summer-anthem has already sold over 6,000 copies without any formal promotion. To pre-order the album on iTunes visit: http://itunes.apple.com/us/preorder/fresh-grounds/id411124818.

“This new EP felt really good to make,” says vocalist Kai Rediske.  “We didn't confine ourselves to any specific style, so each song ended up having its own unique feel. We allowed ourselves to try new things, both musically and lyrically--hence Fresh Grounds--and are definitely stoked on how it turned out. Can't wait to release it!” 

 

The sextet’s last full-length album, Time Bomb, was released March 2010 and available as an iTunes exclusive pre-release, reaching as high as #1 on the U.S. iTunes reggae albums music chart, #40 on iTunes’ overall music chart, and the single “Falling” was an iTunes “Discovery Download” of the week. The album also did especially well in the physical realm, debuting at #2 on Billboard’s Reggae Albums chart and #30 on Billboard’s Heatseekers Albums chart.

IRATION--Rediske (Vocals/Percussion), Joe Dickens (Drums), Adam Taylor (Bass), Cayson Peterson (Keyboards), Micah Pueschel (Guitar/Vocals) and King (Dub Controls)--has proven to truly have an understanding of modern and traditional performance techniques that keep young and old fans’ hands in the air and heads bobbing. In a mission to bring their music to their ever-growing fan base, IRATION is consistently on the road, including performances at numerous music festivals such as Santa Barbara's KJEE Summer Round Up, San Luis Obispo's annual Beer Fest at Avila Beach (where they headlined), the Sunset Strip Music Festival, West Beach Music & Arts Festival, Hurley's US Open of Surfing in Huntington Beach and most recently Cypress Hill's annual SmokeOut Festival.

2011 will be no different.  After a brief holiday break, IRATION will head back out on the road with good friends Rebelution. The tour kicks off with two nights at the House of Blues San Diego January 13 and 14 and then heads up the coast before moving east and wrapping February 5 in Chicago. From there the group will headline an East Coast leg before coming back west to reunite with Rebelution in Los Angeles for a special show at the historic theater The Wiltern on April 4.  Full tour itinerary below.