00:01
Hermajesty
Welcome back to WKNC 88.1 FM HD 1 Raleigh. I'm Hermajesty and today I'm here with Josh of Makeout Reef, an Orange county garage outfit. And now if you'd like to, you can introduce yourself.
00:16
Josh Castillo
Hello, everyone. I'm Josh from Makeout Reef and I play guitar and I sing.
00:23
Hermajesty
The band has been kind of a little bit MIA and quiet on social media since COVID really happened. What have you all been up to?
00:32
Josh Castillo
Honestly, we've been all doing our own thing. Like, we know that during that time there's a lot of personal stuff, like we're all in school and we all have jobs and we all actually kind of are pretty distant from each other. So I live in Orange county and Liam lives in Long beach. And then Dylan, our bass player, he lives in LA. So. So we're all kind of like maybe like 30 minutes away from each other. Maybe maybe to 40. And so, and especially during COVID we've all just been doing our own thing, going to school and, you know, quarantining, basically. Yeah.
01:20
Hermajesty
You guys have upcoming shows in August in Pomona and Santa Ana. Are these Y’alls first shows back?
01:26
Josh Castillo
Yes, it is. Yeah. And we. Yeah, because we've noticed that people have started to put on shows, but were kind of like iffy on the whole thing, you know, kind of like trying to push it a little back more and not try to rush in to get in, you know, in the back into all that mix.
01:47
Hermajesty
Have you guys. Have you guys seen these shows back?
01:51
Josh Castillo
I have. I went to maybe a few weeks ago. I went to a Julie show. Have you heard of Julie?
01:58
Hermajesty
No.
01:59
Josh Castillo
Okay. They're also LA OC band. Dylan, our bass player, is actually the drummer for that band. So I recently went to one of their shows in Santa Ana in Orange county, and it was pretty crazy. It was just. It was crazy to be back into that and to feel like everything's okay, you know, or everything's like back to normal and to see everyone again. But it was tight. It was really nice.
02:28
Hermajesty
It's awesome. What are you most excited about getting back?
02:36
Josh Castillo
Honestly, the most. I think it's getting back with just my bandmates and my friends. You know, we recently saw each other and were just catching up and that was our first time seeing each other face to face in like a year, basically. And it was pretty crazy. And were just kind of trying to. Trying to figure out where were all together within the band and also separate and how we feel moving forward. So I'm pretty excited Just to be with them again, you know, we're gonna get back to it, start practicing more and making more music. But that's the only. The only thing I'm really excited about.
03:20
Hermajesty
Were you guys. Were you guys just all on pause or did you all try to do anything virtually together? Like some bands were recording individually or playing streams. How did that affect y'all?
03:37
Josh Castillo
I think were definitely on pause. We didn't like, we didn't officially come to agreement that we're just gonn just go on a hiatus. It would just kind of happened as, you know, the year moved forward and how everything was going on. And so I believe that, yeah, were definitely in back last year in July we. Last summer we recorded, you know, two singles and we released them in September, I think. So we had like two songs, you know, in the works and we released something last year and that was pretty much it. And like from there going forward, we, you know, we had our experiences with COVID being around us. So it was just. It was just were all on the same page.
04:27
Josh Castillo
Like we're not going to be able to see each other and do much and so we might as well just, you know, take it easy. Not worried too much. Yeah.
04:35
Hermajesty
You weren't going to force it.
04:36
Josh Castillo
Yeah.
04:37
Hermajesty
Online and everything has been insane.
04:39
Josh Castillo
Exactly.
04:40
Hermajesty
Yeah. You mentioned getting back with your friends and everything. Is the OC scene like really tight or how is. How is that as far as a lot of the your contemporary bands?
04:52
Josh Castillo
I would say it's. It's weird. It's weird because. And I was just talking to them about it because were basically all at that show and it was. My buddy Dylan and I were just talking about how we all saw everyone we knew again. And like, even though it's like been a year, we've all grown and changed and in terms of like a scene, an Orange county scene, I wouldn't really say that it's.
05:25
Josh Castillo
Maybe it doesn't feel like a scene because it's been on pause, you know, But I would say that we've definitely grown and we've definitely noticed our fans have grown and the demographic has changed or will change soon because, you know, two years ago were just started college or just graduating high school and so, you know, a year later on pause and then even coming close to the mid to end of this year, we're all in the middle of college now and we're all growing out of that. But I see that as a good amount of people I know from the Orange county scene. In their 20s. I could see, you know, a young crowd coming right in to just fill in that spot. You know, it's a. It's a cycle. It's like a never ending cycle.
06:23
Josh Castillo
And I feel like sooner or later the people and bands that we've grown up are going to change and are going to go off and do something else.
06:37
Hermajesty
So do you, so do you see like bands that you were coming up around, like the Grins or anyone like them? Are you guys sort of moving into different scenes or just growing apart as bands or what's gonna happen with new ones coming in?
06:55
Josh Castillo
I definitely want to play shows with all those same guys, you know, all the same people we've had before. But I think just for us, the main focus is on us and what we want to do because so much, we've experienced so much not together, you know, and I think that. I think the main focus is on where we want to go because we obviously want to progress and, you know, we want to start doing things bigger and outside of California, you know, sooner or later. But yeah, we're just, you know, dipping our toes back into it and seeing. And also seeing like how everyone else is doing and where everyone else is going.
07:45
Hermajesty
Mm. If. If you guys could go on a big tour, what is one act that you guys would like to go on the road with?
07:59
Josh Castillo
We, I don't know, we never really thought about it. We thought a few back a couple of years back, we thought going on tour with the Red Pairs would be cool. You familiar with them?
08:12
Hermajesty
I think I've heard a few of their tracks.
08:14
Josh Castillo
Yeah, they. Yeah, they're California born band and they've gone to play like Coachella and they've made a bigger name for themselves and I think that. And we've played shows with them before and I thought that would be really cool because we share that same type of style and music, you know, the garage rock type of thing. And I. They've gone on tour before and they've brought along bands that we've also played with. So I thought, you know, that would have been pretty cool to go on tour with them. And also. I don't really know. I don't really know it would be cool to go on tour with like buddies of ours. Like it'd be cool to go with Julie, you know, but I've never really thought about it now.
09:06
Hermajesty
Okay. Yeah, just something to. It's fun to think about. How would you explain the aesthetic and kind of sound of Makeout Reef to our viewers and People that may be new to the band.
09:21
Josh Castillo
I would definitely say it's very California, like, sounding. A lot of people have described our music to be surfy, you know, but I. And I get that. But I've never been like, a. A big surf type of guy. Like, I was never into that type of style of music. But I see. I see why, and I see the influence there because, like, it just kind of happens, you know. California bands could kind of get that influence by default, you know, to have a little surfy, a little sunny vibe to it. But I would say that our, like, our genre or our aesthetic kind of just draws from a bunch of stuff, a bunch of different stuff.
10:07
Josh Castillo
We listen to, like, a good portion of us really love Sonic Youth, you know, and we really like the Pixies, you know, we really like, you know, big, high, energetic sounds. And for our shows to be highly energetic. And on top of that, like, we love things like the Beatles, you know, I love a lot of pop music, so I like the catchiness and melodic tones to music, but also being very raw and, like, powerful at the same time. So it just kind of draws from a bunch of. A bunch of different stuff. But I would say just. And, like, things like the Strokes, that's another thing that people kind of link to us. But I would say just like, very catchy rock and roll, you know, Very melodic.
11:07
Hermajesty
Yeah. Almost like. Yeah. Just really focus on melodies and stuff. If you guys could add a cover to your set, what would it be? I know you guys have a lot of stuff like Sonic Youth and Pixies and Strokes listed on your. On your Spotify influences and covers you guys have done. But what's something that you guys haven't really quite been able to dip your toes in yet?
11:34
Josh Castillo
We've done many covers, but I feel like we've done covers where it kind of just sounds how the song should be. I would like to do something where it would be our own rendition, you know, like, we've covered songs where it just is kind of like a mirrored version of that song, but just with, like, my voice on it. But, like, I would like to do just, like, totally take some other genre and, like, flip it. I always have this, like, idea in my mind, you know, what's that song? It's by. I think it's by. It's not even like a. It's not even like an underground song. It's like. It's by Tears for Fears or Tears. And it's. It's the. It's a Four Leaf Clover song. I forgot what it's called.
12:23
Hermajesty
I don't know.
12:25
Josh Castillo
I forgot what it's called. But I always thought that song would be tight, like, to play and, like. I don't know, but. Sorry. Yeah, we've covered, like, Beatles before. We've covered, like, Pixies and stuff. I recently did, like, a cover of, like, Blondie, but in, like, an acoustic, like, you know, like, folky version, I guess.
12:49
Hermajesty
Oh, that's cool.
12:50
Josh Castillo
Yeah. But. Yeah, I don't know, actually,
12:56
Hermajesty
You mentioned that. That Dylan wasn't. Julie. You guys have a lot of solo stuff going on, especially being isolated from the pandemic or. Where is your. Where is your creative focus? Kind of been the past year,
13:14
Josh Castillo
I feel like, for me, personally, for the past year, I've kind of just. I've just been, like, focusing on myself, and I. I kind of took a break on songwriting because I felt like it was, like, giving me a lot of stress, you know, and it was because I was in a position where I wanted to do my stuff, but I didn't have my band or the resources to do it, so. And it was kind of hard. It was kind of hard going through that. And I kind of just took it, like, a huge break on music, on myself, because at the end of the day, it was just being more work and being more stressful, you know, being secluded in my room, trying to come up with things, and it would just kind of, like, go off nowhere.
14:08
Josh Castillo
But some of that stuff actually ended up being on, like, my future solo music and stuff like that. But. But I definitely have stuff in store for the band, but I would like to get with my band soon and rehash those ideas.
14:33
Hermajesty
Did you guys have. I mean, the last large project was 2018. Did you guys have something that was coming down the pipeline sooner than we. I mean, with an earlier expected release than where we're at now?
14:52
Josh Castillo
Yes, I. We've gone through, like, a lot of changes. So from 2018, that album that we released, we. Those were all songs that we written since 2016. So it was actually. It was actually like, a couple years for that to be put out, but when were all, like, you know, young teenagers. But after that point, I had a. We had a bunch of ideas and a bunch of things in the works that weren't able to come into fruition because we gone through, like, a lot of light, like, band changes, like, a lot of guitarists and bass players coming in and out of the band and just, like, other personal things. And also were, like, graduating high school and going off into college. So it was like, you know, life changing stuff. And I.
15:49
Josh Castillo
And from that point I was and have been like the sole like songwriter and like, you know, to produce this stuff for the band. And it was kind of. So all the ideas for the band were kind of just like stuck in my head. And like I had like a bunch of EP ideas and we had like demos in the works, but then just like things fell through and like those never became anything. But we've actually played some of them live. And that was the thing is went on like this big, like live, you know, not tour, but, you know, were really going off with every show that was given to us and we're playing.
16:38
Hermajesty
You guys were on a good streak.
16:40
Josh Castillo
Yeah, were playing like almost like week to week, like every month of shows. And it was just. I was kind of burnt out, to be honest with you. And to have that idea of like, oh man, I need to. We need to like sit down and record stuff. But we're still like getting like good offers for shows. It's kind of hard to find the balance.
17:02
Hermajesty
I saw in another interview that you guys had been kind of hung up on a song called Snafu.
17:10
Josh Castillo
Yeah, how's.
17:11
Hermajesty
How's that progress going?
17:13
Josh Castillo
We were literally talking about that last time we met up. And I think it's. It's still in our file. It's like the files and the song is still there. It's kind of. The mix is kind of messed up right now. Something happened and then obviously the Pandemic hit and we. Yeah, because I know. Interviewer talking about. We talked about that in January of 2020 to finish that and then everything happened and so I think that's still on pause and we've talked about playing it live, but right now we're a three piece band and so musically we're fully a four piece band, you know, so that song is very big and very like theatrical. So it's kind of hard to do that with just three guys and.
18:16
Josh Castillo
Well, we would like to play it live soon, but in terms of recording it, I don't know right now.
18:23
Hermajesty
Okay.
18:23
Josh Castillo
Because it's a very. It's like it was also like very supposed to be experimental and so were like adding like, you know, audio file after layer of everything and all those files just kind of just got lost and like it got messed up.
18:41
Hermajesty
But you had said then that you were kind of in a Pet Sounds phase and that's kind of what was influencing how sort of big in scope that project was. Going to be what is kind of what's revenue right now.
19:01
Josh Castillo
It's funny because like I love the Beach Boys, I love Pet Sounds, and I love like the Beatles and stuff, but like that's been like my comfort music. So I've been like trying to like stray away from that and. But I've been. I've been listening to a lot of like Angel Olson and just I've been like into very like acoustic stuff. And there's this band called Balkans. They're broken up now, but they're back in like 2011. They're from Atlanta, Georgia and they were really cool. They were very like heavy, like very heavy, like garage rock, very Stroke esque type of band. And I'm still very influenced by them and their stuff are things I would like to do. But still, definitely that aspect of having that pop influence from the Beatles and the Beach Boys is always gonna be there.
19:58
Josh Castillo
And in terms of Snafu and Snafu being influenced by Pet Sounds, I still want to do more like that and stray away from the typical garage rock sound and actually mess around with things and do something, you know, maybe not in like super innovative, but like different for us, you know.
20:25
Hermajesty
Yeah, you existential, as you're saying, is a little bit old now and you guys have been playing those songs for a bit. How do you, how do you feel about still playing the songs that you guys wrote while in rows of high school?
20:41
Josh Castillo
I am super over it, to be honest with you. I'm really over. And we again, we talked about like, we talked about this when we all got together because it's been a year since we've seen each other and it's been a few or few years since we've been in high school. So we've all like agreed that we're like kind of over playing those songs and a lot of people love those songs and I love those songs, but it's just kind of driving me crazy. And so I think these next couple of shows and like shows moving forward, you're going to like start seeing those songs kind of fade away.
21:20
Hermajesty
Yeah, I think the phrase is kind of the Strokes are the best Strokes cover band.
21:28
Josh Castillo
Oh yeah. Oh yeah. But I. But to talk about the board, it's like again, like that was us when we were in high school. So like, those topics don't like resonate with me or them anymore, you know. And you know, we're going through different things, you know, in life and, and that's where we see like the demographics of our audience change because the people that were listening to us were in the same age or a little bit younger, you know, and now we're all in our 20s, going off and moving out of California and, you know, so it's just kind of adapting to who we are.
22:19
Hermajesty
Yeah. For listeners that might not know, can you explain the name Makeout Reef?
22:27
Josh Castillo
So Makeout Reef was. It was this place in SpongeBob, and it's where all the, you know, the young teenage fishes go out to make out on top of this giant, you know, coral reef. And it was like this, like, huge, big, like, superhero battle on there. I don't know how to get into that, but, like, I. I don't even remember how I came up with that name or just like. Like, even found it, but it was definitely influenced by Surf Curse, because Surf Curse took their name from a Brady Bunch episode. You know, it was like the. It was like the tiki curse necklace or something, you know, and so they took that Surf curse, you know, and I thought the same thing. Like, oh, Makeout Reef. Take that name and make into a band. And then it became something.
23:25
Hermajesty
What is. What's your favorite spongebob episode?
23:31
Josh Castillo
I love the episode where it's. It's like that time travel episode where it was like they were cavemen. Do you know? Do you remember? And they're, like, trying to create the fire. I think it was the same. Yeah, there you go. Yeah. And I think it was the same episode where. Where Squidward went into that time machine and he went, like, far off into the future, and everything is just chrome, you know, and, like, they're all just, like, looking at the fire and, like, discover fire, and it's just like, that. His face and stuff. Yeah, that's. I. I think all the episodes are on Amazon Prime. You know, I need to get into all that again and watch SpongeBob again.
24:17
Hermajesty
No. Yeah. There's a banger of Apache, the pirate song on that episode.
24:20
Josh Castillo
Oh, my God. Yes. And the voice actor of Patrick is just, like, rapping on it.
24:26
Hermajesty
Yeah.
24:27
Josh Castillo
Oh, my God. I know what you're talking about. Yeah.
24:31
Hermajesty
So you were so. Yeah. Well, has Liam. Have you guys been in more online school recently?
24:39
Josh Castillo
Oh, yeah. Okay.
24:40
Hermajesty
So I was. I was gonna ask how being in San Luis Obispo has kind of affected how the band operates, but being in Covid, I'm sure that probably seemed like a cakewalk.
24:55
Josh Castillo
Yeah. I'm just, like, being distant and just, like, texting all the time, but. We kind of gotten used to it, and Even before COVID Liam was pretty used to driving back and forth from Slo to Long beach, and he has, like, no problem with it because he does that all the time because he has friends up there, he has friends down here. So it's just a matter of scheduling and asking where he's at, because he's always out on trips. He's. Right now. He's on a trip right now, and that's why he couldn't make it. But. Yeah, but. So that's not. It hasn't been, like, a big, like, problem for us. I mean. I mean, we can't see each other, but it's. It was just always a thing, and. But he's always made it for shows and, like.
25:52
Josh Castillo
And stuff, and always sacrificed coming down for all the important stuff, you know, so. So big props to him.
26:00
Hermajesty
Yeah. So you said that you're the primary songwriter for a lot of the projects. How does. What's the process of the band creatively? So are you guys going into where. Whatever recording space y' all have and then just kind of starting from there, or you're bringing songs to the band, or you guys are practicing before you get into the studio, or stuff is happening in the studio. How does that take place?
26:24
Josh Castillo
It's always different, but it always starts with me kind of coming up with song ideas. But basically, it's. Again, we've gone through a lot of, like, show dates and people asking us to play shows. So in the midst of all that, I'm, like, trying to write songs, you know, and I want to play those songs. So I try to. I try to write them all the way through, and. And I bring it to them, and they add. You know, Liam brings in his drums, and, you know, I work out the bass stuff with Dylan. He catches it pretty easily, and that's how it's. And that's how he's been for the past couple of years. But. But recently, like, Liam was able to acquire, like, his own studio, and he's.
27:21
Josh Castillo
He's, like, building his own home studio right now, and so we're gonna start using that more. And I recently just bought some recording equipment for my own, you know, studio, and I've been, like, writing songs for myself for, like, a solo project. But. But, yeah, that's pretty much it. And we. It's all comes down to us meeting and. But I definitely want it to be more collaborative, this next project. I want it to be not just, you know, my songwriting abilities, but also what they like and what they want to add, like, technically and Also sound wise, really. We really want to change some parts of our sound and be like a little more mature and what we've been like, inspired by as of recently.
28:26
Hermajesty
Yeah, that makes a lot of sense. Are you guys, are you guys signed or are you guys going to. Is that something you guys want to do or are you guys going to keep putting out, independently?
28:36
Josh Castillo
Yeah. So we're not signed and yeah, that's what we've been doing for a while is just like, just, you know, doing it ourselves. And it's worked, you know, it's. We've. We've been able to grow our fan base managing ourselves and that like, adds to the stress. We manage ourselves, you know, like, we don't have a manager, we don't have a look, someone to help with publicity and stuff. We just do it ourselves. And I think, and I. But I think bands nowadays don't need that. You know, you don't need to rely on a record label. I mean, and there's this whole other thing of like TikTok. Bands are getting big off of TikTok. So, you know, if you're able to manage, you know, that type of social media, you could make something out of your name.
29:32
Josh Castillo
But we've gotten like, like once, once we've had a record label be interested in us and we tried to like email them back and like send in our demos and stuff, but they didn't hit us up back. It's all good though. We're still here.
29:53
Hermajesty
Exactly. Is there a producer, someone that you guys would like to work with, coming up with any projects to record?
30:05
Josh Castillo
Nothing in particularly. Liam's really good at working. He knows a lot about music and he's going to school for it and I'm going to school for music too. But he's done a lot more and he knows a lot about producing and mixing and stuff. So I think what we're going to do is we're still going to do it ourselves and we're going to still do how we've always done it the best of our knowledge. But we're probably going to try to find a studio or a producer that could mix and master it even better, but no one really comes to mind. I know there's this place called Jazz Cat Studios in Long Beach. They've put out some good stuff and like, we've worked.
30:57
Josh Castillo
Last year, we've worked with Astro Records and they were really tight and it was really cool to get into an actual studio. And with those two singles, you could tell the sound difference. You know, you could tell, like a big leap in production. So that's definitely where we're heading. And we're definitely, you know, not going to settle for. For anything less than the best quality of us.
31:31
Hermajesty
You guys have some demos floating around, and then even some of the other early stuff is a little rough around the edges. Would you guys ever want to rerecord that or do you guys think that is in the form that you guys are happy with?
31:45
Josh Castillo
I think because like we said before, all those songs were back in 2018, and we're kind of past that. There are two there, those two singles that we put out last year. I wouldn't mind recording and putting on a full length because I've always liked those songs and I kind of. In terms of like, that kind of sound, we're kind of heading that direction. But our song Montezuma's Revenge is like one of my favorites and it still resonates with me to this day. And I would. I would like to record that. And I think we are gonna record that one. Okay. Yeah.
32:36
Hermajesty
Great. I think my favorite track off Existential is so slowly.
32:40
Josh Castillo
Yeah.
32:41
Hermajesty
That a few times on here.
32:43
Josh Castillo
Oh, thank you.
32:44
Hermajesty
Of course, if you guys could go kind off base with your recording. What's a genre that you guys would like to explore? Just anything.
32:55
Josh Castillo
We were. We were talking about like just jazz recently, you know, and last time were practicing, were like. We were playing. We were doing kind of like not shoe gazy, but were like messing around. And were doing kind of like a swirlies type of thing. But it was just like a quick second, like kind of like a very drainy and very like you guys turned.
33:30
Hermajesty
All the pedals on to see what would happen.
33:31
Josh Castillo
Yeah, yeah. And it was very. Just like head Bobby and very. And. And. And like after. We were like, after we jammed and like pushed that out randomly, we're like, we should do that like one day. Like do something like that one day. I would want to do more acoustic stuff. You know, I would want to do more piano stuff. More keys in our songs. And. And I want it to be bigger. I want to. And I would like to add, like, strings, you know, and just in terms of my songwriting, I'm a very visual, like, songwriter. Like, I. I like when you listen to a song that you could see it, you know.
34:21
Hermajesty
Yeah.
34:22
Josh Castillo
More than just. Yeah, you could see it more than you can just listen to it and So I think I still want to head in that direction and just to make things bigger than just garage rock, honestly, but still have that element, you know?
34:37
Hermajesty
Yeah, there's. There's an edge. There's a youthfulness in it.
34:39
Josh Castillo
Oh, yeah.
34:40
Hermajesty
And sort of. Sort of piggybacking off of that. So, I mean, you're. You're a pretty chill guy. We're just having this conversation, but. But your vocals are really loud and explosive and. And incredible. Where are you sort of reaching for that? Where does that come from?
34:58
Josh Castillo
I don't know, because, like, I was kind of, like, in a spot where I was like, oh, I don't like my voice. But, like, it's just my voice and I. And I'm. And what I think is cool about our band and what we do musically and with my vocals, I. I'm not really trying to sound like anyone or trying to put on a voice. You know what I mean? Yeah, Like, I. I'm not into that whole thing. Like, no disrespect to anyone else. Like, I just, like, I'm not really into, like, kind of using my singing voice into a way that it doesn't sound, like, natural. And so, you know, with my singing abilities, back then, I was screaming a lot, so that was kind of like the range and the things I could do.
35:52
Josh Castillo
But lately I've been, like, trying to, you know, do some softer things and something beyond my octave, you know, or, like, trying to go higher. Trying to go, you know, something more complex.
36:07
Hermajesty
I mean, it's an instrument, like, anything else.
36:09
Josh Castillo
Oh, yeah, definitely. And, like. And pigging back on the Beach Boys, like, I love their harmonies, and I feel like that's also an element that I'd want to do, too, with our music is to have those guys sing as well and to kind of layer our voices into something. But I would say that a lot of people, since we're very influenced by, like, Strokes, like, a lot of people have said, like, oh, like Strokes, Julian Casablancas, you know, and I've gone like. Or we've gone like, Beatle ish vibes. So, like, people say, like, John Lennon, and I could kind of see that because, like, I don't know, they. They also use their voice where it's. It's just. It literally just sounds like their voice when they're singing. You know what I mean? So I. I could kind of.
37:02
Josh Castillo
I can understand how people are saying that. So I would. I would say that. And I kind of. I kind of, like, draw my influence from that, you know, just sounding like Yourself and doing what you can with your voice. And I feel like I've. Since then, I've become a better singer, so I'm gonna try to use my voice in different and complex ways than just yelling, but I do like yelling. It is fun. And screaming, but. And I still want to do that on future stuff, but just try and do more complex stuff is our main thing.
37:44
Hermajesty
Yeah, it sounds like your ideas for the band are a lot bigger than almost sort of the trio that you guys are. Would you guys ever want to dip into session musicians, or do you think you want to learn a lot of stuff yourself and really just put that all together?
38:02
Josh Castillo
I would hope so. I would, like. I would love to work with other people, you know, all of us to work with people and give us ideas. Like, when we worked on those two singles last year, we had producers, you know, and engineers working with us, and they brought, you know, simple but, like, good ideas to the stuff that made those songs, you know, better on the production. And so just in general, just having even just, you know, a producer engineer on board and with their music knowledge is something that we're open to. And, like, again, like I said, like, oh, like, I want strings, or, like, oh, I'd like to do piano and stuff. So we're open to that and we would like to do that.
38:51
Josh Castillo
And I think that kind of just like all, but I think that kind of adds to, like, the. The. The stress of it all because, you know, we want to do bigger and better things, but it's just kind of the resources aren't there, you know?
39:08
Hermajesty
Yeah, that makes sense. It's definitely a little bit harder, especially with home recording, to try to figure out just the whole scope of it. So if you could do. So speaking of collaboration with more artists, if you could. If you could collaborate with one group or I guess a few musicians to do a double kind of combo album or EP like Death Frights, who would you want to collaborate with? Who would you want to bring into your studio to work with Liam and Dylan?
39:44
Josh Castillo
I would say that's a hard question because I never thought about that. But I would like. I would like to work with more female musicians because that's also just an aspect that part of the OC scene or part of, like, you know, just any scene, is that, you know, there should be more attention to, like, all aspects of music and varieties and representation and stuff. So I would like to work with, like, a female group, but I can't really think of one off the top of my head. But and to like, do something with that. Like. Like a perfect example. Like the Strokes did a song with Modern Girls. Yes. They did a Strokes with. What is her name? Regina Spector. There you go. And that was. That was great. It was a great song.
40:45
Josh Castillo
So something like that would be cool to like, have, you know, vocals, a female band, do vocals and like mix. Like, you know,
40:56
Hermajesty
By Space Mountain.
40:59
Josh Castillo
Yeah.
40:59
Hermajesty
That's the fourth Wanderers vocalist in there.
41:02
Josh Castillo
Or like, who else? Kurt Vile. And Kurt Vile and what's her name? Courtney something. I'm like blanking out all these names, but they just did a duo album together, you know, and that was really cool. So I think having that aspect would be cool. But I can't really. Sorry, I can't really think of any band off the top of my head right now.
41:29
Hermajesty
It's okay. Quick, quick pivot. What is your. What's your favorite Crayola? Crayon color out of like the 96 pack? Crayola.
41:44
Josh Castillo
Do I have to, like, say the like, exact, like name?
41:46
Hermajesty
Yes.
41:50
Josh Castillo
I don't know any names, but.
41:55
Hermajesty
Think of a name. Just make one up.
42:01
Josh Castillo
I don't know. Banana Blue. I don't know. Something like that.
42:08
Hermajesty
Yeah. So obviously you guys are getting back in the swing of things. You guys have shows coming up. What is. What exactly is in the pipeline as far as recording or projects go for you guys?
42:25
Josh Castillo
Definitely, we definitely want to change our sound. We definitely. We're gonna meet up soon and we're gonna put all the songs that I have in mind for us to play in these new. These upcoming shows. And I want it to be different from. Again, like I told you, like, I was never really into that surf rock type of stuff. So I. I definitely want to get us out of that, you know, with all the respect, you know, to. From that genre. But I wanna. I think the big thing next is. Just finding our sound again and finding who we are as individuals and as a band and how we're going to move forward. Because we've been in this for a long time. Like we've been a band for a long time and. And our fans have changed and we've changed. So I think just.
43:43
Josh Castillo
Just how we're going to move forward and like taking it, you know, day by day, you know, week by week, and how much we could meet now and. But I think that's the big thing is to remake our sound, get a.
44:02
Hermajesty
Bearing on where you guys are at, where you guys are going. Yeah, yeah. How long have you guys been playing music together?
44:10
Josh Castillo
Well, Liam, And I. The band started in 2016 and so basically Liam and I have been playing together since then because he's always been the drummer and. Yeah, and it's like, it's pretty crazy because like that's how we met. You know, we met through the band and we met while were in high school and went to different schools, so it was just meeting mutuals and you know, we found Liam at the time and he stuck as our drummer ever since. And so we've gone through a lot and we've like done so many shows. We've gone through a lot as a band. So that's like a crazy aspect too that. That's how we've known each other as bandmates.
45:10
Hermajesty
Okay, what were those first gigs like and when did it kind of become comfortable for you guys?
45:18
Josh Castillo
So our first show is at a. Is at this place called DP Oz's in Long beach. And. And if you know anything about like, you know, being a band around OC and Long Beach, DP Oz's is always like the starter venue for a new band and for like high school bands. So our first show is there and so were, it was, were a four piece. And those following weeks were still looking for a drummer and so we found like Liam through a mutual friend, like last minute. And he like picked up like the music like instantly. We had like one practice with him. I think our first practice with him was the day of our show.
46:07
Hermajesty
Oh, wow.
46:08
Josh Castillo
Yeah. Like, no joke. Like, and so, and the show was great. Like we played really well and the people loved us and had a good time, you know, the. However many people were there, but you know, people were moshing in a very small circle. But it was a really good show for our first show and especially practicing with like Liam for the first time. But. And then it was just like. So were very comfortable with each other from the jump and we just kept going. Yeah.
46:54
Hermajesty
Yeah. So is it. Especially with the separation, I mean, it's been a little bit since you guys have been able to play a show, but with liam up in 10, Luc Obispo and the rest of you guys spread out a little bit more. Were you guys able to just reconvene right off the jump for shows and hop into it, or is there a little bit of rust every time?
47:19
Josh Castillo
Honestly. Well, this was, this has been our biggest break. Like it's been like a year long break. So when we met up recently, it was very rough. But. But. But we still got it. Like, were like, oh, like, we felt like old men. Like, oh, we're back together, like, doing this. But. But other than that, it was always very easy for us to play those songs, like, every time. And, like, even with, like, the new. With bandmates coming in and out, like, it was. It was pretty. Pretty solid. And we. There were some hiccups, but we. I believe were always able to put on good shows.
48:16
Hermajesty
It's good to hear that you guys are getting back into the. Into the rhythm of all of it. What is. Is there anything today that we haven't touched on that you'd like to. You like to get out to the fans or the listeners.
48:30
Josh Castillo
That we're still alive and that because we're not active on social media doesn't mean we're not thinking about the band every day and, like, thinking about the fans. And that was an aspect that we talked about, is that we're not very public right now. Like, we're not, like, personally, for all of us, like, we're not big social media heads where we like to, like, post on what we're doing and, like, oh, look at all the cool stuff we're up to. So that aspect has played into, you know, Makeout Reef and Makeout Reef seeming like we're not a band anymore. But, yeah, we're still doing stuff and our fans have had a lot of patience, and I could tell they. With our last release, they're, like, itching to get new stuff from us.
49:34
Josh Castillo
So I would just say, like, you know, we're taking it slow and we're still trying to gather ourselves, but we still want to be in this. And.
49:49
Hermajesty
And, yeah, I mean, that's awesome to hear that you guys are coming out on the other side of this, ready to just get out there, start. Start putting stuff out, start playing shows. Yeah. Where else. Where they. Where can they find you guys? Are there any solo. Is there any solo stuff out for you guys? What's everybody. Where can they find you?
50:12
Josh Castillo
So definitely Instagram is our big social media, you know, platform where we post about everything and all the music we have. We have Instagram, we have Twitter. We also have a Facebook page. All of our music is on Spotify, Apple Music, SoundCloud, our Bandcamp. We're on. Our music's on TikTok as well. Our music's on Instagram. Our music's on Deezer, Napster still, I guess, and also want to make merch, too. Like, we want to make T shirts and stuff. Like we want to, you know, give stuff back too as well, but I. And that's another thing too, is for solo stuff. I'm focusing on my solo music right now and I'm trying to finish that by the end of this year and. But I don't really have anything out except for like one song on Spotify at Johnny Echoes. That's my solo music.
51:24
Josh Castillo
Johnny Echoes and Dylan, you know, just to plug everyone. Dylan has his band, Julie, you know, and Liam, I believe he's doing some solo stuff as well, but he hasn't released anything. But that's also just things too. Like, you know, Dylan has his own band, you know, Liam's. He has his own music and he's working on his own studio and stuff. And I have my own solo music as well. And I think my solo music kind of mixes with Mega Riff's music because being the songwriter, so if I'm releasing any solo music this year, it could be prototype for future Makeout Reef stuff as well.
52:21
Hermajesty
Yeah, of course it's going to cross pollinate. It's going to all stem from the same place.
52:26
Josh Castillo
Yeah.
52:27
Hermajesty
Well, Josh, thank you so much for sitting down with me.
52:30
Josh Castillo
Dude, thank you so much.
52:33
Hermajesty
I'm Her Majesty. You're on WKNC. The band is Makeout Reef. See you. Talk to you guys later.