The Dirty Heads
Pacific Amphitheatre
7/28/13
About seven thousand people flocked to the Pacific Amphitheater in Costa Mesa to catch Huntington Beach's finest stoner rap-reggae group The Dirty Heads on Sunday.This band addresses all ends of the genre spectrum, making them somewhat difficult to categorize: A bunch of white boy rappers from Orange County? They also shred the guitar and back it up with a trippy, reggae sound that carries the kush-rolling fun of Slightly Stoopid.
Somewhere between the Santa Cruz stoner rock group The Expendables and San Clemente local group Common Sense, a low lying fog drifted and hovered over the audience. But as soon as winds wafted that old familiar skunky concert smell, I knew I was in for a serious contact high.
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With opening acts like Common Sense to set the stage, the smoke became one with the overcast skies. But no clouds would dampen this surfer-filled crowd. Pacific Amphitheatre roared to life as The Dirty Heads exploded onto stage in a white boy rap furry as they opened with “Smoke Rings.” Despite cheesy rap stints and the fact that most of their songs set the scene of an Orange County high school boy's wet dream with lyrics describing dank herb, ditching school to surf or having sex in the parking lot, towards the middle of their show, Heads guitarist Dustin Bushnell raffled off the very guitar he was playing to a woman who had battled cancer. (Enter a warm “aww” sound that swept over the crowd.)
The band quickly resumed their set list, filled with fantasies from songs such as “Cabin By the Sea,” where they burn ganja all day with said significant other.
Ah, stoners.
The Dirty Heads also showcased “Goonies,” a song that will be featured on their acoustic album slated to come out in October. Bushnell and Lead Singer/Songwriter Jared Watson traded the spotlight with hip hop lyrics couple with acoustic guitar and jembes.
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There is a reason why they call themselves The Dirty Heads and despite their SoCal stoner roots, they still feed the audience a healthy dose of fun positive vibes that left everyone smiling after the show…or was that the weed?
Critical Bias: I'm a surfer girl and whether I like it or not, these Spicoli-esque bands come with the territory.
Crowd: “Whooo's got the herb?” No for real, who has it? Everyone!
Overheard:“Longboard or Shock Top?” “Um, board's in my car, dad.”
Random Notebook Dump: A self-declared Republican said he loves OC Weekly and pretty much everything we write is spot on…Gee, thanks, said Republican!
Setlist:
Smoke Rings
Dance All Night
Neighborhood
Taint
Disguise
Stand Tall
Knows that I
Hangovers with You
Your Love
Cabin
Mongo
Hip-Hop
Sails to the Wind
Hipster
Goonies
Believe
Spread
Dub
Lay
Check the Level
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