Show Review: Dirty Heads and 311 Deliver Positive Vibes at North Island Credit Union Amphitheatre

**Dirty Heads closing out the night in Chula Vista, California.**

WORDS AND PHOTOS BY JAZMIN LEMUS

When Dirty Heads and 311 announced their co-headlining tour, fans of the genre knew it was going to be a great time. With support from The Interrupters, Dreamers, and Bikini Trill, attendees would be jamming out to some positive tunes for hours. Living in L.A., I decided if Chula Vista was the closest stop to me, why not try to make a day of it? Chula Vista was where I was at on Sunday, August 11th.

Kicking off the show, were L.A. natives, Bikini Trill. The group had the crowd engaged from the very beginning with catchy tunes. While they played older songs such as “Need Me” and “Smoke a Jay and Watch Yourself Dance”, they also delivered some new songs, “Lost Boy” and “Loser” off their latest release, Nah, Pull Over!. With their set coming to an end, Dreamers were up next.

Sometimes there are lineups that have a band that may not necessarily fit with the genre of the rest of the lineup, but that is totally okay because Dreamers still won the crowd over. With more of an indie rock vibe, the trio played older songs, but still snuck in newer tunes off their latest album, LAUNCH FLY LAND, such as “Vampire in the Sun” and “It’s Something to be Alive”. For anyone who hasn’t heard this album, please do yourself a favor and check it out, especially if you’re a fan of indie rock that makes people dance. As Dreamers reached the end of their set, anyone in attendance who was a fan of The Interrupters, was ready to rock.

The Interrupters have had quite a year as their album, Fight The Good Fight, has brought them lots of success. With a number of new fans gained in the past year, the L.A. ska punk natives, immediately got the crowd dancing and singing. They kicked off their set with an oldie, but a fan favorite “A Friend Like Me” off their first and self-titled album, The Interrupters. Even though the band only had time to play eight songs, their momentum was strong. They threw a curveball when they covered Billie Eilish’s “Bad Guy”. It was a nice surprise to hear a different rendition of that song. After they covered a big hit, they wrapped up their set and played their BIG hits, “She’s Kerosene” and “Gave You Everything”. While some fans seemed a bit bummed that their set was already over, those same fans were still stoked and looking forward to 311 and Dirty Heads.

311 and Dirty Heads have been rotating on closing out the show throughout the tour. This time 311 would be taking on the second to the last spot. The Omaha quintet immediately kicked their set off with the hits and played “Beautiful Disaster”, “All Mixed Up”, and “Come Original”. They slowed things down a bit, but picked them right up when The Interrupters, Dreamers, and Bikini Trill joined them on stage during “Good Feeling”, off their latest album, Voyager. For anyone who has seen 311, it wouldn’t be a 311 set without the entire band drumming to “Applied Science”. And every time they do that, the fans love it! There’s a different kind of energy that the band displays. 311 finished their set off with fan favorites “Amber”, “Creatures (For A While)”, and “Down”. One last message they had for their fans before they got off stage was a line off their song “Jupiter”. Vocalist, Nick Hexum said, “Stay positive and love your life”.

As fans took in the positive message, they were not ready to leave. Dirty Heads had positive vibes of their own to deliver. The Huntington Beach boys kicked their set off with “Burn Slow” and “Franco Eyed” off Sound of Change. It didn’t take long for the band to play a hit. Early on, they payed “My Sweet Summer”. The band also went off to play fan favorites such as “Cabin By The Sea” and of course, “Lay Me Down”. Fans that have caught this tour have been lucky enough to hear “Fear & Love” live, the latest single off the band’s newest album, Super Moon (side note: the band’s latest music video is also for this song). As fans were head bopping to the new song, fans were also stoked to hear “Medusa”. While I don’t engage in smoking, I was still very excited to hear “Moon Tower”. Even though that song talks about getting high, I think the bigger message here is: hang out with your friends while you’re young and have fun making new memories. Sadly, the night was coming to an end and Dirty Heads ended their set with “Vacation”.

As I conclude this, I have noted that there are only two dates left on this tour. For anyone who is a fan of the genre, whether or not you’re a fan of all the bands, there was something for everyone on this tour. One message that seemed to be delivered by all the bands: be positive. That’s the best we as people can do, right?

*To view more photos from the show, you can check out the gallery.*

Bikini Trill (for fans of Pacific Dub, HIRIE, Ballyhoo!)

Facebook: Bikini Trill

Twitter: @bikinitrill

Instagram: @bikinitrill

Latest release: Nah, Pull Over!

Dreamers (for fans of Night Riots, Weathers)

Facebook: Dreamers

Twitter: @DREAMERSjoinus

Instagram: @DREAMERSjoinus

Latest release: LAUNCH FLY LAND (Fairfax Entertainment Group)

The Interrupters (for fans of Rancid, Operation Ivy, The Distillers)