San Diego Reader

John Reis: Guitar (acoustic), Guitar (electric), Vocals

Genre: Rock

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• Cover Feature: "Swami Speaks - What Really Happened to RFTC?" · Sept. 21, 2011

Synoposis

Background:

Speedo, Slasher, the Swami, and John Reis are all the same person, but each one does something different. Reis, a Pacific Beach native, has performed in Hot Snakes, Pitchfork, Drive Like Jehu, and the Night Marchers. Speedo played guitar and fronted Rocket From the Crypt, a San Diego punk band with horns that gained international acclaim.

Slasher played bass guitar in the Sultans. Swami owns a San Diego indie-record label bearing his name and hosts a radio show Saturday nights on 94/9 FM. John Reis co-owns Bar Pink in North Park with his wife and a couple of friends. He answers our questions for the Swami.

Earlier, when we were discussing this interview, you suggested that Swami should be ON this week’s cover.

“Without a doubt, and I am sure most would agree. I think it would make the Reader much more readable, especially for me and my family. My friend Chris Squire got a Reader cover story a while back [November 29, 2007], yet I can eat many, many more hotdogs than him. Perhaps I need to go undercover as a carnival worker or see how many times I can sneak back and forth across the border or go to Burning Man or merely just go to a party in Mexicali in order to seem like a more compelling subject.”

Despite great promise and many breaks, Rocket From the Crypt ended up splitting. “A year prior to our last show, a group of up-and-coming bands got together and made us a money offer not to play anymore and disband. They wanted to be able to compete amongst themselves for the ‘best band in the world’ title. With Rocket still active, it appeared that a definitive successor could not be groomed. So we accepted the offer on our own terms and basically retired.”

What really happened? “Rocket definitely was a big-time rock ’n’ roll ride. We had accomplished everything we wanted to, and we no longer had any goals to pursue.”

Which band pushed you hardest as a performer?“Physically? Probably Rocket, because of all the yelling, the sometimes uncomfortable attire, and traveling.”

In 2008, Spinner magazine asked Reis what was happening musically in San Diego that people should know about.

“I don’t know what I said yesterday, let alone three years ago, but I can tell you that it is a very good time for the San Diego scene. The soil and conditions have been perfect for the next crop. Take into account the tragic, massive amounts of radiation bombarding our coast, and I expect to hear some great mutant rock in 2012.”

His Swami Sound System radio show, co-created with 94/9 FM programmer Mike Halloran, ran for seven years. “Halloran gave me the opportunity. But the show reflects the sounds that I am currently feeding my head-holes. The show title is a nod to the Jamaican sound system clashes of the ’60s and ’70s when DJs, more specifically called ‘selectors,’ would have to build their own crude PA equipment and even press and sell their own records.”

In January 2012, Reis announced “I’m doing my last SWaMiSounDsYStem on FM 94/9 tonight...[it] was an awesome seven years of ear bashing!” In March, a new version of the show debuted as a Slacker Radio channel.

"I am charged by this opportunity to unchain neglected and primitive hits and unleash them on earholes around the world," says Reis. "I still love radio in a traditional sense. But with a few exceptions, the vast majority of radio stations have really let the music fan down...[Slacker] is the perfect place for me to create our very own universe that celebrates savage sound and praises the unsung mavericks, rebels and weirdos. Now there is an entire station, always on air, that is purely dedicated to the high water mark of lowbrow music."

Programmed and hosted by the Swami himself, the station can be found in Slacker's Specialty category on all major smartphones, connected home devices, and on the web. The channel features obscure tracks hand-selected by the Swami to represent a range of genres including punk, reggae, psychedelic, blues and soul.