The Shockwaves specialize in classic rock. Front man Robert Hughes also plays guitar with the Midnight Ramblers, a Rolling Stones tribute.

In the late '80s and early '90s, Hughes lived in Washington, D.C., working as a radio and TV journalist. While employed by CBS, Gulf Broadcast Group, and Metromedia, he was assigned to the White House, the Pentagon, Capitol Hill, and the State Department. He moved to San Diego in 1993.