Safety Orange

Founded by singer-bassist Sol Turpin (40 Oz to Freedom), a San Diego native, Safety Orange followed their raucous debut full-length Life as a Fish with the equally rollicking Troll Rock High, earning themselves sponsorship deals from action lifestyle companies such as Jagermeister, Aedik Clothing, and others. Their third full-length State of Where I Am, released on their own Wabasa Records label (Turpin’s middle name is Wabasa), was followed a single for “Better Now” that was featured on Spotify’s Reggae Summer Beach playlist and a December 2020 single for “Christmas With Friends.” Their newest single “Get Outta My Way” comes with a sleeve illustrated by Dead & Company gig poster artist Mark Sgarbossa. According to Turpin, “This is one of the last songs that Greg [Karlo] played some guitar on before he retired from the band during the covid lockdowns. Nate Lions is the new guitarist. This song is a rocker, I was channeling the Clash. Also, it’s a bit of a different topic than most of my other stuff lately. I usually try to be pretty happy and positive in life and my lyrics, but this one’s kinda more a ‘Fuck you, leave me alone’ style. We all have our days.”

Clinton Davis

G Burns Jug Band vet Clinton Davis is a musician who was born and raised in Kentucky, but is currently living in San Diego. As a multi-instrumentalist, he plays American folk and popular music of the early 20th century: hillbilly, jug band, mountain ballads, cowboy ballads, and more. He says he first heard acoustic folk-blues while still living in the family home. As he once told Reader writer Dave Good in a 2018 interview, “The seeds were planted when I was a little kid. My dad played guitar. The blues were not his bag, but other guitar players around him were into it, that Travis-style of guitar playing. But it really came alive for me in college, when I was listening to old folk recordings. The music, I thought, was deeply beautiful. There was deep musicianship, and none of these people were professional.” It’s been several years since Davis collaborated with Mara Kaye to record the soundtrack to the film Ana, Who They Pulled Out of the River. The movie, concerning a mother confronted by the grown child she abandoned on the Tijuana River bank, was filmed in 2019 but unreleased until last year. The full soundtrack was finally issued in March and is attracting much favorable reaction online.

Jonny Tarr

Frequently seen around town, Jonny Tarr has been working on making electronic soul music in many formats, whether singing his own material or classics with a selection of instruments (guitar, synth, sax, flute, vocals, loop station, samples), blowing sax over the DJ, or leading a full band. Originally from Cardiff, Wales, Tarr now lives in San Diego. An album called The Jonny Tarr Quintet: Live at Studio West was recorded at San Diego’s Studio West and released in early 2020, during the pandemic shutdown. His first fully self-produced album The Rules is due soon via local Pacific Records.

Berkley Hart

Jeff Berkley recalls his first musical instrument. “A white upright piano. My parents got it for me when I was three or four. My father was a minister, and it was handed down from some old church.” His musical Berkley Hart partner, Calman Hart, recalls his as “a red-and-yellow electric guitar. I can’t remember the brand, but it wasn’t very expensive. It wouldn’t stay in tune, and the action was too high. It wasn’t until I got an acoustic guitar that I took it seriously, but I have pictures of me holding it and looking all rock and roll.” Their third Berkley Hart album, 2004’s Twelve, kicked off a long streak of San Diego Music Award wins and nominations by earning them a trophy for Best Americana Album. Late last year, the duo released a video for “Dear John John Deere,” from their most recent album While the Night Is Still Young, featuring a cameo appearance by local Mentals frontman Joey Harris. They’ll play Escondido’s Ritz Theater on June 18, as well as hosting Berkley Hart Music Camp on October 7 and 8, a musician and songwriter retreat offering workshops and concert performances.

Freakshow

San Diego Music Awards nominees Freakshow was founded by Michael J. Felder after the 2017 demise of his band Ash the Sky. The group’s roster has shifted completely, leaving him as the sole founding member. A single for “Built 4 This Shit” came with a hard and heavy video directed by J. Scott Fenton, who also helmed their video for “Waste.” The popularity of both tracks landed the band several gigs last year at Hollywood’s famed Whiskey A Go Go. Felder (who has a sponsorship deal with Pig Hog cables) recently taped a guest appearance on the television series Dine N’ Dashians, where he worked alongside Saving Private Ryan co-star Tom Sizemore. He also wrote music for the program’s soundtrack, due out in a commercial release later this year.