Sublime

Childhood friends Eric Wilson and Bud Gaugh formed Sublime in Long Beach, California in 1988. The pair started off as a garage punk band but soon branched out to reggae and ska, mainly due to the influence of newly added vocalist Bradley Nowell. In the following years, Sublime played small clubs and venues throughout Southern California and cut a handful of demos, released via their own Skunk Records label. After building a substantial following among the surfing and skateboarding scenes, they dropped their studio debut 40oz. to Freedom in 1992. The album contained the single “Date Rape,” which received heavy airplay on local radios. The ever-growing buzz around the band led to a record deal with MCA Records, who released their sophomore effort, 1994’s Robbin’ the Hood. More experimental in nature, the LP paved the way for the huge success of their 1996 eponymous album. However, tragedy ensued as Bradley Nowell died of a heroin overdose right before the album’s release. Nowell’s passing only added to the album’s legendary status as the single “What I Got” reached the top of Billboard’s Alternative Airplay chart and both “Santeria” and “Wrong Way” peaked at Number 3 in the US. This success also sparked an interest in the band’s previous efforts, propelling 40oz. to Freedom and Robbin’ the Hood to double-platinum and gold status, respectively. Following the band’s breakup, Wilson and Gaugh continued to perform as Long Beach Dub Allstars and then reformed in 2009 as Sublime with Rome, featuring singer-songwriter Rome Ramirez on vocals.

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