Resinated are a St Petersburg, Florida four piece who blend a reggae feel with funk, pop and rock influences. At a show at 1904 Music Hall in Jacksonville, Florida, I recently had a chance to speak with them about their current headlining tour sponsored by Magical Butter, their sound and what it takes to get a taste of popularity.
Drummer and percussionist Josh Hasak told me about the group’s tenacious work ethic and ambition, adding that “there are a lot of great things in the works.” They recently worked with producer Justin Gray from Dirtyheads and the band’s new single ‘Up All Night’ is coming soon.
Magical Butter, a company specializing in botanical extractor machines, discovered Resinated through another band and decided to sponsor them. “We were allowed to take over their social media, but then we got a little bit crazy with it and they were like, too much!” On a more serious note, they are proud to work with Magical Butter and support the company as part of the movement for marijuana to be legalized. Like most reggae acts, they embrace a 420 Friendly attitude, but they are also passionate about the idea of cannabis as a medicine that needs to be accessible to patients in need.
Whilst their music definitely has a reggae vibe, the band say that they are not restricted by genre and simply set out to make “hip, modern, catchy music” above all else. Jeff Applefield (keys/vocals) described their sound as “funk, dance, groove, rock… positive, feel-good music. You wont hear any cursing in our songs. Family friendly, good vibes and good feelings. It’s chicken soup for your ears.” With characteristic humor, front man Kenny Mullins interjected, “And who doesn’t want chicken soup in their ears and around them?!”The band were especially passionate when sharing their tips for upcoming bands hoping gain sponsorship, perform headline shows, and tour as Resinated have been able to do. They shared with me their top ten tips for acts still working toward their first taste of recognition:
1. Built a relationship with fans: “Keep playing and street teaming.”
2. Never be complacent: “Even when you think you got something you ain’t got shit.”
3. Be patient: “It’ll only happen overnight if you have a couple million bucks… you’ve really got to hustle and grind.”
4. Prepare for hard times: “It takes 60% of your money.”
5. Hard work is the key: “Hustle like you just started the band yesterday, all the time.”
6. Stay grounded: “All the successful people I know are humble, ’cause they were totally broke at one point.”
7. Play every gig you can: “Go to jams 10 days a week, [put] in the time and [play] for 10 people.”
8. Educate yourself: “Music theory makes it a lot easier… we all took lessons.”
9. Practice makes perfect: “Practice your fucking ass off. Like Dave Grohl said, go in a garage and suck until you don’t suck any more.”
10. Be true to yourself: “Sound like yourself and do what you do best. Like in Cool Runnings: ‘We’re not the Swiss. We’re Jamaican. Be Jamaican!'”
Hasak believes that by following these principles, “Eventually you find your niche of where you sit in the big tree of music. Eventually you come up with something like what we are about to put on.”
Watching Resinated play live, it is clear that they take their own advice. They engage with the audience and have a dynamic sound. They were well supported by Dubwise, Ries Brothers, and The Ellameno Beat for a night of low key good vibes in downtown Jacksonville.
Big thanks to all the guys for speaking with us. Keep up with us here at Altwire for Resinated’s upcoming releases and more new interview features with our favorite acts to watch.
