It may come as a shock to some to find that Sacramento is a sort of musical melting pot. On any given night, rockabilly and thrash metal can be heard within earshot of one another, echoing through the concrete corridors of downtown and beyond. Like the ingredients in any melting pot introduced to flame, the genres won’t stay segregated forever. Eventually, the contents blend together and end up with something superior to the sum of its original parts. Such is the case for The Me Gustas.
With Odedin Giraldo providing lead guitar, Chris Zavoras on drums, and Adrain Aguirre as the bassist, this trio comprises current members of a band that came to prominence in Sacramento in 2018, although the band itself formed in the Bay Area in October 2014. They have since expanded their presence out onto the Sacramento music scene like the tentacles of the Cthulhu, the same creature that stars prominently on the cover of their two vinyl album covers, The Me Gustas’ self-titled album and their most recent studio release, It Came
from the Chum Bucket.
The Me Gustas used surf rock as their control, or a familiar place from which to begin their experimentation into other genres, after watching bands like Slacktone and The Pyronauts play their brand of surf rock in a more traditional fashion. Rather than being limited to the laid back and clean cut beach vibe commonly associated with surf music, the long hair and renegade ways of these acts showed a young Giraldo that rules are meant to be broken, especially in the realm of music.
“The Me Gustas sound is kind of punk-tinged surf with a little bit of attitude,” Giraldo said in an interview with Sacramento News & Review. “We wanted to be able to create a sonic landscape that was more unique than just the same phrasing and guitars and amps and everything like that.”
“We wanted to be able to create a sonic landscape that was more unique than just the same phrasing and guitars and amps.”
Odedin Giraldo
Guitarist, The Me Gustas
What people won’t find at The Me Gustas performance is a dull moment. There may be a couple of melodic love ballads to choose from, but that’s not their wheelhouse. Instead you’ll find “untrained punk rockers playing spaghetti western surf instrumental tunes,” a quote which has been used to describe The Me Gustas for years, according to Giraldo.