Gothic Theatre
Pseudopod
Most bands that come together in college never make it past their finals, Senior year. But the four UCLA alumni known as Pseudopod have not only survived graduation, they’ve parlayed their tight but loose mix of jazzy rhythms, classic rock riffage, and pop sensibilities into a fervent following of tape-trading, set list-discussing and road-tripping fans. Now those fans can enjoy Pseudopod in the comfort of their own homes with the band’s self-titled major label debut on Interscope Records.
For the guys in Pseudopod, their “how they formed” story fittingly begins at UCLA’s Music Studies program. It was here that Northern California kids Ross and Tim, who had played together in both school and rock bands, met fellow No. Cal. resident Brian through a mutual friend, eventually asking him to join their funk cover band. But the threesome, who became fast friends, soon swapped covers for originals after seeing Kevin perform at a local bar’s open mic night.
Seizing the moment, the foursome recorded their self-released debut, Pod, in the summer of 1998, and then spent the next three years going to classes on Monday through Wednesday and the rest of the week on the road. During that time, the guys not only earned their degrees (Ross and Tim have Bachelor’s Degrees in Music, while Brian has a Master’s Degree in Ethnomusicology), but they also played more than a hundred shows a year. They opened for such diverse acts as Blues Traveler, G Love & Special Sauce, The Samples and Ozomatli when they weren’t headlining themselves. „It seemed like we were playing show after show after show and the next thing we knew, we were playing living our lives on the road,¾ Kevin says.
As a result of this constant road work, as well as good word-of-mouth and chat room discussions, the guys quickly found themselves with the kind of fan following normally reserved for bands who already have self-titled major label debut albums. It was a following that continued to grow, as their fans not only began following the band from show to show, but also traded live tapes and set lists online, a practice now encourage by the band’s homepage, .
