Machin’ has only been around for about a year—but in that short amount of time, the band has already gained a fair deal of respect in Coachella Valley and the high desert. The “Spanglish Jive” band is playing several gigs in September—including one at Palm Desert’s Hood Bar and Pizza, on Friday, Sept. 27.
The three-piece band from the high desert is fronted by David Macias (vocals, guitar), and includes Briana Cherry (violin) and Andy Gorrill (bass/accordion). The band’s name, Machin’ (Ma-Cheen), is Spanglish slang for “supremely excellent.” The band formed after David Macias completed eight years in the U.S. Navy; he served as a corpsman during two deployments to Iraq.
Machin’ takes pride in mixing various Latin-music sounds together with rock.
“When I was in high school, I played trumpet in mariachi; I played guitar in jazz band and in a salsa band,” Macias said during a recent interview. “I grew up listening to rock music—The Beatles, The Doors, and Jimi Hendrix. At the same time, I also grew up listening to Mexican music. I was born in Chihuahua, Mexico, so I have a deep appreciation for Latin music.”
Since the band formed, Macias said, the band has faced a welcome challenge—keeping up with all of their gigs. They’ve played the Joshua Tree Music Festival, the Hue Festival, AM/FM Fest, and even the Kraft Nabisco LPGA golf tournament, where they were the backing band for Robby Krieger of The Doors. They also opened for Ozomatli’s 2013 appearance at the Date Shed in Indio.
“I grew up listening to Ozomatli, so opening up for them was a dream come true,” said Macias. “More like, ‘Oh wow, I’m on the right track. This is cool!’
“We became the backing band for Robby Krieger, and we played a couple of Doors songs—‘Back Door Man’ and ‘Break on Through.’ The Doors are one of my inspirations. Playing with Robby was amazing. He just walked up to me and was like, ‘Hi, I’m Robby,’ and I was like, ‘Man, you don’t have to tell me that.’”
Machin’ is currently in the process of recording a demo—and Macias is a big believer in the DIY ethic.
“We don’t have the privilege and the money to pay people to do all the work for us,” Macias said. “We’re focusing on the mission ahead, which is creating a fan base. Pushing material to labels and all of that is a waste of time rather than doing the ground work, going and playing the streets, playing the music, and having a one-on-one interaction with people.
“Creating a fan base is the idea of the music militia. You start creating a fan base, (and) you start creating an army. Take over little sections where people will recognize you and know who you are, and once you have that section, you move on to another place to create a fan base. I think everything will come from that. It doesn’t matter what record label you’re on. If people don’t come to see you, what does it fucking matter?”
Macias said the band currently has 12 original songs and is working on more, including instrumental pieces and other songs that have developed through jam sessions. While Machin’ has been a six-piece bands at times in the past, Macias said he’s focusing on the three-piece element for right now.
The band has played outside of the desert at times—in Los Angeles, Northern California, Oregon, and Washington.
“Most people’s reactions are, ‘What is this?’ at first. We haven’t had any bad comments so far, and people have been reacting positively,” Macias said.
Macias said he and his fellow members of Machin’ believe that music brings people together and creates a positive impact.
“We have a saying of ‘revolution through music.’ There’s no separation. … There’s no discrimination in music. As an artist has a canvas with different colors and can make different colors, we can do the same with sound waves.”
Machin’ plays at 8 p.m., Friday, Sept. 27, at The Hood Bar and Pizza, 74360 Highway 111 in Palm Desert. Tickets are $10; the bill will also include Metalachi, Los Mysteriosos and Giselle Woo. For more show info, find the event listing on Facebook. For more on Machin, visit www.facebook.com/Machinmilitia, or www.reverbnation.com/machin.