INTERVIEW: Cayucas

Photo courtesy of Cayucas

By Angela Smith

On April 19, 2019 the Los Angeles-based duo Cayucas released their third studio album entitled Real Life. I had the opportunity to see a show on their recently concluded spring tour and chat with vocalist Zach Yudin about the album.

HEM: How has tour been so far?
Zach: It's been really good. We haven't been on the road for a long time - first tour since 2016. it's been fun to get back out there and play some shows, see some old fans, see some new fans. We sort of routed it so as we get older, we just keep it simple.

HEM: What's your favorite track off this album?
Zach: I don't know if I have a favorite. I guess I should choose a favorite. I kind of like our song called "Melrose Place." It's the song where we just went pop and I really liked it. It's a song where I can really sing. We've been getting really good feedback.

HEM: What about that you've ever released?
Zach: I don't know, I've never really thought about it. It’s changed a lot. I think our best song is “High School Lover” which is off our first record. I listen to it to this day and go, ‘wow that's a good one.’

HEM: Tell me about the album cover for real life?
Zach: It’s this British artist guy who does surfy California, I don't know what his art is defined as but I love his art. I try to follow street art to some degree. I haven't found an artist I like as much as him. It's a guy called Stevie G. He had this drawing of a rabbit on a skateboard and I was like oh whoa, I don't know why it works, but it works. I asked him if we could use that except holding a flower, and he's not on a skateboard and so he basically redrew it. I didn't think we would do Stevie G, he did the first album and I didn’t know if we would do that again, but when I saw the drawing it was perfect.

HEM: Where do you want to tour that you haven't been yet?
Zach: I would love to tour Japan, that would be my dream, Australia. If we're talking America, we've been everywhere in America, but Mexico City would be amazing.

HEM: Where's your favourite place you've been on tour?
Zach: I really like Amsterdam. I think that’s my favorite city I've ever been to. We played on an island off the coast of the Netherlands. If I remember correctly it’s called Vlieland and that was like a dream. It was a festival, we took a boat, I don't know how we booked it but it was this amazing festival on an island it was probably my favorite show.

HEM: If you could book a festival, where would it be and who would play?
Zach: We've been talking about putting together a festival in Cayucos, California, which is in Central California right before Big Sur. I would like Brian Wilson to be the headliner, that way it would be more of an acoustic vibe. Maybe like, Fleet Foxes, it would need to fit Big Sur vibes. Forest meets the ocean. The vibe would be lowkey and not corporate-y. We would love to put on a festival out there, not that it would ever happen, but it would be fun.

HEM: What's your favorite thing about your hometown?

Zach: We're from LA. I think we love the energy of Los Angeles and that's kind of the one thing I miss when I leave. It’s kind of fast paced. There's a lot of diversity and a lot of culture, and I come to places like Dallas and Denver and it's very relaxing as far as a big city and its low key and I like that too, but I do miss the high energy and I miss the food in LA. It's just hard to find that outside New York and LA and San Francisco. The benefits of a Denver is you can still relax. It's a big city but its so chill compared to like San Francisco or LA. We can't fully relax.

HEM: Is there a venue in your hometown that you really want to play?
Zach: It'd be nice to play The Wiltern. We opened there once it was so beautiful. I mean is the perfect world you would be at the Greek Theatre, it would be the ultimate dream. It just has great vibes, but it’s a huge place. I think The Fonda is like the smaller version [of The Wiltern] and I'd be happy to play there. I think those are like the big venues that I like.