Have a donut with a side of Pop-Punk
The resourcefulness of people inhabiting this desert is tried and true.
Like the morning and evening tides, it will always return when it is needed most. Necessity is the mother of invention and she lives in this Valley, undoubtedly.
The most recent example of this is local band, The Downsides teaming up with a new custom donut shop called Monster Donuts, located on 2070 W Ave. J in Lancaster.
From 10 a.m.. to 3 p.m., Oct. 3, they will create two Downside-themed donuts and play a newly recorded, unreleased Downsides song, in-store.
The first 10 people to buy a half-dozen donuts will also receive a free tape or CD. I chatted with bassist Cole Scott to learn more.
Jesse Davidson: What is the band about and how did it start?
Cole Scott: We play grungy Pop-Punk music. We officially started when we released our EP (Extended Play) in summer 2018. It started with Dylan Rivetti (guitar, lead vocals). He was jamming with our old friend Ryan. I started hanging around the practice space and eventually, I joined in. We went through a few different line-ups before we added Malik Dugan (drums). We’ve done a few tours and put out a couple EPs since then.
JD: Nice. I didn’t realize The Downsides have toured. Where have you gone?
CS: We toured up California around Bakersfield, Fresno, the Bay area and Sacramento. We’ve also played in Vegas, Reno and Arizona.
JD: That’s great. That’s such a classic sound that many of us grew up on.
CS: Yeah, exactly. When we started this, we wanted to take it back to things we listened to growing up.
JD: Recently, you have started planning a pop-up collaboration with Monster Donuts. Like the band, they are a relatively new business in town. What is it and how did that come about?
CS: We’re doing two signature Downside donuts with them. Dylan first showed myself and Malik Monster Donuts when they first opened and we loved it. We’re both on a plant-based, vegan diet and there’s not many donut options around here for that. So we became regular and loyal customers. Eventually, we started talking with them when we stopped in, we showed them our music and we had talked about working together a year ago. Since we can’t play shows, this was the perfect time. It benefits both of us. A local band and business teaming up for a common interest.
JD: It’s a unique idea. So what are the signature donuts going to be?
CS: There’s two variations of it. They are both cake donuts with vegan buttercream frosting. The first one is called “Burnt Out Blueberry” inspired by our song “Burnt Out Blues.” It’s a cake donut with blue and purple frosting with blueberries on top. The second one is the Downsides Original. It has vegan chocolate sprinkles with an edible print of our band logo on top. This is all happening on Oct. 3 from 10 a.m.-3 p.m.
JD: That’s really cool. It totally reminds of something I’d see at Voodoo Donuts (a famous donut chain known
for their creative and eclectic creations).
CS: Thank you. I’m thankful we get to do this. They’re great people. They’ve always been nothing but nice to us.
JD: Is it all take-out right now?
CS: Yes it is. It will be set up like a pass through popup. They are also playing an unreleased Downsides song at a certain time. We’re still figuring that out. At the start of quarantine, we were finishing up recording on a couple songs. We decided to go the Pop artist/ Soundcloud way and just release them as singles. The song played at Monster Donuts won’t be released for a while, so it’s basically a teaser. JD: Cool. It’s a nice moment of solidarity right now. What are some other ways artists and local restaurants can work together so we can see more collaborations? CS: What kind of inspired it, was that spot, Donut Friend in LA, that names all their donuts after bands. I think it would be cool if more people were able to collaborate with local restaurants. They are taking a fat hit right now. It can be a weird thought to contact a local business — especially as a musician. You might have a negative inclination like, “Oh they won’t care or they aren’t interested in my ideas.” I think just getting out there, make connections and have an optimistic outlook on it. In the desert, we have so many talented people here. There’s not enough synchronicity between everyone.