Kevin Long

Excited to hit the road with @aaronwolf_music in a few days! Hoping to connect with some friends along the way, and please send recommendations, I’ve literally never been to any of the cities except a few of the California ones haha…Story time: I went up to @camp.navarro last summer to celebrate my best bud @safety_meeting ‘s bday at a sweet lil reggae fest called Camp Redwoods. I didn’t really know any of the bands but I had a gut feeling I was going to make an important connection. At the end of the night, the performers come out and jam around the campfire. @aaronwolf_music came played a handful of his original tunes and sang his ass off. It’s always a good sign when a song sounds great with just an acoustic guitar and very little accompaniment. His songs have “good bones” to them and can’t wait to see what I can do to support them with what I do. That night I was playing cajon cuz someone else was on bass but we were fully locked in. We exchanged numbers and months later he hit me up asking if I could fill in on drums on a couple of gigs in NorCal. I told him “Bro, I can play drums, but usually when people ask me they have exhausted all other options” 😂…eventually he came to sb to visit and jam (with me on bass) and found out we have a lot of things in common. We have the same birthday, we ride onewheels, and he’s staying in La Selva Beach, the town I grew up in, just to name a few. We had some great beachside jams with the @saltystringsband crew and we are hoping to bring that lineup Camp Redwoods this summer and blow some minds with our reggae/folk/bluegrass mashup 🔥…. Long story long, I think the future is bright for Aaron and am super grateful for the opportunity to travel the country and hustle basslines! We are playing a festival in Oregon with @burningspear on the bill 🤯. Go check out Aaron’s music and come to a show if we are in your zone ❤️

First time glamping at our favorite central coast beach. It felt great to disconnect from the world for a few stormy winter days and get cozy in our little cabin. We strummed guitars, played a SpongeBob board game, pieced together a pretty challenging puzzle, and watched all 5 of the very random dvd’s I still own. Awww reminds me of simpler times 😌

Twiggy spent the first 6 years of his life in an animal testing facility before he was rescued by the @beaglefreedom . When I first picked him up to foster, he was unsure about me and generally very scared and timid. He wouldn’t eat, was afraid to walk on a leash, and definitely wasn’t potty trained. My dog, Zuri, was a great mentor and showed him how to do his business outside and when I attached his leash to her collar he started to follow her. From there on he was able to walk on a leash with me perfectly! Pretty cool, never thought of doing that before. I tried everything to get him to eat, even offered him bacon! Someone at the feed store told me to try eggs, which worked but he picked out all the eggs and just ate the kibble 😂! About a week into the foster he started wagging his tail and showing his playful side. He’s the sweetest boy and has all the good qualities of a beagle and none of the annoying ones (he never barks, begs, or bolts). While we were up in Santa Cruz for a show, I noticed my homie/bandmate, @_milesjulian_ , really bonded with him and was super stoked when he said he wanted to adopt. I think they really clicked on an energetic level and know they are going to be great companions for many years to come! I always shed a tear or two when these foster pups leave my care, but I really enjoy the process of rehabilitating these poor beagles and am stoked I can go visit Twiggy and Miles on the Mesa whenever I want. I’m ready for my next assignment! 🫡 Also, I recommend downloading the “cruelty cutter” app so we can stop supporting companies who test on animals. You would be surprised how many still do…

Stoked to bring the sounds of bluegrass/reggae/rock/everything else to @sohosb tonight! I might even play a lil guitar and sing one too 🤠 @maritime_law_music 8:30pm @soulmajestic 9:45 pm

Finally making a short film/highlight video on this crazy ride that sports another recycled couch every year for the annual La Selva Beach July 4th parade🇺🇸! Video clips are sourced from many friends’ mobile phones. And one of the most wild parts about this video was the incredible soundtrack I created with an AI music app that helped me generate the lyrics and music with some intentional prompts and uploading audio and lyrics from the living room jam at the beginning of the video. The Skate Couch has been an ingenious engineering accomplishment in the spreading of joy and laughter to the world 🌎. It’s been a long-running tradition started by @kingklong and mrkmo17 who originated the first design for many years (I don’t know how long), and when @kingklong isn’t in town, @safety_meeting and I have kept it alive. This year featured a new design from years past… #laselvabeach #4thofjulyparade #skatecouch

Last month my dad sent me a message reminding me it was the 4 year anniversary of the passing of my beloved dog, Marley. That same day I got an email from @beaglefreedom saying that they needed fosters/adopters for 55 Beagles they were in the process of saving from an animal testing laboratory in Shanghai. I have been signed up to be a foster for a few years but hadn’t yet gotten the opportunity so the timing seemed fortuitous. After a long and arduous journey from China, the beagles arrived safely to HQ in Los Angeles where I picked up a sweet lil beagle named Emmy. She was stiff as a board and clearly in a lot of distress from the journey and the cruelty she experienced during the first few years of her life. Lab animals spend their entire life inside a cage and when they are deemed no longer useful they are often euthanized or sold to the meat trade. In my short time with Emmy, I have seen a lot of firsts. Her first time going outside to sniff and explore, her first walk with a leash, her first time seeing her reflection, first squeaky toy, and her first time receiving loving affection from a human. She is still a little unsure about that but is coming around faster than i expected! I am very grateful for the opportunity to help rehabilitate this dog and help give her the life she deserves while also raising awareness about the cause so please always check that the products you use are cruelty free. There are a lot of things we gotta work on but she’s doing pretty damn good so far! I’ll post progress along the away :) —

Happy birthday to the Master of Mando, the Sultan of Stir Fries, the Babe Ruth of Bluegrass, the Czar of Sea Stars, the Bishop of Beach Jams, the G.O.A.T of Goat Cheese pasta, @dannyelk ! A true homie who always looks after his people and creates fun experiences for all! Thanks for all the laughs and teaching me all about Bluegrass. May this year be your best one yet 🤘🏼

Mid week Central Coast mini vacation for @jaqueenofwands bday!

Double shows this weekend @mspecialbrewco Goleta for their anniversary celebration! Friday @evanblix will be performing 5-7pm and Saturday the @sb_collab is on 7-10. Both bands coming off a summer of fiery shows and won’t be playing locally for a few months so come on out and boogie with us!

Just stumbled across this pretty lil pandemic jam from December 2020 with @emmstorm , @abbileibicanfly and Finn the beagle. Reminiscing on how precious these moments were when live music was scarce and group hangs were not an option. There is a lot to be grateful for these days. Sending lots of love to all my friends past and present this holiday season ❤️

August 25. Remembering the great Marley dog on his bday. Son of “Smokey” and “Old Heartache” from Missouri (according to his papers). I found him in the newspaper classified ads and bought him with money I saved up working my summer job at El Patio Grocery in La Selva Beach. Probably my biggest purchase up to that point in life. I picked him out of a back of truck with several of his brothers and sisters parked in front of Goleta’s finest dive bar, Breaktime. I didn’t ruminate very long on the choice, and felt that he was my pick of the litter for sure because he seemed to be the most spirited…and that he definitely proved to be. He taught me many lessons on love and life as he was my side kick for from ages 21-37. I still think about him all the time and shamelessly recycle his old IG pics haha. I always will have a soft spot for Beagles, but the same would probably hold true if my first dog was a Great Dane or a tea cup chihuahua. All living creatures are special, but especially dogs. Did you know that beagles are the most common breed used for animal testing? (See slide two) There is a great organization called The Beagle Freedom Project @beaglefreedom whose mission is to rescue animals that are subjected to cruel animal testing. I just signed up for their foster program and I hope I can help train and rehabilitate new rescues before they are placed into their forever homes. Please consider donating to their cause and make sure you are supporting companies that do not test on animals.