Q&A: El Paso's Late Night Drive Home Ready to Take Coachella
HAILING FROM EL PASO, TEXAS - the rising indie stars of Late Night Drive Home are about to make their Coachella debut. Fueled by a mission to amplify Latinx voices in the indie scene, the band – led by vocalist Andre Portillo alongside guitarist Juan "Ockz" Vargas, bassist Freddy Baca, and drummer Brian Dolan – has captivated audiences with their unique blend of nostalgia and raw emotion.
Since forming in 2019, LNDH has amassed a dedicated following of over 1 million monthly listeners, all while remaining completely independent. Their infectious energy and penchant for capturing a bygone era resonated deeply with fans. Last fall, the band's talent landed them a coveted record deal with Epitaph Records.
Fresh off the release of their critically acclaimed debut EP, i'll remember you for the same feeling you gave me as i slept, LNDH is poised to take Coachella by storm. Described by Clash Magazine as "blending classic tropes – think 90s style songwriting a la Smashing Pumpkins – with something torn, tattered, and avowedly DIY," the EP showcases the band's emotional depth and grunge-inspired sound.
Fans already familiar with their breakout hit "Stress Relief" will recognize the band's knack for channeling the spirit of early 2000s indie rock revivalists like The Strokes and Arctic Monkeys. With over 60 million streams and counting, "Stress Relief" is a testament to LNDH's undeniable talent and growing fanbase.
We got to chat all about the band's excitement for Coachella, their musical influences, and their commitment to representation.
LUNA: Huge congrats on landing a spot at Coachella for your first time! What's the mood in the band right now as you gear up for the festival?
LNDH: As we gear up for Coachella the vibes are very much sunglasses and crop tops! The fact that Coachella is the first major festival that we are playing to date is insane to all of us and we are all so grateful and humbled by it. We’ve been receiving so much support from our hometown (El Paso, TX) and we are proudly representing!
LUNA: What are you most excited about experiencing at Coachella as a first-time performer?
LNDH: Coming from such a small city we hardly experienced major festivals such as Coachella, so needless to say we are all super excited to be experiencing this for the first time as a team! I for one will be looking forward to acts such as Grimes, Sublime, Blur, Tyler the Creator and Ice Spice B)! We are also stoked to be able to meet some of the artist that we will be sharing the stage with.
LUNA: Do you have any special Coachella setlist surprises planned, or can fans expect a mix of tracks from your EP and earlier work?
LNDH: Our set will definitely be a mix of majority of the projects that we put out and we are hoping to bring the energy of our hometown to the Coachella stage >:)
LUNA: Your music is described as blending classic grunge with a DIY aesthetic. What are some of your biggest musical influences, and how do you incorporate them into your sound?
LNDH: We tend to draw inspiration from a variety of artists! For us we really focus on trying to carry on the torch from musical acts that first introduced us to that magical spark that music can ignite within us. From the Strokes, Arctic Monkeys, Twenty One Pilots, the 1975, My Chemical Romance, and The Killers all the way to Nirvana, Foo Fighters, Blur, and Third Eye Blind we draw inspiration from whatever we feel within our souls :D! The musical pool doesn’t just stop there, we love all genres of music!
LUNA: "Stress Relief" has become a huge hit with millions of streams. What's the story behind that song, and how did it come together?
LNDH: We could have never imagined that “Stress Relief” would be the song that would put so many people on to our sound! I remember the making of this song like it was yesterday. We had just made a comeback from being in the depths of College and being locked up! The song was written in the perspective of one being in a draining relationship that didn’t work out. This mindset had come from freshly exiting a relationship and the lyrics were written down in one go. No Extra thought was put into the song, just raw emotions. Recorded in our guitarists bedroom we were just eager to put out music that reflected our current state of reality.
LUNA: You recently signed with Epitaph Records. How has that impacted your creative process and what can fans expect from your future releases?
LNDH: Signing to Epitaph was one of the greatest feelings in the world for us! From the moment we walked into the Epitaph HQ we were greeted with opened arms to an independent record label that we admired so much! This has helped us tremendously to focus and hone in on the creative aspect of our music and worry less about the technical aspects that come with being an artist. All I can say as far as future projects is that we will definitely be putting our heart and soul into the songs that we are currently working on!
LUNA: Late Night Drive Home prioritizes representing Latin artists in the indie scene. Can you talk about the importance of that mission to you all?
LNDH: Coming from a town that is mostly represented by the Latin community we were engulfed in a wide variety of music that our family had introduced to us. Latin representation is really important to us! However, the community that we hope to build extends to all corners of the world regardless of what their background is.
LUNA: You've built a loyal fanbase of over 1 million monthly listeners completely independently. What advice would you give to other aspiring artists out there trying to make a name for themselves?
LNDH:
We are so blessed to have such an amazing and wholesome fan base that resonate with the message that we display within our music. From humble beginnings we aspired to be like those artist that reeled us into the music scene. My advice would be to make music that makes you happy and music that you personally enjoy yourself. If you have something to say, SAY IT! Spread your message with the rest of the world, share your stories and life experiences, chances are there is an audience for all kinds of music especially if the music that you’re making seems like a very niche thing just release it. The most important detail that helped us was just putting music out for the sake of sharing our art.
LUNA: With Coachella soon to be under your belt, what are your biggest musical goals for the upcoming months?
LNDH: Our biggest musical goal would be to play our hearts out for as many people as we can and hope that our message resonates with as many people as we can. We hope to inspire those in a similar manner that our favorite artist inspired us!
