Loud, rambunctious and fun, exPorter is an up and coming rock band that is making a name for themselves in Santa Barbara.
“We really just want to start with the music. We started the band to just play and perform,” said City College student Alec Cavazos, exPorter lead guitarist.
ExPorter was founded in 2012 by Alec and his brother Destin Cavazos.
The brothers had been casually playing music together since they were young but never thought about forming a band.
Alec had been looking for dedicated people to regularly play with and Destin wanted a creative outlet for his writing.
ExPorter first officially played together at a show at SOhO Restaurant and Music Club in 2012. When their regular bassist was a no show, Destin offered to sit in for the night.
“It just really clicked and all just came together from that,” remembered Destin.
Since 2017, exPorter’s current line-up consists of Destin on bass, Alec on lead guitar and their friend, Henry Kish, on drums. Destin and Alec share the role of lead and backing vocals.
ExPorter describes their sound as “punk with alternative rock influences.”
During a typical show, Alec and Destin jump around, dancing with explosive, contagious energy that gets the crowd moving.
Their songs are blaring and hard to ignore.
“We want to get an audience reaction,” said Destin. “We play best with a lively crowd.”
Their songs are fast-paced, driven by heavy bass and drums.
They draw inspiration from alternative rock and 90’s punk bands such as Weezer, Green Day and Blink 182 .
“We kinda wanna sound like these guys,” Destin said. “We try and do it all.”
Some covers they perform live are “Island In The Sun” and “Beverly Hills” by Weezer and crowd favorite “Where Is My Mind?” by the Pixies
“That’s our main song we play live,” Alec said about “Where Is My Mind”. “We’ve played that forever.”
ExPorter has been a local success. They are known throughout the young music scene as being fresh and new.
“There’s just nothing like them right now,” said local fan Carmon Ruents. “I like seeing them whenever I can.”
The band’s debut demo tape, “Hidden City Sessions”, was recorded and released in 2017 with their single, “Carsick,” receiving some air time on local radio station KJEE.
Their tracks can be heard on SoundCloud and Spotify.
“Just make the music sound good,” Destin said. “We just want fans to relate. Just make sure it’s catchy, make sure it’s fun.”
