The Nods are a force to be reckoned with. Their membership boasts veterans of Salt Lake’s diverse music scene—Joey Mayes, Zach “Rocky” Maldonado, Travis Michael and Sean Michael Vincent—whose combined and individual appreciation for music is nothing short of incredible. The band formed in 2013 when Mayes and Maldonado started to hang out and jam after work. “[Mayes] said that he was working on a project called The Nods, and I thought that name was really funny,” says Maldonado. “But he was saying he was doing this band, so I jokingly asked, ‘Let me play tambourine with you guys,’ and he was like, ‘You should just fucking sing.’” After going to Mayes’ house with expectations set low, Maldonado was pleasantly surprised to hear a sound that reminded him of 45 Grave. Mayes recruited Michael to play bass, and after going through several drummers—including Samp Ravens/Brain Bagz’s Mikey Blackhurst—Vincent joined the band in November 2014. “I saw The Nods several times,” he says. “They were always underdogs—not very noticed. I liked it. It was mainly my interest in the band that got me into it.” Once Sean joined the band, Maldonado says, “That was the nail in the coffin.”

Dig the full article on The Nods published @SLUG Magazine!!