Atlantic City Weekly

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Seeing how feverishly the Hawaiian-bred, southern California-based trio Pepper tours seems sort of contrary to the laid-back, surfing lifestyle the band represents. Then again, there’s a party-loving element to that whole scene, and Pepper, which blends mellow, tropic island rhythms with rambunctious rock ‘n’ roll, has developed a large loyal following that stretches nationwide. On Friday, Oct. 8, the band visits the House of Blues at Showboat along with opening acts Brother Ali and Pour Habit.

Comprised of guitarist/vocalist Kaleo Wassman, bassist/vocalist Bret Bollinger and percussionist Yesod Williams, Pepper did a 25-stop summer slate of U.S. gigs called the “Unity” tour before jumping right back on the bus for its 45-stop “Like a Surgeon” tour. The latter string of shows started in mid-September and goes through Nov. 19, and is partially to promote the band’s forthcoming, five-song EP called Stitches — its eighth disc release since forming in 1997. The tour includes shows almost every night in a different city. The band’s only prolonged break in that two-month stretch will be from Nov. 6-11 among a bunch of West Coast shows.

Pepper is part of an umbrella of bands promoted by Volcom Entertainment of Costa Mesa, Calif. The group has a local connection in Andrew Miller, a 32-year-old Art Institute of Philadelphia graduate who spent most of his summers in Brigantine ensconced in the southern New Jersey surf scene. Miller did all of the artwork for Stitches, which is slated to be released Oct. 12. He also does a hilarious, moving-animation series that includes characters like surfer Johnny Stone (with his dog Fleabiscuit), Floater Joe, Caveman, the Volcom Pirate and the Goons of Doom (the latter of which is an Australian party band under Volcom). Atlantic City Weekly recently spoke by phone with Miller, who’s probably better known as Drewtoonz.

How did you get the gig doing artwork for the band Pepper?

I lived in Hawaii for about 10 years and I do animated film for a company called Volcom — it’s a clothing company mostly but prevalent in the surfing industry — and that’s how I caught the eye or got the attention of Pepper. Their tour manager ordered my DVDs off the Internet and they would watch my cartoons on their tour bus. Then they commissioned me for some projects, and the latest was the album artwork.

[Pepper’s] kind of a fun-loving, party band that does themes for their concerts, and this particular one is called their “Like a Surgeon” tour. They wear their medical scrubs and encourage their fans to dress up and wear scrubs and stuff like the “Naughty Nurse” uniform, so I kind of went with that idea for the artwork. The album is called Stitches so hence the nurse and the surgeon [stitching up a patient] on the cover.”

Do you know them personally?

For sure, they’re super cool. My band, called The Resorts, opened for them and that’s how I met them. They’re real laid-back, grass-roots kind of guys, which is pretty typical of the people of Hawaii in general.

When did you discover you had artistic ability? 

I always used to draw as a kid, since about kindergarten or first grade. When The Simpsons came out I became almost obsessed with them. I remember I would tape them on VHS at night and the next day after school I would literally run home to watch it. When it came time to go to college I decided I wanted to make cartoons. It’s just something I’ve always enjoyed doing and had a passion for.

In Brigantine there’s a large, nautically themed wall mural on a building at 12th Street South that you did — have you been commissioned to do much of that kind of artwork?

I did that one about 10 years ago. I had a job like that in Hawaii for the Triple Crown of Surfing, which is a pretty big surfing event, and I would paint murals for their billboards and other things. I was since laid off from that because they outsourced their billboards and posters and stuff to the Philippines. But I’m not sulky about it. It gives me more time to do cartoons.

I saw on your site (northshorecartoon.com) that one of the pieces you’re most proud of is a collage of portraits you did of Don Ho. Why is that?

I love Don Ho [an entertainer best known for his song “Tiny Bubbles,” and for having a show in Hawaii that lasted nearly 50 years]. I used to catch The Don Ho Show in Waikiki. I didn’t even know who he was until about a year before he passed away [in 2007], when somebody took me to see his show. Then I’d go at least once a month to see it. He’d meet everybody before and after the show. You’d line up and have your picture taken with him before the show, and after the show you’d pick up your picture and he’d sign it for you. He’s a legend in Hawaii, so I would make paintings of him and get him to sign the paintings for me after shows. That sort of created a celebrity, painting-signed hobby for me.