By Jon Chown
SANTA CRUZ — Santa Cruz-based band Sound Tribe Sector Nine launch their national tour this month for their new album, Human Dream, a reflection of one of the most harrowing chapters in the band’s history.
The tour will take the band to Philadelphia; New Orleans; Charleston, SC; and other stops mostly east of the Mississippi River. For local fans, there is just one California stop on the tour, at a festival in Placerville in May.
Human Dream, a 19-track release recorded in the group’s Westside Santa Cruz studio, was shaped by the upheaval of the CZU Lightning Complex fires — a disaster that forced band members from their homes, threatened their creative space and ultimately became embedded in the music itself.
“What we went through with the CZU fire — that time for us was really important,” said guitarist and keyboard player Hunter Brown, founding member of the band.
As flames swept through the Santa Cruz Mountains in August 2020, some band members had to evacuate their homes. At the same time, the band faced the possibility that their newly built studio in Westside Santa Cruz could be destroyed.
“The fire was crazy,” Brown said. “We were worried it would be in jeopardy, so we moved everything out and into my apartment.”
The sudden scramble to protect instruments and recording equipment disrupted not only their workflow, but their sense of stability. Adding more uncertainty and consternation to the mix was the COVID-19 pandemic.
“It was a fascinating, terrible thing to go through,” Rocklin said. “But all of that went into the record.”
The recording represents a significant step for the band. It’s the first time they’ve recorded an album entirely within their Santa Cruz studio — a goal years in the making. Released in three parts over 2025, the album spans 19 tracks.
“It’s our first album we did solely in Santa Cruz in our new studio,” Rocklin said. “We’re super excited about that process and digging into our whole vibe there.”
For Brown, the project also signals a new creative phase.
“It’s opening up the floodgates on a lot of music we haven’t released,” he said.
A Santa Cruz Identity
Though Sound Tribe Sector Nine formed in Atlanta, the band has long identified with Santa Cruz, where it relocated in the 1990s and has remained ever since.
Brown said he first encountered the area on his first national tour and was immediately drawn in.
“The beach, the trees and the weather were magical,” he said.
He soon moved to Santa Cruz, joining a friend and eventually bringing the band with him. The group lived together in Watsonville in its early years and built its sound in the process.
“The area really inspired us and influenced the music,” Brown said. “We’ve pretty much been in Santa Cruz ever since. I’ve now lived here longer than I did in Atlanta.”
Rocklin, who joined the band in 2014, said the connection to Santa Cruz is central to how the group sees itself.
“We consider ourselves a Santa Cruz band,” she said. “That’s kind of how we view ourselves.”
Today, Rocklin, when not on tour, splits her time between her home in Denver, where she relocated to after the CZU Fire, and Santa Cruz, where the band maintains its studio. She said the group keeps a deliberately low profile at home. They don’t dabble much on social media.
“We don’t think of ourselves as celebrities. We can go anywhere,” she said.
She said she’s more often recognized in Denver than in Santa Cruz. She recalled shopping for groceries at New Leaf Market when the checker noticed she was wearing an STS9 t-shirt.
“Oh my god, I love that band! They are so awesome!” The checker exclaimed.
Rocklin said she then had a short conversation about the band, never mentioning she was the bass player.
“I always feel just very free in Santa Cruz,” she said.
A Mixed-Tape Type of Genre
Musically, STS9 doesn’t really stick to a genre. Hunter describes the band’s sound as “sort of soul, funk and jazz-influenced dance music,” rooted in a deep appreciation for classic records.
“We kind of just worship the albums of the ’70s — Herbie Hancock, Miles Davis — and we love hip-hop,” he said. “I grew up on it.”
He cited A Tribe Called Quest as a formative influence. “They kind of introduced me to jazz. I learned about records they were sampling. Now we study jazz. It’s a cornerstone of what we do.”
Rocklin said that description fits — “but just throw in some Aphex Twin.”
“It’s always a challenge to describe our music,” she said. “It’s really a collective of everything we grew up on. We grew up in the mixtape era. We do a mixtape of our love of music.”
It’s the presentation of that mixed tape that fans love to see performed live. As the band tours nationally in support of Human Dream, their one stop in California will be at at the Golden Road Gathering held in Placerville in May. They will headline on Saturday, May 16. Leftover Salmon and Lettuce headline the other two nights.
“We are always trying to play in California, and it was a great opportunity,” Rocklin said. “We’re glad we got to do it this year. All the other bands on the bill are incredible.”
The organizers of GRG said fans have noticed STS9 is on the bill and have responded. The festival has set a record this year with advanced ticket sales.
“Their live performances transcend the typical concert experience,” said Bob Hollis of GRG. “STS9 takes the audience on an experiential journey. With this being their only California tour stop, we’re offering West Coast fans a chance to experience one of the most innovative and uncompromising bands on the road today, and in a beautiful setting.”
Rocklin said the band has been looking forward to the performance.
“We’ve got some special things in the works for California,” she said.
Brown said STS9 continues to evolve while remaining grounded in its original vision.
“Our first album is still kind of the core spirit of what we are trying to do,” Brown said. “We still play a lot of those songs live, but how we do it has evolved into something more refined and approachable.”
At the same time, their connection to Santa Cruz remains a defining element.
“Santa Cruz is a huge influence on our music and how we approach it,” Rocklin said.
Brown agreed. “It’s definitely become part of the secret magic of the band. We’re really proud of that.”
TOP PHOTO: Sound Tribe Sector Nine • Photo Credit: Steve DiBartolomeo