Just steps from the Pacific in Redondo Beach, CA, sound waves crash into ocean waves at BeachLife Festival. The three-day event boasted an eclectic lineup ranging from icons like Duran Duran and The Offspring to electronic duo The Chainsmokers, SoCal staple Slightly Stoopid, and a range of indie bands spanning four stages. Locals treat the weekend as a family affair, with generations of music lovers rolling out blankets and setting up lawn chairs on the sandy grounds. In the Redondo Marina, boats bob along the shoreline, taking in the sounds wafting over the water.
From synthesizers and keyboards to decked-out drum kits, Roland gear speckled the stages throughout the weekend. We sat down with several artists who gave us the inside scoop on festival life, their setups, and more.
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Ben Homola of GROUPLOVE
Few bands have managed to bottle pure, unfiltered joy quite like GROUPLOVE. With six studio albums under its belt and a quintuple-platinum-certified single “Tongue Tied,” the band has carved a lasting place in the indie pop landscape.
Since bursting onto the scene in 2010, the Los Angeles–based group has built a reputation for technicolor anthems that feel as cathartic as they are chaotic. With their signature blend of gritty guitars, chant-along choruses, and emotional candor, GROUPLOVE doesn’t just invite listeners in—they pull them into a world of their own design.
Their music has found its way across screens of all sizes, with songs featured in TV series like Girls and Glee, films including The Fault in Our Stars, and even in Frankenweenie, the animated feature from Tim Burton. In 2014, the band wrote and performed “Back in the ‘90s,” the iconic ending credits theme for the Netflix series BoJack Horseman.
No strangers to festival stages, GROUPLOVE has appeared at Lollapalooza, Outside Lands, Glastonbury, Coachella, and more. Before taking the stage at BeachLife Festival, we sat down with GROUPLOVE drummer Ben Homola to discuss how he blends acoustic and electronic gear into his festival rig for a reliable setup in unpredictable conditions.
Ryan "Rymo" Moran of Slightly Stoopid
San Diego natives Slightly Stoopid played to their core audience who gathered in masses to see the reggae rock band perform. No strangers to the South Bay of Los Angeles, their first record deal in 1994 came courtesy of Long Beach royalty Sublime.
In its twenty-two years, the band has toured extensively, playing festivals such as Coachella, Lollapalooza, Austin City Limits, and more. Known for their eclectic blend of rock, reggae, blues, hip-hop, ska, and funk, with punk-rock influences, their collaborations reflect that same genre-defying ethos. They’ve played alongside industry titans Dave Matthews Band, the Roots, Snoop Dogg, the Grateful Dead, and South Bay locals Pennywise, to name a few.
BeachLife was no exception to Slightly Stoopid’s love of collaborating. Jim Lindberg, the lead singer of Pennywise, Garrett Dutton of G. Love & Special Sauce, and ex-Jurassic 5 emcee Chali 2na made surprise appearances onstage with the band, delighting the already enthusiastic crowd.
Leading up to their performance, we chatted with longtime Slightly Stoopid drummer Ryan “Rymo” Moran about how his setup’s blend of acoustic and electronic elements helps him cover the band’s vast catalog and stay nimble in any musical situation.
Chad Butler and Boaz Roberts of Switchfoot
“Like the electric guitar, Switchfoot was born in a Californian garage just south of here,” exclaimed frontman Jon Foreman, taking the stage at BeachLife Festival. The San Diego-based alt-rockers felt right at home on the Redondo sand. The members are all surfers, even naming the band after a surfing term meaning to switch one’s stance and face the opposite direction.
Switchfoot rose to fame with the release of the 2002 film A Walk to Remember, which prominently featured four of their songs, including Mandy Moore’s cover of “Only Hope.” The exposure proved to be a turning point. A the movie gained a devoted following, so too did Switchfoot, setting the stage for their mainstream breakout album The Beautiful Letdown the following year.
The band is known for their charitable efforts, dedicating entire tours to raise awareness and funds for causes like Habitat for Humanity and To Write Love on Her Arms. They also founded the annual Switchfoot Bro-Am Surf Contest, benefitting various organizations that serve homeless children in San Diego.
Founding member and drummer Chad Butler and lead guitarist Boaz Roberts sat down with us the morning of their BeachLife set to discuss the band’s career longevity, upcoming album, Forever Now, and how Roland gear powers Butler’s hybrid drumming setup.
Mitch Fountain of flipturn
Formed in Fernandina Beach, Florida, in 2015, indie rock five‑piece flipturn grew from high‑school and college friends into a road‑tested, nationally touring force. Blending shimmering synths, atmospheric guitars, and driving drums, their dreamlike sound has captured hearts night after night.
No strangers to festival stages, the band has played Lollapalooza, Governor’s Ball, Bonnaroo, SXSW, and Noah Kahan’s Out of the Blue Festival in early 2026. On stage, Kahan recounted his first time hearing flipturn’s single, “August,” off their debut EP Citrona. The band later shared the stage with Kahan, performing a cover of “Ooh La La” and cementing their position as a band on the rise.
That sense of evolution runs through flipturn’s music as much as their story. With each release, they continue to refine their sound without losing their spark. From the sun‑washed glow of their debut album Shadowglow to the synth‑forward textures of Burnout Days, the band leans into atmosphere and experimentation.
Guitarist and synthesist Mitch Fountain digs into how that mindset plays out in real time—right down to the unplanned moments that can spark an entire track, like the happy accident that gave life to the band’s single “Juno.”
Poolside
Poolside brought their signature “daytime disco” to the BeachLife grounds on a breezy Sunday afternoon. Tired of the relentless EDM scene in early 2011, Jeffrey Paradise set out on a mission to create the chill music he’d want to listen to on a Sunday afternoon with friends in his backyard. He viewed his new project as a kind of strange rebellion against the prevailing trends of high-energy, gritty dubstep blasting from speakers across Los Angeles.
Fifteen years later, Poolside has amassed a loyal following and pioneered an entire genre of light, danceable music. Collaborating with artists such as Foster the People, slenderbodies, and DRAMA, blending their laid-back style with various voices across the indie and electronic spectrum.
A DJ at heart, along with Poolside’s original tracks, Paradise is equally revered for his official remixes. He’s produced fresh takes on major names like Modest Mouse, Billy Idol, and the Alabama Shakes. One of the defining moments of Poolside’s rise to prominence came with their remix of “Harvest Moon” by Neil Young. “I have a Poolside palette that’s largely Roland‑based, so it’s easy to plug in the sounds I like when I’m remixing,” Paradise explains.
Gracing festival stages from Coachella and Outside Lands to Austin City Limits, Lollapalooza, and Life Is Beautiful, their sun-soaked grooves feel tailor-made for late-afternoon sets in open air. Moments after walking off the stage at BeachLife Festival, Paradise, along with touring drummer Vito Roccoforte and keyboardist Casey Butler, sat down to discuss the Poolside sound, key collaborations, and how Roland gear became central to their workflow.
