CATALPA VIDEO OF THE DAY: “SPREAD TOO THIN” BY THE DIRTY HEADS

“Well, come with me to a place by the sea / If your ship breaks down you can always find me and Dirty J chillin’ underneath a shady tree / Our fans are always welcome with our friends and family,” the Dirty Heads sing on the title track to their sophomore album, Cabin by the Sea (Five Seven Music, June 2012), continuing, “And if you wish you could stay, as long as you please / Just lend a helping hand to build our cabin by the sea / Where every day is beautiful, the sun, the sand, the breeze / And everybody lives together here in harmony.” The song might be the centerpiece of their long-awaited follow-up to 2008’s alternative hit Any Port in a Storm, but it also can sum up their upcoming appearance at the Catalpa Festival on Randall’s Island on July 29. (They will also be playing the Paramount in Huntington on July 23.) Currently on tour with Matisyahu, who will also be at Catalpa on July 29 (along with Cold War Kids, Matt and Kim, Girl Talk, headliner Snoop Dogg, and others), SoCal’s Dirty Heads once again feature their unique brand of reggae-influenced hip-hop, rap, and indie pop on Cabin by the Sea, which opens with the tender “Arrival” before turning into a Jamaican party with such special guests as Ky-Mani Marley, Rome (of Sublime with Rome), Del the Funky Homosapien, and Matisyahu joining front man Jared “Dirty J” Watson, vocalist-guitarist Dustin “Duddy B” Bushnell, percussionist Jon Olazabal, drummer Matt Ochoa, and bassist David Foral. Blasts of horns combine with lyrics filled with confidence, braggadocio, positive energy, and shout-outs to themselves and hero Bob Marley on the new record, highlighted by such tunes as “Disguise,” “Spread Too Thin,” “Mongo Push,” “We Will Rise,” and “Hipster,” on which they sing, “So endlessly, we will carry on through your energy /Every song we sing creates a memory I wouldn’t change for anything / Music is eternity and lives in me eternally / Endlessly, we will come together like a symphony / And everything you do feels like it’s meant to be.” The two-day art and music Catalpa Festival begins on July 28 with the Black Keys, TV on the Radio, Umphrey’s McGee, Hercules and Love Affair, Zola Jesus, and others; for an interview with the festival’s founder, Dave Foran, go here.