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Sublime was a garage punk, ska band from Long Beach, California, playing a mix of reggae and dub, ska, punk, and hip hop. The band consisted of three members: Brad Nowell (vocals and guitar), Bud Gaugh (drum

Sublime was a garage punk, ska band from Long Beach, California, playing a mix of reggae and dub, ska, punk, and hip hop. The band consisted of three members: Brad Nowell (vocals and guitar), Bud Gaugh (drums), and Eric Wilson (bass guitar).

From 1988 through the early 1990s, Sublime toured heavily throughout southern California and garnered a substantial following of surfers and skater punks. The band sold their initial recordings at live shows—eventually including their first full-length album 40 Oz. to Freedom. Released on the band's own Skunk Records, 40 Oz. to Freedom featured several songs that would go on to become fan favorites, as well as a selection of covers indicating Sublime's varied influences—The Grateful Dead, KRS One, The Descendents, Bad Religion, Toots and the Maytals. Their second album, Robbin' the Hood, was recorded in 1994. It consisted of a few fully developed songs along with instrumentals, tape dubs and various rantings of the manic Raleigh Theodore Sakers. Sublime became a college radio favorite, and the song "Date Rape" had made its way onto the playlist of Los Angeles radio station KROQ. This airplay caught the attention of MCA, which signed Sublime to record a proper follow-up to 40 Oz. to Freedom.