In December of 2024, four BVH students were inspired by shows they attended in the local metal music scene and came together with a vision for a band. Performing in small venues like local restaurant Hurricane Grill & Wings marked Vesuvius’s entrance into San Diego’s scene, and now—roughly one year later—they have played in Barrio Logan and gained hundreds of supporters.
Vesuvius is made up of junior Leonardo Rivas and seniors Alex Cardenas, Eitan Pasmanick and David Villamio. Although not all members knew each other well before the band formed, they have grown together and fostered a valuable connection. Rivas, guitarist and vocalist of Vesuvius, explained the band’s start as something that evolved past their original expectations.
“[Vesuvius] started in my freshman year, but for the rest, it was their sophomore year. It was just going to be a cover band thing at first, but in Dec. 2024, Eitan, David and I went to a show and decided to write a song afterward,” Rivas said. After finding a bassist, “We wrote the song, put it out and ever since have been rolling.”
Unlike the band’s unexpected shift in the kind of songs they perform, the name ‘Vesuvius’ has been familiar to Pasmanick, their drummer, for years. The name is inspired by the music he grew up enjoying.
“Growing up, my favorite band was always Pink Floyd. They have a movie called Pink Floyd: Live at Pompeii, and in the background, there is the Vesuvius volcano. We named it after that,” Pasmanick said.
After a name was chosen, music began coming out on Spotify and performances started, Vesuvius was on its way to make a mark in San Diego’s metalcore scene. Their first show at Hurricane Grill drew in a surprisingly large crowd for the small venue, a friend of the band Atticus Flores recalled. Alongside Flores were dozens to hundreds of teens who were happy to have a space where they could express themselves safely and with entertainment. This kind of environment is often referred to as a “third space,” an atmosphere in between home and work. For teenagers in particular, third spaces are few and far between, making music notably important.
“There are not a lot of groups that have third spaces aside from those in the music scene. Music, sports—that is about it. It is super communal and it gives a lot of people opportunities. There are the bands, but there are also the people who organize the shows, make merch, run the stand and more,” Flores said. “It is not that I do not [like the music] anymore, but now it is about supporting my friends and the band. It is more of a community thing for me.”
A dedicated community has undoubtedly developed at Vesuvius’s shows throughout their musical career thus far, staying strong—and perhaps even growing—when they switched up their sound. Band members described their older music as emotional and hardcore, whereas their new music is more metalcore, a fusion of hardcore metal and punk. Regardless of genre, Cardenas—Vesuvius’s bassist—explained they are grateful for the support the band has been shown.
“From a little restaurant to bigger venues, it is nice seeing people know lyrics from our old songs. We do not like our first EP but seeing people know the songs is nice. We heard [the EP] and felt like we needed to change the sound, and when we did it, it sounded way better than what we were doing,” Cardenas said.
This, among other aspects of the music experience, has become rewarding for members and listeners alike. From meeting new people to joining other bands to simply seeing people enjoy their music, Vesuvius has been able to grow into a space full of diversity and community. As friend of the band Grey Edvalson explained, one of the most common experiences at shows of Vesuvius and the like is moshing, a physical expression of intense emotion.
“It is a really fun atmosphere. There are a lot of vibrant personalities and mutually consensual violence—Moshing,” Edvalson said. “It is important to be friendly. Talk to people. Be safe. Be aware of your surroundings.”
This act, typically considered chaotic but consensual, increases the more an audience enjoys the music being played, and Vesuvius has consistently seen more moshing as time has passed. Flores explained that Vesuvius’s development manifesting in bigger venues has been exciting and rewarding, especially when reflecting on the earlier days of the band. Regardless of the venue size, Flores has acted as an assistant of sorts when it comes to their gear, merch and setup, and as a result, he has been able to witness the growth of Vesuvius firsthand.
“When we were sophomores, we would go to shows at the Che Cafe on UCSD’s campus. Less than a month ago, they played a show there. Seeing them go from their first show to playing at skate parks to playing at the Che was really cool,” Flores said. “The show in Barrio Logan was huge and in a venue that is a club most of the time; it is at least four times bigger than the Che. At the Che, you could probably fit in around 150 kids. I got in the backstage area for [the Barrio Logan] one–we got wristbands–and I got to see the line. It went so far back.”
As lines got longer outside of their shows, societal awareness was also amplified for the members of Vesuvius. They describe the metalcore scene as very political, with bands often making statements mid-set about the country and the world’s state. Villamio noted that he has learned a lot about the world simply by being in the scene and observing other members of the community.
“I have learned a lot. I have learned to be a better person. [The scene] is very politically and socially aware, and so I have been made a better person in how I view the world and the way I treat others,” Villamio said.
Vesuvius’s other members echoed the same idea.
“The whole point of being in the scene is to be political and show your voice,” Cardenas said.
The value of learning in the scene is nothing new and will continue for a long time, especially if Vesuvius continues playing shows. With three members being seniors, the longevity of the band is in question, but despite this, new music is set to come around March or April of this year.
“Right now we have the first song we wrote, “country vistas ln,” out [on Spotify], but it is not the same music we make now. We have a recent single out, too, “Tell me again how Pompeii was beautiful…,” and we are going to record an album soon,” Pasmanick said.
As Vesuvius continues to perform and release new music, listeners will continue to enjoy it and express their emotions in reaction. The future is uncertain for the band given their imminent departure from BVH and each other, but what surely stands firm is the inspiration the members and listeners have felt thus far because of their presence in the music community.
“Other people in the scene inspire me a lot, like other bands–bigger ones, too–and seeing the people mosh and have fun at shows, coming up to us and saying we did well. It is super cool being part of that community and being able to play shows for people. Leo inspires me a lot, too. He is one of the coolest people I have ever met. It is people in my everyday life that are my inspiration,” Villamio said.
