Growing up in Duxbury, Massachusetts, in the mid-1990s, Scott Woodruff started to gravitate toward West Coast ska and reggae bands like Sublime and Slightly Stoopid.
But when Woodruff decided to try his hand playing the music himself, he had a hard time finding any cohorts to join him.
"I wanted to make music that sounded like these guys (I listened to)," he said. "I always wanted to be in a band. I wanted to do the reggae thing, but my friends all played metal and harder stuff."
Woodruff wasn't dissuaded, and began putting down tracks himself on a small 4-track recorder. When he submitted one of his own songs to a popular Sublime archive website to positive reviews, Stick Figure was born.
For years, Stick Figure was Woodruff's personal project, but has now grown into a four-piece band with five albums under its belt.
Woodruff and Stick Figure will headline February's First Tap this Thursday at Bear Tooth Theatrepub.
Woodruff says he was rhythmically inclined even before he took up music.
"I was always tapping on things at school," he said. "I started on a drum set and then guitar."
His musical evolution was forged by necessity and his wish to maximize his one-man sound as he upgraded to 16-track recorder. He learned to play the bass, carefully layering the tracks while providing all of the instrumentation.
"When I got the 16-track, I didn't know what I was going to do," he said. "At first I wasn't singing. I was a drummer. That was my most natural instrument. I would hear a bass line in my head. I'd play the drums all of the way through in one track. I would just write songs completely through improvisation and even came up with these changes in my head. (The tracks) weren't really meant to be released to the public."
But eventually they were, as Woodruff produced four albums over a five-year span. In 2006, Woodruff released "The Sound of My Addiction." Two years later, his sophomore effort, "Burnin' Ocean" started to gain recognition nationally in the reggae scene.
Woodruff became the vocalist for Stick Figure first by necessity and slowly gained confidence.
"I never really considered myself a singer," he said. "I still don't know if I do. I didn't even really want to play the stuff for people. I didn't know anyone that wanted to sing on my tracks. I just kept doing it and stuck with it. Eventually I started liking it and it progressed from there."
Woodruff always had California dreams growing up in the Boston area, and eventually made the move to San Diego in 2009. The area was a hotbed for reggae, ska and dub music, and Woodruff found it much easier to find like-minded musicians to play and jam with.
He recruited a full band to help record his fourth album, "The Reprise Sessions," and Stick Figure was no longer just a solo project.
The current lineup includes keyboardist Kevin Bong, drummer Kevin Offitzer and bassist Tomy Suliman.
Woodruff said attendees can expect a lot of energy and smiles from the band on stage.
"I feel like we're having fun out there and that translates to the crowd," he said.
The show will also include Cocoa, Woodruff's dog, who — like late Sublime frontman Bradley Nowell's dalmatian Lou Dog — is an active participant onstage during the performances.
"She rides the bus and goes to all the shows," Woodruff said.
The band is set to release a new album in 2015, sticking with the heavy beat and rich layering that has become Woodruff's calling card.
"I've got 14 new tracks and have eight of them done," he said. "For now, song to song, they're so different with the vibe. It all depends on the song, what I'm going through that week. I'd say it's a similar vibe to the experimenting with new sound."
Stick Figure
When: Thursday, Feb. 5 at 9 p.m. (Doors 8 p.m.)
Where: Bear Tooth Theatrepub
How much: $30 at beartooththeatre.net