I’m going to start with the crux of my introduction – life is a road trip, it’s not about the destination but the pit stops along the way that make the adventure worthwhile. My name is Andrew Almazan and I’m the newest addition to the team at Rod Authority. I’ll keep it long, convoluted, and bitter for those hoping for the opposite.

I was born to a pair of hard working individuals who sacrificed a lot to make things happen in life. Bills were paid, education was a must, and overall – security was surrounded by a fortified wall of work ethic. On the other hand, an open door for advice on life or the opportunity to be mentored into appreciating something like cars by way of my father was outside the scope of priority.

On a positive note, I feel that it left me with a blank slate when finding myself through the exploration of various forms of self expression. When you’re an only child the road signs seem like they’re missing but it forces you to look at the open expanse of life in awe and what you’re left with is a thirst to turn over every rock and tread every gully.

My Group Editor, Mike Alexander, asked me to describe myself in three words during the interview process and I quickly replied: “Loyalty, integrity, and solidarity.” I can say in confidence that these are the qualities that have become me because they were characteristics that I’ve gained from some of life’s most complicated lessons. It’s in those lessons that I found myself, namely through writing, art, and music.

Educational Background & Artwork To Auto

I graduated from California State University, Long Beach in 2012 with a Bachelor of Arts in English and a minor in Comparative World Literature. Writing has always been a fundamental passion in my life. I’ve used it to cope, fight, instill hope, and attain peace of mind from a young age.

Desire Vs. Hatred by Jason Gallo

Along with writing, art has always gone hand in hand. In fact, the first activity that really caught my interest as a child was drawing. I spent much of my time sketching mockups of out-of-this-world machinery, blueprints for the castle I would raid after lunchtime, and visceral comic strips since my first issue of Todd McFarlane’s Spawn was thrown out.

Throughout high school and the first half of college I embarked on a personal campaign of street art. I’ll always remain an advocate of graffiti culture and other forms of art that are considered taboo, such as tattoos.

One of the most inspiring people to me is my tattoo artist, Jason Gallo. Even outside the realm of his industry he exemplifies a dedication to perfection that is mandatory for anyone in any niche to become a master of their craft. He loves his trade and it’s this evidence of love in others that pushes me to perfect my own evolving set of skills. I’m hoping that one day I’ll be able to look back and say that customizing and building cars is one of those skills.

The photo to the right is of a recent painting Gallo did titled Desire Vs. Hatred. Interest in art is something that I believe benefits my growing passion for classic cars. I’m the type of person who was drawn to the culture because things like envisioning the interior, detail work, and paint jobs captivated me. The art that I appreciate and have learned to love will undoubtedly lend itself to the aesthetic of the cars that I hope to build and drive, very soon.

Hometown Pride And My First Exposure To Kustom Kulture

I owe some of my earliest instances of being exposed to Kustom Kulture and hot rods to the city I was born in, Long Beach, California. I was a young kid in grade school during the revival of kustoms and car clubs during the early ’90s.

John Dyer Baizley doubles as both the frontman for progressive rock band Baroness and an accomplished artist. His art nouveau style serves as an inspiration when I think about the detailing of future car projects.

Though I wasn’t enabled or motivated to pursue cars as a hobby in my younger days, the reality was that some of the most indelible images in my head were of baja bugs, Model As with an extended chassis, and esoteric artwork of this character everyone was calling Rat Fink.

By the time my interest in cars came full circle during college, my taste had been primed and geared towards rat rods, lowriders, and white-walled VW Bugs nailed to the ground. My artistic vision was heavily influenced by the hyper detailed and raw poignancy of Ed Roth artwork even before I knew who Ed Roth was. Incidentally, Kustom Kulture has had a lot to do with my perceptions and tastes even while my interest in cars was laying dormant.

The Music & Meanderings Of A Young Buck

Aside from writing and art, music has always played an integral part in my creative process. For years, I was heavily involved in the hardcore and punk community around the Inland Empire located in Southern California. More recently I began to really appreciate rockabilly and psychobilly, a genre of music that I’m sure people agree is a vital facet of custom car culture.

Whereas writing and art taught me about solidarity and how to express myself the music I listen to formulated qualities associated with community building and altruism.

I find it important to include all these details in this introduction, however off the path from cars they might seem, because as a staff editor and writer for Rod Authority all these things that comprise my identity are the things that fuel the content I write, the stories I gravitate towards covering, and overall – my growing contributions to this magazine.

To wrap things up I am just a young buck and what I lack in wisdom at this point in life is substituted by a hunger to learn.

Writing, art, and music have been a big foundation throughout my life and though the classic car is a relatively new love, it’s something I’m eager to learn more about each day.

The more I learn about the build, the car clubs coming together to innovate, and a growing list of automobiles I’d like to work on, I realize why hot rods, kustoms, lowriders, and rats just click with me – it’s another art form and one of the most beautiful mediums that a person could possibly express themselves through.

Our company’s motto is “We believe in the magic of the automobile” and everyday I come in to work and learn, I’m starting to see how evident that magic really is.

I’m truly blessed to have been given this opportunity at Rod Authority. I get to come to work, write, immerse myself around the most beautiful versions of the automobile, and listen to music that inspires my artistic tendencies. In the vast open road of life, this particular landscape is refreshingly surreal and I’m enjoying the scenery day in and day out. Thanks to the Rod Authority readership, the folks who make this industry so exciting from clubs and builders to manufacturers and event coordinators, and my family and friends for being with me every step of the way.

At this point, I’m in the process of saving for my first project, a ’49-52 Chevy Fleetline, I’ve got some expenses and student loans to overcome but its 2013, who doesn’t – best believe that Fleetline will be sitting in my driveway sooner than later. You folks better stick around because I’d love to share my trouble-shootings, misadventures, and triumphs along the way.