Origins and Backstory: These were bred by Skunktek, and released as very affordable, feminized testers available through his discord. I was gifted two these seeds by a buddy who had picked up a pack, and he saw I had expressed some interest in trying these. I only got one to germinate for me, and it grew into the plant I am reviewing. That said, please consider that I only grew a single plant from this gene pool, so take this review of the strain as a whole with a grain of salt—you may find plants dramatically better, worse, or different than this one, but I believe what I found is likely somewhat middle of the road, to be expected in the gene pool. A cross of SoCal Master Kush and 707 Headband, this is a combination of two of the most famous and well-loved clones hailing out of southern and Northern California, respectively. Funnily enough, this was the first cross of seeds I had wanted to make (or at least something like it) when I first began breeding (I ended up making 707HB x Greedo’s Stash, as nobody would give me MK at the time). Master Kush has always been a favorite smoke of mine for evenings, sleep, and general relaxation, while 707 Headband has always been one of the “ones that got away”—I had the pleasure and privilege of growing her once, and regret not having kept the plant around, as it is a special smoke. In any case, these seeds are the ones I always wanted to make, so bravo and thank you to Skunktek. I grew these indoor in organic soil at about 8,000’ altitude.
Morphology: This plant grew very much like Master Kush, but with somewhat more vigor. It grew stout, low to the ground with some significant branching. It did not stretch much when flipped to a flowering photoperiod, and the bud structure is comparable to the classic Kushes as well—short, ball-like, dense, with heavy resin production protruding to the tips of surrounding leaves. I found this plant to be more colorful than Master Kush, with purples manifesting on leaf undersides, stems, and finally on finishing buds without much enticement. Dried buds are indistinguishable from classic kushes, and are very resinous and indica-looking. The resin is not as sticky as many plants, but is a bit drier and more of the sandy variety that is typically found in hash-producing varieties.
Aroma: Dried flowers are gassy, funky, skunky, with heavy notes of tennis balls, laundry, and dirty feet, and surprisingly offer some fruit tones of guava and lemon as well. An extended cure gives flowers more of a floral/perfumey character, and the gas and other chemical based tones make themselves known on breaking nugs up. Growing plants are exceptionally skunky, loud, and perfumey, with all of that translating to harvest as well. A jar reminds me of a plant I grew over 10 years ago, from Lashkargah, Afghanistan. Buds have some of the acridity of Master Kush with the spicy, hashy notes coming through, but it is apparent that the Headband contributes a significant amount of fuely funk as well. Headmaster is more aggressive, gassier, and likely much more of a crowd-pleaser than the aroma of Master Kush, which the market and newer smokers may find to be too subtle or dry to their liking. There are some mild, lemon-guava-juice-perfume notes present as well, giving a really nice complexity to the experience, and some unexpected novelty.
Flavor: The flavor offers more fruit and perfume than the aroma, but there is plenty of gasoline, tennis ball funk, and even notes of chemical cleaners. It’s enjoyable, robust, and high quality, but there’s nothing novel or new here. The aftertaste is clearly reminiscent of Master Kush, heavy on acrid, soft, velveteen hashish notes and what is often described as “kushy.” Although the flavor features fruit and some perfume, I’d certainly not describe it as sweet or candied.
Effects: Never overwhelming, Headmaster is a solid and relatively classic indica. One of my favorite features about it, is how long-lived the effects are. It isn’t too far off the mark of Master Kush, in the sense that it is very relaxing, more felt in the body than head, and is comforting like a warm blanket. Headmaster differs from Master Kush in that it is decidedly more dreamy and cerebral, with more perspective shift and thoughts that come with being “high.” This smoke doesn’t come with anxiety or paranoia, but isn't lacking in potency either. It may be my tolerance (it is currently relatively high), but I can consume Headmaster during the day without being too burned out or overwhelmed. It’s a mellow and relaxing choice that still satisfies the “potency itch.” Personally, I love Master Kush, but I also appreciate having hybrids on the shelf as well. When I build a tolerance to Master Kush specifically, its hybrids can give me a similar effect while offering a renewed sense of potency. I do appreciate a bit added euphoria and sense of potency contributed by the Headband here, and it’s really a nice blend of both worlds. Dreamy, sweet, happy, relaxing, and pleasant.
Overall: I’ve grown a few Master Kush hybrids at this point; the hunt is definitely worth the effort when you find a plant that offers the best of Master Kush in addition to the pollen donor. I am sure that such plants can be found in these seeds, especially given that I found one close to the mark on my first go. The best traits from Master Kush, in my opinion, are its potency, character of high, extreme resin production, density and squat, self-supporting structure, and its characteristic flavor. I always appreciate when a pollen donor throws in more exotic flavors without losing the essence of Master Kush, increases yield and vigor, and when the donor might change the character of the high to something a little more heady or euphoric. I do think Headband does virtually all of those things in this case. Headmaster’s flavor is more intriguing and exotic than Master Kush, the high is different (better for some occasions, less so for others), but the plant I grew was not particularly vigorous. I am sure there are plants to be found in here that are best of all worlds. This is a great choice for those looking for a nostalgic indica representing a blend of both Master Kush and Headband gene pools—some of the absolute best, in my opinion, that cannabis has ever had to offer!