Music Scene

Local Musicians and Bands Current Former Other Musical Groups Local Record Labels The 80's Music Scene Venues Clubs, Bars, and Restaurants Coffee Houses Events Houses Theaters and Auditoriums Sound Technicians Additional Resources

Most of the DIY-booked music events in Davis are organized by the freeform community radio station KDVS, including virtually all shows at the Delta of Venus and freelance house shows at places like the Dam Haus and Turtle House and the biannual Operation Restore Maximum Freedom all-day festivals, the most ambitious event of its kind anywhere in California north of San Francisco. National-level indie acts are brought to the UC Davis Coffee House or ARC Pavilion via the ASUCD Entertainment Council. Bill Graham Presents or other professional agencies occasionally provide major or mid-major touring acts at Freeborn Hall.

Because of we are close to the bigger city, there is a lot of overlap with the Sacramento Music Scene.

There was an actual organization known as Davis Music Scene. They organized and flyered for associated bands, and also put on Davis Music Scene shows. They weren't "all" of the Davis Music Scene, but it was convenient for them that their name is so inclusive.

Local Musicians and Bands

Current

• !Akmbo

• Aaron Brown
  

• AdamFlowers
  

• Adam Hancock
  

• AfterShocker
  

• Alex Levin
  

• Antlers
  

• Automatic Rival
  

• Ben Lewis
  

• Beta Blocker
  

• Bidwell
  

• The Blow Kings
  

• The Bongo Furys
  

• Bottle of Violins
  

• Brian Ang (Personal Entry)
  

• Brilliant Red Lights
  

• Brother G (Reggae)
  

• Buildings Breeding
  

• Chris Webster
  

• Christian Kiefer
  

• Cold Shot
  

• Crossings
  

• Dave Nachmanoff
  

• Davis Joint Unified
  

• DCOI
  

• Desario
  

• Diciembre Gris
  

• Dick Livingston Trio
  

• Didley Squat
  

• DJ Michelle
  

• Doodle
  

• Duval Speck
  

• Echoes Fade formerly Doug Douglas
  

• The Essentials
  

• G. Whilliker's Six-String Band
  

• Garrett Pierce
  

• Gary's Ukulele
  

• Glug
  

• Guide Dogs
  

• Matthew Grasso
  

• The Happy Boys
  

• Hand Turkey
  

• Hardwater
  

• Heather Mori (Violin)
  

• Idiom Creak
  

• Joseph Samuel
  

• Julie Chow
  

• Katie Jane
  

• Keep on Trawlin'
  

• Keith Richman
  

• Keystone Eyes
  

• The Keystones
  

• Lis Harvey
  

• Mad Cow String Band
  

• Matt & George and Their Pleasant Valley Boys
  

• Matthew Torres
  

• Michael Abbott
  

• Mister Metaphor
  

• Mortal Forever
  

• MudLark
  

• Music Matt
  

• The Naders
  

• Narwhal
  

• Nate Mezmer
  

• The Nothing
  

• Olive Drive
  

• The Painkillers — With Jack Armstrong of Armstrong and Getty
  

• PBUHKGHGH
  

• Phydeaux
  

• Poetic Justis
  

• Prison Shank
  

• Psypheria
  

• Rita Hosking
  

• Sabrina Simonton
  

• Sap
  

• Sexy Prison
  

• Sex, Funk and Danger
  

• Shattered Landscape
  

• Shayna and the Bulldog
  

• The Shirtless Wonders
  

• Spider Friends
  

• Squish The Bad Man
  

• Sterling Riot
  

• Strangelove Doctrine
  

• Sudden Oak Death
  

• Thumper and the Booty Groovers
  

• Tig Wallis
  

• Tony Bataska
  

• Tryte
  

• Urban Sherpas
  

• Unless
  

• Unidentified
  

• Water For Free
  

• Well Known Secret
  

• Whomever
  

• Yolo Mambo
  

Former

These are bands that have either broken up (a.k.a. "indefinite hiatus") or moved out of the area. See also: Significant Davis Bands.

• Abdominizer
  

• ACME Rocket Quartet
  

• All Catatonic And Like...
  

• Amaranth
  

• Anchor String & Whistle Band
  

• Anonymous Clay
  

• Blackalicious
  

• Boss the Big Bit
  

• Broken Society
  

• B.U.I.
  

• The Bunny
  

• The Buttonflies
  

• Compassion in Action
  

• ChoadBot
  

• Corrupt Execution
  

• Crap Duvet
  

• Dead Last
  

• The Ditty Bops
  

• The Divide
  

• Filthy Pete and the Moustaches
  

• Fiona Wong
  

• Game Theory
  

• Ghost Dad
  

• GnarToon
  

• GTA
  

• iDeaLiSTiK
  

• Latryx
  

• Keep Your Distance
  

• Kilgore Trout
  

• Knapsack
  

• Lawsuit
  

• Legubitron
  

• The List
  

• Mumbo Gumbo
  

• Natalie Cortez & The Ultra Violets
  

• Oxford Circle (1960's)
  

• Papercut Revery
  

• The Playboy Millionaires
  

• Popealopes
  

• Railroad Bill and the Straight Laces
  

• Retired Fish
  

• Sholi
  

• Some Assholes
  

• Squid Hickeys
  

• The Suspects
  

• There's No Crying in Baseball
  

• Thin White Rope
  

• Token Yoko
  

• True West
  

• Village Vanguard
  

• the Zim-Zims

Other Musical Groups

• Davis Community Jazz Band — A course offered through UCDavis Extension for adults wanting to learn to play jazz.
  

• Davis Music Teachers Association
  

• Harmoneo Funky Styles
  

• Impressario — A club of musical students coming together to teach children about music.
  

• Koala Productions
  

• Law Cappella — Legally considered to be an a cappella group
  

• Liquid Hotplates — A cappella group
  

• Lounge Lizards — Yet another a cappella group
  

• The Spokes — all-female a cappella group
  

• The Afterglow — all-male a cappella group
  

• Vocal Art Ensemble — A cappella group (Renaissance madrigals to modern choral works)

Local Record Labels

• Crossbill Records

• Crying Nihilist Records
  

• Gearhead Records
  

• Gunk Records
  

• KDVS Recordings
  

• Mushpot Records
  

• Omnibus Records
  

• Out Of Order Records
  

• Peace Sign Records
  

• Precipitate Records
  

• Samplistic Records
  

• Squirty Records

The California Aggie did an article on some of our local labels.

The 80's Music Scene

In the 1980 a compilation called "Out Among the Cows" highlighted the quality and diversity of the music coming out of the Davis in the 1980. Bands such as Thin White Rope, Popealopes, Game Theory, True West, The Suspects and others were on the scene and some band members are still playing (ACME Rocket Quarter, for example). Visit the Davis80sMusic web site to learn more. Make sure you check out their rough timeline.

Venues

Clubs, Bars, and Restaurants

• Delta of Venus

• G Street Pub
  

• The Graduate
  

• Silo Pub and Cafe: Pub Live Fridays 5:30-7:30 pm
  

• Sophia's Thai Kitchen
  

• Woodstock's Pizza Saturday Evenings
  

• Pasta Q DJ's Thursday/Friday/Saturday starting at 10pm. House Music every other Friday.

Coffee Houses

• ASUCD Coffee House: CoHo Live Mondays 5-7 pm
  

• Borders
  

• Cafe Roma — Hosted Fridays at Four
  

• Common Grounds

Events

• Operation Restore Maximum Freedom - KDVS' quasi-quarterly all-day music festival
  

• Picnic Day
  

• Whole Earth Festival
  

• Picnic In The Park

Houses

Also see House Shows


• Bill Wagman's House - Traveling folk musicians
  

• Bunny House
  

• Charred Dog House
  

• Dam Haus
  

• Empty House
  

• The 'KDVS Is My Life' house
  

• Loyola House (R.I.P.)
  

• Pirate Ship
  

• Turtle House

Theaters and Auditoriums

• Freeborn Hall
  

• Mondavi Center
  

• Palms Playhouse
  

• Varsity Theatre

Sound Technicians

• Classroom Technology Services — on campus only
  

• E. Brattesani Enterprises
  

• Electron proAudio
  

• Gil Medovoy
  

• Impulse Recording Studio

Additional Resources

• Cliff Gamble - Producer of Nexus Stage, a live music show that airs live every Saturday night from 6-8pm on cable? TV? Channel 15 and sometimes simulcasts on KDRT 101.5 FM.
  

• Davis Hip-hop scene
  

• Davis Music Scene
  

• Electronic Music
  

• Entertainment - Other forms of live entertainment.
  

• KDVS
  

• LJ community - If you're into LiveJournal, this is a DMS-inspired site where you can post about upcoming shows, discuss music, look for band members, etc.
  

• Mondavi Center
  

• Music Department
  

• Out of Order Records - A show guide that includes resources, links and information on how to be a respectful show-goer.
  

• Redwood Lane Studios - In town studio that offers recording as well as live music production and engineering. Recording rates start at $20 an hour for students.
  

• Significant Davis Bands
  

• You See Davis Hardcore - An organization that puts on hardcore shows.

Shows and other events should be posted on the Events Board.