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Davis, California

Friday, March 29, 2024

The Expendables to perform at Freeborn Hall

The Expendables will perform at Freeborn Hall on Tuesday at 7:30 p.m., marking the Entertainment Council (EC)’s final concert of spring quarter.

The Expendables are a Santa Cruz-based band that blends rock and roll style with smooth reggae sound.

“It combines a lot of rock elements and pop rock with Jamaican style like reggae – it has more rock than other reggae bands,” said Don Ho, ASUCD senator and junior psychology and economics double major.

But there is more to The Expendables than just pushing the boundaries of the music industry.

“I really like the messages that their music has. Also, they have great lyrics with well-written songs,” said Patrick Meddaugh, a sophomore environmental science and policy major.

Some of the bands most popular songs include hits such as “Down, Down, Down,” “Bowl for Two” and “Sacrifice,” which was featured in Guitar Hero World Tour.

It seems as if their hard work and originality paid off. Although the band has been around since the mid ’90s, they have remained true to their roots.

“They’re not sell-outs,” Ho said. “They get a lot of respect for staying underground. They’re very true to their fans – they have a close connection with them.”

Thongxy Phansopha, EC director and senior Spanish major, said there was supposed to be a concert with The Expendables earlier in the quarter with another promoter, but it fell through.

“Their agent contacted us to try and book another date and it all just worked out,” he said.

Ho’s former lacrosse coach from his high school actually worked with their management company to bring The Expendables to UC Davis.

“We’ve been trying to get this going for the past year and it’s part of my party platform to bring more reggae music to campus,” Ho said. “He contacted me and told me they were done with their Modesto tour so we could get them to play here. It just happened to work out that we got a really good deal.”

The Expendable’s management company, Silverback Music, also produces other well-known artists such as Revolution, Pepper and, previously, Sublime.

“I started listening to [The Expendables] freshman year when I got on my reggae kick and followed the general direction of the label,” Meddaugh said.

The EC optimistically hopes that the concert will sell out.

“[This concert] should set a precedent for future concerts. It’s testing the ground for Pepper some time next year,” Ho said.

With that said, ASUCD and the EC have some logistical concerns about the date of the concert.

Ho said that The Expendables will perform the Tuesday after Memorial Day Weekend, coinciding with the annual Houseboats event at Lake Shasta.

“I think the concert will be a nice way to transition back into school after the long weekend,” Ho said.

Phansopha said that even though there have been numerous big concerts this quarter, The Expendables are bringing something special to the table.

“It’s been a while since we had a big reggae act to play at Freeborn Hall and it’s also one of the big concerts this quarter that is organized and run by students. We’re expecting mostly students at this event, which makes it a lot more fun,” he said.

BRITTANY PEARLMAN can be reached at arts@theaggie.org.

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