The second annual Davis Art Center Summer Attack! teen concert series, sponsored by Acme Theatre Company and KDVS 90.3 FM, comes to a close on Saturday at 6:30 p.m. The third and final concert in the series, which only features local high school-age bands, will be held at the Davis Art Center’s indoor stage with tickets available for $5.
Concerts were held on June 26 and July 24 and featured a total of three bands and two solo acts. Alternative/punk bands Autopsy Drive and Spiral Skies are scheduled to perform on Saturday.
Davis Art Center publicity assistant and event organizer Melanie Glover said she wanted to provide teen musicians with the opportunity to play their own songs in front of their peers as opposed to only playing in school bands.
“Last year I heard about kids in high school that would play at each other’s houses in their garages. I thought it would be nice to give them another venue,” Glover said. “It’s not a competition setting here in the Davis Art Center. This event gives them the opportunity to play their original music on a nice stage in a calm atmosphere.”
Da Vinci High School junior Polo Hedriana plays bass guitar for Autopsy Drive. He thinks this show is a nice change of pace when it comes to location.
“It’s encouraging to have a place to play in Davis because it’s in our hometown,” Hedriana said. “We’ve done past shows in Sacramento and the Orangevale area, but our friends and family can easily make it to this one.”
Like many of the past and present performers, Autopsy Drive has a hard time pinpointing their music to just one particular genre.
“I would describe our music as the heavier, darker side of pop-punk music,” Hedriana said. “We had started out covering Blink 182 songs, but our original music got heavier as we got older.”
Hedriana and two friends began performing Green Day songs in their fifth grade music class but didn’t begin officially playing as a band until sixth grade at one band member’s 12th birthday party.
Five years later, Autopsy Drive is still together and still going strong.
“We want to make this more than just a high school band,” Hedriana said. “I hope that in the next coming year we can play more shows, have a full-length CD out, gain more exposure and get better not only instrument-wise but in all aspects of our lives.”
Alternative rock band Spiral Skies is also looking forward to Saturday’s concert. Aaron Hill, Da Vinci High School senior who sings and plays the bass guitar, said that their band began in class and their goal is to keep the group together.
“This concert gives us the chance to be a part of the local music scene,” Hill said. “As for the future of the band, I just want us to remain friends and go to college. Keeping in contact would be an achievement.”
They have fun recording songs like “Crash”, which incorporates a little bit more of their overall general influence.
“It’s truly an organic jam,” Hill said. “It was created equally from everyone in the band.”
Eluminati played in the June 26 Summer Attack! concert and were spotted by KDVS. Now the band is recording an album with their help. Davis High School junior Matthias Wilken plays bass and does vocals for the band.
“This concert was a way for us to show the public who we are,” Wilken said. “I’m most looking forward to recording this CD and getting it out there, doing more gigs and getting more rep. Hopefully we’ll stay together through high school and college, make more CDs and make it big.”
Davis High School junior Melissa Ferris strummed her acoustic guitar in the July 24 concert. She describes her music as pop folk acoustic and it all started when she began taking guitar lessons two years ago.
“I decided to learn on my own after the lessons ended and I began writing my own songs,” Ferris said. “It was really cool to play at the concert with Downhill From Here since the audience was mainly friends and family. It was really relaxed and it was my first paid gig.”
Funds earned through ticket sales will be divided evenly between the Davis Art Center and the participating musicians who work hard to record their CDs, write their songs or simply stay together.
Melanie Glover is optimistic and excited about the audience turnout. She encourages local college students to attend.
“College students are often surprised at high school kids’ talents,” Glover said. “They’ll enjoy themselves.”
LEA MURILLO can be reached at arts@theaggie.org.
