Music plays a vital role in Eugene’s culture. Ever since I stepped foot in Eugene, it became clear that a large portion of the people here highly value the power and community of music.
As someone who is living his fourth year here, I’ve had plenty of time to witness the impacts that the music scene here has had on the people in it. However, my primary source of knowledge and observation has come from a spectator’s perspective rather than that of the bands and artists. In order to fully understand the impact of Eugene’s music scene, talking to musicians from a multitude of different sides became paramount.
Mommy
Ever since its arrival, Mommy has been a staple in the Eugene indie scene. Seemingly featured or headlining on almost every bill, including opening for Amine at Matthew Knight Arena, this rock band has certainly left a mark. I sat down with co-guitarists Patrick Walker and Sam Galyen, drummer Asher Loewenstern and lead vocalist Martina Hemstreet to talk about their influence on the Eugene music scene as well as the mark it has left on them.
Mommy is comprised of UO students all in their final year. “Being seniors this year, it’s way different,” Galyen said. “As you get older, you become more of a controlling force, but it’s like, now we’re playing these big shows and all of our friends have seen us like 1,000 times. So we’re playing to these big crowds and it feels like I barely know anyone there anymore.”
As they’ve spent more time in Eugene and performed at different venues in front of different crowds, Mommy’s following has only grown. This adds some pressure to put on a consistently good show for an audience that is only getting newer to them.
Mommy, like most other college-aged indie rock bands here, got its start by meeting at the university and making inroads with more tenured bands. Walker said that getting a good start in the indie scene comes with putting yourself out there and attending lots of shows of already established bands, and a lot of that comes from a strong social media presence.
“Basically the dynamic was like, ‘We’re the new band, we’re meeting them for the first time’ and that these bands are the people we found on social media,” Walker said. “And now that we’re one of the established bands, the people that are coming to our shows are doing what we did freshman year.”
A large pull that comes with the indie house show scene is the passion and effort that venues put into their shows. When asked about some of their favorite venues to play in Eugene, the band members were quick to shout out Blue Dragon, a now retired house show venue on 20th and Hilyard.
Something that lots of house show venues provide that larger venues can’t is the intimate community aspect. “It was fun because we put some work into it,” Galyen said. “It can get pretty muddy so we showed up early and put tons of sand on the ground, as well as climbing on the roof of the shed to tie up a tarp.” Loewenstern added that the outdoor house show venues have a unique, DIY vibe to them that make them stand out.
While Mommy has become quite popular with the younger, college-aged crowd, the band said that performing at venues on the west side of Eugene can be more challenging because its music doesn’t cater as much to an older audience. “If you wanna get somewhere as a band here, you have to cater to a specific vibe,” Walker said.
Hemstreet and Loewenstern both mentioned that a huge part of becoming successful not only in the UO scene but Eugene as a whole is going to different bands’ concerts and seeing how the audience reacts to specific sounds. “We’ve always been very calculated about that,” Loewenstern said. “Why mess around with a bunch of stuff that doesn’t get a reaction out of people when we could play stuff that people like?”
It’s clear that the sense of community is strong and artists in the indie scene want to make music that people enjoy. Doing this not only makes it enjoyable for the audience, but has proven to be equally as fulfilling for the musicians as well. Since these indie bands have similar goals for their sound, working and performing together makes that sense of community even stronger. “The college experience for me has been being involved in this,” Loewenstern said. “I find myself thinking about very little of anything else.”
MUNYAA
Munya Mambira, otherwise known as MUNYAA, is pioneering a new wave of Afropop music in Eugene. Having grown up in Zimbabwe, MUNYAA brings a unique perspective to the experience of an artist in Eugene.
When asked about the differences between performing in front of crowds in Zimbabwe versus here in Eugene, Mambira cites energy as a primary source.
“When I’m performing at home, they understand what I’m saying and sometimes sing the lyrics mindlessly,” Mambira said. “But here in Eugene, they don’t understand what I’m saying but they can feel the energy. The people here have shown me and my music nothing but love from day one.”
Mambira grew up in a musical family, with both of his parents having played in traveling bands to share their music with the world. Growing up in an environment like that naturally inspired Mambira to become a musician. Becoming a successful musician means being surrounded by people who challenge you, he said. “I like when people challenge me to be better,” Mambira said. “That’s how I’ve felt performing at venues here.”
Even though the Afropop scene in Eugene is still quite small, Mambira has been welcomed with open arms when playing with artists from other genres. While rock and folk dominate Eugene’s music scene, MUNYAA has been on bills with some R&B and hip-hop artists. Mambira said certain venues have been inclusive toward a variety of genres. “Most of the time I perform with artists from other genres,” he said. “For me, it’s an opportunity to show what Afropop is. I haven’t gotten any bad energy from any of the venues I’ve performed at.”
It is clear that since MUNYAA started playing in Eugene, Mambira has felt enormous support from its music community, despite being initially unsure.
“Eugene, it’s a cool place, you know? But I didn’t get it at first,” he said. “It’s such a great place to do music, especially when you’re starting out. The people here help you establish that base to really take off once you leave.”
On the Rocks
On the Rocks is the only all-male a cappella group on UO’s campus, and they sure do know how to put on a show. Performing at a wide range of venues and for a wide range of audiences, On the Rocks’ theatrical performances and smooth harmonies make for a must-see spectacle. I sat down with Adem Abdulhayoglu, Justin Mouledous, Jason Bube, Brandon Foley and Austin Ota to talk about On the Rocks’ experience and role in the Eugene music scene.
Something that On the Rocks has that most artists can’t offer is the range to perform in front of an all-ages demographic. A cappella is a style of music that can be fun and accessible for everybody, and the members of On the Rocks have noticed how their music can impact people of vastly different ages.
Hosting everything from alumni events to Chi Omega senior banquets, On the Rocks can get requests for songs from completely different eras. “We did a gig two years ago that was for alumni of the university that had graduated like 50 years ago,” Abdulhayoglu said. “Some of the songs they requested were ‘Take it Easy’ by the Eagles and ‘Take On Me.’” Conversely, Abdulhayoglu said that the people in Chi Omega typically request more modern songs, and since On the Rocks has the versatility for both, they are easy to coordinate with to build a set list that checks every box.
Since the popularity of a cappella music has been declining over the past decade, most venues in Eugene don’t look for On the Rocks to have performances there. “In terms of venues and stuff, we haven’t gotten booked for our own shows at a lot of venues,” Foley said. “Somebody’s usually asking us to perform at a work party. It would be cool to perform at the WOW Hall or something, but that hasn’t really been on our radar.”
One hurdle for On the Rocks to jump over is fundraising and outreach for their shows. While the UO technically recognizes them as a club, On the Rocks is fully independent from the university and has to rely entirely on their own methods for fundraising and outreach. “Everything that we do is funded by streaming numbers on Spotify and gigs, so it can sometimes be a bit of a hump to get over for outreach when you’re not funded by the university, but we kind of like the financial independence too,” Mouledous said.
While On the Rocks is independent from the UO, they are one of three student-run a cappella groups that exist on campus. Similar to the communities that Mommy and MUNYAA experience, the three a cappella groups have their own bond from shared experiences. “The winter show that we’ve done with all three groups has been a keystone event for the community,” Mouledous said. “We’re all busy people with our own busy schedules, so the amount of time we all actually spend together is minimal. But to hear that there are dozens of other a cappella songs that we didn’t have to learn but are being put out there for the community to hear is definitely a cool feeling.”
Common Koi
Like Mommy, Common Koi (who also opened for Amine at Matthew Knight Arena) has been an indie rock titan in the Eugene music scene for years now. The members met in the basement of Hamilton Hall and have since dominated the house show scene. I sat down with bassist Kira Gelbaugh, drummer Stephen Strong and lead vocalist Skylar Coy to discuss the Eugene music scene and its impacts on them.
Gelbaugh said that even though there is some overlap between artists from different genres, there are certain types of venues that organize events for specific genres more than others. “It seems like whether it’s a bar gig or WOW or house shows, if the people who are running the venue are there for music and committed to creating an environment for people to enjoy art, we get along with them really well,” Gelbaugh said.
Common Koi said networking is the easiest part of Eugene’s music scene. “There’s definitely a lot of people doing it in Eugene,” Strong said. “I think it’s still a relatively non-competitive environment here. We just want to meet each other and play shows with each other and help each other out, and help break down those barriers of the spaces in the scene,” Gelbaugh said.
Strong elaborated by saying how much they love genre-bending shows. He states his desire for more shows with DJs, rappers or folk bands as openers to help traditional indie rock house show-goers get exposure to talented Eugene artists in other genres.
Advertisements for shows seem to be a mixed bag, though. Promotion for shows slightly further from the UO campus area require a lot more attention and care for promotion. But for a house show in the UO campus neighborhood, only a couple of Instagram posts will spread the word like wildfire. Another hurdle with concert promotion can be age requirements.
“I learned that doing a 21+ show far from campus, no matter how much you put into promotion, it’s pretty hard to get people to come out,” Strong said. “For the bigger venues, you have to have some bands that have a solid draw for them to take the show.”
Common Koi is a band that can adapt to the sounds and trends that are drawing the most people out at that time. Upon their arrival to Eugene, the softer indie sounds were the talk of the town, but recently the heavier sides of rock music have taken the forefront.
“I’ve noticed recently that it’s switched away from indie rock to classic rock,” Coy said. “We rock the twang. We’re kind of letting go of our indie side, a little more twang, a little more heavy just in favor of the good times. If you’re bangin’, you’re playin’.”
The Eugene music scene is a densely layered necessity to the spirit of this city that these four artists have added to in their own ways. The scene itself serves artists in genres ranging from indie rock, Afropop and a cappella alike with a tight knit community that provides its participants with unique experiences and unforgettable memories.
