DYCE – historic MV Rock Band to play a reunion show on 7-06-24

** EDIT  The GOOBSTOCK Music Festival this weekend is full. If you would like to see DYCE play, contact your favorite music venue to get these veteran rockers on the schedule!!

If you are interested in the history of Skagit County music, then you need to know about DYCE; a rock band from Mount Vernon that formed in the Spring of 1980 and played a pivotal role in Skagit County music history. They played gigs and composed their own original songs, influenced countless Skagit County musicians and they were a big deal! What makes DYCE different from other local bands? They were between the ages of 12-16. Below is an essay written by Matt Phillips, DYCE drummer.

DYCE (by Matt Phillips)

In May of 1980 the world was just a little different than it is today. Jimmy Carter was in the last year of his presidency. The Iranian hostages were in the second year of their captivity. Most television sets only had 13 channels. You couldn’t bank after 5 p.m. or on weekends. Truth lived in the encyclopedia. And if the DJ didn’t tell you who did that cool song you heard on the radio, you just had to go on not knowing! It was into this now seemingly alien world that Dyce was born. Four kids, two just barely shaving, two who could only dream of having something to shave, hatched a crazy scheme to be rockers, just like the bands that occasionally played local school assemblies, or could be briefly heard if our moms accidentally drove us past a tavern at just the right moment.

We had zero guidance. There was no social media to light the way. There were no other bands comprised of four kids who couldn’t even drive. And yet, off we went. Rehearsing in our parent’s basements or living rooms. Listening to rock records and arguing about how to recreate what we were hearing. We made the entire enterprise up as we went along. There was no scene to tap into. No example to follow.

With our parent’s help we started playing anywhere we could. School dances, wedding receptions, a flower shop’s grand opening, but there were ultimately two performances that burned themselves into the collective memory of so many people – The Sidewalk Sale and The County Fair. In our matching satin shirts, our silk-screened Dyce banner, and the kick drum logo, we were a DIY spectacle. And… we had original compositions mixed in with the Bad Company and Cheap Trick tunes to boot. The legend was born at these two shows. Kids looked on in amazement and no doubt thought “if these guys can do it, maybe I can too”. More than a few eventually became legends of our local music scene themselves.

Dyce’s time was all too brief. We disbanded just months after we got started, in true rock and roll style. But we continued to perform together in various ever-shifting lineups until we finally fanned out into the larger world. There was a brief one-off reunion performance in 2011, but with that lone exception, Dyce has not taken the stage together in 44 years. That changes this Saturday, July 6th. And… we’re bringing new original music as well! We’ve all realized that we’re not getting any younger and that if we were ever going to share the stage one more time, that time is now. We unwittingly became legends somehow, and we are grateful that we’re all still here to celebrate that legacy one more time.

DYCE is:

Nick Denke – Vocals, Guitar, Bass, Flute, Talent

Mike Shyra – Vocals, Guitar, Talk-Box, Limericks

Rob Copeland –  Guitar, Bass, Fiat, Amazing Solos

Matt Phillips – Drums, Vocals, Cowbell, MORE COWBELL

ROLLIN’ DYCE video: https://youtu.be/dCgCsHiDbbE?si=WNSdGO7Z37GdkO0y