Local Santa Cruz ska band, Dan P. and the Bricks, raise money and awareness for the Homeless Service Center of Santa Cruz through an album release party. All the proceeds of the event will be given to the Homeless Service Center.

In a Q&A, UC Santa Cruz student Jenna Conway, organizer of Party, Bike and Jam, talked about how the bike group promotes community, alternative transportation and the local music scene.

They gathered at the downtown clock tower around eight o’clock in the evening. At first, there is nothing to alarm or catch the eye of passing motorists, but the group soon swells to around 200 cyclists, and it becomes impossible to ignore.

A love of bluegrass brings local musicians together.

Metal bands are breaking the city’s music mold, one mosh pit at a time.

Local duo injects imagination into the veins of student music.

With open mic nights any given day of the week, rock festivals such as Porterpalooza and Rock ’n’ Roll on the Knoll gracing the events calendar, and innumerable outlets to showcase musical abilities, it is no surprise that some talented bands have found their place at UC Santa Cruz.

Two such groups have already started to make their mark on the Santa Cruz music scene, gaining popularity among UCSC students and working their way through Internet fandom. For bands Teenage Galaxy and Animal Spirit, it is about making music and taking names.