Down by Dawn, a Pinoy Punk band from Vallejo, began in the high school bedrooms of singer/guitarist Jouz Aguila and bassist Aaron “Allen” Jacob Santos. Now the expanded group will perform music from their latest EP at a special Dads and Grads show this Father’s Day.
Down by Dawn has been a creative outlet for Aguila ever since the COVID-19 pandemic began just after he left high school. In 2023, Santos and Aguila recruited their friend and drummer Chris Uganiza to join and the rest is history. “It was kind of serendipitous because we’ve been playing music together for a long time…he’s a long time friend along with being a very good musician,” says Aguila of Uganiza.
When the band first started out, they played multiple genres but eventually gravitated towards pop punk. The term Pinoy punk refers to the band’s Filipino culture and their desire to represent that. “Our mission, at least for the past couple of years, is to really show on both sides, the rock music scene and within the Filipino community, that there is space for us,” says Aguila.
He says there’s usually an assumption within the Filipino community when you say you make music, that it’s one of two things. “The assumption is, ‘oh you either do R&B or you sing Disney Ballads,’” laughs Aguila. Through punk and rock, Down by Dawn hopes to show that there is space for Filipinos in the genre, “even if we have to carve it out for ourselves,” he says.
So on Sunday, Father’s Day, Down by Dawn will play their signature style of punk at the Oddfellows, San Pablo Lodge. The event is organized through Free Music Collective (FMC), a collective with a goal of uplifting Vallejo artists.
FMC’s founder Jeremy “Remy” Smith-Batha says that the Dads and Grads show was really spearheaded by Down by Dawn. The goal is to put on a show that celebrates these members of the community. “it’s wholesome and it invites that type of atmosphere,” says Smith-Batha.
“Really it’s a celebration of a lot of things and it’s a celebration of the community that we’ve built here in Vallejo,” says Aguila. Down by Dawn is a Vallejo band, and to Aguila, there’s nothing better than performing to a hometown crowd. Whenever we have a chance to come back home to Vallejo and play it’s really exciting because it’s home, we get to see a lot of familiar faces and that’s something we’re looking forward to this Sunday,” he says.
The band’s bassist, Santos, deserves a special shoutout at the show, says Aguila. Santos is graduating himself this weekend from the University of California Davis.
Because it is a celebratory show, Down by Dawn has aimed to keep pricing as low as possible. “I’d really hate for people to miss out on this event because of cost,” says Aguila. Presale tickets are $5 and day of tickets are $10, but graduates get in free with proof and dads get in free with one accompanying ticket-holder. “Really, I want the least amount of excuses possible for people to not show up,” he laughs.
The band will be playing music from their 2024 EP release “LIGHT THE FUSE!” among other songs. In celebration of the one year anniversary of the EP, they will be releasing the instrumental versions of several of their songs.
Aguila also teased a new EP in the works. Although it doesn’t have a set title yet, the plan is to release it at the end of the summer.
The show’s opener Alxzn is a very good friend of the Down by Dawn members, says Aguila. “He’s another one of those figures in Down by Dawn’s experience that has just made things happen.”
Down by Dawn is an entirely DIY band, says Aguila. “All the music that you hear was made in our bedroom,” he laughs. “The reason it is DIY, besides financial constraints, is that we really do love what we do and we’re very grateful and thankful that, especially the community here in Vallejo, has been so receptive to us just doing what we love.”
WHAT: Pinoy Punk for Dads and Grads
WHEN: June 15, 12 p.m.
WHERE: Odd Fellows, San Pablo Lodge, 342 Georgia St., Vallejo.
