‘Battleborn band’ Moxy Ruckus entertaining Carson City for the Fourth

A new band with deep roots in the area is ready to rock Carson City as part of the Brewery Art Center’s Flatbed Concert Series.

Moxy Ruckus will be playing in neighborhoods Saturday atop the flatbed truck, donated by Miles Construction.

Two of the members were formerly of local band Mo’z Motley Blues, and they wanted to play more than blues. Monique De Haviland said they wanted to incorporate more rock and dance music, instead of staying strictly blues. The name Moxy Ruckus came about because there’s a little moxie in the band, she said.

“And ruckus because we create a ruckus everywhere we go with our energy and putting smiles on peoples’ faces,” she said.

The band was just getting started a few months ago and the coronavirus pandemic canceled all their shows. It didn’t stop De Haviland from keeping the project going. The band practiced and recorded a few demos.

“They sounded pretty darn good to us,” she said. “So we said hey let’s start a new band.”

Mylo McCormick plays lead guitar for Moxy Ruckus and he came from Mo’z Motley Blues as well. Besides playing almost every venue around Carson City over the years, he’s also a member of Carson City Cultural Commission.

“He comes from quite a musical family,” De Haviland said. “He’s one of the best guitar players in the area.”

The band is a five-piece that includes lead guitar, rhythm guitar, drums, bass guitar and keys and flute. Four of the members sing. The band plays five decades of rock and roll, with a lot of 80s, 90s and dance music included.

De Haviland is the lead vocalist and plays keyboard. De Haviland and McCormick teamed up with Michael Angel (vocalist/rhythm guitarist, also of Jump Start), Tim Goldsmith (bassist/vocalist) and Zachary Howarth (drummer).

With several local musicians, De Haviland says the band is a Battle Born band, with members from towns all over including Reno, Carson City, Lake Tahoe, Gardnerville and Minden.

“The band is a true mix of Battleborn State musicians who are delighted to offer a Fourth of July show for our capital,” De Haviland said.

Moxy Ruckus played a few shows recently in front of audiences. Their first show was a flatbed series in Gardnerville. Which meant so much to De Haviland and the band. She was happy to bring music to peoples’ homes. She said elderly people were coming out to listen to the music and see the band and De Haviland wondered when many of them had interaction with others.

“We’ve had some older ladies almost in tears because something was brought to their community,” De Haviland said. “Music gets a reaction and it affects people in a positive way.”

Since that show, the band has played three others.
“Everything has taken off since then,” she said.

De Haviland is hoping to have a positive impact on the community Saturday. For the music, she and the band will “keep it light and keep it happy.” They have a variety of songs old and new to reach a wide audience, she said.

“We cover a lot of spectrums,” she said. “We all get along, and age doesn’t matter because music is one language.”