Darin Goslar, bassist and backing vocalist with longtime Reno rock band The Electric, has been prepping for months with his group for its first show in about a year. For Goslar, the band’s opening slot for Jackyl on Tuesday, March 24, at Cargo Concert Hall represents a full recovery after a series of health issues threatened his life.
Goslar remembers the day it all started: May 13, 2025. He said he had trouble getting out of bed early in the morning, and lost control of his right arm. He found out later that he had a brain tumor that caused a hemorrhagic stroke.
Goslar, who works as a nurse, received radiation treatment and medications, as well as electronic stimulation and pool therapy for the effects of the tumor and stroke. But there was a series of health setbacks over the course of two months, including more bleeding and swelling in his brain, a loss of control of his right leg, a seizure, shingles and a series of blood clots.
Even through all that, Goslar said he was focused on recovering so he could return to everyday life, including playing bass and guitar.
“It was stressful to pick up a guitar or a bass and try to play,” Goslar said. “It took me a while to actually be able to hold onto a pick, and I literally would have to move my (entire) arm around to play. I was trying, but it was just useless.”
By the time October rolled around, Goslar’s leg and arm strength had returned, and he felt strong enough to play with The Electric again at practices. He changed the way he played, using the finger method instead of a pick.
“I still have some delays in movement,” he said. “There are just little spots in my arm movement that are a bit weird, because I’m still recovering. I did get a lot of my strength back, so I can go to the gym and press quite a bit of weight, but using free weights, dumbbells, and stuff like that. It takes a lot of coordination to keep it all steady.”
Goslar’s bandmates in The Electric—Billy Gunn (guitar, lead vocals) and Brooklyn Reiff (drums)—said there was no question they would wait for him to be fully recovered before they’d start playing again.
“It was a really brief conversation between us,” Gunn said. “Being in a band at that time for 10 years together, it’s like we’re brothers.”
Gunn said that he and Reiff continued to work on new songs and recordings while Goslar recovered, acknowledging that “without Darin in the space, it was a little empty.”
The two bandmates said they visited Goslar when they could during his recovery and were willing to take their time with new material and relearning older songs when he was ready to return. The band’s new album should be out later in 2026, Gunn said, as they are still working on recording and engineering several of its songs with Goslar’s return.
The band’s also been practicing regularly for its Cargo show on March 24, as well as a just-announced May 15 show at Club Underground, opening for ska-punk band Leftover Crack. Goslar said there have been some ups and downs for him as part of the musical process.
“I have days where I’m fucking frustrated through the whole set, basically,” he said. “But still, in another sense, I’m blessed. Every day. I count my blessings. It’s like I’ve come so far, and every day, I’m getting more. I’m definitely not going backwards. I’m always moving forward.”
Reiff said it’s been impressive to see Goslar recovering so quickly.
“Me and Billy knew it was going to be frustrating for him at first, but we were just stoked to have him back,” Reiff said. “There’s been so much improvement being made just week-to-week, even.”
All three Electric bandmates said they are happy to be back and are eager to return to the stage.
“I’m jazzed,” Gunn said. “I’ve got all the faith in Darren as a musician and as a human being who’s gonna get up there and fucking rock. I’ve definitely missed being up there with him, so I’m nothing but excited.”
Said Reiff: “We’ve been doing this for so long now. All of us have been in bands together before this one, even, so it feels great to get back up onstage and make it a night for celebrating Darin just making it back. I mean, he could have died multiple times last year. So, it means a lot to him and us to get back on stage in front of people and just do what we do—just rock out and have fun.”
Boss’ Daughter’s latest is a train song
The first new music this year from melodic punk band Boss’ Daughter is a single called “Trrrraaaaiiiiiin!” As you would think, it’s an excitable song about trains—specifically those in Europe that the Reno band took during its tour there last May and June.
“We had a particularly challenging day of travel early on in the tour from Angoulême, France, to Antwerp, Belgium, so I just started writing lyrics to this instrumental in my head about the day as it happened,” said guitarist and lead vocalist Chris Fox. “Now, it stands as a wonderful time capsule that brings me right back to the trip.”
Indeed, the hectic but tuneful song has a killer bridge part that sums up that time on the road: “Nine hours, five trains, two cars, one subway, two pizzas, ten wings, one song, three friends.” The video for that also features footage from that tour.
Recorded by the band itself—but sounding as high-fidelity and sharp as its pro studio recordings—“Trrrraaaaiiiiiin!” is the follow-up to the band’s December 2025 single, “Santa is the DD Today.” That was a rewrite of an early Boss’ Daughter song with a festive twist. This new song, though, is the true start of a cycle of new releases for the band.
“We’re planning to continue recording and releasing singles throughout the year, ultimately building into the release of our third full-length album,” Fox said.
As for live shows, Fox said Boss’ Daughter will soon announce a June West Coast tour and a July Reno show. Fans can get details at the band’s Instagram page and hear its music on its Bandcamp page.
Two more key Reno punk releases
Another pair of punk bands in Reno also had new releases drop in March. Both are from bands that pack ’em in with both all-ages and bar-seasoned audiences.
First, there’s The Big Bad, which is the first full-length studio album from Pussy Velour. Through 14 tracks, the garage-meets-early-punk band captures the raw intensity and loose demeanor of its raucous stage shows quite well. There’s everything from mid-tempo art-punk to flat-out hardcore, with several pit stops that wouldn’t sound out of place on a mid-’60s true garage-rock slab.
Then, there’s “No Vacancy,” a four-song EP from Donkey Jaw. As with its frequent singles and EPs over the past two years, this one features the group’s mix of more melodic and crazily speedy punk, all with stellar songwriting chops and musicianship.
You can hear “The Big Bad” here and get updates on the band at its Instagram page. Pussy Velour also plays next on April 29 at the Holland Project.
You can hear “No Vacancy” here and catch the band when it plays on Monday, March 30, opening for the great L.A. punk band Sweat, at the Holland Project. Donkey Jaw also keeps its Instagram page up to date, so check it out.
What’s going on with your band or club?
If you have news about the Reno music scene, let me know about it. I can be reached at markearnestwriter@gmail.com, or you can follow my Instagram page and send me a DM there.