David Kane

David Kane is part of the Living Legacy Project at the Burchfield Penney Art Center. Click here to listen to his artist interview. 

David Kane is a composer, musician, and bandleader who has performed his own original music for over 30 years, including numerous releases with his bands and music written for industrial videos and commercials. He currently hosts a radio program on ThinkTwiceRadio.com, and continues performing with DKQ and Them Jazzbeards.

David Kane is considered a pioneer of industrial music with his mid-1980s band Decay of Western Civilization. A Buffalo musician through and through, he has been a guest speaker for music seminars, a teacher for college credit courses as Select Sound (including "History of Music Production" and "Midi Recording Workshop"), and earned a chapter in a book of essays entitled "Goth", written by author Mark Nowak, for his work with the band Nullstadt. His original music band The Celibates earned a chapter in a German book on music history of the 1980s. He has also collaborated many times with artists including the Goo Goo Dolls and John & Mary (of 10,000 Maniacs), and performed as opening act for many diverse acts including the aforementioned artists, Holly Cole, Zippy the Chimp, Divine, and Stanley Jordan, among many others.

In 1987, David Kane's video for "Baby Doe Rules" earned a Music Video Award after airing on MTV. He has had many collaborations with performance artist David Butler as D+D, including a 2002 performances of "No Plan B" at Hallwalls Contemporary Art Center and the Sphere. His 2003 release of "The Life and Times of Guy Friday" with DKQ (David Kane Quartet) has received many favorable reviews.

David Kane has composed many soundtracks for films during his career. He composed the soundtrack for independent film "In" (2006), featuring performances by Jimmy Smith and his quintet, Kermit Ruffin, James Rivers, and Maria Muldaur. He also composed the soundtrack for indie film "Buffalo Bushido" (2009) which featured the artistry of Yoko Hiraoka, the master of koto, shamisen, biwa, and jiuta voice styles. With his band "David Kane's Them Jazzbeards", he released six critically-acclaimed albums, including the soundtrack for the movie "Shadow Creature" (1995).

He has worked closely with Nimbus Dance on several performances, including Windows No. 7, Story of a Girl, and The Cell Phone Show, an audio, visual, and dance performance at Gallery 164.David Kane continues playing with his bands Them Jazzbeards and DKQ. He and his bands participate in live performances at most of the regional large outdoor summer events, including M&T Plaza's concert series and the Elmwood Arts Festival. He has also performed at The University of Buffalo's Center for the Arts, both with his band Them Jazzbeards and on his own as part of the Music is Art series.

Listen to an interview Kane did with WBFO on October 3, 2017-- "Composer David Kane keeps finding new ways to create"