Overview
Cake is an American alternative-rock band formed in Sacramento in August 1991 by singer John McCrea, trumpet/keys player Vince DiFiore, guitarist Greg Brown, drummer Frank French, and bassist Shon Meckfessel (quickly replaced by Gabe Nelson). Cake is the most commercially successful band to come out of the modern Sacramento music scene, with multiple platinum and gold records, an enduring alt-rock catalog that includes "The Distance" and "Short Skirt/Long Jacket," and a genuinely unusual institutional commitment to sustainability — their all-solar Sacramento recording studio, built over five years, generates more power than it consumes and runs the SMUD meter backwards. [1][2][3]
Formation (1991)
John McCrea had moved to Los Angeles with a band that quickly dissolved. Returning to Sacramento in 1991 — and, by his own account, "grown tired of Sacramento's coffeehouse circuit" — he began assembling a new band with a distinctive trumpet-forward, deadpan-vocal, genre-agnostic sound. The core lineup crystallized in August 1991: McCrea (vocals/acoustic guitar), DiFiore (trumpet/keys), Brown (guitar), French (drums), and, after a brief run with Meckfessel, Nelson on bass. [1][2]
The band played early Sacramento rooms including Old Ironsides (where McCrea had played solo) and the Cattle Club before self-releasing their debut. [4]
Motorcade of Generosity and breakthrough (1994–1996)
Cake self-released Motorcade of Generosity in 1994. It was picked up and rereleased by Capricorn Records in 1995 on the strength of the first single, "Rock 'n' Roll Lifestyle," which hit #35 on the Modern Rock Tracks chart and rotated on MTV's 120 Minutes. [1]
Their second album, Fashion Nugget (1996), was the commercial breakout: it peaked at #36 on the Billboard 200, was certified platinum by the RIAA in 1997 for sales exceeding one million copies, and delivered "The Distance" — a stadium-filling alt-rock anthem written by Greg Brown. Brown's writing and guitar work on "The Distance" were the definitional Cake sound: driving, precise, and conversational without being soft. [1][3][5]
Major-label era and peak (1998–2004)
- Prolonging the Magic (1998) — continued the platinum run on Capricorn.
- Comfort Eagle (2001) — moved to Columbia after Capricorn's dissolution. Sold 22,000 copies in its first week — the band's best first-week number — and went gold. Spawned "Short Skirt/Long Jacket." [1][6]
- Pressure Chief (2004) — final Columbia album.
Indie return and Showroom of Compassion (2011)
After leaving Columbia, Cake built their own Sacramento studio — a full renovation over roughly five years using photovoltaic solar cells — and self-produced Showroom of Compassion there, releasing it on their own Upbeat Records in January 2011. The record debuted at #1 on the Billboard 200. The studio continues to operate on a negative-balance SMUD bill, generating more electricity than the band consumes. The choice was simultaneously a practical one and a statement about Cake's long-running independence, DIY ethos, and environmental politics. [1][3]
Greg Brown's death (February 2026)
On February 5, 2026, founding guitarist Greg Brown died after a brief illness at age 56. Brown had left Cake in the early 2000s but remained a fixture of the Sacramento scene: he co-founded Deathray in 1998 with former Cake bassist Victor Damiani, drummer Michael Urbano, and singer Dana Gumbiner. Brown later worked for Sacramento city government before retiring to refocus on music a few years before his death. John McCrea's public remembrance, carried by both CapRadio and SN&R, emphasized Brown's "messy, precise, inherently musical" approach as foundational to the Cake sound. [5][7][8][9]
Current lineup (as of 2026)
- John McCrea — vocals, acoustic guitar
- Vince DiFiore — trumpet, keys
- Xan McCurdy — guitar
- Daniel McCallum — bass
- Todd Roper — drums
Cake has confirmed their first new studio album in 13 years, previewing a new song "Billionaire in Space" on tour in 2025. [10]
Why it matters for Sacramento music
Cake is the proof-of-concept for what a Sacramento-based band can become without relocating. They built the commercial career from Sacramento venues (Old Ironsides, Cattle Club), kept their operational base in Sacramento through every label change, and doubled down on that commitment by building an independent solar-powered studio in town. Their ongoing presence — and the careers they branched into, most visibly Deathray — anchor the local scene's self-image as a place where real, lasting musical careers can start and stay.
Sources
- Cake (band), Wikipedia. https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Cake_(band)
- Q&A with Cake lead singer John McCrea, Sactown Magazine. https://www.sactownmag.com/qa-with-cake-lead-singer-john-mccrea/
- Project Studio: Cake Facility Goes Solar, Mix Online. https://www.mixonline.com/recording/project-studio-cake-facility-goes-solar-366156
- Sacramento Rock Band Cake — Going the Distance, Sactown Magazine. https://www.sactownmag.com/sacramento-band-cake-going-the-distance/
- Greg Brown (rock musician), Wikipedia. https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Greg_Brown_(rock_musician)
- Cake discography, Wikipedia. https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Cake_discography
- Messy, precise, inherently musical: Cake's John McCrea remembers guitarist Greg Brown, CapRadio, Feb 13, 2026. https://www.capradio.org/articles/2026/02/13/messy-precise-inherently-musical-cakes-john-mccrea-remembers-guitarist-greg-brown/
- Sacramento mourns former Cake guitarist who went the distance, CapRadio, Feb 9, 2026. https://www.capradio.org/articles/2026/02/09/sacramento-mourns-former-cake-guitarist-who-went-the-distance/
- Greg Brown, guitarist who wrote Cake's biggest hit, dies at 56, Billboard. https://www.billboard.com/music/music-news/greg-brown-death-cake-founding-guitarist-dies-obituary-1236175849/
- Listen: Cake Confirm First Album in 13 Years, Perform New Song "Billionaire in Space", Relix. https://relix.com/news/detail/listen-cake-confirm-first-album-in-13-years-perform-new-song-billionaire-in-space/