Another solid batch of new shows going on sale this weekend, including Phoenix, which is coming to the Rocks with Dinosaur Jr.; Five Iron Frenzy, set to play the Ogden in August; KTCL Channel 93.3 bringing the Lumineers, Langhorne Slim and Paper Bird; and the Monkees. Keep reading for the…
FIVE POINTS JAZZ FESTIVAL @ FIVE POINTS | SAT, 5/11/13 Since starting a decade ago, the Five Points Jazz Festival has been celebrating the music, culture and history of Denver’s historic Five Points neighborhood by highlighting local jazz acts. Acts on the main stage of this year’s festival include the…
This weekend, the Matchbox at 2625 Larimer is celebrating its second anniversary. When the owners first opened the bar two years ago, they made a decision to make the space available for various nonprofits. That decision has clearly paid off. The concept of “doing well by doing good,” says co-owner…
“If you are a composer in this area, there are not a lot of opportunities to hear your music played,” says Conrad Kehn, founding director of the Playground Ensemble, a chamber group dedicated to modern music, especially by living composers. So in 2007, the act started the Colorado Composers Concert…
With more than 45 years of playing under his belt, Dan Treanor is a master of the blues. His Afrosippi band recently came in third out of 220 bands at the International Blues Challenge in Memphis, but his Code Blue band, which features a different lineup, is just as impressive…
As frontman for the Demon Funkies, Ryan Chrys has demonstrated that he knows his way around the groove, but on 2011’s The Ambivalent Justice Of…, he showed that he’s also well versed in a number of other genres. And from the first few cuts of his latest release, A Lick…
At one time, the Jet Entertainment Group ran a number of spots in town, including Wicked Garden, two Purple Martini locations (one of which was later dubbed Jet South) and the Jet Lounge, located on the main floor of the Jet Hotel, which opened in 2006 at 1612 Wazee Street…
Another closure to let you know about: The Firehouse Tavern has closed. The Thornton bar, which opened in 2009, went dark recently after a three-and-a-half-year run. A two-story suburban outpost housed in the former Holly North space at 10369 Quivas Street, the Firehouse was a choice destination up north for…
When Phil Villotti and Ray Rodriguez took over the Atrium Bar & Grill space at 554 S. Broadway, they gave the place a much needed overhaul and reopened as The Bar in September, 2011. But after a year and a half run, the pair have closed the spot, which offered…
Blame the Best of Denver curse: After less than year, the Grizzly Rock, which just earned a nod as the Best New Venue in our Best of Denver issue last month, closed over the weekend. News of the closing came via Facebook: “Sorry everyone we have closed the Grizzly Rock,”…
While in high school during the late ’90s, guitarist Kyle Zender and drummer Hill Baker bonded over the likes of Miles Davis, Frank Zappa and King Crimson. It’s not surprising, then, that some of those influences (and possibly some newer stuff like El Ten Eleven) have seeped into their work…
A year after opening the 1UP in LoDo, owner Jourdan Adler took over the former home of Pete’s Monkey Bar last June and put his second arcade-themed bar, the 2UP, in that space. While the 2UP might be smaller than its downtown counterpart, that could change if Adler gets the…
This Saturday is poised to be the most celebrated day in our state’s history, what with it being the first 4/20 since Amendment 64 was passed and all. Some of music’s most heralded indulgers are being shipped in just to help the local stoners celebrate in style, from Slightly Stoopid…
It’s been roughly two and half years since James McElwee raised more than $5000 on Kickstarter to make a documentary on Bob Ferbrache, and the film still isn’t finished. After raising the money, McElwee started interviewing members of bands like Slim Cessna’s Auto Club, Tarantella, Warlock Pinchers and Ian Cooke,…
When guitarists Nick Didkovsky and Chuck O’Meara bought a $100 guitar, they came up with the idea for their $100 Guitar Project: They hit up a dozens of their guitar-playing friends and asked them to write and record a short piece of a song. They each had a week to…
When coming up with a moniker for their project, Jess Parsons and Steve Varney wanted a name that would match their lush, inviting music. The name Glowing House fits the indie-folk act perfectly, suggesting a warmly lit, welcoming mountain home in winter. The group has followed last year’s excellent sophomore…
When trumpeter Dave Douglas played at Dazzle just over a year ago as part of Greg Garrison’s Improvised Roots series, he was introduced to Crooked Still’s Aoife O’Donovan, who sang during the sets. Douglas went on to recruit O’Donovan — who is also joining Douglas’s two-night stand at Dazzle this…
After playing with Denver-based bands including G-Force and Autobahn in the ’80s, James “Rooster” Olson made a name for himself with his company Trailer Trash Pedalboards. Olson essentially revolutionized the pedalboard industry with his award-winning designs, which have been used by top-notch musicians such as Aerosmith’s Joe Perry, Steve Stevens,…
On Hazard of the Die, the followup to his 2011 debut, Sometime Around, Andy Palmer shows continued growth as a songwriter. The beginning of “The Monk,” the eight-song disc’s opener, is fairly tame, but strings, arranged here by Kailin Yong, gradually swell, making the song seem damn near epic at…
As a teenager, Matt Skellenger was a fan of Twin Peaks, David Lynch’s short-lived television series. He loved the contrast of darkness and light in the show, as well as the conflict and resolution. From a textural standpoint, both of those elements play a part in Skellenger’s new album, The…
More and more, you’ve probably noticed an influx of Internet jukeboxes, the kind that offer a seemingly endless assortment of songs, cropping up in bars. But there are still a handful of spots rocking old school CD jukeboxes that require a bit of taste-making. Here’s the ten best, including this…
MATT SKELLENGER GROUP @ DAZZLE | SAT, 4/6 Fusing jazz with Indian rhythms and percussion, bassist Matt Skellenger follows up his 2009 release, Parentheticals, with his outstanding new disc, The Owls Are Not What They Seem (yes, the title is a nod to Twin Peaks), which he’ll be issuing at…
