Kind of soggy over here today. No surprise. Colorado is notorious for dumping buckets of rain on concert-goers this time of year. Rain doesn’t stop the show, though, and it shouldn’t stop you. If you’re a seasoned concert vet who already has head-to-toe rain gear at the ready, consider this…
After finishing their tour in support of 2010’s High Violet, the members of the National didn’t have any immediate plans to record again. But guitarist Aaron Dessner, whose daughter had just been born, ended up with a lot of time on his hands. He began writing songs in his backyard…
Master luthier Scott Baxendale lives in Athens, Georgia, these days, but he still has Denver on his mind. In fact, he says he has plans to move back here at some point. Right now, though, the guitar maker and former Colfax Guitar Shop owner has his hands full in Athens,…
ANIMAL COLLECTIVE @ OGDEN THEATRE | 9/9/13 There were some “gremlins” last night that plagued the stage for Animal Collective at the Ogden, but it didn’t hamper the performance. If anything, it heightened it. In one moment of perfect synergy during “My Girls,” the power dropped out for one of…
After nearly two decades, Mazzy Star is making its highly anticipated return with a new album, Seasons of Your Day. In support of that record, the band is coming to Denver on Sunday, November 10, for a show at the Ogden Theatre. Tickets ($35) go on sale this Saturday, September…
Sweden is to death metal what Norway is to black metal. Norway’s sixth sense for finding black metal with the right amount of heavy guitar distortion, banshee shrieking vocals and an unrefined recording quality gives them a black flame kick that fuels the fire of many metal fans. Keep reading…
TITWRENCH 2013 at GLOB | 9/6/13 As if embodying a bit of the spirit of the event, Dangerous Nonsense donned costumes that evoked Russian punk band Pussy Riot. And like the latter, the former outfit performs with an intensity that elevates what some might see as pure theatrics. But then…
DEERHUNTER at BLUEBIRD THEATER | 9/7/13 The other members of Deerhunter were set up ready to go when Bradford Cox made his way on stage clad in some kind of vest with a lot of buttons and/or patches. He was also wearing a Cramps T-shirt, and that was fitting because…
MGMT @ FILLMORE AUDITORIUM | 9/6/13 There were two distinct, dramatically different moods to MGMT’s set at the Fillmore, and let’s just say that those who came to hear MGMT’s breakthrough hits — bright and peppy synthpop tunes like “Electric Feel,” “Kids” and “Time to Pretend” — were not disappointed,…
MONDAY | ANIMAL COLLECTIVE at OGDEN THEATRE | 9/9/13 Animal Collective’s unconventional rhythms and effervescent guitar sound can be heard in the music of countless indie acts that sprang up after the band formed in 2000. The band’s latest record, 2012’s Centipede Hz, is hailed as a return to form,…
After news that Kanye is coming back to town for a gig at the Pepsi Center in November, now comes word that hip-hop’s other monolithic maestro is also making his way back to the Mile High City for a return engagement at the Pepsi Center, where he rocked in ’10…
Space In Time was started by some friends from the local punk and metal scenes who had rediscovered their love of early ’70s hard rock. In 2007, guitarist Javram Ciel-Tilton and drummer Yancy Green tapped some other friends to start a band in that vein, and for the next six…
THE HOWLING HEX @ HI-DIVE | 9/5/13 Neil Michael Hagerty didn’t do too much physical emoting last night at the hi-dive, nor did the rest of the Howling Hex. But Hagerty projected his voice evocatively in an almost cartoonish fashion that matched his unusual guitar tones. Maybe he just EQ’d…
MGMT @ FILLMORE AUDITORIUM | FRI, 9/6/13 Back in 2008, at the peak of their Coachella-studded career, Andrew VanWyngarden and Ben Goldwasser were living one dream (deliciously abstract pop art) and singing about another: one rooted in Paris, heroin, cocaine, “elegant cars” and “models for wives,” to quote their festival-friendly…
Brace yourself for the return of Yeezus. The iconoclast mastermind known otherwise as Kanye West is making his way back to the Mile High City for a date at the Pepsi Center on Sunday, November 3, with Kendrick Lamar, the MC who recently single-handedly riled up the entire hip-hop nation…
ARAABMUZIK @ RED ROCKS AMPHITHEATRE (WITH STS9) | FRI, 9/6/13 When it comes to EDM production these days, it seems like it’s all been done before. Just the same, Rhode Island’s AraabMuzik (aka Abraham Orellana) is doing everything he can to shatter any preconceived notions you might have about dance…
Hey, there. Got a bad case of the blues, do you? Ah, there, there, my friend. Rest easy. Good news: It’s almost Friday, and there’s absolutely no need to experience those blues all by your lonesome, especially in this city, a place where the scene has always been popping, and…
What makes a great country song? Well, if David Allan Coe is to be believed, the songs require a few things: mama, trains, trucks, prison or gettin’ drunk. There’s got to be more to it than that, though, right? Like, at least five more things. Country music draws on the…
Underground is hotter than ever! Slow Pain… Razakel… Komatose… Claas… Killa C… Lunacy 3:33… KidCrusher… Mars… and many more!— Violent J & 2 Dope (@icp) December 5, 2011 Sitting upstairs in what once was the projector room of the Roxy Theatre, Troll is in front of two desks piled with…
Flume is the musical project of Harley Streten from Sydney, Australia. At 21, Streten has come a long way from where he started, making electronic music using a bit of production software he got from a box of cereal at age thirteen. His sparse but evocative soundscapes defy easy categorization…
JASON ISBELL @ BLUEBIRD THEATER | 9/4/13 Jason Isbell didn’t demand respect last night, but he certainly commanded it with his music. As he played a blistering set at the Bluebird that spanned two hours, the crowd sang along, hooted and hollered out requests, but on multiple occasions the talkers…
No rules. Pay homage to the song. Don’t do too much or too little. These are the three philosophies that the Royal has adhered to since forming over two years ago. “Whatever is effective for the song, pay homage to the song,” frontman Tyler Hayden explains. “Because if the song…
