Inside the Rocket Room, it didn't take long to completely forget that I was just south of downtown Colorado Springs (at 230 Pueblo Avenue, specifically). This place could easily fit in on South Broadway, and it shares more than a few similarities with 3 Kings Tavern — including punk, rockabilly, country bands and burlesque.
But the Rocket Room might be even more '50s-centric, with its leopard-print-covered stage, black-and-white-checkered floor, Chinese paper lanterns, pin-up sketches and Elvis memorabilia. And a whole lotta Elvis was going on the Saturday night I was there. After Denver-based band Whiskey Throttle offered a vigorous set of rockabilly, garage and surf, a gal did a belly-dance burlesque number to Elvis's "Trouble," which was followed by another burlesque dancer with a tattoo of a young Elvis on her left shoulder.
While this was all going on, "It Came From Baltimore," a featurette about the John Waters film Cry-Baby, was showing on the TV at the bar. Clips from Cry-Baby, an homage to mid-'50s Baltimore, were shown between interviews with Waters, the cast and crew, and although the TV's volume was off (the sound guy was playing Gene Vincent and Eddie Cochran tunes), it reminded me that Johnny Depp did a pretty good job of lip-synching to songs that were actually sung by James Intveld on the film's soundtrack.
Intveld, who's definitely got some Elvis in him, would feel right at home at the Rocket Room, and the place might be right up Waters's alley, too. Even the guy with the Misfits patch sewn on the sleeve of his hoodie seemed to be digging the Room, which could be the hippest thing shaking in the Springs.
Club scout: On Friday, August 28, the Living Room (1055 Broadway), the latest addition to Regas Christou's club empire, celebrates its grand opening. The wine bar will serve small Mediterranean plates and features an Enomatic wine-serving system that dispenses eighteen wines — local, national, international — by the ounce and by the glass at the touch of a button.
Rockbar (3015 East Colfax Avenue) wraps up a week-long third-anniversary party with Rockstar Karaoke and a chance to win rock-and-roll merch on Thursday, August 27; Cassette '80s with Rockstar Aaron, plus Pinky 500's going-away party, on Friday, August 28; and DJ Parris's Pimp and Ho Down on Saturday, August 29. If you buy a shot of Jäger, you'll get a free Rockbar shot glass — but you can only get one per night.
After eight years of heading up Lipgloss with boyhollow (aka Michael Trundle), Tyler "Danger" Jacobson will pass the baton to DJ Soup on Friday, August 28, at La Rumba (99 West Ninth Avenue). Although Jacobson will be ending his Lipgloss residency, he'll still pop in for the occasional guest spin.
Finally, Wicked Garden (1403 Larimer Street) just tapped into table keg service, which could prove a welcome alternative to LoDo's high-end bottle-service clubs. Instead of dropping a few hundred bucks on a bottle of hooch and mixers, you could chip in with some friends (or better yet, just bring your whole frat or sorority) and get a quarter-keg (aka pony keg) of domestic beer for $140. The only catch is that you have to reserve the keg with a credit card two days before you plan to come in. But the club will even toss in red Solo cups for the full college-party experience.
