Jim Norris wanted to have something that could spread the word about 3 Kings Tavern, which he co-owns, that bands could give away when they go on tour. So he and MF Ruckus frontman Aaron Howell sat down, brainstormed and chose thirteen local acts like Il Cattivo, Pitch Invasion and Straight Outta Luck that have played the venue so many times they're considered what Norris calls "family bands" and that were active around town as well as touring to be on tavern's new compilation CD, Kings of the Queen City.
See also: - Il Cattivo on the time frontman Brian Hagman got ran over by some angry dude - Straight Outta Luck share the stories behind their disastrous first tour - Pitch Invasion makes poppy punk rock seem relevant again
Norris says some of the cuts are exclusive to the compilation, including the New Ben Franklins' song "Beautiful Queen," which came about after Norris challenged the band's frontman Dave DeVoe to write a song about Denver, and some other tracks will be on upcoming releases by the bands.
The free CDs are available at 3 Kings Tavern and Mutiny Now, which Norris also co-owns, and the bands on compilation will be giving them out, and the tracks can also be streamed on Soundcloud. Norris says MF Ruckus took 150 discs with them on tour and Pretty Mouth will be taking some out on the road as well.
"We're super excited about it," Norris says. "I can't believe we haven't done it sooner. Bart [McCrory] from Motaland did all the mastering so it all flows so well."
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