Upon their arrival in Denver, conventioneers (many of whom are registered at the Adam's Mark Hotel, the bash's official headquarters) will be confronted with a full slate of activities. On May 13, attendees new to AFIM can participate in a series of so-called crash-course panels intended to show them the lay of the land. More panels, workshops and a trade show at the Adam's Mark take place throughout the next three days, with special events planned for each evening: May 14 is capped by a reception at the Denver Museum of Natural History; May 15 features numerous showcases at area venues; and May 16 wraps up with AFIM's annual Indie Awards ceremony. Those up for prizes include worthy unknowns; notables like Ani DiFranco, Bruce Cockburn and Coolio; and several artists with Denver connections, including Colorado-bred bluesman Corey Harris, rapper Common, whose father, ex-Denver Rocket Lonnie Lynn, still lives here, and Boulder's Tony Furtado. "We have almost forty categories that we present awards in," Bradley notes. "For us, it's comparable to the Grammys. And this year, for the first time, the awards will be simulcast on the Internet." (The computer address is www.onlineauditions.com.)
Bradley concedes that few of the nominees will be present when the awards are announced; instead, the baubles will be handed to representatives from their labels, who make up the backbone of AFIM's constituency. Rather than signing up individual members, AFIM invites companies to participate in its ventures, and at present, approximately 1,300 firms have accepted the offer. Of that number, around 750 are independent imprints ranging from obscure startups to powerful outfits such as Rounder Records. In fact, Rounder chieftain Duncan Browne will co-host the Indie Awards with Westword profile subject Webb Wilder ("Wilder Things," September 18, 1997). The remaining members are divided between distributors, retailers, marketing and promotion companies, manufacturers and suppliers--"basically any company that's involved in the independent music business in any way," Bradley says.
There's no shortage of issues facing participants. For instance, independent retailers are dealing with increasing competition from chain stores that often attempt to price them out of existence; as a result, mom-and-pop stores have been forced to band together with shops across the country in order to survive. Retail operations and labels are also trying to get a handle on the Internet, which has the potential for changing marketing strategies across the board. "It's a double-edged sword," Bradley contends. "In one sense, it'll level the playing field for retailers, but it also gives labels a direct line to consumers, which might pull people away from retail sales. How that's going to balance out is anyone's guess."
The money at stake over these questions isn't small by any means. During part of 1997, independent distributors accounted for 21 percent of the total U.S. album sales--a larger slice of the pie than any single major in the same period. According to Bradley, this achievement was fueled by an unlikely coalition of music styles. Alternative rock, hip-hop and electronica played a large part, but so did new age and gospel/contemporary Christian, whose sales were under-represented by publications like Billboard for decades. Unsurprisingly, indie cheerleader Bradley is upbeat about these figures. "I think consumers are becoming more and more aware of indie music and indie labels," she claims. "They're paying more attention to what's out there and what label it's on. The Internet has certainly contributed to that. You can go online and search for a genre of music, and you'll definitely find more indie labels than majors connected to whatever you're looking for."
Concerts being staged for the AFIM convention underscore the eclecticism of indie music. Entertainment at the May 14 reception at the Museum of Natural History will be provided by Tim Ryan, a signee to Warner-Western, and the local boys in Slim Cessna's Auto Club. The next evening, the Paramount Theatre plays host to a Celtic extravaganza starring an international cast: Natalie MacMaster, Steve McDonald, Milladoiro, Susan McKeown and Liam O'Maonlai of the recently reunited Irish rock band Hothouse Flowers, whose new album on London Records is due later this summer. Friday will also see a blues spectacle highlighted by Denver's Sammy Mayfield, who'll play his own set as well as back up New York-based belter Marla BB, a gospel turn at the Adam's Mark and a new-age showcase at Borders Books in Englewood. And scheduled to perform at the Indie Awards are disco divas Sister Sledge, alt-rocker Christine McKinley and local favorite Mollie O'Brien. (Many of these gigs are open to the public. Call AFIM at 1-800-607-6526 for details.)
Will the AFIM convention spark a musical boom in Denver? Probably not. But at least it demonstrates that a portion of the industry knows that Colorado's on the map. "We were looking to come to a city in the middle of the country," Bradley says, "and Denver seemed to be a growing area, with a lot of expansion and a fairly good music scene. It just seemed like the kind of place we'd want to be."
In last week's column, which dealt with the turmoil surrounding KTCL's Big Adventure, Rob Buswell of Jacor Concerts, the company promoting the May 30 event, gave several reasons why he didn't want to stage the festival at Fiddler's Green. Well, guess what. The Big Adventure, headlined by the Foo Fighters and Ben Harper, will take place at Fiddler's Green rather than at Norlin Quad, an area on the University of Colorado's Boulder campus that was deemed off-limits for the show by administration officials. In addition, the Fox's Seventies Saturday, a June 6 spectacle that had also been earmarked for the Quad, has been canceled. Finally, a Harper show set for Vail on May 29 and a Foo Fighters-Harper teaming slated to visit Colorado Springs on May 31 have not been called off, as I reported; a mixup with Universal Concerts resulted in the error. It's my first mistake. Hope you enjoyed it.
Colorado Springs musician Mark Junglen may be little known in his hometown, but in Volgograd, Russia, he rules. His rock concerto, "Stalingrad," was first performed there in 1995--and this week, Junglen and his band, ATRIBE, are returning to the city to team with the Volgograd Philharmonic Orchestra.
Such as the following. On Thursday, May 14, Shakedown Street is grateful at the Boulder Theater. On Friday, May 15, Thorazine is the prescription at Grandma's Area 39, with decanonizeD and 1000 RPM; Five Easy Pieces order plain white toast at the Bluebird Theater; and harpist Deborah Henson-Conant plucks at the Rialto Theater Center in Loveland. On Saturday, May 16, 10 Speed downshifts at the Lion's Lair, and the Amazing Rhythm Aces play their cards right at the Buffalo Rose. On Sunday, May 17, Turnsol twists at the Soiled Dove, with Matthew Moon. On Monday, May 18, Ween is deadly serious at the Fox Theatre. And on Tuesday, May 19, Mike Morgan and the Crawl slither to Brendan's; 16 Horsepower revs up at the Bluebird; and Pope of the Circus Gods genuflects at Cricket on the Hill, with Einstein's Dream and Lester. Let us pray.
--Michael Roberts
Backbeat's e-mail address is: [email protected]. While you're online, visit Michael Roberts's Jukebox at www.westword.com
