Grace Jones

The thirty best concerts of 2012

While 2012 will be remembered as they year that Red Rocks hosted the most shows in its history, it's also going to go down as one of the best years for concerts in Colorado in general. As we reflected on all the incredible shows we took in this past year, there were an astounding number of what we'd ... More >>

Dan Boeckner of Divine Fits on being inspired by the sprawl of L.A. but put off by $5 cupcakes

Diving Fits formed when Britt Daniel of Spoon and Dan Boeckner formerly of Wolf Parade got together with their friend Sam Brown of New Bomb Turks. The music that came out of that union was a kind of power pop infused with a strong electronic undercurrent, like something that could have happened in t ... More >>

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Drag Machine makes history at The Jones

Peaches at Summit Music Hall, 10/13/12

PEACHES @ the SUMMIT MUSIC HALL | 10.13.12 With champagne, campy German dancers and enough fake boobs to smother an elephant, Peaches' show at the Summit was a roofied cocktail of grimy beats and erotic theater. Putting on a show that was both grand in scope yet refreshingly minimal in its DIY simp ... More >>

Yasiin Bey at Cervantes, 10/05/12

YASIIN BEY @ CERVANTES' MASTERPIECE BALLROOM | 10/5/12 When Yasiin Bey stepped on stage at about half past midnight, the crowd was hungrily awaiting his arrival, freshly energized from an impressive set by Binary Star and ready now for the main event. Dressed in fitted white slacks, white collared ... More >>

In honor of Record Store Day this Saturday: Ten records we treasure. What's your favorite vinyl?

In honor of Record Store Day this Saturday, we dug deep into our collection to unearth our favorite pieces of vinyl. These are the records we treasure above all else. Don't even think about asking to borrow them. If there were a fire, these are the first platters we'd make sure to grab. You get the ... More >>

Alex Cox, director of Repo Man, joins CU-Boulder's film studies faculty this fall

​Alex Cox, who wrote and directed cult favorites like Repo Man and Sid & Nancy, is joining CU-Boulder's film studies faculty this fall and will teach screenwriting and film production, as the Daily Camera reported. Cox, who grew up England, studied film at UCLA, then lived in Mexico and Spain ... More >>

The Love Royale

Love Letters
Self-released

Josh Kolenik of Small Black talks about the band's evolution, influences and videos.

​Small Black's debut EP definitely harks back to those great synth-pop songs of the early '80s with its vintage sound, but with a kind of lo-fi production more in line with a later era in music. The strong songwriting and a keen sense of pacing and melody continued into the next phase of the ... More >>

Faith restored: Coachella 2010 lineup announced

Fucking A. Ask and ye shall receive, eh? (Well, it's not Denver, but close enough.) Just glimpsed the lineup for this year's Coachella. As far as headliners go, you've got your Jay-Z and your LCD Soundsystem and, uh, let's see here, Thom Yorke and ... yada, yada, yada. Whatever, dude. Five words: Fa ... More >>

Heavy Rotation, our top spins for the week of January 4, 2010

​As music critics -- and people who generally think about, talk about, listen to and make music -- the most common question we get asked (and ask each other, for that matter) is, "What are you listening to right now?" The pervasiveness of this query is precisely what inspired Heavy Rotation. F ... More >>

Top Ten Dance Collections of 2008, Both Mixed and Unmixed

Over the next couple of weeks, Backbeat will feature some Top Ten lists from around the Village Voice Media chain. Click here for previous year-in-review coverage from Backbeat and VVM. Any knucklehead with DSL and a laptop can now make an electronic track. With a half hour of clicking and fiddlin ... More >>

Q&A with Gang Gang Dance's Lizzi Bougatsos

Numan Group

Gary Numan's songs get pimped.

Sly & Robbie

Thursday, November 4, Fox Theatre, 303-447-0095.

For Whom the Belle Toils

Belle & Sebastian remains a word-of-mouth phenomenon.

Let's Clash

Old and new collide to create the next wave of electronica.

Rescue Me

An appreciation of fireguys, and one rogue amazon.

Close Encounters

What Pamela Stonebrooke sings about is out of this world.

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