Ska

May brings Maibocks, spring tappings and the start of beer-fest season

Salt Lake City-based Epic Brewing, which announced in January that it will build a 20,000-square-foot brewery and taphouse in Denver, updated its followers on social media this week with a couple of pictures and some potential opening dates. The Facebook pictures (like the one above) show the brewer ... More >>

Strange Brewing takes action against homebrew shop that threatened lawsuit

After a long dispute with a similarly-named homebrew store in Massachusetts, Denver's Strange Brewing Company has gone on the offensive, asking the U.S. Patent and Trademark Office to cancel the store's right to the name "Strange Brew." Strange said in a motion filed with the agency that it was tak ... More >>

The St. Patrick's Day party list: Where to drink and get your green on in Denver this weekend

Get your rest. We officially start celebrating St. Patrick's Day tomorrow. The party kicks off with KTCL's Keggs & Eggs at LoDos, and it continues after the parade on Saturday at ShamRock & Roll, our massive party at the Viewhouse with Bop Skizzum, Rachel & the Kings, Calder's Revolvers and Monroe M ... More >>

The best concerts in Denver this weekend

ALABAMA SHAKES @ OGDEN THEATRE | SAT, 3/9/13 A number of bands are returning to a Southern-rock sound these days, but much of the music they're making is too derivative to be interesting. Alabama Shakes, fresh off a date warming up for Neil Young, bucks that trend. The group's members, who met in hi ... More >>

Five Iron Frenzy: A extensive oral history of the band straight from the members themselves

Five Iron Frenzy is a Colorado band with a lengthy and storied history. Initially formed as a side project of Exhumator, an idustrial thrash band, Five Iron became a full time endeavor when its founders, frontman Reese Roper, bassist Keith Hoerig, and guitarists Micah Ortega and Scott Kerr, and drum ... More >>

The ten best concerts this weekend: October 5-7

Welcome to the weekend, amigos! Cold enough for you this morning? Yeah, we're feeling all sorts of brrrrrr over here. Only in Colorado can you go from eighty degrees to the thirties in the expanse of a couple of days. Alas, though, there's relief on the horizion, plenty of hot music this weekend to ... More >>

Twelve beers to track down in Denver outside the Great American Beer Festival

There will be thousands of beers to sample inside the Colorado Convention Center during the Great American Beer Festival, which starts on October 11, but there will also be some very special beers served at bars, breweries and restaurants during the week before GABF. Some of these were brewed espec ... More >>

Debate the debate -- and hops -- at Star Bar in this week's beer calendar

Denver is in a frenzy over both tonight's debate and next week's beer-soaked Great American Beer Festival . And sometimes the two obsessions even come together! To check out all the GABF-inspired events, go to our Great American Beer Festival 2012 Calendar of Awesome, which we're updating regularly ... More >>

Oktoberfest, fall brews and pumpkins highlight this week's beer calendar

It's Oktoberfest season, and you can find out about all of the parties on the next few pages. But in the meantime, more news: Elevation Beer Company in Poncha Springs announced yesterday that it plans to double its brewing capacity -- just four months after opening. The brewery, which specializes in ... More >>

Brewery openings and big, bold beers highlight this week's beer calendar

The answer to the question posed in the video above is, "Yes, freakin' open already!" The three dynamos behind Black Shirt Brewing have been pouring their hearts and souls into this neighborhood brewery, set to open very soon (really), and they must have a lot of both because the place has been in t ... More >>

Colorado will celebrate farm-fresh hops with a new Hops Nouveau festival

Every year on the third Thursday in November, the world celebrates Beaujolais Nouveau, field-fresh young red wines from France that are meant to celebrate the harvest and be enjoyed right away. This September, Colorado beer brewers will do something similar for hops by kicking off a Hops Nouveau par ... More >>

Caution Brewing gets hoppy and the Falling Rock gets busy in our weekly beer calendar

Crabtree Brewing in Greeley has announced that it is moving and expanding in order to make more Eclipse, Oatmeal Stout, Ginger Bee and -- hopefully -- its GABF award-winning Berliner Weisse. The brewery will hold a grand opening at the new location, 2961 29th Street, on Wednesday, August 8 at 4 p.m. ... More >>

Rare bottles, cask ales and the Colorado Brewers Rendezvous highlight the week

Copper Kettle Brewing scored some hand-painted, custom table tops recently that incorporate not just game boards -- like backgammon and checkers -- but a few of the young brewery's accolades, including its Great American Beer Festival medal and, of course, its nod as Best Brewery for Neighbors in We ... More >>

Ska Brewing will debut a new series of seasonal canned stouts

Ska Brewing is known for being stout: its Steel Toe milk stout won gold at the 2011 Great American Beer Festival and again at the World Beer Cup in May. This fall, the Durango brewery will capitalize on that success by debuting the first in a series of four seasonal stouts that play off ingredients ... More >>

DJ Maladjusted's devotion to vinyl and obscurity attracts record geeks to his vinyl club nights

After booking hardcore and ska shows around Denver for the past six years, DJ Maladjusted has taken his massive record collection and almost dogmatic devotion to vinyl and garnered a small but devoted following with his obscure selections. Spinning 2tone, ska and reggae every third Friday for One St ... More >>

It's Canned Craft Beer Day! Celebrate with Star Bar or by toasting Ska Brewing

Update: The Cheeky Monk is also celebrating Canned Craft Beer Day at its Colfax and Westminster locations. Try two canned beers from Belgium, Wittekerke and Bavik Pils ($5), along with Maui Coconut Porter, Avery IPA and Ska True Blonde ($4). The canned craft beer revolution began ten years ago in L ... More >>

Dear Diary: Why won't this ska boy notice me? Where is my Nirvana shirt? I have nothing to wear!

Once upon a time in the '90s, I was not the cool blogger I am now. I was just like any other teenager, barely existing on the Internet (save for being a third, observational party to my best friend's chat-room adventures) and living out my writing dreams as a reporter for my high-school newspaper, T ... More >>

Colorado beer calender for the week: Captain Midnight saves the day at Bull & Bush

​Saturday, June 18, was supposed to be the day of the second annual Burning Can festival, an all-canned beer bonanza featuring craft beers from around Colorado and the rest of the country. Sadly, it was not to be. Oskar Blues, which created and hosts the event, canceled it, saying logistical i ... More >>

Ska Brewing makes light of beer -- but not light beer -- in new video

​Craft beer has been the star of a recent documentary, a television series and a couple of Youtube videos over the past year, now another feature-length documentary is scheduled to be released this summer. Most of these efforts have been serious, noble -- sometimes overly so. Leave it to the ... More >>

Tonight: Less Than Jake at Summit

​Less Than Jake hasn't released a new record since 2008's GNV FLA, but it doesn't matter -- the Florida dudes still tour relentlessly, and their fans still come to see them play. Why? Because, in an era of performers constantly questioning their own cool, LTJ prides itself on being uncool. The ... More >>

The Cheeky Monk gets crafty during the Great American Beer Festival

​In May, the Cheeky Monk Belgian Beer Café opened a new location in Westminster that included an old world bar to focus on overseas beers and a new world bar focusing on Belgian-style craft beers, rare brews, Colorado beers and collaborations. The Cheeky Monk also added six craft beer taps t ... More >>

Denver Beer Fest will include beer ice cream, beer burlesque and yes, beer for breakfast

​In September 2009, Denver's convention and visitors bureau decided to piggyback on the success of the Great American Beer Festival and this city's reputation as a beer Mecca by throwing Denver Beer Fest, a hastily organized but all-encompassing ten-day extravaganza featuring beer-related even ... More >>

Yes, We Can

Today: Snap up some tickets to the inaugural Sour Fest! Now!

​The inaugural Boulder Sour Fest has been sold out for a while now, but give thanks to the gods of pucker-inducing beer: Additional tickets are going on sale today at 8 a.m. at www.ticketalternative.com/events/9351.aspx. (The address won't work until 8 a.m.) Tickets are extremely limited, so ... More >>

Culinary calendar for the week ahead: A farewell to Sheehan

​The year might be starting off slow, but there are still plenty of culinary events to keep things cooking -- including your very last chance to have Westword restaurant critic Jason Sheehan sign a copy of Cooking Dirty. Here's a taste of what's ahead:

Big D and the Kids Table

Saturday, December 5, Marquis Theater, 1-866-468-7621.

A Crush on Cans: Ska Brewing

It's American Craft Beer Week - seven days that even the United States Congress felt should be set aside for drinking micro brews. But Colorado's beer culture is worth a deeper look, since 100 craft breweries operated here in 2008, producing 75,000 barrels of delicious beer. Of particular interest ... More >>

Beer and Cheer

The Winter Brew Fest will warm your cold-weather blues.

Beer Today

The Skatalites

Monday, November 27, Boulder Theater, Boulder, 303-786-7030.

The English Beat

Thursday, July 20, Gothic Theatre, Englewood, 1-866-468-7621.

Listen Up

Fast reviews of recent releases

The Slackers

Wednesday, May 10, Bluebird Theater, 303-322-2308.

The Skad-father

Skankin' it up with Bucket Hingley of the Toasters.

Critic's Choice

This week's concert pick.

Feelin' Skavoovie

After quitting college, the experimental ska-sters graduate to a higher musical level.

Slack Time

The Slackers push ska forward by looking back.

Playlist

Playlist

Toasters of the Town

The ska veterans want you to know that the music wasn't born yesterday.

Here Come the Punks

Thinking of getting married? Then Rancid may be the band for you.

The New Order

Mail Order Children play ska--and a lot of other things, too.

Playlist

Get Hep

For Hepcat's Alex Desert, his love of ska is no act.

Feedback

Playlist

Still Wailing

Aston "Family Man" Barrett of the Wailers is keeping a reggae tradition alive.

Learning From Scratch

Inside the twisted mind of dub pioneer Lee "Scratch" Perry.

Tooting His Own Horn

Toots Hibbert is a reggae giant--and he's not afraid to tell you why.

Thrills for the week