Derek Bremner
Audio By Carbonatix
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The following is sponsored content by AEG Presents Rocky Mountains.
Gregg Deal is no stranger to slurs. Growing up in Park City, Utah, the 51-year-old Indigenous artist and activist — a member of the Pyramid Lake Paiute Tribe — had terms like “wagon burner” and worse hurled his way. But he “100% knew how to draw,” he says, studying visual art at Virginia’s George Mason University. Deal initially focused on painting but later expanded into sculpture, filmmaking, spoken word and performance art, taking on themes of racism, colonialism, capitalism and more.
Punk music was the soundtrack to it all. A 2020 autobiographical piece called “The Punk Pan-Indian Romantic Comedy” narrated Deal’s relationship with music, and the founding of Dead Pioneers soon followed. The band’s first single, “Bad Indian,” was followed in 2023 by a raw and raucous self-titled debut album, and “Po$t-American” was released in 2025. Last spring, Dead Pioneers opened for Pearl Jam at shows in Florida and Atlanta, playing to audiences of over 30,000.
The group’s latest album, “Wagon Burner,” dropped Friday, and Dead Pioneers will return to Denver’s Bluebird Theater for an album-release party on July 3 — the eve of America’s 250th — before heading to Europe. Deal has big thoughts about the semiquincentennial.
Merciless Indian Savages & Friends
“When they signed the Declaration of Independence, they referred to Indigenous people as merciless Indian savages. And it’s never been addressed, never been corrected or anything like that. It really is an embodiment of the disdain that early settlers had for native people. So we are calling the show ‘Merciless Indian Savages & Friends,’ celebrating the day before the 250th anniversary of white independence. With all of the political discourse that’s happening with everything that is sort of around it, with the erasure of marginalized communities like Indigenous people, there’s a lot to say, and a lot that will be said. Our music fits in nicely, I think.”
Derek Bremner
Deal and his bandmates are psyched to be back at the ’bird. “Our first headliner was at the Bluebird last year. It was Easter Sunday, and also 4/20 — so Colorado! It was also a record-release show. We love playing here.” The band’s current lineup has frontman Deal backed by guitarists Josh Rivera and Abe Brennan, drummer Shane Zweygardt and bassist Lee Tesche.
Opening acts for the Dead Pioneers are local favorites Cleaner, Team Nonexistent and I Am The Owl. “Cleaner comes highly recommended, and there’s a couple of folks in there that are some big staples in the Denver scene,” says Deal.“We’ve been able to play with Team Nonexistent a few times and just absolutely love what they’re doing as a band that really is not just a punk band, but also a band that represents some queer folks in just such a fantastic way. And I Am The Owl is actually our guitarist, Josh — it’s his band. I believe that they’re working on a record right now, and they’re a fantastic live band.”
The band will be signing records at Wax Trax (638 East 13th Avenue) from 6 to 7 p.m. on Friday before the Bluebird Show. All vinyl formats come with a fold-out double-sided poster insert, featuring a Shepard Fairey x Dead Pioneers collab poster.
Tickets to the July 3 16+ Dead Pioneers album-release party and concert are $35 (including taxes and fees). Doors open at 7 p.m., and the show starts at 8. The Bluebird is located at 3317 East Colfax Avenue.
