"Swallow Hill has a huge community of folk-music appreciators," says Loki, who was raised on Joe Hill, Pete Seeger, Utah Phillips, and the like by a family of music-loving ladies. "But they don't necessarily get to the punk clubs or burlesque venues. Shows like this help cross-pollinate and show what else performers in Denver are up to. Once they see it, people get that the classic style of burlesque is totally different from the oversexualization in lots of our culture. It's all about the tease, and much less about the strip." Expect a dozen dances, accompanied by the 6 piece ensemble of ukelele, tuba, clarinet, glockenspiel, drums and trombone. "We're only a doing few hokey holiday numbers, mixed with some great thirties songs. Our vocalist, Lizzie, has a voice somewhere between Feist and Snow White. She and the new tuba player, Leslie, do a gorgeous duet that totally captures the sisterhood of burlesque."
Despite his long-standing support of Denver's scene, of his current lineup only Loki and the clarinetist have yet seen a burlesque performance. Odd time-signatures and dissonant chords? It could be the band's unpredictable influences (early Modest Mouse to earlier Bertolt Brecht.) Equally likely- it's the drummer succumbing to the mesmerizing power of a sequined shimmy.
