The rest of the country is warming to Xiren. The Denver-based singer, songwriter and guitarist has been performing for almost a decade, and his efforts are beginning to pay off on a wider scale. Earlier this year, “Ship of Fools (Big Enough),” a track that blends layered guitar tracks with…
It seemed like there was a special significance to Ween’s show at Red Rocks in September. In addition to the fact that the show marked one of the final spots on the band’s fall tour, we noticed a number of cameras during the performance and mused that the show could…
They Might Be Giants, Guggenheim Grotto Thursday, November 5 Gothic Theater Better than: Seeing an expertly executed live show that didn’t include sock puppets. They Might Be Giants couldn’t stick to one sound during their appearance at the Gothic on Thursday night. The band’s show, which nearly spanned two hours,…
The members of Lola Black don’t consider themselves a supergroup. It’s easy, however, to argue that the band boasts the credentials for such a designation. The sextet’s resumé includes stints in groups like Blister 66, Snapstick Dynomite and the Eight Bucks Experiment, each of which made its own waves in…
The past two years have served as a period of transition for …And You Will Know Us by the Trail of the Dead. After splitting with Interscope Records in 2008, the Austin-based sextet started their own label and drew on its own funds to record and release its latest effort,…
Pretty Lights, Lifesavas, Mr. AnonymousSaturday, October 3, 2009Ogden TheaterBetter than: Watching a disinterested DJ hide behind his equipment.Derek Vincent Smith doesn’t categorize himself as a DJ. The driving force behind Pretty Lights has made a point to stress the distinction in interviews, pointing out that he doesn’t spin records and…
RainTemple Buell TheaterSeptember 22, 2009Better than: Watching someone else play Beatles Rock Band.There is no denying Rain’s skill at recreating the sound of Beatles recordings. The tribute band offered close copies of a host of tunes during their performance at the Temple Buell on Tuesday night, playing close approximations of…
Thao with the Get Down Stay Down’s latest record, Know Better Learn Faster, carries a wide menu of influences. Like the ensemble’s previous work, the album draws from traditional American folk precedents, as well as snippets of other sounds that range from old Motown to ’60s pop. The blend comes…
The Thermals new album, Now We Can See, represents more than simply a fresh recording for the Portland-based trio. After an amicable departure from the iconic Seattle label Sub-Pop, the group released their new disc on Kill Rock Stars. According to frontman Hutch Harris, the shift afforded the band the…
The Killers, Nervous Wreckords Red Rocks Amphitheater September 9, 2009 Better than: Seeing an epic, intricately staged arena show in the confines of an indoor arena. The Killers did a fine job of summoning the glitz and glamour of their hometown during their appearance at Red Rocks on Wednesday night…
New York City native Joe Bithorn plays the role of George Harrison in Rain, one of the most popular and well-known Beatles tribute bands in the country (appearing September 22 to 27 at the Buell Theater. Raised with a steady diet of classical, jazz, blues and psychedelic rock influences, Bithorn…
Ween, Meat Puppets Red Rocks Amphitheatre September 5, 2009 Better than: Seeing Gene Ween play a solo show. Ween’s live shows have always seemed better suited to smaller stages, where the soaring, sharp guitar tones of Dean Ween (aka Mickey Melchiondo, Jr.) and the tongue-in-cheek vocal stylings of Geen Ween…
Cracker, Motorhome September 2, 2009 Bluebird Theater Better than: Retracing the roots of modern alt-country through a flow chart. When Cracker guitarist Johnny Hickman took choice solos on songs like “Lonesome Johnny Blues” and “Friends” on the Bluebird stage Wednesday night, the clear tones and resonant rings sounded like they…
Ian Cooke Band, Alan Alda, Tauntaun Aug. 29 Bluebird Theater Better than: Seeing three of Denver’s most dynamic and promising bands in three separate venues. It was challenging to find obvious common threads in the three performances at the Bluebird on Friday night. Separately, the Ian Cooke Band, Alan Alda…
Progressive Nation Dream Theater, Zappa Plays Zappa, Big Elf, Scale the Summit August 25, 2009 Buell Theater Better than: Reliving high school memories by flipping through a yearbook. Let me admit to a strong bias up front: I spent at least three of my teenage years with a diet almost…
The Avett Brothers, Sally Ford and the Sound Outside Saturday, Aug. 22 Ogden Theatre Better than: Most of the shows I’ve seen this summer. I never thought I’d see a full-fledged hootenanny on the stage of the Ogden Theatre. But during choice moments of the Avett Brothers’ Saturday set, an…
Green Day, Franz Ferdinand Pepsi Center Saturday, August 15, 2009Better than: Hanging out with eleven-year-olds at an indoor recreation center. The members of Green Day and their crew tried with all their might to summon the spirit of an old school punk show in the vast spaces of the Pepsi…
Houses, Snake Rattle Rattle Snake, Joseph Pope III Friday, August 7, 2009 Meadowlark Better than: The other performances I’ve seen from the same three acts. Houses’ schedule has been demanding lately. The group’s ambitious goal for the year — to release four separate EPs, each bearing the name of a…
Kings of Leon, The Whigs Sunday, August 9, 2009 Red Rocks Better than: Listening to generic music on the radio. I had no problems with the delivery. The Kings of Leon’s set at Red Rocks on Sunday didn’t suffer from any bum notes, off chords or flubbed lyrics. The quartet…
Jet is eager to get back onto the road. More than two years after the release of the Aussie rock outfit’s last album, Shine On, the band will be stopping for a slot at the Mile High Music Festival before continuing on a world tour to promote the August release…
Frontside Five, Git Some, Speed Wolf, St. Fall Apart Thursday, July 16, 2009 Marquis Theater Better than: Attending a show devoted to only one subgenre of punk music. Frontside Five’s new full-length album, Resurrection Cemetery, veers from the Denver ensemble’s skate-punk roots in many ways, incorporating new sounds and textures…
A lot can change in three years. When Frontside Five released its last full-length album, three years ago, it was, in many ways, a very different band than it is today. Then a quintet, the group boasted a single lead singer, a frenetic sound and lyrical cues solidly rooted in…
