Paw Paw

“Fox,” the opening track on Paw Paw’s new three-song EP, 3 Eye, immediately separates this release from the band’s 2012 album, Lay Down In the Flower Bed. Whereas that effort was bright and glistening with luminous, uplifting tones, these songs are darker and more organic. They’re the next step in…

Brian Blade journeys through Landmarks with the Fellowship Band

On every album that drummer Brian Blade has made with his group the Fellowship Band, from the act’s 1998 self-titled debut to its forthcoming release Landmarks, there’s a cohesive group sound that’s immediately recognizable. “I have to attribute that evolving oneness to everyone in the band,” Blade says. “I’m thankful…

Paul Simon and Sting at Pepsi Center, 2/11/14

PAUL SIMON & STING at PEPSI CENTER | 2/11/14 When Paul Simon and Sting took the stage together, they were each accompanied by their full bands, which often appeared on the stage with them at the same time throughout the set, working together to create an even more lush and…

What we’re all listening to right now

Music is life — or at least it is for us. When we’re not writing about it, we’re thinking about it, talking about it or listening to it. These are the things that were in heavy rotation for us this week. What are you listening to? What should we be…

The ten best Christian metal bands of all time

Over the years, Christian metal bands have played in a variety of styles, from death metal to metalcore to ’80s metal. Some artists in this realm often wish that critics and fans would focus less on the religious aspect — claiming it detracts from the music — while others embrace…

Lotus at Fillmore Auditorium, 2/8/14

Taking jazzy grooves and elevating them to frenzied funk levels through samples, synths and heavily textured percussion, Lotus played two sets of high energy dance to the younger skewed crowd Saturday night. Though no surprise MCs showed up to perform any songs off the act’s latest hip hop release, Monks,…

The best concerts in Denver this week

TUES | STING & PAUL SIMON at PEPSI CENTER | 2/11/14 Sting and Paul Simon have had a hand in producing some of the most memorable pop and rock songs of the past four decades (five, in Simon’s case). Sting, of course, was the lead singer of the Police, but…

The ten best alt-country acts of all time

Alt-country is the stepchild of the traditional country scene. Born, arguably, when Gram Parsons plugged in his guitar and sang the finest ode to infidelity, “At the Dark End of the Street,” or maybe when the Rolling Stones recorded “Dead Flowers,” the sub-genre came to be characterized by its decidedly…

The best concerts in Denver this weekend

FRI & SAT | LOTUS at FILLMORE AUDITORIUM | 2/7-2/8 The jazzy electronic quintet Lotus, known for its precisely timed improvisations during live shows, is celebrating its thirteenth year together. This weekend, fresh off the release of its most recent effort, Lotus, the band, which is signed to Boulder’s SCI…

The best EDM in Denver this weekend

SAT | DIGITALISM at VINYL | 2/8/14 After a stripped­-down U.S. tour last May, the Hamburg­-based duo Digitalism is coming back across the pond. The electro musicians are a prime example of why two heads can sometimes be better than one when it comes to creating music. The pair, Jens…