Gangi

Matt Gangi and Eric Chramosta grew up together in La Crescenta, California, which may account for some of the free-flowing energy of their musical collaboration. Often dubbed “electronic psych,” their music definitely has a mind-altering quality to it in terms of the layers of sound and the insistent underlying beat…

Kendrick Lamar

With five critically acclaimed mixtapes and an independent release already under his belt, it’s easy to forget that Kendrick Lamar’s first major-label LP hasn’t even dropped yet. The much-blogged-about good kid, m.A.A.d city isn’t due until later this month, but Lamar is already generating more media attention than a Mitt…

New Order

Following Ian Curtis’s suicide in 1980, the remaining members of Joy Division processed their grief in part by carrying on. While New Order’s stark and brilliant 1981 debut, Movement, sounded like what might have been Joy Division’s next step, the band went on to be innovators in electronic dance music…

Roger Green

In his attempt to compose a soundtrack to a novel — Lair Hunt’s The Impossibly — Roger Green, with the help of Mark Harris on saxophone and bass clarinet, Janet Feder on prepared acoustic guitar and James Han on piano, delivers an emotionally complex, sonically inverted collection of instrumentals. By…

Black Mask

It’s hard to articulate exactly what it is that makes a person charismatic, but it’s obvious when someone has that subtle something that sets him or her apart. Black Mask’s Aklock, who’s captivating, plain and simple, is just such a person, and Build Small showcases his down-to-earth personality while highlighting…

Ron Miles

Local trumpeter Ron Miles and former Denver native Bill Frisell have performed and recorded together on a number of occasions, but they’ve only teamed up with drummer Brian Blade a handful of times. One of the reasons this trio works so well is that its members share certain sensibilities, and…

J. Rebelz

True to her moniker on the fittingly titled The Rebellion Vol. 1, J. Rebelz rebels against the misogynistic stereotypes of self-deprecating females cast upon many of her contemporaries. On the album, which boasts meticulous production, J. Rebelz evokes the feel of a ’90s female MC, with a demeanor that’s ladylike…

Aimee Mann is still a Charmer

Three decades into her career, Aimee Mann remains as consistently fresh and challenging a singer-songwriter as in her days fronting the mid-’80s new-wave band ‘Til Tuesday. Since then, Mann has had a strong solo career, delivering one of the greatest film soundtracks in recent memory for P.T. Anderson’s Magnolia. With…

Max Cooper spends his Afterhours at NORAD this Saturday

The world of electronic music is lucky that Max Cooper, a computational biologist who earned his Ph.D. at Nottingham University, decided to pursue a life behind the decks. Before 2010, music was an evenings-and-weekends gig for Cooper, who was working as a post-doctoral genetics researcher at University College London. These…

MC Lyte and Crazy Legs visit Auraria this week

Hip-hop and it still don’t stop. This afternoon at 1 p.m., the inaugural Hip-Hop Legacy Literacy Conference kicks off with a screening of Ice-T’s Something from Nothing: The Art of Rap documentary in the St. Cajetan’s building on Auraria, and, tomorrow, the Sankofa Lecture Series welcomes its fall keynote speaker,…

The music fan’s guide to voting

The defining narrative of American politics since the turn of the millennium seems to be that ‘We the people’ are screwed no matter who gets elected. Elect a Republican: We engage in pre-emptive war, the national deficit skyrockets, and we sacrifice education and infrastructure investment. Elect a Democrat hoping things…

Win tix to see K.Flay at the Marquis

Update: Contest is over. Scott Rudderham is our winner. Thanks for reading Backbeat. Aw, yeah! More free tickets! Got plans for this weekend? You do now. K.Flay is coming to the Marquis Theater this Saturday, and we’ve got a pair of tickets up for grabs. Want the hookup? Would you…

The five best jazz shows in Colorado this month

While September was a stellar month for nationally known jazz talent coming through town, October has some equally compelling acts, including legendary bassist Ron Carter, forward-thinking trio the Bad Plus, acclaimed pianist Vijay Iyer and guitarist Lionel Loueke. Keep reading for a full rundown of this month’s five best jazz…

The five best concerts this week: October 1-5

Welcome to Rawktober! The month is getting kicked off with a bang tomorrow night at 1STBANK Center with the Twins of Evil Tour featuring Rob Zombie and Marilyn Manson, and the rest of the week is shaping up to be pretty stellar, too, with some dubstep and doom metal shows…

Peter Gabriel at Red Rocks, 9/30/12

PETER GABRIEL @ RED ROCKS AMPHITHEATRE | 9/30/12 Shortly before launching into an epic set that spanned nearly three hours at Red Rocks last night, Peter Gabriel took the tack of a well trained maître d’, explaining that the program would come in three courses, kicking off with a four-song…

Churchill at Bluebird Theater, 9/30/12

CHURCHILL @ BLUEBIRD THEATER | 9/30/12 Last night, when Tim Bruns and Bethany Kelly left the stage and sprinted to the Bluebird’s upstairs balcony to sing a couple songs, you could tell this was a special night for Churchill. “We didn’t think anyone would show up if we played a…