Concerts

SUN | KID MASK at SEVENTH CIRCLE MUSIC COLLECTIVE | 1/12/14 Back in 2011 and 2012, Pete Bell was the guy with the camera whom you’d always see shooting footage of shows at Rhinoceropolis. Bell was in high school then, and making a documentary about the long-running DIY venue for…

FRI | KILL THE NOISE at BETA | 1/17/14 Finding success in signing with Skrillex’s OWSLA record label, Kill the Noise has grown into one of the heaviest producers currently touring. Jake Stanczak, the brains behind the operation, has been developing Kill the Noise’s sound for years. His powerhouse club…

Welcome back to another edition of In the Mix, a feature in which we spotlight new dance tracks and mixes from some of the hottest Colorado producers and DJs. We’ve got a variety of styles this week, from your classic club-style bangers to some glitched-out dance numbers, and even some…

FRI | NAKED RAYGUN at SUMMIT MUSIC HALL | 1/31/14 In the annals of Chicago punk, Naked Raygun was one of the longest-running and most beloved of bands. But while sharing stages with the hardcore bands of the day, Naked Raygun was always just a bit more experimental than most…

SLEEP at THE GOTHIC THEATRE | 1/3/14 Cannabis is legalized here in the same week Sleep comes back to Colorado to play a show. Coincidence? Whatever the case, this show surpassed the last time the outfit played at the Gothic in September 2010. Something just seemed more coherent and focused…

FRI & SAT | ADVENTURE CLUB at OGDEN THEATRE | 1/10-1/11 The Montreal-based Adventure Club is a duo that started as a pop-punk act. Quickly outgrowing that hybrid, Christian Srigley and Leighton James started making electronic music, their first foray into it being a remix of Brand New’s “Daisy.” Adventure…

DISCO BISCUITS at OGDEN THEATRE / 1STBANK CENTER | 1/23-25 Pioneers of the jamtronica genre, Philly’s Disco Biscuits build interesting set lists; they invert portions of jams into each other, surprising the crowd again and again while shining a mega ton of lasers in your face for an overstimulation extravaganza…

FRI | ILL.GATES at BETA | 1/3/14 With more than two decades in the electronic-music scene under his belt, ill.Gates is now helping to inspire a wave of new-school producers via his ill.Methodology online courses and the events he hosts, which cater to those interested in stepping up their game…

FRI | SLEEP at GOTHIC THEATRE | 1/3/14 Stoner rock and doom metal gained mainstream popularity over the past decade thanks to acts like Queens of the Stone Age and High on Fire, whose reach expanded beyond metal fans. Before playing in the latter band, guitarist Matt Pike had been…

THURS | CHICK COREA & BELA FLECK at NEWMAN CENTER | 1/16/14 Over the last five decades, the virtuosic pianist Chick Corea has delved into quite a few variations of jazz, as well as classical, and on his latest effort, The Vigil, he’s reinvented himself again. His new band, also…

ITCHY-O at 3 KINGS TAVERN | 12/31/13 It only took moments to lose a sense of context. Less than five minutes into Itchy-O’s New Year’s Eve set at 3 Kings Tavern, any normal sense of time and place had already started to melt away. No, it wasn’t because of too…

WU-YEAR’S EVE at CERVANTES’ | 12/31/13 The last night of 2013 was spent with the three most recognizable faces of the Wu-tang Clan: Ghostface, Method Man and Raekwon. The three demonstrated virtuosity and vibrance, delivering a memorable performance in front of a capacity crowd. Much of the evening was dedicated…

JELLO BIAFRA & GUANTANAMO SCHOOL OF MEDICINE at SUMMIT | 12/31 As Jello Biafra strolled around the stage at the Summit, singing with real power and conviction while jumping around and gesturing dramatically, he displayed an almost superhuman level of energy and enthusiasm. A legend in his own right, Biafra…

The A-OKs met on the Internet. As frontman Mark Swan notes, “We’re pretty much the billboard band for the success of finding people on Craigslist.” But while the players linked up essentially sight unseen, you’d hardly know it, watching the natural chemistry and sense of camaraderie among them. The initial…

If you were at Decadence last night, then you already have the drop on the first headliner for this year’s edition of the Westword Music Showcase. In keeping with our longstanding tradition of capping the night off with a blockbuster dance party, Diplo will have the honors this year. Tickets…

Welcome back to another edition of In the Mix, a feature in which we spotlight new dance tracks and mixes from some of the hottest Colorado producers and DJs. We’ve got an eclectic mix on deck this week, with new cuts and mixes from PowTron, Paul Basic, Mux Mool and…

STRING CHEESE INCIDENT at 1STBANK CENTER | 12/29/13 A true switch-up in the pace of the music and dynamics of the String Cheese Incident set came four songs into the set when the band called Steven Drozd and Wayne Coyne of the Flaming Lips to the stage for a cover…

TUES | WU YEAR’S EVE at CERVANTES | 12/31/13 More than just creating a free-associative style that would be emulated ceaselessly throughout the ’90s and to this very day, the Wu-Tang Clan engineered an aesthetic and model for profitability with only a spiritual guide, the GZA, a mastermind producer, the…

FRI | BAUUER at BETA | 12/27/13 Sure, it’s ancient history now, but remember earlier this year when you couldn’t escape the “Harlem Shake” phenomenon. In case you need a refresher, “Harlem Shake” is what happened when a thunderous trap record on Diplo’s Mad Decent imprint put the nation in…

STRING CHEESE INCIDENT at 1STBANK CENTER | 12/28-12/29, 12/31 String Cheese Incident will be presenting its twentieth-anniversary celebration with various openers during its New Year’s run at 1STBANK Center. The group has Bootsy Collins joining forces on Saturday, December 28, confetti rockers Flaming Lips on Sunday, December 29, and the…