Tennyson’s Tap ramps up its live-music offerings

Since the two owners and the manager of Tennyson’s Tap are all musicians, it’s not surprising that this spot at 4335 West 38th Avenue has turned into a full-fledged music venue. After securing a cabaret license over the summer, owners Dave Fox (a drummer) and Bryan Duncan (a guitarist) have…

Grave Babies

Many people will probably stamp this band with the “lo-fi garage” label or something equally inaccurate. But while Grave Babies’ sometimes raw recordings and live performances are reminiscent of Siltbreeze artists like Eat Skull, the group’s melancholic atmospheres are more akin to some bizarre hybrid of Sonic Youth and 154-era…

Erasure

Releasing dozens of singles over the course of more than 25 years together, Erasure has become a foundational act and point of reference for many modern electro-pop groups, with Vince Clarke’s smart, shiny and sometimes dark compositions laying the groundwork for Andy Bell’s unmistakably soulful voice, which has transcended the…

Taylor Swift

In a sea of pop starlets, Taylor Swift shines like a modest diamond: The 21-year-old singer-songwriter has been making records about innocent teenage love and heartbreak since her freshman year in high school. Stylistically, Swift has the rare gift of being a country-to-pop crossover, combining the literal storytelling template of…

Beirut

Zach Condon’s backstory, in which he left a small city to travel around Europe with his older brother, absorbing the indigenous music of the eastern part of the continent, reads like something that might have happened fifty years ago at the height of the early folk scene in Greenwich Village…

Hawk Attack

From the opening song, “Brew Ha Ha,” Hawk Attack celebrates rock’s hedonistic era. Yes, there is a hint of early solo Ted Nugent here and there in the guitar harmonics of “Set ‘Em Up,” but it’s not some ironic pose or attempt to sound just like another band. The crunchy,…

B.Sue

B.Sue frontwoman Brandi Shigley has an infatuating baby-girl voice that sounds like spun sugar tastes: It’s a guilty pleasure, heavy on the pleasure. The five songs on this EP, including the fittingly titled “Cuteness Overload,” all seem meant for Sunday mornings, smooth and cozy. You may not know exactly what…

Playalitical

Playalitical has churned out an album that is bearable, in spite of a lack of substance, lukewarm lyrics and uninspiring production. The lyrics are crass — on “Player of the Year,” he boasts of selling pussy for a million dollars and fucking virgins — and the MC seems to only…

Driftwood Fire

First meeting at college in Virginia, the members of Driftwood Fire, Lynn Scharf and Charlotte Formichella, took a small piece of Appalachia with them when they relocated to Fort Collins. There’s plenty of folk pop on the band’s excellent long-player How to Untangle a Heartache, the followup to 2008’s self-titled…

Bluetech, September 22 at Cervantes’

Like many producers, Bluetech (aka Evan Bartholomew) is a classically trained pianist who’s also adept at dealing with all the software available for producing tunes these days. Bluetech’s music is probably best described as downtempo, though he ventures into the mid-tempo range; his sound is improvisational, ambient, warm and sweeping,…

Ministry to play Ogden Theatre next summer

Although Al Jourgensen has said he’d never tour with Ministry again, the frontman reunited the group after a health scare last year and plans to record a new album, Relapse, before the end of the year. Ministry hits the Ogden Theatre on Sunday, June 17, as part of a five-date…

Review: Peter Hook & the Light at the Bluebird Theater, 9/19/11

PETER HOOK & THE LIGHT at the BLUEBIRD THEATER | 9/19/11It was to be expected that Peter Hook & the Light would be playing Unknown Pleasures in its entirety, and that it wouldn’t be a half-hearted and insincere attempt at re-creating that music live. What was not expected was the…

WHY? cancels U.S. tour, including Denver date

Just a week after starting its seated tour, WHY? canceled most of its remaining U.S. tour dates, including its show at the Gothic Theatre slated for Wednesday, October 12. The band’s Facebook page states, “Dear fans, due to an unfortunate injury, we are going to have to cancel the rest…

Live Nation and Universal Music form super-company

Live Nation Entertainment, which now houses Ticketmaster, House of Blues and Ticketweb, has announced a partnership with the Universal Music Group to create a joint-venture management company for managing and strengthening the label’s acts. This is the first time a major label has teamed up directly with a promoter and…

Paul Simon at 1STBANK Center on October 26

Paul Simon, who recently announced a new two-disc collection that spans five decades of material, is coming to the 1STBank Center on Wednesday October 26, two days after his new album, Songwriter, hits stores. Next month also marks Simon’s seventieth birthday. Reserved tickets for the show ($45-$85), which also features…

Tesla bringing acoustic tour to Ogden Theatre

While Tesla has done its share of amplified rocking over its 25-year history, the band has also been successful going the acoustic route. Five Man Acoustical Jam went platinum and helped inspire MTV’s “Unplugged” series. Now celebrating the twentieth anniversary of that album and the release of Twisted Wires &…

I Am Music documentary crew at Lipgloss tonight

Going to Lipgloss tonight? Dress pretty: the I Am Music crew from St. Louis is in town to film the dance dance revolution. Up until now, I Am Music has focused on individual artists — DJs and musicians alike — but tonight, they’re partying with the Lipgloss crew, and featuring…