For the last decade, Riot Fest (a three-day festival that takes place each year in Denver and Chicago) has been the place where childhood punk-rock dreams come true. For instance, two years ago outside Mile High Stadium I got to see the Descendents tear through Milo Goes to College, which…
If I’ve said it once I’ve said it a hundred times: Don’t sleep on the first day of Riot Fest. Skip school. Quit your job. Bail on that family vacation. Whatever you have to do, it’s always worth it. The 2016 edition of this annual punk/rock/metal melee was no exception…
While Denver-based band Nathaniel Rateliff & the Night Sweats played a “triumphant” homecoming headlining show at Red Rocks last month, many in the audience wondered about the absence of popular trumpet player Wesley Watkins. Watkins has not been touring with the Night Sweats for a couple of months, which the…
American Babies refuse to be typecast. Described by the group’s founder Tom Hamilton as a progressive Americana band, American Babies’ consistent desire is to remain fresh. Whether recording in the studio or performing on stage, Hamilton ensures that the creative process is not forced, allowing the group to settle around…
A slew of bands will perform this weekend at Riot Fest, which starts tonight at the National Western Complex. The lineup includes acts like Jane’s Addiction (performing Ritual De Lo Habitual), Death Cab for Cutie, Deftones, Ween, Sleater-Kinney, the Original Misfits, Nas and many more. Phish returns for its annual three-night Labor…
Last night the town of Morrison, famous for the discovery of dinosaur bones and John Brisben Walker’s vision, hosted another event that the thousands in attendance may come to consider historic: Tame Impala’s first headlining show at Red Rocks Amphitheatre. Tame Impala, the genius project of Australian musician Kevin Parker, played…
It’s been ten years since local indie-folk band Paper Bird formed, and just under that since its celebrated debut album, Anything Nameless and Joymaking, was unleashed. The band has managed to maintain commendable traction since then, and the musicians are about to celebrate their decade in existence by releasing their…
Karl Denson’s Tiny Universe will perform Prince’s Dirty Mind with Fishbone frontman Angelo Moore at the Ogden Theatre on Saturday, October 29. Tickets ($25) go on sale Friday, September 2, at 10 a.m. St. Lucia, who recently played at the RiNo Music Festival, will headline the Ogden Theatre on Friday, October…
Toto is probably most remembered for its string of hits from the late ’70s through the mid-80s; songs like “Hold the Line,” “Rosanna,” and “Africa” are still staples of classic rock radio. But beyond being a talented pop and rock band, the members of Toto were some of the most prolific…
Last night, the forecast of “light rain” left out the bit about two full hours of torrential rain, mild flooding, and seriously limited visibility issues on the roads. Driving through these conditions to get to Red Rocks either inspired a bit of foolhardy bravado or the urge to turn back…
When Jane’s Addiction released its debut studio album, Nothing’s Shocking, in 1988, it was a watershed moment in what came to be called alternative rock, though at the time, there wasn’t such a clumsy genre tag for it. Still, Jane’s Addiction didn’t really fit in with any popular trends of the…
Last night, Coldplay bounded on-stage to the euphoric strains of “Head Full of Dreams,” the title track of its latest (and rumored-to-be final) album and current world tour. The Pepsi Center pulsed with the glowing wristbands given to the audience upon arrival, the colors changing and blinking in time with…
Gregory Alan Isakov is stressed about the weeds. On a break from touring in support of his latest record, Gregory Alan Isakov With the Colorado Symphony, he sits on his porch and cradles a steaming mug of coffee in his hands. From here, he can see very little of his…
It’s easy to forget sometimes that the people who play music are also usually big fans of other bands. Converge bassist Nate Newton isn’t afraid to wear his adoration on his sleeve. He’s a big fan of the Smiths and doesn’t hesitate to say that he’ll fly halfway around the…
The summer is coming to an end and that means the beautiful, scorching-hot Colorado weather is going to turn into a beautiful, less-scorching Colorado fall. In just a few weeks, the summer schedule at Red Rocks, Fiddler’s Green and Hudson Gardens will be done for the year, and the outdoor…
Diet Cig still smells okay. It’s only the second day of tour, after all, meaning the duo is freshly showered and the majority of the members’ T-shirts are clean. But, in keeping with their self-described slop-pop aesthetic, they’re taking the interview in the ever-so glamourous parking lot of a Walmart in Maryland. “We’re…
Coldplay brings its Head Full of Dreams tour to the Pepsi Center tonight, while Heart, Cheap Trick and Joan Jett are at Red Rocks tomorrow and Tame Impala is at Red Rocks on Wednesday. This week’s lineup also includes Dixie Chicks, Styx and the Colorado Symphony, Mac DeMarco, Shawn Colvin…
It’s been a decade since Planes Mistaken For Stars last released a record, but little things have kept the band on the minds of its old friends and fans in its adopted city. For nearly ten years, the band called Denver home, recording the bulk of its vaunted catalog while…
While the musical lineup for tonight’s inaugural RiNo Music Festival is an impressive one, featuring Silversun Pickups, 888, St. Lucia, Bishop Briggs, A Silent Film and more, there’s a lineup of visual artists that rivals it. Street-art is going to be plentiful this evening as an impressive roster of local…
The RiNo Music Festival (featuring Silversun Pickups, St. Lucia, 888 and more) is tonight, while the Unknown Mortal Orchestra is at the Ogden Theatre and Pretty Lights starts a two-night stand in Telluride. Also this weekend is Reggae on the Rocks (featuring 311, Iration, Steel Pulse, Morgan Heritage and more),…
According to Mac Sabbath manager Mike Odd, lead singer Ronald Osbourne believes he teleported across space and time from the 1970s to 2014 to start the band. Think Back to the Future in reverse. The true origins of Ronald Osbourne are shrouded in mystery as is the case with his…
When I was in high school, I had a crush on Billy Corgan (yes, the guy who now dons a pinstripe suit and yells corny shit at wrestlers.) I dreamed that all of the romantic Smashing Pumpkins songs — “Luna,” “By Starlight” and “Medellia of the Gray Skies” were particulars…
