The psychedelic, jazzy, swooned-out trio Digable Planets sailed onto the Gothic Theatre’s stage on Tuesday evening, one stop on their twenty-date reunion tour this summer. As fans will painfully remember, Planets broke up in 1995 after making two momentous albums: Reachin’ (A New Refutation of Time and Space) and Blowout…
To many people, the word “Journey” inspires thoughts of everything that can go wrong with rock and roll: bland lyrics, bubblegum-pop melodies, chugging riffs and technical ability given priority over soul. To others, the band represents everything great about music: anthemic choruses, bubblegum-pop melodies, chugging riffs and technical ability given…
Those who remember the Denver screamo band Drop Dead, Gorgeous, which ceased to exist in 2011, might struggle to reconcile the intense punk noise that band created with the delicate synth-driven music that a few of the bandmembers make with their new project, 888. Sort of. Because if you explore…
Creative Adult’s early seven-inch singles were often presented as punk, but their relatively nondescript cover art gave little away about the music within. Certainly punk seemed to be at the root of it, but it was also noisier than that, more willing to color outside the lines of what punk…
From Kenny Rogers to Miranda Lambert, the Lone Star State has a proud history of producing top-selling country musicians. However, think about the edgier, outlaw side of the genre, and your mind might take you to places like Memphis and Nashville. But dig a little in Texas and you’ll find…
Over the last few years, Pretty Lights’ performances have been rumored as hit or miss. But kicking off his two-night run at Red Rocks (last Friday and Saturday) with unreleased music, Derek Vincent Smith was ready to show his fans a new side of his sound. Add to that a…
“We’re embarrassingly big fans of Band of Horses,” laughed Ricky Young, frontman of opening act Wild Feathers. The admission drew huge cheers from The Ogden Theatre crowd, none of which seemed at all reticent to show enthusiasm for the beloved Seattle headliner of the Friday, August 13, show. While there’s…
Over this past extended weekend, Rocky Mountain Low didn’t just showcase a slice of the real underground rock scene in Denver. It could have been just all straight ahead rock or punk or metal or a combination thereof. But what it did though, without overtly stating this as a purpose,…
Pitbull brings the Bad Man Tour to the Pepsi Center on Thursday with Prince Royce while on Tuesday it’s Digable Planets at the Gothic Theatre and Melissa Etheridge at Chautauqua Auditorium. This week’s lineup also includes Ryan Adams, Lisa Prank and Flume. See our full picks below. MONDAY, AUGUST 15 Disturbed…
As we sit right in the middle of the silliest political silly season in living memory, L.A. rocker Melissa Etheridge, never one to keep her thoughts to herself (thankfully), is aghast at what is unfolding. Somehow, though, she finds some hope in the chaotic circus playing out in all of…
This weekend’s lineup includes Pretty Lights at Red Rocks for a two-night stand, Band of Horses at the Ogden Theatre, Riff Raff at the Bluebird Theater as well Queen City Festival, Crestone Music Festival and SolShine Festival. See the full list of our picks below. FRIDAY, AUGUST 12 Pretty Lights (also August 13)…
It’s not always apparent which music artists will stand the test of time, but Digable Planets has proven to be one of the most fondly remembered and still-listened-to groups of the East Coast hip-hop scene of the early 1990s. With jazz-influenced samples set behind politically charged and sometimes quirky lyrics,…
As we reported earlier this week, the Game of Thrones Live Concert Experience is coming to the Pepsi Center on Sunday, March 19. Tickets (39.50-$99.50) go on sale on Saturday, August 13, at 10 a.m. The String Cheese Incident will be at the 1STBANK Center for a three-night New Year’s…
In recent years, packed local performances by bands like Soja and Iration have proven that contemporary reggae fused with indie rock into a jam band-esque package is incredibly popular in these parts. Put those bands on at Red Rocks during the summer months, and you can practically guarantee a full…
Julien Baker reconciles two seemingly paradoxical parts of her life – her church and her queerness – and uses the lessons she’s learned in self-love and acceptance in her music. The twenty-year-old from Memphis was originally a member of the band Forrister, then continued creating music on her own in…
The first Rocky Mountain Low festival starts on Thursday, August 11. Organized by Reed Bruemmer, formerly of Speedwolf and currently of Poison Rites, and Brian Castillo of Heavy Dose Records, Rocky Mountain Low will be a curated showcase reflecting a slice of underground music in Denver and beyond. Expect punk, experimental…
Two years ago, local bluegrass band Trout Steak Revival shot the music video for their song “Brighter Every Day” on land nestled among the mountains in Buena Vista, Colorado. Later, they heard through the rumor mill that a music festival was being planned for the 274 acres. They couldn’t believe…
Better known these days under the moniker Lisa Prank, Robin Edwards has longstanding connections to Denver’s art and music communities. Edwards, a former Westword contributor, grew up in Colorado, and while still in high school, she got involved in the local underground scene. Before becoming a musician, she was a…
This past weekend, ARISE Music Festival called many like-minded, earth-conscious individuals to Sunrise Ranch for a music, art and yoga festival just outside Loveland. Ziggy Marley, Jurassic 5, Hard Working Americans, Rising Appalachia, Papadosio and Elephant Revival were among the headliners. Opportunities for internships and volunteer shifts were available and allowed…
It’s hard to put ARISE Music Festival, in Loveland, in a certain category. It features music, but it’s not just a music festival. Aerial yogis perform, and specialists in aromatherapy hold workshops. There are fire twirlers and classes on different global music genres. Oh, and bands like Ziggy Marley and…
It’s Sunday, August 7, the third afternoon of the inaugural Vertex Festival in Buena Vista, Colorado. Inside the festival grounds, a blow-up couch adorned with bikini-clad ladies floats around a pond, bumping into oversized inflatable swans, unicorns and dragons. In the middle of the water is an island where about…
Jackson, Wyoming, is a strange town. It contains only 10,000 or so residents, and is surrounded by wilderness for hours in any direction. But the little spot, known for some of the best skiing and mountain views in the country, has allowed a certain kind of resident and culture to…
