Meet Extra Kool, the Creature From the Whack Lagoon

Extra Kool has been rapping since the late ’90s, most notably as part of the duo Optik Fusion Embrace, with Satyr. Since 2005, he’s performed as a solo act, releasing a string of albums, including Tickled Pink and his latest effort, The Creature From the Whack Lagoon, on the Dirty…

See Slipknot free, courtesy of FashioNation

Fans of scary-ass clown/serial killer metal, rejoice! Not only is Slipknot coming to town, but venerable Denver goth boutique FashioNation is giving away free tickets. All you have to do is stop by the store, located at 613 East 13th Avenue, write down your name and contact info and drop…

Ten bands we’d watch on TV

The breakout success of Flight of the Conchords got us thinking of other bands that would make for must-see TV. After all, no one makes money selling records these days, and a band’s gotta make a living somehow, right? So we went into brainstorming mode (in this case, that means…

The Fray covers, uh … Kanye West?

Hot on the heels of last week’s Valentine’s Day challenge in which the Fray reportedly wrote and recorded a love song in 24 hours at the behest of Q Magazine, comes this oddity: Evidently, Isaac Slade and company — prompted by God only knows what — recorded a cover of…

Leftover Salmon’s Bill McKay will not be charged

As noted by an attentive blog reader earlier today in the comments section of our original post, Leftover Salmon singer/keyboardist Bill McKay, who was arrested late last month on accusations that he drugged and assaulted a female acquaintance on New Year’s Eve after a gig his band played in Edwards, Colorado,…

Eric Clapton, the Faint, Pennywise shows announced

After teaming up for a successful three-night run in New York City last year, Eric Clapton and Steve Winwood announced an exclusive fourteen-city U.S. tour that stops at the Pepsi Center on Sunday, June 21. They’ll each play their own solo hits as well as perform tunes by Blind Faith,…

Flier of the week: Laura Goldhamer at the Oriental Theater

Yes, we know that we’ve already posted a flier in this week’s Pole Position, but since we didn’t get around to posting one last week and since, thematically, this one seems to go hand in hand with the Taun Taun flier, we thought you might give us a pass. This…

Whygee capitalizes on CMJ Chart placement

In case you haven’t heard by now, Whygee and Sunken State’s excellent Suicide Watch EP debuted on the College Music Journal hip-hop chart last week at number 30. The duo released the record back in December for free download, and it looks like it’s paying off, especially for Whygee…

Chuck Potashner’s farewell show

This Thursday, February 19, at the Oriental Theater, Chuck Potashner will be releasing a new disc and reconvening with a few of his old teamAWESOME! chums (“This is the closest thing to a teamAWESOME! reunion show you are going to get, so don’t miss it!” notes Potashner) before shoving off…

Free beer and funky tunes, courtesy of U.S. Pipe and Flying Dog

As if you needed another reason besides the band’s funky tunes to head down to the Bluebird this Thursday, February 19, for the U.S. Pipe CD-release show (check out Jon Solomon’s Backbeat feature on the band from this week’s paper if you haven’t already), you can grab yourself a free…

Flier of the week: Taun Taun’s CD release at Bluebird

The design for this Taun Taun flier is simple yet eye-catching as heck. The act’s logo serves as the focal point for this handbill touting the band’s CD-release show at the Bluebird on Friday, March 6. There’s just something about the earthy simplicity that perfectly represents the straightforward yet primal…

Obi Best at Larimer Lounge

Obi Best Sunday, February 15, 2009 Larimer Lounge Better than: An angry note on your car. Sometimes vintage music gear sounds cool as hell, but other times the older gear is a pain in the ass when it doesn’t work like it did four decades ago. Before Obi Best started…

Murder by Death at the Bluebird

Murder by Death, the Builders and the Butchers, Fake Problems February 14, 2009 Bluebird Theater Better than:Eating cheap chocolates from Walgreens ’cause your significant other forgot about Valentine’s Day. The Murder by Death show at the Bluebird brought all the jaded and lonely hearts together in one room. Starting the…

DeVotchKa at the Paramount

Photo: Gary Isaacs DeVotchKa, Quixotic Friday, Feb. 13 Paramount Theater Better than: Seeing one of Denver’s most effusive and entrancing local acts in a stripped-down, sullen setting. Atmosphere can make a big difference.I’ve seen members of DeVotchKa play in various incarnations and in a wide variety of venues during the…

Speakeasy, Tiger and AT05 at 1515

Speakeasy, Tiger and AT05 Saturday, February 14, 20091515Better than: Eating handfuls of sleeping pills and looking through photos of your ex-wife — after all, it’s Valentine’s DayGenerally speaking, I avoid clubs like 1515. It’s the kind of bar where there’s always a herd of broad-shouldered men in lime green shirts with…

The Fray’s Valentine’s Day songwriting challenge

Yes, this is another Fray-related item, the last one this week for sure (and hopefully the last for a while — unless, of course, the band is number one on Billboard again next week; God help us). Anyhow, we’ll keep this brief. Considering our proximity to Valentine’s day, sharing this…

Single File in Spin

Just received a copy of Single File’s new record, Common Struggles. Haven’t had a chance to give it a real thorough listen yet, but from what we’ve heard thus far, it doesn’t sound like a huge departure from the act’s previous recordings. The hummable hooks the band built its name…

Gregory Alan Isakov collaborates and tours with Brandi Carlile

If you don’t already have plans tonight for Valentine’s eve — like, say, seeing DeVotchKa at the Paramount — it would be well worth your time to stop by the Bluebird to catch Gregory Alan Isakov & the Freight, with Oakhurst. By now, you’re probably intimately familiar with the guy…

Aviano Coffee debuts anything-goes open mike tomorrow

Just popped up to Aviano Coffee in the Beauvallon, right around the corner from our office for a decaf (can’t handle all that caffeine this late in the day) Americano, and heard from the owner, Doug, that the shop is going to be debuting its weekly anything-goes open mike tomorrow…