The soft colors and fake palm trees of a local Peruvian spot served as ideal backdrop as we caught up with the unique band of personalities in Latin reggae band Mono Verde. For many of the band members, this quiet spot recreates a feeling of home, with its imported South…
CP 208 closed out the night at Roostercat Coffee House for the Westword Music Showcase. Most of the crowd had filed out following Echo Beds’ set. Their loss. The four-piece took to the stage and sprawled out a herky- jerky, noise-jazz, No Wave-esque post-punk. Its sounds are used like a…
Those who know Max Winne from his current folk project the Maykit might be surprised to learn about his first band. As a teenager, Winne played in the hardcore band Call to Arms with Jeremy and Adam Fisher (the latter was a founding member of Fear Before). But as he…
Singer-songwriter Sharon Van Etten’s work just keeps getting better and better. On Are We There, her followup to the rapturously reviewed 2012 album Tramp, she digs deeper than ever before, broadening her creative scope and her musical palette in ways that are simultaneously moving and enthralling. In advance of her…
Although Ambrose Akinmusire’s latest Blue Note effort, the imagined savior is far easier to paint, is primarily an instrumental release (save for a few songs with guest vocalists), the forward-thinking jazz trumpeter sometimes writes backstories for his compositions. It was something that was partly inspired by Syd Field’s book, Screenplay:…
Tonight, June 17, Dear Rabbit is releasing its latest record, In a Desert Without the Book at the Hi-Dive. The album features a collection of existential explorations cast in gypsy folk pop songs. Dear Rabbit delivers them with a combination of passion and delicacy of feeling. The project is often…
Arno Kammermeier and Walter Merziger are the two Germans behind Booka Shade (which plays Beta on June 21). The group, in its latest iteration (it played briefly in the ’90s as well), has developed a sort of cult following in the American EDM market. Its sound is different from much…
Denverites Adrian Garcia (A-Trax), Lennard Daniels (Lennyx Dublyn) and Jeremy Barnes (JT) make up the core of the hip-hop collective Planes! The three have all been rapping since they were young, in the last few years started working together. “It just kind of came together,” Garcia said. “Everybody compliments each…
There are more Denver bands than you could credibly hope to get to know right away. It’s a good problem to have — this city is rich with talent and creativity. Over 140 of the best bands in town will play at next Saturday’s Westword Music Showcase in the Golden…
Hardcore bands are often the sum of their members’ influences. Not so with Culture Shock: The band’s music, lyrics and imagery come almost exclusively from the mind of frontman and founder Geoff Diederich. “The whole point of this band was to try and sound like SSD [Society System Decontrol] if…
To the uninitiated, Devo is just some ’80s band with funny hats who did that “Whip It” song that occasionally gets a nod on Family Guy or something. To the slightly wiser, they were the basis of Weird Al’s mind-bending original “Dare to Be Stupid.” Such a person might start…
Daniel Pujol is a rock-and-roll songwriter from Nashville playing tonight at the Larimer Lounge, and he would like to communicate with you. He’s at several disadvantages there, especially if he sticks to the methods we mostly rely on these days. He could send you a text message, but they are…
Denver’s DJ Cavem Moetevation spends plenty of time focusing on the “green” stuff. But his green stuff is not money or weed. Instead, his focus is on kale and being eco-friendly. Cavem — a former Westword MasterMind award winner — is a husband and father, a teacher, a rapper, a…
Denver is growing so fast that two years here can feel more like ten. So Travis Egedy — better known as Pictureplane — has missed plenty since he packed up and moved to New York in 2012. Still, he’s practically a native. He spent the better part of a decade…
With his virtuosic playing and two-handed approach, Victor Wooten has long been a pacesetter on the electric bass. From his work with Béla Fleck & the Flecktones to a vibrant solo career launched with his outstanding 1996 debut, A Show of Hands, Wooten has proven the broad potential of the…
Natalie Tate is well-known for her role as the lead guitarist in Ark Life. She was recruited into that band by Jesse Elliott when he saw her perform at Leon Gallery. At the time, Tate had recently returned to writing and performing music, and she quickly proved capable of writing…
Like many who call Denver home, Jayce “FL” Cabell of hip-hop collective the Foodchain enjoys weed. But the reason his most recent album, Young Amsterdam, includes plenty of marijuana imagery and was released on 4/20 has more to do with the interest in Colorado’s weed culture than it does with…
Sean Lennon could have coasted on his name alone — he’s a child of privilege, with two of the most famous people in the history of pop culture for parents. And sure, some doors were open to him that wouldn’t be to just any other teenager. He collaborated with Lenny…
It’s a great time to be a fan of country music. Mainstream artists like Kacey Musgraves are challenging old stereotypes. And in the vast field outside the pop country stratosphere, there are songwriters whose wit and clarity transcend genre. Key among those is Randy Rogers Band, which will headline Red…
By Mark Masters When Judge split up in 1991, it was in response to the growing skinhead violence of the time and the antipathy of their own fan base. “It was a fucking bloodbath,” recalls vocalist Mike Judge. “We were having to fight at what felt like every show. Sometimes…
What can be said about Paul Oakenfold that hasn’t been revealed in hundreds of prior interviews? When tasked with speaking to a pioneer, it’s hard to avoid the obvious questions: What keeps you producing music? Why do you still DJ? What is your favorite song? When we spoke with Oakenfold,…
The long-awaited debut album from Ross Etherton and the Chariots of Judah doesn’t have time for small talk. “I guess [this music] is a form of expression that’s divorced from the little things we do in everyday life to make social relationships run smoother — like saying ‘Hi, how are…
