These days, the legendary folk-rock band Fairport Convention isn’t as widely known as it once was, and yet Richard Thompson, the band’s most storied guitarist, is often cited as an influence by a wide range of musicians and frequently included on the short list of the most talented living guitar…
Eels frontman Mark Oliver Everett (aka E) has been hyper-productive lately, releasing three albums as part of a trilogy in just over a year. He says each album (last year’s Hombre Lobo and this year’s End Times and Tomorrow Morning) are each about a distinct human emotion — desire, loss…
Coming from roughly the same Montreal scene that produced bands like the Dears, Godspeed You! Black Emperor and Stars, the Besnard Lakes recorded with members of those bands on its Polaris Prize-nominated 2007 album, The Besnard Lakes Are the Dark Horse, at singer/guitarist Jace Lasek’s Breakglass Studios. Starting out as…
The Parlotones is not a household name in North America, but it is one of the best known bands out of South Africa. With hit singles in its native country, the Parlotones started to make waves outside South Africa with its second album, 2005’s Radiocontrolledrobot. Hailing from Johanesburg, the Parlotones…
The big news here is that the Heyday have a new EP out and will be playing a CD-release show on October 1st at the Gothic. But the Denver foursome has a lot more going on than just that. In this extended Q&A, bassist and vocalist Peter Wynn goes more…
When Bruno Mars was picked up for suspicion of cocaine possession earlier this month in Las Vegas — or “Busted for Booger Sugar” as TMZ reported, gross — it wasn’t the arrest that was so engaging, it was the mug shot. He looked downright giddy in his photo, almost creepy…
After Sleep broke up in 1998, singer/guitarist Matt Pike formed High on Fire with drummer Des Kensel and bassist George Rice. Initially evoking more of a doom rock sound, High on Fire evolved into being more of a straight ahead metal band without either dumbing down the music or taming…
Years ago in an interview with BET, rapper Jadakiss was asked the age old question: Why do you rap? He answered, with shrewd honesty, for the money. Innerstate Ike (aka Michael Hope) works under that same premise. A Coloradan to the core, Ike makes music specifically for the streets and…
Jordan Burns, the drummer for Strung Out, is one of the most influential modern-rock drummers ever. His timekeeping skills have been recognized by magazines such as Modern Drummer, and most recently DRUM! magazine, which tapped him as best punk drummer. The bionically gifted Burns has carved out an enviable career…
Many people heard the Cult after its breakthrough album, Love, which contained the classic single “She Sells Sanctuary,” was released in 1985. But the Cult increasingly became a worldwide phenomenon with its following two albums, Electric and Sonic Temple…
Matt Johnson and Kim Schifino met as students at Pratt Institute, and when they started playing music together after becoming immersed in the New York DIY music scene, they quickly became known for their infectiously energetic live shows…
There’s not much that Martina Grbac can’t do. Previously gracing Denver stages with her cello and vocals in the now defunct indie rock group Matson Jones, Grbac’s career has taken a rather surprising turn — operating eyeLAB, her own self proclaimed garage optical shop. The mission of eyeLAB, which Grbac…
With a dreamy, uplifting sound reminiscent of bands like Lush, Curve and Stereolab, School of Seven Bells creates deeply atmospheric music that explores the inner reaches of the human psyche with a surprisingly colorful yet concrete flair. Sisters Alejandra and Claudia Deheza came from the experimental band On!Air!Library!, while guitarist…
Performing for the last several years under the moniker Otem Rellik, Toby Hendricks has certainly paid his dues. Living in Fort Collins, he’s developed his craft largely through experimenting at open mikes and performing at shows with indie rock bands. Although his own vocal delivery is heavily influenced by Sole…
Producer/rapper Mr. Dean (aka Dean Lopez) has spent the last ten years making music and honing his craft. He says that his faith and the support of others — including area churches and their flock — have served to keep him encouraged and focused on his path, which is to…
Titus Andronicus is frightfully serious about punk rock. The group of well-read, New Jersey-bred twenty-somethings recently released The Monitor, a concept album about the Civil War that contains spoken-word, era-appropriate interludes, male-female call-and-response, and three track punk suites that can individually go on for as long as fourteen minutes. And…
One of the most anticipated albums in local hip-hop circles this fall is Dispensary Music, the long-awaited full-length collaboration between Whygee and Foe, slated to drop tomorrow on iTunes.The collaboration between these two rappers was inspired by sporadic features on various songs in the past and the undeniable chemistry they…
GirlGrabbers is the cross-pollination of music personalities, Qknox (aka Jerod Sarlo) and DJ GypdaHip (aka Anwar Woody). Together the two are determined to highlight the essence of beat making in its purist form. The duo’s first two beat tapes, GirlGrabbers and Good Time With a Bad Girl, served as a…
Kristín Anna Valtýsdóttir was part of the popular Icelandic dream pop group múm, which she fronted with her twin sister Gyða. Before leaving the band in 2006, Valtýsdóttir, also known by her stage name Kría Brekkan, performed on the 2005 Animal Collective album Feels. A talented multi-instrumentalist, Brekkan performed mostly…
Casiotone for the Painfully Alone started out in 1997 as a solo project for songwriter Owen Ashworth. Initially using just a keyboard and a basic drum machine, Ashworth challenged himself to make the most of minimal elements. The result has been a body of work that not only speaks directly…
Pavement is among the most influential rock bands of the ’90s, despite not quite becoming a household name, and you can hear the band’s influence in virtually all underground rock since then, from the slightly off-center rhythms, the jagged but melodic guitar riffs and the fascinatingly obtuse lyrics. Taking some…
DJ Low Key is certainly no stranger to the local hip-hop scene. And for the past few years, he’s been making a name for himself nationally putting in work with such heavy-hitters as TiRon, Tanya Morgan and, most recently, Che Grand, whose Fixtape #2 project, mixed exclusively by Low Key,…
