Coloradoans will have the chance to watch Governor Hickenlooper play banjo with the Infamous Stringdusters, drink beer, and celebrate a year of rebuilding and volunteer efforts this Saturday at Viva Lyons, a fundraiser hosted by Oskar Blues. The fundraiser and party, which is about more than just Hickenlooper showing off…
Goldrush Music Festival has always featured a meticulous lineup of local and national artists working with unusual sounds and approaches. This year is the biggest in the four-year history of Goldrush, with headliner Wolf Eyes joining a slew of other exceptional noisemakers on three stages at Larimer Lounge and the…
9NEWS had a nice little segment earlier this week on how to overcome Fear, the classic LA hardcore band. Psychologist Dr. Max Wachtel stopped by the morning show to talk to Corey Rose about how they hate spiders and whether Lee Ving was being offensive or simply antagonistic in his…
The Mishawaka is tucked between a mountain face and a river in a canyon west of Fort Collins, where it has stood as a music hall for 96 years and an outdoor amphitheater for close to thirty. Despite its storied history, the venue often referred to as the Mish has…
Though the Denver Public Library’s local-music catalogue Volume Denver launched this past summer, the well-received program is getting some extra love in the form of an official launch party happening this Thursday, September 11, at the McNichols Building. Overdue: Beer, Books & Bands will celebrate this latest addition to the…
Internet Pinball DatabaseI am a devoted video-game fan and a constant cheerleader for them to be considered art, but honestly, I would give up most of the compelling stories and high-definition graphics in the world for simple pinball machines. They’re crafted and mechanical, and when built with a loving hand,…
Yesterday, Linkin Park headlined Fiddler’s Green Amphitheater. That band has aged surprisingly well, as rap-rock goes, but it brought a mighty opener in AFI. No one’s following that band and coming out looking good. Photographer Aaron Thackeray, however, was able to capture some incredible shots of AFI, particularly front man…
Wolf Eyes is among the most well-known bands to have come out of the world of noise music. But the act was never strictly noise; its music, even early on, included experiments in texture and atmosphere that could terrify and inspire. What started as Nate Young’s solo project now also…
Usher brings his UR Experience to the 1STBANK Center on Tuesday, December 2 with August Alsina and DJ Cassidy opening. Tickets ($39-$154) go on sale on Monday, September 15, at 10 a.m. Chrissie Hynde visits the Paramount Theatre as part of her 25-city North American tour in support of her…
Kind of a quiet week, as week’s in Denver’s live music scene go. There are a few good shows before the weekend, though, including Drake and Lil Wayne’s co-headlining tour and Midge Ure at Soiled Dove. Rest up: The weekend’s a doozy, with big shows from Rubedo, Miss America and…
Reviewing music is, at best, an inexact science. You may say, “I don’t like The Mountain Goats because John Darnielle’s voice is annoying.” I would respond with, “Fuck you, his voice isn’t annoying at all, you just don’t get it.” That’s pretty much divisive music discourse in a nutshell. But…
Siblings are the best. Siblings are people who understand your weirdness because they too, are usually a product of the same upbringing. They are often the only people to agree with you when the rest of the world seems not to. They are also often the best partners in both…
[jump] Editor’s note: Each week, illustrator Noah Van Sciver shares his ongoing story of an 80’s rocker on a road trip through his past with the readers of Backbeat. You can see more of Van Sciver’s work in his new book YOUTH IS WASTED. Rufus Baxter: Part Nine Rufus Baxter:…
Critics do their best to ignore Blink-182. After all, it’s not easy to get scrunched up with deep opinions about lip-ringed, occasionally naked SoCal troublemakers hawking pre-YouTube music-video softcore on early-morning MTV rotation. Pitchfork didn’t even bother publishing a flogging (a la 21st Century Breakdown) of Blink’s 2011 comeback album…
The Disco Biscuits will play in Denver next weekend. That much isn’t news, but late last night, the band announced a venue change — again. Originally, the shows were going to take place at Sculpture Park. They were moved to Ruby Hill Park when that didn’t work out, and the…
Megan ArseneauxArseneaux shows off how to smoke out of her handmade Secret Smoker Bracelet. Even though recreational marijuana is now legal in Colorado, you can’t smoke it in public, and most private operations still ban its use. So how are you going to sneak your drugs into music festivals while…
The difference between learning to play an instrument and learning to play an instrument within the context of a band can make all the difference for young musicians. Global company School of Rock was founded on this idea, and Denver’s own branch of the school is going strong today, teaching…
Swallow Hill Music, a Denver-based nonprofit that runs music education programs and organizes many concerts in the area, has just announced the resignation of its CEO. Tom Scharf, who also served as Executive Director, has served in the top role at Swallow Hill for seven years — his last day…
When it comes to playing the music industry game, sometimes it is easiest to take the industry out of the picture altogether and do it yourself. This is the ethos behind GravesEnd Records, a self-proclaimed old-school punk label started in 2009 by a musician and Colorado transplant who goes by…
If there is a strange request that a concert promoter can make of a musician, it’s a safe bet that Scott McCaughey has heard it. He co-founded the Young Fresh Fellows in 1983 and played with R.E.M. for close to twenty years. Lately, he’s been on tour with the Baseball…
After thirteen years together, the Fruit Bats played their final shows last November. At the time, frontman Eric D. Johnson didn’t have any immediate plans to write another album. He figured he’d keep composing film scores — something he’s done for the past three years — and continue to produce…
If music festivals are good for one thing it’s seeing great new bands. If they’re good for anything else it’s seeing bands you used to really like play again after a long hiatus. This year’s Riot Fest has a great crop of both new and old acts, so for anyone…
