Progressive metal is a demanding genre, but Dissonance in Design exceeds expectations on its latest full-length, Sentient. A concept album about god-like aliens from another dimension who are unleashed upon Earth as the result of a scientific experiment gone wrong, the record is filled with lyrics that read like an…
It’s evident from “A Fence of Colorado Stone,” the opening track on Two Billion Acres of Salt, that vocalist Hezekiah Goode has a strong affinity for old-time folk and country — and pedal-steel player Glenn Taylor, banjoist Keith Reed and fiddle player Greg Buergler help him drive this point home…
On the title track of Honky Tonk Bastard World, Casey James Prestwood offers imagery straight from the best country-and-Western tradition: The tune is all about gettin’ high, fightin’ with the missus and drinkin’ whiskey on the weekends. The rest of the album maintains that vintage C&W charm. Anchored by top-notch…
Okay, just got some good news/bad news. First, the bad news: Deer Tick’s show at the Bluebird tonight has been canceled. The band — or at least part of it — is dealing with an unspecified medical emergency preventing him/them from performing tonight. Sucks, but there’s good news: Tomorrow night’s…
SAT & SUN | HOUSTON PERSON at DAZZLE | 11/30-12/1 While tenor saxophonist Houston Person, who turns 78 on November 10, has recorded a number of soul-jazz albums under his own name since the mid-’60s, he’s also played on platters by Horace Silver, Eddie Harris, Cedar Walton, Charles Brown and…
While studying trumpet performance at St. Olaf College in Minnesota two decades ago, Jason Harrelson, owner of Harrelson Trumpets, became consumed with learning how the trumpet works and understanding the physics of playing one. In 1993, he began experimenting with trumpet mouthpieces, enlarging throats, backbores and adding mass, and before…
Death Angel was formed in 1982 by four cousins who were inspired by the new wave of British heavy metal. After releasing a demo called Heavy Metal Insanity, the band enlisted its roadie, another cousin, Mark Osegueda, to be its singer — just in time to open for the then-up-and-coming…
Perennial Colorado favorite the Disco Biscuits are making their way back to the Mile High City for a trio of shows, two back-to-back nights at the Ogden followed by a date at 1STBANK Center with Infected Mushroom. Tickets for 1STBANK ($35) and for the Ogden shows, which are only available…
Music is life — or at least it is for us. When we’re not writing about it, we’re thinking about it, talking about it or listening to it. These are the things that were in heavy rotation for us this week. What are you listening to? What should we be…
Calling all aspiring auteurs: Here’s your chance to get your six seconds of fame. We want you to submit your best music-related Vine videos by uploading them with the hashtag #DenWeb2013. At the end, we’ll pick our favorites to play at the annual Westword Web Awards party at Galvanize on…
Update, 10/29/13: The numbers are in, and according to both Live Nation and AEG, who joined forces to put on the Colorado Rising flood relief benefit this past weekend at 1STBANK Center, the show raised $650K to benefit victims of the recent flooding on the Front Range. Proceeds from the…
Although jazz pianist Tigran Hamasyan, who’s just going by his first name these days, is only in his mid-twenties, he already has more than two decades of playing under his belt. Having started on piano at the age of three, he was already playing festivals by the time he was…
Gov’t Mule formed in 1994 as a side project of Warren Haynes and Allen Woody, who were then members of the Allman Brothers Band. While both men continued to play with the Allman Brothers, Gov’t Mule became quite a viable entity on its own, rooted in a similar blend of…
Railroad Earth return to the area to play a two-night stand at the Fillmore on Friday, January 17, and Saturday, January 18. General admission tickets (.$27.50/$30 and $50 two-day) go on sale this Friday, November 1, at 10 a.m. Keep reading to see what other shows are on sale this…
COLORADO RISING at 1STBANK CENTER | 10/27/13 By the time Dave Matthews took the stage last night during the Colorado Rising flood relief benefit show at 1STBANK Center, it was tough to spot any empty seats. Matthews had the capacity crowd on its feet during his entire set, but even…
TALIB KWELI at CERVANTES’ MASTERPIECE BALLROOM | 10/27/13 Last night, Cervantes’ hosted one of the more interesting pairings in recent memory. The bill featured Talib Kweli, a New York native often lumped in the conscious rap category, and Big K.R.I.T. a Southern Rapper with a huge underground following and more…
TAME IMPALA @ OGDEN THEATRE | 10/25/13 It’s not exactly an original observation at this point to note how the members of Tame Impala are revivalists that evoke the spirit of ’60s and ’70s sound; yet when the band begins its set with songs like “Desire Be, Desire Go,” “Keep…
WALK THE MOON at OGDEN THEATRE | 10/26/13 For a band that played the Hi-Dive two years ago, Walk The Moon has done extremely well for itself, and if this sold out show was any indication, the band will be playing a much larger venue the next time around. The…
THURS | DEVOTCHKA at GOTHIC THEATRE | 10/31/13 It just wouldn’t be October without DeVotchKa’s annual Halloween extravaganza. This year, the beloved Denver act is holding court at the Gothic Theatre on Thursday, October 31, and the Boulder Theater on the following night, Friday, November 1. Shady Elders is slated…
One of the largest looming and most influential icons in the history of rock and roll, Lou Reed died on Sunday at the age of 71. No word has been received regarding the cause of Reed’s death, though the “Walk on the Wild Side” songwriter underwent a liver transplant last…
Katy Perry is brilliant. And, no, that’s not an assessment of her music — although, to wit, the gal does have a knack for injecting just the right amount of passion and pathos into her pop songs that makes them resonate, as evidenced by the impassioned expressions on the faces…
THE HELIO SEQUENCE at BLUEBIRD THEATER | 10/24/13 When Brandon Summers pulled out his harmonica last night at the Bluebird, we all what was coming, “Harmonica Song,” of course. Summers blew into his mouth harp like he was playing some kind of strange blues rock song, and he did so…
