Courtesy Milquetoast & Co.
Audio By Carbonatix
Instead of lying low and prepping for winter, Denver bands are busy releasing new heat this month. So snuggle up and check out the best new November releases by Colorado musicians.
Hellocentral
All That’s Left Is Love
This month got started with a scoop of nostalgia-inducing pop punk, courtesy of local emo-loving outfit hellocentral‘s new album, All That’s Left Is Love, which was released independently on November 3. A followup to the band’s 2021 self-titled debut, the sophomore record is more mature-sounding and emotive, with such songs as “Plastique” and “Titanic” bringing all the feels.
Since 2018, bandmembers Frank McGinn (bass and vocals), Cody Smith (guitar and vocals), Rob Knox (drums) and Justin Jokinen (guitar) have been crafting and honing a style that’s equal parts Brand New and Blink-182. The twelve tunes on All That’s Left Is Love are so fun and upbeat, it doesn’t matter that they’re all essentially brooding breakup songs. But that’s the power of pop punk.
Danae Simone
“Is This Love”
Speaking of being lovelorn, Denver diva Danae Simone is asking herself if she’s being foolish over a dude who seems to be playing with her in her new single, “Is This Love,” which dropped November 7. A collaboration with local songwriter and producer Ave Emi, who plays the lyrical role of the dude she’s smitten with in the song, “Is This Love” is the latest in a handful of fresh tracks Simone has shared this year.
Emi says the ditty is perfect for “cuffing season,” aka that cold time of year when getting into a situationship is better than hibernating alone. Throughout the song, Simone, with her signature soulful, raspy vocals, debates the pros and cons of such a temporary relationship.
Calvin Locklear
No Particular Plan
Local singer-songwriter Calvin Locklear is a ramblin’ man. For most of the past two decades, he played his way through Nashville, Austin and Denver, before picking up everything and hitting the road during the great lockdown. Spending the days traveling and camping throughout the country, Locklear found himself writing more and more. After two years, he shared the resulting album, No Particular Plan, on November 9.
The twelve tracks showcase a little bit of warm indie rock, acoustic folk and Western twang, particularly on such songs as “Wet Cement,” “One Line” and “Gift Horse.” Locklear’s sophomore record follows his four-song EP, Killing Songs, an August release. But now he’s back on the road and busy sharing his latest material.
The Adam Deitch Quartet
Roll the Tape
Does Adam Deitch ever sleep? The prolific Denver musician is in livetronic duo Break Science, local supergroup BTTRFLY Quintet and funk band Lettuce. Oh, and he also has his own four-piece – the Adam Deitch Quartet – which just released its sophomore album, Roll the Tape, on November 10 via Deitch’s imprint, Golden Wolf Records (yeah, he founded and launched his own independent record label in 2014, too).
After hitting the studio to record with Lettuce, Deitch and bandmates Eric “Benny” Bloom (trumpet) and Ryan Zoidis (saxophone) worked on Roll the Tape at his home studio, alongside organist Wil Blades and himself. The instrumental album is a blend of funk, jazz and soul across ten tracks. Previously released singles “Mushroom Gravy” and “Play on Playa” are the standouts, showcasing Deitch’s groovy drumming.
Milquetoast & Co.
Run Rant Rave
Denver indie-rock group Milquetoast & Co., founded in 2005 by singer-songwriter/producer James McAndrew, dropped its new album, Run Rant Rave, on November 17. The ten-song offering includes everything the band, which relocated to the Rockies from Boston in 2015, does best, including blues and Americana. Among such original songs as “Phantoms” and “Tempest,” Run Rant Rave also includes a cover of the Moody Blues tune “Nights in White Satin.”
“Our creative process is rigorous, but also such a rewarding experience. We write and produce everything we create from start to finish,” McAndrew says, “so everything we share with our audience comes from a place of self-reflection and the overflowing desire to create.”
Gio Bard Zero
Songs of Life and Death
Ever wonder what wizard music sounds like? Well, ponder no more: Local mystic Gio Bard Zero‘s debut album, Songs of Life and Death (November 17), is just that. Denverites may have seen the posters questioning Zero’s magical prowess sprinkled throughout town, but he more than proves his potency on the thirteen new tracks. A multi-instrumentalist, Zero takes listeners on an auditory journey full of hope, despair and triumph with songs such as “Your Heart” and “When You Meet Your Love,” which are told from three separate personal perspectives – those of the Wizard, the Addict and the Bard. It’s an impactful record and an ambitious debut, but Zero is used to pulling rabbits out of his hat. “Really, the biggest source of magic in my life is music in many ways,” he told Westword.
The Schofields
“One Day”
Denver alt-country group the Schofields are cooking up something cool in upcoming debut Centennial State Blues, set to be released on Friday, December 1. The band shared a little taste of what you can expect on the new album by dropping the single “One Day” on November 17.
Joel Rossi (vocals and guitar), Geoff Orwiler (vocals and guitar), Dave Simpkins (vocals and bass), Vince Pelini (pedal steel) and James Romine (drums) are all veterans of the local music scene and bring a certain beer-drinking-and-hell-raising attitude to the Schofields. The “blue-collar songwriting reflects the grit, heartbreak and humor of the common experience,” as they like to say. That’s certainly relatable. Plus, the Schofields will “always keep you out drinkin’ and dancin’ past last call,” says the band.
Want your music to be included in our monthly roundup? Email it to editorial@westword.com.
