In 2017, Denver made national music headlines when Taylor Swift came to town to battle in court with Denver DJ David Mueller over whether he groped her. The city enjoyed massive concerts from Metallica and Guns N' Roses at Sports Authority Field and missed other concerts because they were canceled, including one from Bruno Mars. The Gathering of the Juggalos, which was slated to happen here, was pushed to Oklahoma City, and we lost many great local musicians, including Matt Bellinger. Keep reading for Westword's most popular music stories of the year.
1. "Taylor Swift: David Mueller "Grabbed My Bare Ass...This Is Not Alleged"
Taylor Swift took to the stand on August 10, 2017, in the largest celebrity trial in Denver since 1994. After a lengthy trial, eight jurors determined that former Denver DJ David Mueller had assaulted and battered Swift. Read more here.
2. "Metallica Brought a Soundtrack for Totalitarian Violence to Denver. Now What?"
At Sports Authority Field, tens of thousands gathered on June 7, 2017, at a sold-out show to watch the heavy-metal giants in Metallica pound the crowd with their signature aggression. Read more here.
3. "Bad Boys Grow Up: The Creative Crisis of Guns N' Roses and Axl Rose"
Had Axl Rose died during his youth, he would have been canonized. Had he backed out of his career, he would have been forgotten. Had he kept creating with authenticity, he might still be praised. Read more here.
4. "Bassnectar: DJs on Stages Are Preposterous Goons, EDM Is Unimpressive"
Lorin Ashton, the electronic-music producer and DJ who plays under the name Bassnectar, feels extremely disinterested when it comes to EDM. Read more here.
5. "Seriously, Bruno Mars? You're Canceling on Denver, Too?"
Bruno Mars had to cancel his Denver show...and people cared. Read more here.
6. "The Epic Life and Tragic Death of Matt Bellinger"
Denver musician Matt Bellinger passed away on September 7, 2017. Jason Heller wrote this heartfelt obituary for his friend. Read more here.
7. "Roger Waters Concert Was Offensively Anti-Trump in a Rock-and-Roll Way"
Roger Waters’s show was an utter evisceration of President Donald Trump and American imperialism. Read more here.
8. "Behind the Scenes of Guns N' Roses' Stage Production"
What worried Guns N' Roses production manager Dale Skjerseth the most before the Denver concert? Find out here.
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9. "Five Outtakes From the First Day of Testimony at the Taylor Swift Trial"
We took notes during the August 8, 2017, action. Read more here.
10. "Insane Clown Posse's Gathering of the Juggalos Backs Out of Denver"
The Insane Clown Posse's Gathering of the Juggalos took place in Oklahoma City rather than Denver...but the ICP did make it to Boulder in September. Read more here.
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