Open Music Sessions: Get to Know Denver Hip-Hop Collective High Five

There are few groups in Denver as engaging as hip-hop collective High Five. Borrowing both the energy and insight of golden-era groups like A Tribe Called Quest and De La Soul, the group has been honing its own sound in town since 2012. High Five, which comprises MCs B-Rex, Guidence, Crimsen, and Question and prodcers  D.H. Lawrence and Just Say PLZ, stopped by the Denver Open Media studios last month for the latest installment of our Open Music Sessions (learn more about the series below). Today, we're happy to present their performances of "Turn It Up" (above) and "I Got It" (below). You can also listen to — and download — the individual recording stems. Look for those at the bottom of this post. 

Open Music Sessions returns this coming Friday, May 1, with a performance by Felix Fast4Ward. Comedian Adrian Mesa will also be on hand. Felix was the subject of a recent Westword profile, written by Alex Warzel. Here's a bit of what you can expect at tomorrow's taping, from that story: 

While visiting a friend in Denver just over a decade ago, Ayodele missed his flight home and made the decision to stay in Colorado. “The mountains had this energy that called to me,” he says.

Since that time, he’s been making his way through the Denver music scene, developing his style and skill. He teaches music production to kids through the Youth on Record organization and consistently performs around town. As Fast4Ward, he has released four solo albums; his latest, called 4ward Movements, is out now via Denver-based Chops Records.

Live, Ayodele is a moving vessel of music, creating intricate compositions that seem like the work of a large band rather than one man. He scratches, samples and sings, and plays keys, bass, guitar and flute. With Fast4Ward, there’s never a dull moment.

Open Music Sessions featuring Felix Fast4Ward, with comedy from Adrian Mesa. All are welcome. Doors at 7 p.m., taping from 8 p.m. to 9:30 p.m. Denver Open Media: 700 Kalamath Street Beer and wine for donation. RSVP here.

About Open Music Sessions: Every month, Westword joins Open Media Foundation and Greater Than Collective to bring you Open Music Sessions: A video series aimed at introducing people to bands and providing context for their music. Every First Friday, we bring a band to the Open Media Foundation studio on 7th and Kalamath and record a live performance. In addition to broadcasting the show live on the Denver Open Media TV stations (Comcast channels 56, 57 and 219), we edit the clips for certain songs, which you can find on Westword's website. You'll also find additional information about the band and the recordings of individual instruments on select songs, which you are welcome to download in order to create remixes or simply to learn more about the way the music is constructed.  

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