Keeping up a weekly music event or club night takes a lot of work. Fortunately, Denver isn't short on DJs and musicians hustling for the city's nightlife. Here are eleven of the best weekly music events in the Mile High City.
DJ Mudwulf in the Green Room
Saturdays, 9 p.m.
Milk
Every Saturday in the Green Room of Milk, DJ Mudwulf brings the more experimental end of recent goth and industrial music to the club. On occasion, Mudwulf will bring in a local underground band with a dance-music component to its sound. French Kettle Station, Mirror Fears and Church Fire have all performed on Mudwulf's night, making it more adventurous than the average DJ event.
El Chapultepec is the oldest blues bar in Denver.
Mondays, 8:30 p.m.
El Chapultepec
Guitarist David Booker has performed with Bo Diddley, Solomon Burke and Rufus Thomas. In short, he has nothing to prove and hosts this jam session for the sheer joy of playing blues, as in the real thing. Come down and become a better player by participating, or just watch some masters and masters-to-be in action.
Lipgloss
Photo courtesy Lipgloss Facebook
Fridays, 9 p.m.
Milk
Lipgloss is the longest-running indie DJ night in the United States. This is partly because its founders were tapped into the zeitgeist early on and organized a DJ and dance night that was hip and cool but didn't seem elitist. This event has long prided itself on being a dance night, even for people who don't like dance nights. Bringing in a host of guest DJs over the years, including JD Samson of Le Tigre, Carlos Dengler of Interpol and, for its sixteen-year anniversary, Andrew W.K., Lipgloss has survived the ups and downs of the format and is now back to a weekly party where the musical talent outshines most similar fare in town.
Live American Jazz
Fridays, 5:30 p.m.
Syntax Physic Opera
With hosts and performers as accomplished and creative as trumpet player Josh Trinidad and pianist John Wirtz, this is not just a solid jazz night. It's also one where you might see the genre pushed into new territories.
Maryoke
Thursdays, 8 p.m.
Hamburger Mary's
Allison Young ran the karaoke night at Hamburger Mary's for years at the old location at Franklin and 17th Avenue, garnering a bit of a cult following for her humor, innate singing talent and ability to make you feel like a star for having the nerve to sing in front of friends and strangers. After taking her Alleycat Karaoke night to other venues, she's now back with a residency at the new Hamburger Mary's location two blocks away.
Read on for more of Denver's best weekly club nights.
Meadowlark Jazz Jam
Mondays, 8 p.m.
Meadowlark Bar
The Meadowlark jazz night has long been a bastion for some of the most adventurous players in local jazz; you can never predict who might show up and sit in with the assembled musicians. But you can bet that participants and those in the audience are in for some pleasant surprises.
Mix Tape Saturdays
Image courtesy DJ Slave 1 Facebook
Saturdays, 9 p.m.
Milk
With rotating DJs and guests including DJ Slave 1 and DJ boyhollow, Mix Tape Saturdays showcases ’80s and ’90s alternative music in Milk's largest room. The evening boasts music that you might have recorded onto a compilation for a friend in those bygone decades.
Recon DNB
Image courtesy Recon DNB Facebook
First Thursdays and Third Saturdays, 9 p.m.
The Black Box
A biweekly event, Recon DNB hosts great local and not-local drum-and-bass artists on the Black Box's robust sound system, in an intimate club setting.
Sin Sundays
Image courtesy Sin Sundays Facebook
Sundays, 9 p.m.
The Church
The longest-running goth night in Denver, Sin Sundays, helmed by resident DJs DJ Slave 1 and DJ Roland, is held in an entirely appropriate setting for goth, industrial and alternative music: a church turned dance club.
Songwriter's Open Mic
Tuesdays, 7:30 p.m.
Syntax Physic Opera
Master songwriters Rachael Pollard and Anthony Ruptak host Syntax's open-mic night showcasing other songwriters, fledgling or otherwise. See the star musicians of tomorrow today.
Taking Back Monday
Mondays, 10 p.m.
Matchbox
This pop-punk and emo night has been hosted by local punk musicians and luminaries like Virgil Dickerson (Suburban Home Records) and Kevin O'Brien and Cory Helie (Big City Drugs). But now Geoff Brent (Cheap Perfume) joins the mix as an indie-rock and punk veteran who books bands by day for Soda Jerk Presents. Given his eclectic tastes and constant exposure to a broad swath of music, expect Brent to also bring in some deep cuts.
