Category Archives: Music

Shows to See in Denver June 19-24

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20130619-110700.jpg photo by leslie loudspeaker

Shows to See in Denver June 19-24th

Wednesday, June 19
Parquet Courts – Larimer – one of my favorite new finds this year, these guys are raw and loud live. These guys have a lot of buzz, I expect a great show: Borrowed Time live video from SXSW 2013

Springdale Quartet – Armoury – thought they were great at LoHi Festival this weekend. High energy rock, fantastic guitar solos, and the bassist has some great hair.

Tony Bennett – Denver Botanical Gardens – the weather is beautiful to spend the night in the gardens with a legend

Ben Folds Five – Red Rocks – Ben Folds has been excellent live for decades, he gets better with age. Barenaked Ladies are playing as well. Eh.

Thursday, June 20
Bob Schneider – Bluebird – Austin’s dirtiest, sexiest showman, he’s a must see. Bring a date.

The Cold Hard Cash Show – Oriental – Johnny Cash tribute night at the remodeled (in the process) Oriental. I love this theatre, and it’s nice to see it sprucing up. They even painted the vintage sign!

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Radar Brothers and Ola Podrida – solid night, film composer plus some Austin friends and others make for a psychedelic, atmospheric night

Friday, June 21
MTHDS – Cervantes – Positive white boys and Hawaiian boy hip hop, quality people, quality originals

Tjutjuna and Snake Rattle Rattle Snake – Larimer – Tjutjuna makes great space rock, come see two of Denver’s best bands

Saturday, June 22
Westword Music Showcase – lots of good stuff, link to everything here: Westword Showcase Tickets and Schedule

Grieves – Bluebird – Rhymesayers star, I always love their shows, very positive crowds.

Monday, June 24
Jaill – Moe’s BBQ – loud awesome goodness: video

Phosphorescent adds Denver Show to their Tour

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They had a jam packed show at SXSW this year, and now Phosphorescent has added a dozen or so extra U.S. dates, including a Denver stop at Bluebird. Very atmospheric, dense, layered music, the crowd will probably be slowly swaying. This band is definitely made to see live, and I’m sure it will sell out, so get your tickets sooner rather than later!

TOUR DATES:
06/30/13 Mauntauk, NY- The Surf Lodge
07/13/13 Ottawa, ON- Ottawa Bluesfest
07/14/13 Burlington, VT- Signal Kitchen w/ Strand of Oaks
07/16/13 Columbus, OH- A&R Music Bar w/ Strand of Oaks
07/17/13 Cleveland, OH- Rock and Roll Hall of Fame and Museum w/ Strand of Oaks
07/18/13 Louisville, KY- Headliners w/ Strand of Oaks
07/20/13 Chicago, IL – Pitchfork Music Festival
07/25/13 Boston, MA- Bank of America Pavillion w/ Robert Plant
07/26/13 Newport, RI – Newport Folk Festival
07/27/13 Brooklyn, NY- Prospect Park Bandshell w/ Robert Plant
07/28/13 Camden, NJ – XPoNential Music Festival
08/09/13 Oslo, Norway – Oya Festival
08/10/13 Gothenburg, Sweden – Way Out West
08/15/13 Hasselt, Belgium – Pukkelpop 2013
08/16/13 Brecon Beacons, United Kingdom – Green Man Festival
09/14/13 Detroit, MI- St. Jerome’s Laneway Festival
09/15/13 Nashville, TN- 3rd & Lindsley
09/16/13 Carrboro, NC- Cats Cradle
09/17/13 Atlanta, GA- Terminal West
09/18/13 Birmingham, AL- Iron City
09/21/13 Columbia, MO- Roots and Blues BBQ Festival

09/22/13 Denver, CO- Bluebird Theatre

09/24/13 Boise, ID- Neurolux
09/25/13 Seattle, WA- Neptune
09/26/13 Portland, OR- Hawthorne Theatre
09/28/13 San Francisco, CA- The Fillmore
09/30/13 Pomona, CA- The Glass House
10/01/13 Los Angeles, CA- El Rey Theatre
10/04/13 Phoenix, AZ- The Crescent Ballroom
10/05-06/13 Austin, TX- Austin City Limits Festival
10/11-13/13 Austin, TX- Austin City Limits Festival

The excellent video for “Song For Zula”

Robin Thicke and Pharrell sure have a catchy new hit

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I used to be obsessed with Robin Thicke‘s first album,but as he got more R&B and soulful crooner, I backed away, not my thing. Everything Pharrell touches turns to gold, though, and the new single “Blurred Lines” is no exception. Great simple beat, no melisma, just straight up cool. WOW to the Youtube video having 49 million views, though! Never underestimate the power of “The Voice”. This track is what the new Justin Timberlake single should have sounded like, glad Thicke recorded it: Link to “Blurred Lines” video

LoHi Festival 2013 a Wild and Wonderful Neighborhood Celebration

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20130616-011213.jpg photo by leslie loudspeaker

I had no idea Kyle Hollingsworth was so fancy, check out the detailing on that jacket.

LoHi Festival was even stronger this year than last year! Even though it was pretty jam-packed with people, the logistics were wonderful, and a great mood was in the air. The day started out really, really hot. Too hot to really be hanging out on the asphalt. Eforquestra kicked things off with a bang though. I wasn’t expecting that much awesome organ at 1:00p.m.!

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Immediately following their set, Springdale Quartet started up on the smaller stage. I went into this festival pretty blind, and assumed they were bluegrass. Nope, pretty seering rock and roll, actually. The crowd that had seemed roomy before was now crowded together, but the staggering in the time of the sets worked well, no one was in a rush.

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Toubab Krewe was up next. Fantastic band, with interesting stringed instruments, they continuously played ever layered grooves This was only 3:00 p.m. and it was full and everyone was getting down. I love my neighborhood.

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After being out in the heat since the get go, I went home and took a breather. Which meant living around the corner from the OTHER Highlands Festival, very interesting trying to navigate two multi stage street festivals in a two mile radius. When I came back the weather was all nice, the sky was pink, and the whole place turned up a notch for Kyle Hollingsworth Bandwith Michael Kang from String Cheese Incident.

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All in all, the festival was a total success. Seemed like everyone in there was one degree of each other, I guess as to be expected in a block party! I even forgot my wristband when I came back for Kyle, and got me a VIP wristband. Thank you, everyone, it was great seeing all of you!

20130616-014447.jpg photo by leslie loudspeaker

Kanye West’s “Yeezus” Leaks, He Frantically Streams it on Youtube

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Kanye West did everything he could to keep his new album Yeezus from leaking early. MStarz News even wrote an article at just 11am describing the security and stating that it won’t be leaked, whoops:

“Though the record is only four days away from coming out, it shows no signs of leaking. According to Buzzfeed, West and co. have figured out a formula for keeping a hot record under wraps until release day.
West was purposefully discrete when recording Yeezus, opting for small studios in hotel rooms to keep everyone not involved in making the record out of the process. West also avoided storing his work on laptops, instead opting for password-protected external hard drives in locked briefcases.
Songs in production were never sent between West’s camp online. This is a famously insecure way to transfer works-in-progress, as West learned during the making of My Beautiful Dark Twisted Fantasy.
Post-production, West kept his album from being mastered until just this week, in order to keep it to himself for as long as possible.
After this process, CDs will be kept in a secure plant and shipped to large chains, where the sealed boxes are under constant video surveillance.”

Nine minutes later it leaked and exploded across the Internet, causing Kanye to quickly put it up on his youtube channel. So who leaked this thing? Someone in the studio where it was mastered, or someone driving the trucks or in the warehouse? I bet they are getting grilled! Guests on the album include Daft Punk, Frank Ocean, and Bon Iver’s Justin Vernon. Absent is the rumored Skrillex, boy oh boy, maybe that song was under super secret security. Oh who am I kidding, I’d probably love that collaboration, he drops “Alexander Wang” in his lyrics, pretty much all it takes for me!

Stream the new Yeezus album here

Finishing touches by the great Rick Rubin, who’s net worth I just found out is $400 Million. Mega props for being so successful while staying true to yourself and looking like birds live in your beard.

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LoHi Festival Tomorrow!!!

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LoHi Festival returns to the Highlands and LoHi again tomorrow, July 15th. The weather has been perfect the past couple years, it’s going to be a great day in the neighborhood! Acts include Kyle Hollingsworth Band featuring Michael Kang from String Cheese Incident, The New Mastersounds, Toubab Krewe (love, love, love), Tiger Party, and many more. I LOVE my neighborhood, come join us. Here is the link to buy tickets, make sure to get the tickets that include late night, catch Poor Man’s Whiskey playing Dark Side of the Moon with Allie Kral and others at Cervantes.

buy tickets here

Ladies, this is the festival to pull out cute hats, that Colorado sun sure gets bright! Here is a great look:

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Leather shorts, dotted tights, flat shoes, DIY hatband, this chick has it going on.

Rogue Wave at eTown Tonight!

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Tonight in Boulder, Rogue Wave will be at eTown Hall for a radio taping of their show. If you haven’t been to eTown you should definitely check it out. Gorgeous inside, great sound, and fun interviews with the band, plus Rogue Wave are so great. I used to listen to their song “Lake Michigan” video on repeat until I had to force myself to stop. Their new album just came out on June 4th, and after a few listens I am hooked, can’t wait to hear the new material live. Definitely hit up this show, it will be a completely unique experience.

Info regarding eTown and tickets: eTown website

20130613-171300.jpg photo by leslie loudspeaker

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Beth Gibbons of Portishead Recording New Album

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Beth Gibbons of the well loved band, Portishead is recording a new album with Domino Records, which she hasn’t done solo in 11 years. No word on when it is being released, but I guarantee it will be all sultry and sexy like.

Jamaican Queens – Band to Watch

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When I received Jamaican Queens album “Wormfood”, I honestly thought it was going to be a trio of Lauryn Hill soundalikes, and there is nothing wrong with that, but I was totally wrong and pleasantly surprised. This group from Detroit has a sound that mixes Flaming Lips, Passion Pit and Cat Power. The layered vocals, rap beats and synths give every song an epic, lush feel. Ultra-catchy, the opening song “Water” even has a 50’s tinged vocal part. It’s almost like a mashup, but using their own music and flowing smoothly. “Sharkteeth” is a beautiful acoustic that sounds like it would fit in an Edward Sharpe set. Their brand of odd pop is hard to describe, with influences such as Three 6 Mafia and Brian Eno. Just give them a listen:

Video for “Kids Get Away”

Video for “Water”

They are playing in Denver at Rhinoceropolis on June 26th. It’s $5 and I guarantee their ticket will never be that cheap again. I can see them opening at Red Rocks next summer.

Shows to See in Denver June 11-17

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20130611-112812.jpg photo by leslie loudspeaker

Shows To See in Denver, June 11-17

Tuesday, June 11

The Staves – Hi Dive – three pretty women singing prettily, like the Corrs, but cooler.

The Dandy Warhols – Gothic – one of my old favorites

Wednesday, June 12

Bonerama – Cervantes – saw them at the Festival of Water thinking they were a bunch of high school kids with a name like that. Nope, excellent New Orleans band with many trombones. They cover Led Zeppelin and get everyone dancing. I probably won’t be there because Cervantes smells like throw up.

Crystal Fighters/ Alpine – Larimer – was very impressed by Alpine at sxsw, and am excited to see Crystal Fighters since their new album. I love this video and song: Crystal Fighters – You and I

Thursday, June 13

Superhumanoids – Larimer – light pretty dancey prettiness, listen here: Hey Big Bang

Friday, June 14

The Orphans – Hi Dive – often acoustic punk, great for fans of Flogging Molly and other endearing punk bands that sound like they really like to drink: Anorexic Mind

Fitz and the Tantrums – Gothic – always a good time live, they have a new single they are promoting so it will be very high energy.

Amanda Palmer – Red Rocks – unbelievable singer writes THE most poignant and earnest story songs. I’ve blogged many times about “The Bed Song” being the most beautiful but uplifting song ever, here it is again (lol I cried just typing the song title into Google): The Most Tragically Beautiful Song in the World

Rastasaurus – Cervantes – great local band headlining for the first time!

Saturday, June 15

Everest – Larimer – these guys have toured with Neil Young, they definitely picked up some whistling tips. Just the slightly minimal rock sound I yearn for in the summer. Plus, I’m a total sucker for whistling (heeey Andrew Bird): Into the Grey

The Melvins – Summit Music Hall – grunge gods with two drummers, huge influence on Nirvana even though Kurt slagged them in the past, one of the drummers looks like he is wearing a Fishman dress. Go hear to blow out your eardrums: Civilized Worm

Monday, June 17

Generationals – Hi Dive – I LOVE this upbeat band, although I am biased because they’ve crashed at my house. This past year I couldn’t believe how many people were at their sxsw shows, they’ve definitely made the leap. I’ll be shooting this show for sure: Put a Light On , Ten Twenty Ten , Yours Forever . I could sit here linking videos all day, love every one of their songs.