Concerts

Party-obsessed rocker Andrew W.K. and bargain-obsessed actor William Shatner are both going to be in Denver on the same night, March 20. Let that soak into your cerebellum for a second. Do you drop acid and let James motherfucking Kirk expand your mind? Or do you soak your noggin in…

We were the band that our first show was sold out,” notes Patrick Riley about the live debut of his group, Tennis. “From the start, it was like being thrown into the fire.” Riley clearly has a firm grasp of how fortunate his band has been after getting early encouragement…

For the past three decades, the space at 2265 West 84th Avenue has held various incarnations of Babe’s: Babe’s on the Hill, Babe’s Country, House of Babes and, most recently, Babe’s Restaurant and Lounge. But the Babe’s brand — which drew a sometimes dicey clientele — was finally put to…

Nelson Echeverry may have cut his teeth on some strain of punk rock when he was a teenager, but when he connected with the merry band of indie-pop pranksters in The Haircut, his natural inclination for Fall-esque guitar experimentation jelled perfectly with Magee Headley’s spirited vocal delivery. Even with Doris…

In support of his most recent effort, X-Rated, Excision, one of the dubstep world’s latest kingpins, will show the Mile High City just how our neighbors to the north like to party. The DJ (known legally and to his mom as Jeff Abel) hails from British Columbia, and has found…

Wale has come a long way from the enthusiastic bounce-rap style that introduced him to the masses. A determined new signee to Maybach Music Group, the Washington, D.C., native sharpened his vernacular and defined his appeal with the release of his widely respected 2011 album, Ambition. He struck gold with…

As a rapper, gem-sweater museum curator, children’s television-show star and overall Internet phenom, Leslie Hall covers quite a few bases. But when flanked by her crew, the LYs, the Iowa-bred diva becomes an audience-commanding, plus-sized powerhouse, unfurling tales of Maury Povich not-the-fathers, minivan rides to the club and other facets…

The members of Portland’s Toxic Holocaust can send a bit of a mixed message when they first come out on stage, because frontman Joel Grind looks like he walked right out of Los Angeles circa 1985. As soon as he and the rest of the band start playing, though, it’s…

In the theological canon, there’s probably no sect quite as unwaveringly dour as Calvinism. Predicated mostly on the idea that human beings are fundamentally bad, Calvinism sums up its doctrine with five main points: total depravity, unconditional election, limited atonement, irresistible grace and perseverance of the saints. Just the fact…

Bad Weather California’s latest, Sunkissed, is a multifaceted treasure of new influences and euphoric production that will serve Denver well through the late-night summer parties to come. Recorded in Detroit with Seth Olinsky of Akron/Family, Sunkissed is clean and expertly structured. From the “Ballroom Blitz”-y rockabilly energy of “Skate or…

Pries is known for writing catchy hooks that drive his pop-style production with ease. For No Glue 2, though, he focuses more on vibrancy in his verses and brings a more polished, grown-up production style. On the track “Venetian Lobby,” the vocals of J. Carey weave through the silky beat…

Percussionist duo (and husband-and-wife team) Gilly Gonzalez and Lisa Wimberger have done it again with their latest offering, the seven-track Billowing Spires, which was recorded live at Lumonics Light & Sound Gallery this past December. Throat singer Matthew Kocel and vocalist Beth Quist are both featured in the set, and…

This album does not aim for a single aesthetic. The jazz pop and AutoTuned vocals of “Fuck Hugh, Grant” contrast immediately with the IDM-flavored “There’s a Griffin at the Door” and the fractured playfulness of “The Hippo on Campus.” Although the bad puns end after the fourth track, the group’s…

The Foodchain released Brunch last November and has been on a steady pace ever since. With its collection of musical all-stars, the Foodchain is more than a crew; it’s a conglomerate. Consisting of a complete live band, four monster MCs and two of the hottest sample-chopping, heat-making producers out there,…

DJ Krush (aka Hideaki Ishi) was once yakuza (yes, a member of the Japanese organized-crime powerhouse). But that was before he saw the film Wild Style in the early 1980s and was taken in by the hip-hop stylings depicted in the Charlie Ahearn flick. Krush decided at that point that…

Trying to think with structure about an artist like Whitney Houston’s ability to influence the entire world is as difficult as trying to squeeze your head in a jar. Her voice had a soaring power that transcended pop appeal and packed the gusto of an entire gospel choir. Houston’s contributions…

Okay, admittedly, this is a bit outside of the Backbeat wheelhouse, but we spied it at a music-related event (the Colorado Music Hall of Fame induction ceremonial dinner, which was fab, by the way, in case you haven’t heard), and that sort of counts, right?…

Update (2/24/12): Barry Fey video montage added below. All is right with the universe this morning. We have a pair of Grammy winners in our midst, and as it should be, Harry Tuft and Barry Fey are now officially part of the Colorado Music Hall of Fame. While we didn’t…