Concerts

So it turns out Justin Bieber does have a purpose after all (well, a purpose beyond being annoying and giving pre-pubescent girls their first crush object). A musician by the name of Nick Pittsinger took Bieber’s “U Smile,” slowed it down 800 percent as a joke and inadvertently created a…

RUSH 8.16.10 | Red Rocks Amphitheater It’s taken more than three decades for Rush to refine its approach to stadium rock, and the long gestation period has paid off. The Canadian trio’s three-hour set at Red Rocks Monday night showed just how carefully the band has constructed its approach to…

Hey there. How’s your day going so far? Productive? That’s good, because your entire afternoon is about to get wasted. Here’s why:Instant JamA free-to-play music-and-rhythm game for Facebook has just entered its beta — and provided you’re not on a Mac, you can start toying around with it now. Farmville,…

Little did the guys from the Knew know when they picked up a trio of pinatas on Federal this past Friday for their show at the Mile High Music Festival this past weekend that they’d be such a hit. In anticipation of their early afternoon set on the Bison Stage,…

Surely you’ve heard about this by now: Over the weekend, it seems, Tila Tequila narrowly escaped what sounds like an absolutely harrowing ordeal at the 11th Annual Gathering of Juggalos, in which she sustained cuts and bruises to her face and person from being pelted with everything from “beer cans,…

Another Mile High Music Festival is in the books. Weather was ideal, parking was a breeze, and there were plenty of memorable moments at this year’s fest, from Rivers Cuomo wandering through the crowd during Weezer’s set to Z-Trip throwing down a Colorado-centric version of “California Love” to Cypress Hill…

My Morning Jacket opened up its set with “Tonight I Want To Celebrate With You” and followed that up with “Gideon” and then “Anytime and “Magheeta.” Jim James wove gorgeous guitar lines while jamming in and out of songs, meandering from place to place. The outfit played “Golden,” faded drum…

Weezer, 6:45 p.m. on the Wolf Stage A piercing series of guitar lines, the push of a pounding drum line and synchronized singing syllables lent an epic feel to the beginning of Weezer’s set. As soon as Rivers Cuomo and company took the stage, it seemed the band was working…

As I crossed the festival grounds toward the Bison tent, where BoomBox was scheduled, I caught strains of Matt Morris and his amazing voice, and Ozomatli getting their reggae-style funk on. I reached my destination just as BoomBox took the stage and immediately knew I was in for a good…

Train brought back the alterna-ballad ’90s (acknowledging that most of the band’s output has taken place within the last ten years, I still think the band sounds more like the Goo Goo Dolls or Counting Crows than anything much that’s happening now) with a set that left heartfelt emotion to…

Jimmy Cliff, 3:45 p.m. on the Kyocera Main Stage Jimmy Cliff and his band delivered all of the expected musical components within the first strains of their hour-plus set. The godfather of roots reggae and his ensemble set down a set composed of syncopated beats, choppy 2/2 guitar accompaniment and…

When I interviewed him a few weeks ago in advance of his appearance here, Raul Pacheco, guitarist for Ozomatli, told me he wanted to invite audience members to bring instruments and join the band to jam onstage — and while the band didn’t entirely deliver on that promise (I’m guessing…

Colorado is a pretty progressive state when it comes to smoking marijuana. There are hundreds of medical marijuana dispensaries centers that will sell the kush to anyone with the money and a doctor’s note. But with the swarms of cops and security roving the grounds of Dick’s Sporting Goods Park…

My first stop was the Wolf stage, where Danielle Ate the Sandwich was parked, being all adorably quirky — as she does so well. She was playing “Bad Romance” and then lead into “Canada,” the simple harmonies and clean uke and violin lines offering a refreshing foil to Jack Johnson…

We’re live here at Mile High Music Festival at Dick’s Sporting Goods Park on day two of the third-annual music festival. Photographer Brian Landis Folkins brings back these photos from the early sets of the day. So if you got here late, check out what you missed…

John Common and the Blinding Flashes of Light, 1:15 p.m. on the Cougar Stage John Common and the Blinding Flashes of Light didn’t let the early hour or the high temperatures derail their sense of decorum. The band emerged for their early afternoon set decked in suits and dress wear,…

The Steve Miller Band took the main stage and immediately kicked into “Jet Airliner,” followed by “Take the Money and Run” and “Mercury Blues.” The applause seemed more polite than enthusiastic. They packed song after song into the set, hitting “Swingtown,” “Ooh Poo Pah Doo” off the latest album (Bingo),…

It’s more than likely that people came out to see Cypress Hill to hear the old hits, and B-Real and Sen Dog did not fail to deliver, keeping them copious and starting in with them early in the set; they were doing “Dr. Greenthumb” when I walked up, and my…

The crowd didn’t seem to mind Phoenix’s simple and straight-ahead approach during its 6:45 p.m. set in the Bison Tent at Mile High Music Festival. The Paris-based band have built a loyal commercial following in the United States during the past year sticking to the basics. It’s an approach that…

Cypress Hill, 4:45 p.m. on the Wolf Stage I walked straight in the clouds of smoke and the packs of dancing 20-somethings as the first strains of “Insane in the Brain” sounded from the Wolf Stage. I should probably clarify that — by “strains,” I mean I heard B-Real loudly…

All photos by Aaron Thackeray, shot on Saturday afternoon at Mile High Music Festival…