In recent years, major U.S. labels haven’t figured out how to sell dance music — and Interscope’s experience with Simian Mobile Disco won’t convince many imprints to take another shot. SMD, an English duo made up of Jas Shaw and James Ford, a producer who’s overseen projects by Klaxons and…
Syd Barrett and Carly Simon never had much in common — that is, until last month, when Trashcan Sinatras released their fifth full-length, In the Music. On the disc, the veteran Scottish indie-rock group included the single “Oranges and Apples,” a tenderly strummed tribute to the late Pink Floyd founder,…
Gomez has always been something of an anomaly in the world of non-mainstream music — partly because its layered pop songs are immediately accessible to a wide audience and partly because the band never followed any big trends in music. While this has resulted in a bit of a roller-coaster…
Anyone trying to make challenging music that pushes the boundaries of what can still be considered music is going to have to do more than just hash together established genres. That’s what makes New York’s Drunkdriver stand out. Not only does this band piece together elements of punk, noise and…
Leather, lawsuits, on-stage motorcycle accidents, the infamous Heavy Metal Parking Lot documentary and frontman Rob Halford’s homosexuality have often overshadowed the music of Judas Priest. But since releasing its 1974 debut, Rocka Rolla, the group has proven to be among the most innovative and influential bunch of dudes to ever…
The members of Arcanium are technically skilled and plenty passionate — but when it comes to distinctiveness and originality, they’ve still got a ways to go. Most of the cuts here use a template exemplified by “Trapped in the Niche” and “The Knife”: The vocals of frontman Sinn and backing…
You want the rock? The Outta Controllers bring the rock. All kinds — garage, metal, punk, maybe even a little bit of post-punk and hardcore. And while this omnivorous appreciation of all things loud and fast is both admirable and functional, a little bit of focus could go a long…
Few rock compilations anymore come with mission statements. But Fivecore Records’ Mile High Low Life isn’t afraid to wear its puke on its collar: The disc full of Denver punk was recorded in ten-hour bursts by engineer Bart McCrorey at his Motaland Productions and includes a few paragraphs outlining the…
For the most part, the weather in New York is made up of extremes. But for Denver-based bassist Lelah Simon, who studied at the New School with legendary jazz bassists Buster Williams and Reggie Workman, there were two times a year when the weather in New York was perfect —…
If you’re getting tired of that inescapable electro house sound, consider checking out D. Ramirez. This English DJ was an early champion of the now-ubiquitous style, but he’s since abandoned it for a deeper, more subtle approach that exists at the juncture of deep house and techno, with a splash…
July 13 is the first day off for Breathe Carolina bandmates Kyle Evans and David Schmitt since they hopped aboard the pop-punk juggernaut known as the Warped Tour, and they’re determined to enjoy it. So they’ve headed to Delaware’s Dewey Beach for an afternoon of Jet-Skiing, little knowing that their…
The term “jam band” usually refers more to the fans than the music itself. The Dancin’ in the Streets festival was conceived with that sentiment in mind. The event, which is being presented by Jay Bianchi, a pioneer and supporter of all things jam in the Mile High City for…
The Knux is made up of brothers Kentrell and Alvin Lindsey, who go by the nom de tunes of Krispy Kream and Rah Almillio, respectively. The siblings moved to L.A. after Hurricane Katrina destroyed their childhood home in New Orleans. When they were kids, their mom made them join marching…
The Houses’ approach to music may be “more is more” (aren’t there like forty of them in the band?) but their approach to design is definitely “less is more” and it results in some striking, beautiful design work such as this flier for the group’s Summer EP release at the…
Denver singer-songwriter Rachael Pollard has (thankfully) had more than her allotted fifteen minutes of fame around town over the past few years. But what the heck, here’s another fifteen seconds: In a report that aired yesterday on CBS4 News concerning the city’s proposed trash-collection fee, Pollard — identified by the…
Congratulations are due to the fine young men of the Epilogues. For the second year in a row, the band is one of the winners of the Ernie Ball battle of the bands, earning them a coveted slot on that stage for this Sunday’s Warped Tour date at Invesco. The…
Plans for the Who’s next tour might still be up in the air, but frontman Roger Daltrey has decided to hit the road to keep his pipes in shape on his “Use It or Lose It Tour,” his first solo outing since 1985, which includes a stop at the Paramount…
Update: Download the Diamond Boiz mixtape after the jump. Get it before it’s gone!Original post 3/06/09: When the Diamond Boiz emerged on the local scene a while back, they were a young, amateurish collective with a raw energy that needed honing. But within the last year, the crew, which consists…
Props to 3OH!3. Adding to its global ubiquity, the Boulder-based act was nominated as Best New Artist at this year’s MTV Video Music Awards. From the looks of it, the hooligans from the People’s Republic have a viable shot of taking home honors, as the competition doesn’t seem to be…
Update: Full schedule for all three days posted after the jump.Original Post (07/08/09): All right, just when you think we’ve reached critical mass in terms of summer music festivals comes word of yet another brand new one. This one’s totally worth checking out if you’re a dyed-in-the-wool, unapologetic jam band…
In case you’ve been wondering where Flobots have been for the past six months or so, we’ve got the drop: Apparently, besides cropping up periodically at various events across town such as the Westword Music Showcase this past summer and attending to the launch of their non-profit Flobots.org, headquartered in…
Sonic Youth Friday, July 31, 2009Ogden TheatreThree songs into Sonic Youth’s muscular set, Kim Gordon sang, “I want you to levitate me/Don’t you love me yet?” during “Sacred Trixter.” Although her feet might have still been on the ground, those first three songs, which also included the opener “Stereo Sanctity”…
