SUN | GUITAR WOLF at MARQUIS THEATER | 10/6/13 Founded in the Harajuku district of Tokyo in 1987, Guitar Wolf was inspired in part by guitarist Seiji’s encounter with Link Wray’s monumental classic, “Rumble.” Hashing together bits of old time rock and roll with punk, garage rock and noise, Guitar…
SAT | DENVER JAZZFEST at NATIONAL WESTERN | 10/5/13 The inaugural Denver Jazz Fest includes contemporary jazz stars like keyboardist Brian Culbertson, Hiroshima, who formed almost three decades ago, Horns of Plenty (featuring saxophonist Darren Rahn and flutist Althea Rene) as well as R&B singer Kenny Lattimore and the legendary…
PETER HOOK & THE LIGHT @ GOTHIC THEATRE | 9/28/12 Peter Hook’s 33-song set at the Gothic was split into three distinct sections representing three periods of his early career as a musician. The first set was comprised of Joy Division songs and not really everything expected. Beginning with the…
FRI | LOTUS at RED ROCKS | 10/4/13 The jazzy electronic quintet Lotus, known for its precisely timed improvisations during live shows, is celebrating its fourteenth year together. From incorporating video-game music to performing David Bowie tribute shows and playing Black Sabbath covers, Lotus has figured out how to evolve…
The Goldrush Music Festival is going down this weekend at the Sidewinder and Crash 45. The festival, now in its third year, features an array of renown acts from the experimental music world, including Rene Hell, Scammers, MV&EE, Caddywhompus and Noveller, among others. Aside from its innovative music programming, there’s…
Noveller is the solo project of Sarah Lipstate, who had previously been in an experimental rock band from Austin called One Umbrella before she moved to Brooklyn to pursue music more fully. Upon moving to New York, she ended up joining Parts & Labor and played on that outfit’s critically…
FRI & SAT | BIG GIGANTIC at FILLMORE / RED ROCKS | 9/27-9/28 When Big Gigantic played Red Rocks last year, the feeling of hometown pride was unmistakable. As the act went into “Colorado Mountain High,” a giant projection of the state flag draped the rocks, and the crowd went…
MANO LE TOUGH @ NORAD | SAT, 9/28/13 Mano Le Tough is a Berlin-based artist whose output ranges from sweeping, atmospheric house soundscapes to a more minimalist slant on the techno side of things, with mechanical beats and melodies that evoke what you might hear if robots could write melancholy…
It’s probably the most unhappy I’ve ever been as an adult,” says Dan Aid, frontman for the Wiredogs, the band previously known as the Hate. He’s referring to the group’s name change, a stressful process that involved wading through hundreds of possibilities. “The reason for the name change was mostly…
It’s been a stellar year so far for Dusky, the London-based duo that’s blowing up right now with a garage-house sound mastered in the act’s native stamping grounds. Alfie Granger-Howell and Nick Harriman, the pair who make up Dusky, are just as comfortable inside the studio as out; they’ve had…
“You can cut your wrist wide open and bleed out all of your miseries,” sings Lil Thunder’s Marie Litton on “Serpent and the Rainbow,” the rousing opener to Razor Blades & Sunshine, the followup to the band’s self-titled debut EP, released in 2011. It’s just one of many poignant lines…
When Havok emerged in the middle part of the 2000s, its members were already prodigious players. Still in high school, the dudes were accomplished enough to expertly channel the finest moments of Metallica’s classic era, which is how they first gained notice around here. Since then, of course, they’ve attracted…
Total Ghost appears to be having some existential despair. “We have made love with over 37 different space genders/We have raised glasses of moon champagne with foreign dignitaries/We have snorted asteroid dust off the boobies of space prostitutes/And we realized: Something is missing.” The sophomore release from this Euro-trash duo…
“So You Go Along,” the opening track on Varlet’s new album, American Hymns, sounds deceptively like something out of a 1970s musical, only the textures are richer and the lyrics darker. And that’s a perfect image for this album, a project on which Lily Scott indulges her inner jazz-and-blues singer,…
Update, 9/25/13: Todd Park Mohr of Big Head Todd has been added to the lineup for this Friday’s flood relief benefit at Swallow Hill. Complete information listed below. Although the heavy rains that soaked the Front Range have stopped and the floodwaters have begun to recede, as with any natural…
Being a rock star is clearly overrated. While the romanticized version might have you think it’s all-night parties with all-you-can-eat pizza, followed by decadent, diabetic-coma-worthy binges on hot fudge speedballs, when you pull back the curtain, the sanitized, actualized version appears closer to a Sunday-school potluck with ho-hum, cold-cut catering,…
It’s been a stellar year so far for Dusky, the London-based duo that’s blowing up right now with a garage-house sound they mastered in their native stamping grounds. Alfie Granger-Howell and Nick Harriman, the pair who make up Dusky, have had their tracks spun by such notables as Pete Tong…
Update, 9/24/13: If you haven’t heard yet, this special screening of U2’s Under a Blood Red Sky has been canceled. According to the Denver Film Society, after conferring with the Feys, it was determined that any fundraising efforts would be better directed to raising funds for flood victims. All credit…
FURTHUR at RED ROCKS | NIGHT FOUR | 9/22/13 Last night marked the final show of Furthur’s annual four-day Red Rocks run, and Mother Nature continued playing a prominent role as dark rain clouds quickly moved by on the horizon. Luckily, everyone came prepared for the worst, and for very…
There was many magnificent manes at Riot Fest Denver this past weekend. We sent Eric Gruneisen out roaming the grounds in search of the most stunning locks, and he came across a wide variety of colorful hairstyles, from vibrant candy-colored ‘dos to mohawks a plenty. Keep reading to see the…
There was some beautiful body ink at Riot Fest Denver this past weekend. We sent one of our resident shutterbugs, Eric Gruneisen, out roaming the grounds in search of the freshest ink, and he came across a wide variety of colorful adornments, including some musically themed art, a couple guitars…
FURTHUR at RED ROCKS | NIGHT THREE | 9/21/13 Furthur’s third show at Red Rocks had two special guests — a monster Harvest Moon that was even bigger than the night before and an hour-long fireworks display in the background. The venue filled up much faster on this night than…
