In an admirable show of Christmas spirit, MP3 blog Stereogum has thoughtfully compiled a list of its top 50 downloaded tracks of the year. Even more thoughtfully, they’ve zipped all 50 of the files into one conveniently downloadable archive! Among the gems are a radical Diplo deconstruction/remix of Radiohead’s “Reckoner,”…
While year-end lists are predominantly the province of journalists and critics, everyone can get in the act at the holidays with a year-end mixtape. These capstone compilations serve a very different purpose from the mixtapes you’ve made for girlfriends, boyfriends, spouses and – best of all – unrequited loves. Consider a year-end mixtape your opportunity to tell your friends and family (and, sure, unrequited loves) what you think they should be listening to.
Over the next couple of weeks, Backbeat will feature some Top Ten lists from around the Village Voice Media chain. Click here for previous year-in-review coverage from Backbeat and VVM. Picking the best folk and Americana records of the year isn’t nearly as hard as discarding those great records that…
This year, we’ve wrapped our roundup of holiday albums a bit differently. Instead of delivering it to you in one big lump (like coal), we’re parceling out the reviews online, with a blog each weekday through December 24 devoted to recordings in a different category. Part five brings you “Christmas…
Steve Earl & the Bluegrass Dukes will be one of the many acts at next summer’s RockyGrass.Steve Earl & the Bluegrass Dukes, Hot Rize, Earl Scruggs, Del McCoury Band, Claire Lynch Band are among the many acts announced for the initial line-up for the 37th Annual RockyGrass festival, which will…
Amidst all the Christmas cheer, I’ve been feeling the need for something … brutal. As the days disappear while my task list remains unchanged, I need something intense and powerful to accompany me on my hectic holiday death march. Today, that thing is Nineteen A.D.D., a Denver band that comes…
Never let it be said that Denver artists sit by idly doing nothing while the world around them falters. Breathe Carolina (pictured above) is set to join this spring’s Take Action tour, along with Cute Is What We Aim For, Meg & Dia, Every Avenue and Anarbor. Take Action, in…
Just came across this item in the Las Vegas Weekly and it struck us as kind of funny: In a calendar listing for 3OH!3’s show in Sin City a few weekends ago, the alt-weekly referred to Boulder’s most renown wisenheimers as a “thrash metal group.” We’ve heard 3OH!3’s music described…
This year, we’ve wrapped our roundup of holiday albums a bit differently. Instead of delivering it to you in one big lump (like coal), we’re parceling out the reviews online, with a blog each weekday through December 24 devoted to recordings in a different category. Part four features “Variety Packs”…
Over the next couple of weeks, Backbeat will feature some Top Ten lists from around the Village Voice Media chain. Click here for previous year-in-review coverage from Backbeat and VVM. Any knucklehead with DSL and a laptop can now make an electronic track. With a half hour of clicking and…
One of the worst things you can do, in any part of your life, is get set in your ways and lose the willingness to revise your opinions, perspectives and beliefs. Dogmatism always stands in the way of growth and learning. As for me, I love being proven wrong.
get their asses completely handed to them? There’s a killer show at 3 Kings Tavern featuring the Fire Drills, Only Thunder, Eyes & Ears, the GetDown! and Spoke Shaver. Here’s the best part: Not only is it a sweet, sweet lineup, but it’s absolutely free, which, of course, only means you’ll have…
Update: The Jimmy Kimmel Live clip is posted after the jump. Isaac Slade (pictured above) and his bandmates in the Fray, who performed in the snow this past weekend at Vail’s Snow Daze, have revealed the track list for the band’s forthcoming self-titled album, which is due to be released here…
By now, hopefully you’ve had a chance to peruse this year’s Moovers & Shakers. A lot of great stuff released this year, yeah? Too much, in fact. There were more releases that moved us than we had space in the paper. Thank God for the web, eh? As promised, here’s…
Looks like props are due to Roe, who bested Fulcrum and the Epilogues — not to mention the countless other hopefuls who submitted music — to claim the honors as the winner of KTCL’s Hometown for the Holidays promo. In addition to enjoying numerous spins on the station for the…
This week, U2 threw its colleagues at Live Nation a curve when it unexpectedly — well, in this economy, it shouldn’t really come as too big a surprise — set about cashing in the 1.6 million shares it received as part of a 360 deal it signed with the entertainment…
Tonight is one of those nights you wish you could be multiple places at once. Over at the Bluebird, Hot IQs are hosting their combined video premier and record release party with Young Coyotes, the Chain Gang of 1974 and Team Firefox. (Stream both songs from the 7-inch and view…
Every year, as I finish up my mandatory end-of-year lists I’m struck by the fact that each year, some of my most interesting, influential and important musical experiences find themselves homeless, unlisted and unknown. Everyone wants to know the top releases of the year, top shows and similar, obvious categories…
Tonight at Beta, longtime Colorado scene stalwarts Mother Earth Sound System will be taking over the Beatport Lounge and featuring the techno stylings of Sector 7 (pictured) for your listening and dancing pleasure. What’s that you say? You aren’t familiar with Sector 7? You need a primer to be brought…
If you’re not doing anything on Sunday night, the Basementalism crew are hosting a Christmas party at Herb’s Hideout (2057 Larimer St.) probably starting around 9 p.m. The party, which is being thrown by the LIFEHouse squad, is celebrating Colorado MC who have performed at the monthly “Everybody Eats” hip-hop…
Over the next couple of weeks, Backbeat will feature some Top Ten lists from around the Village Voice Media chain. Click here for previous year-in-review coverage from Backbeat and VVM. Hip-hop A-listers including Rick Ross, Akon and Plies were caught grossly exaggerating their gangster credentials this year. (Turns out they…
This year, we’ve wrapped our roundup of holiday albums a bit differently. Instead of delivering it to you in one big lump (like coal), we’re parceling out the reviews online, with a blog each weekday through December 24 devoted to recordings in a different category. Part three is titled “Jazz…
