The Loudwire Music Festival, named for the rock site of the same name, will launch next June in Grand Junction. Linkin Park will headline, and promoter Townsquare Media, which also owns Loudwire, promises a lineup featuring “all genres of rock — hard, classic, alternative, metal and indie.” See also: 25…
Woody GuthrieLike it or not, Pharell Williams’ “Happy” is likely to be the top-selling single of 2014. And, yes, its buoyant ’60s soul vibe and simple, positive message is modern pop perfection. But scanning the rest of this year’s biggest hits, one is struck by a consistent theme: All of…
Last week we brought you the news that a bust of John Denver, on loan to the Colorado Music Hall of Fame by the legendary singer’s estate, had been stolen from the 1STBANK Center. When security at the venue realized the bust was missing, they filed a report with the…
While traveling from Denver to Texas a few weeks ago, I could not stop listening to Mutiny on the Bay, the searing collection of ’80s Dead Kennedys performances released in 2001; East Bay Ray, it occurred to me, is one of the most underrated guitarists in the history of rock…
For the past few months, we’ve been working on a comic strip story here and in the pages of Westword titled “Rufus Baxter: The Oldest Unknown Rock Star.” The story took a leap forward with the full-page installment found in this week’s issue of the newspaper, and when it is…
As Banshee Tree, Kalyn Pembridge and Thomas LaFond make a surprisingly original and enticing mix of gypsy jazz, folk pop and swing. They moved to Colorado from upstate New York four years ago, and can be seen seemingly every night of the week along the Front Range, playing a mix…
One of Boulder’s most promising new art spaces is Dead Leaf, founded by Tom Abraham and Colin Wilcox. Abraham is soft-spoken, every careful word seeming to come from an organized mind that, in the case of setting up events at Dead Leaf, is focused on smoothness and detail. In contrast,…
This weekend, the hi-dive is celebrating eleven years of existence, with two years under its current ownership. When the club opened for business in the old location of 7 South and Quixote’s True Blue, it represented a sea change in places where one could see original, underground music. In its…
[jump] Editor’s note: Each week, illustrator Noah Van Sciver shares his ongoing story of an ’80s rocker on a road trip through his past with the readers of Backbeat. You can see more of Van Sciver’s work in his new book YOUTH IS WASTED. Last Week’s Episode Of Rufus Baxter…
As part of the 25th anniversary of his Keepin’ It Country Tour, Alan Jackson headlines Red Rocks on Sunday, May 17 with Jon Pardi and Brandy Clark opening the show. Tickets ($25-$79.50) go on sale on Friday, November 7 at 10 a.m. OK Go, who just released another insanely inventive…
Colorado is a pretty great place to be a music fan. Denver has more music venues than Austin, and several of them are among the busiest in the world. People living here spend twice as much as the national average on music. The local scene is experiencing unprecedented success. All…
The tone for DeVotchKa’s annual Halloween celebration was set as soon as I walked into the Boulder Theater behind a tall man with a tall, faux-bug-light apparatus attached to his head. The Boulder Theater has a capacity of 850, a far cry from the 9,500 that can fit into Red…
Taylor Swift is in the midst of the best album sales week of any artist since, well, Taylor Swift the last time she released an album. 1989 is currently blowing past one million copies sold, which would be incredible even if album sales weren’t completely in shambles. And today, our…
Before Adrian Belew, who’s due at the Boulder Theater on Tuesday, November 4, performed and recorded with King Crimson, David Bowie and the Talking Heads, Nine Inch Nails and a slew of other artists, the adventurous guitarist spent a year working with Frank Zappa. Belew sees that year between 1977…
On Halloween night, Lucinda Williams cut into the core of her songs, performing a bare-bones acoustic set at Twist and Shout and offering a preview of her appearance tonight at the Ogden Theatre. Upon entering, fans were given the option of purchasing her excellent new album, Down Where The Spirit…
Happy Halloween! Let’s celebrate with a list of the six best cameos from creepy children in song. By Ryan Wasoba See also: The Eighteen Best Concerts in Denver This Halloween Weekend…
Holy moly. We didn’t even list all the interesting shows going on tonight, because you have to draw the line somewhere. And Bob Dylan is in town tomorrow! OK, right to it: See also: The Costume-Based Guide to This Year’s Halloween Concerts in Denver…
If you’re the kind of Coloradoan who enjoys listening to Big Head Todd and the Monsters while drinking hard alcohol, perhaps at the band’s annual Red Rocks show, then their is something new you should put at the top of your holiday shopping list — Colorado Sun ‘Shine. See also:…
Youth On Record, a Denver non-profit focused on music education, was recognized Monday night in DC during the Future of Music Coalition Honors Dinner. The FMC Honors award “celebrates pioneers who have made meaningful contributions to the music community.” See also: Flobots.org Break Ground on $2.75 million Youth Media Studio…
Update: And we have a winner! Thanks for playing. Stay safe and warm out there. We’re down to the wire, people: Halloween, which falls on a Friday this year, is only two days away. Personally, I can tell you my costume idea is not working out, but maybe you are…
You may want to include Lipgloss at Beauty Bar in your Halloween plans this Friday for a DJ set with Cold Cave’s Wesley Eisold. It’s a fitting guest for the venerable party: while what often passes for goth today is very far removed from the music and subculture that laid…
Recess Monkey: Bad for KidsIn Washington State, where I live, marijuana is legal and sold in special stores. This poses an interesting quandary for parents. Do you: (A) raise pot in the vein of beer when discussing it with your children, or (B) embrace the federal standard and advise that…
