Preview: WinterWonderGrass Festival 2.21

Preview: WinterWonderGrass Festival 2.21 - 2.23.14

Harry A. Nottingham Park
Avon, CO

Words & Photos By Nicholas Stock

Some musical opportunities are so unique that they must be snatched up so that they are not lost to the what could have been. WinterWonderGrass is one of those opportunities. This is an outdoor festival, taking place in Nottingham Park in Avon, Colorado in the middle of February. This state is no stranger to outdoor cold weather events, but it’s a rarity to have a three-day festival at an elevation of 7,431 feet during the chilliest time of the year. That being said, WinterWonderGrass is a beer and bluegrass festival in the heart of the Rockies with a 360-degree view of the mountains. Being surrounded by natural beauty is one thing, but the lineup is absolutely insane. In just their second year, WinterWonderGrass has managed to truly step it up with a strong outing this time around. Their bill is anchored by the combination of Greensky Bluegrass with Sam Bush and Leftover Salmon. Here is the full run down of the artists:

Greensky Bluegrass feat. Sam Bush, Leftover Salmon, The Infamous Stringdusters, Elephant Revival, Head For The Hills, Nicki Bluhm and The Gramblers, Scott Law, Tyler Grant, Milkdrive, Fruition, Whitewater Ramble, Wintergrass House Band, Dead Winter Carpenters, Gipsy Moon, The Old Town Pickers

This is obviously a bold string filled schedule with lots of well-loved musicians. Colorado is a bastion for bluegrass with both Telluride Bluegrass and Rockygrass calling this great state home. WWG has brilliantly thrown their hat into the ring. It’s as if they are saying our love of that banjo twang is not limited to the summer months. In all honesty this is a solid addition to the musical offerings of the Rocky Mountain Region. By combining both local and nationally touring acts, they’ve really built something solid.

WinterWonderGrass goes from around 3:00 PM to 10:00 PM on February 21-23, giving music lovers ample time to hit the slopes or just relax. There are three stages with two being located in the Beer Halls. There will also be a Kid’s Tent on site. The late night offerings are great as well with plenty of opportunities for collaboration. Not to mention the massive array of microbrews that will be available to sample each day for three hours. In fact your ticket comes with a stainless steel Kleen Kanteen mug to use for your beverage tasting. This also helps their green initiatives. The heated brew tents will be hosted by Crazy Horse Brewing and Great Divide, however, there will be a myriad of other beers to try including offerings from Odell’s, Upslope, Bonfire Brewing, Oskar Blues and many more. The beer will flow from 3:00 PM to 6:00 PM with the bar taking over afterwards.

WinterWonderGrass is also offering a VIP option with access to the side stage viewing areas, free food and a custom laminate. For ticketing information and complete details about WWG check out their site. Stay tuned to MusicMarauders for our coverage as well as some live pics from the festival!

www.winterwondergrass.com

Livetronica Sampler 3.22.11

Words by Greg Molitor ( ReMIND Photography ) Ozric Tentacles This British group has proven innovative throughout the years offering a space-rock meets psytrance sound that remains alive to this day. Though never having a major record label, Ozric Tentacles has produced 28 albums of diverse psychedelia throughout its career. The band met at the Stonehenge Free Festival in 1983 and truly fathered livetronica music with its use of sequencers and synthesizers. Simply put, there would be no livetronica without Ozric Tentacles. www.ozrics.com Octopus Nebula Colorado’s Octopus Nebula has certainly hit its stride as of late with its constant touring and increased festival interest. The group expands on the deep sounds of highly regarded acts such as STS9 and Shpongle but also carves a path of its own with its fresh takes on synthesizer tones and sampling in the live setting. Octopus Nebula Live at Cervantes' Masterpiece Ballroom on March 26, 2010. <--- Direct Archive Link www.octopus

Buckethead: Gimmick or Guitar God?

Words & Photos By Nicholas Stock ( phatphlogblog.blogspot.com ) At what point does the gimmick overshadow the performance? The obvious answer is Buckethead. The man is an amazing guitarist but something is not right in this world. The idea a performer who dons a KFC chicken bucket on his head for a concert has always intrigued me, and some of his side projects such as Colonel Claypool’s Bernie Bucket of Brains have been huge successes. However his performance last weekend in Fort Collins simply left me perplexed. From his robotic dancing, to his nunchuck display, to the fact the he performed with an iPod rather than a band all added to my confusion. Going into the show I was ready to be blown away, despite rumblings of disgruntled fans from the previous night’s show at The Gothic. Buckethead had had some sound issues and some missed cues in Denver but I was still trying to be positive for the show in Fort Collins. It did go off without a hitch technically but that was the least

The Origin of MusicMarauders

Words By J-man "What should I name this fucking thing?" I asked myself in the midst of a joint in my Upstate, NY apartment. "It's got to be something with just 'Music'in the title. Nothing more specific than that, as we'll be covering a wide variety of genres." One more drag on the joint yielded the memory of driving down Woodward Ave. in Detroit, listening to Tribe Called Quest's Midnight Marauders. "MusicMarauders! That's it... It completely encompasses what we do in the sense the we are 'maraudering' or 'pillaging' for music," I thought as I stared out of the window at about three and a half feet of fresh Upstate snow. First things first, the domain had to be registered. "Do I have ten dollars in my account?" I thought to myself from a position of just scraping by. Pulling out my shiny, rarely used debit card, I put it to the test and was able to secure MusicMarauders.com. "What's next?" I

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