MUSICMARAUDERS

Cervantes Other Side Denver, CO Words by Derek Miles ( Miles Photography ) Photos by Charla Harvey I was surprised but not entirely shocked by the plentiful early crowd at The Other Side of Cervantes on Friday night. The room was filling up quick not long after “doors” and so was the excitement in anticipation of Vulfpeck’s featured members, Cory Wong and Antwaun Stanley to take the stage, as well as the newly formed funk super group Matador! Soul Sounds to follow. House lights faded and Cory Wong’s band humbly sauntered over to their instruments; Petar Janjic sat at the right side of the drum set while Steve Goold was to the left half of the kit (an inventive tandem setup). Kevin Macintire saddled his bass around his neck and Kevin Gasonguay approached the keyboards. The band kicked things off with a tight, mid-tempo funk groove with plenty of backbeat and rock solid bass thump. A few minutes of vamping and Cory runs onto the stage with enthusiasm and a smile - seemingly ou...

Agave Avon, CO Photos by Scott Seifert Photography View Scott's Full Photo Gallery Here! www.rooseveltthedr.com

Words by Brad Yeakel ( Opti Mystic Outlooks ) As a long time fan of the String Cheese Incident, Kyle Hollingsworth’s keyboards have accompanied a large swath of the soundtrack of my life. His latest album, 50 was recently released for the occasion of Hollingsworth’s 50th Birthday. A reminder that neither of us are getting any younger. His appearance, energy, and playing seem youthful, and I was actually a little surprised by the fact that he was born 5 decades ago. The album is framed between tunes called “Onset,” and “Offset.” The former leads in like a stream of consciousness, setting the tone for an album that feels familiar and personal. The accompanying tracks followed like a career retrospective. I consider Kyle one of the best keyboardists I’ve seen tickle the ivories, but have become progressively less impressed with his songwriting. Not that his songs aren’t catchy, musical, or substantive, but it seems he has regurgitated the same songs in a dozen different ways. With...

Showbox SoDo Seattle, WA Photos by Eric Willacker ( Willacker Photography ) View Eric's Full Photo Gallery Here! www.georgeclinton.com www.missvelvetandthebluewolf.com

Pacific Northwest Words by Maximo Menchaca Photos by Coleman Schwartz Media The arrival of Umphrey’s McGee to the Pacific Northwest was accompanied by breaking clouds and sunny skies. The band’s notable absence from the Seattle and Portland music calendars last year, combined with their phenomenal previous foray to the region (2016, which to these listener’s ears contains the best Seattle show the band has ever done), made for a hot ticket. This tour, supporting the band’s January-released latest album, it’s not us , was not only the band’s first sellout in Seattle, or the first time the band had sold out both nights of their Portland run, but the first time the entire run of PNW shows were sold out. Besides the great weather, the band was also accompanied by The Russ Liquid Test. Going in, I knew next to nothing about the New Orleans-based trio. Full disclosure: the Tuesday before this run, I streamed one of RLT’s previous shows and found the music at odds with the band’s ...

Boulder Theater Boulder, CO Photos by Doug Fondriest Photography View Doug's Full Photo Gallery Here! www.sambush.com www.cariboumountaincollective.com

Fillmore Auditorium Denver, CO Words by Kristin Zachman ( Direct Attention ) Photos by Blake Barit ( Direct Attention ) St. Patrick’s Day in Denver did not result in green beer or waterways, there were not hordes of people stumbling around like you might see in Chicago or Boston, but Coloradans were lucky enough to have beautiful weather and Galactic and The Greyboy Allstars at the Fillmore Auditorium, in Denver. Spirits were high even as the sun was setting and the first few people entered the concert hall. They were greeted by three extremely dapper DJs, flipping through their collection of 45s. These well-dressed gentlemen had a job that I was envious of, touring around and playing 45s in venues across the nation. The selection of tracks included classic soul, funk and R&B music that may not have been familiar to all of the attendees, but that didn’t stop them from getting down. The auditorium was moderately roomy all night, even into the early set of The Greyboy Al...

Mile High Spirits Denver, CO Photos by Ryan Fitzgerald ( Jarred Media ) View Ryan's Full Photo Gallery Here! www.coaltownreunion.com

Words by Mitch Melheim Photos by Coleman Schwartz Media Portland, Oregon genre-hoppers, Lost Ox, are not an easy band to describe. Don’t make the mistake of writing them off as just another jam band. Their heavy and dark motifs are accented frequently with their playfully imaginative instrumentation. An infectious groove might appear out of a bluesy honky-tonk jam, while the next song may begin with a crunchy synth pad that leads into a doom metal breakdown. It’s unpredictable, yet all undoubtedly drenched in progressive rock influence, as is evident throughout their noteworthy compositions. The band’s debut album, Wildheart , encompasses all of these sounds and more. “Wildheart,” the title track that opens the album with an eerie psychedelic ambiance that blossoms into a blissful groove, quickly turns into what sounds like zydeco music sung by Randy Newman with an extra pair of nuts. I understand this sounds obnoxiously unappealing, but that’s why this band is best observed aura...

Warren Station Keystone, CO Photos by Scott Seifert Photography View Scott's Full Photo Gallery Here! www.sambush.com www.thelilsmokies.com

Cervantes Other Side Denver, CO Photos by Nancy Isaac Photography View Nancy's Full Photo Gallery Here! www.leftoversalmon.com www.banshee-tree.com

Summit Music Hall Denver, CO Words & photos by Charla Harvey Wednesday night was a lively dance party at Summit Music Hall. Culture Crew started off the night. They are an acoustic soul pop band who emphasizes unity and UBUNTU – I am because you are. Sam Schultz is a singer/songwriter from Southern California. Aaron Watene is also a singer/songwriter, and he used to write songs for the Nickelodeon children’s show “Yo Gabba Gabba.” He also was in the Jets in the '80s. Their band consisted of multiple singers, a bass player, a drummer, a keyboardist, and a bongo player! They sang some of their own music, but they performed mostly covers. They played a lot of Bob Marley songs, their biggest influence, including “Three Little Birds.” They had the audience smiling and dancing because everyone knew the words to these songs! Wyclef Jean came on after only fifteen minutes. Wyclef is known for his solo work, his band the Fugees, and writing songs for artists such as Santana and ...

Wild Buffalo Seattle, WA Photos by Chris Davis View Chris' Full Photo Gallery Here! www.yondermountain.com www.oldsaltunion.com

Stanley Hotel Estes Park, CO Words by Kristin Zachman ( Direct Attention ) Photos by Blake Barit ( Direct Attention ) As I sit down in Boulder and look back on this past weekend, I can’t help but smile at the thought of all of the spectacular music and beautiful faces that overran the historic Stanley Hotel. Leftover Salmon brought out an excellent group of people, all ripe for connection through music. On the third and final day of the festivities, fans rolled out of bed to the crystal clear skies and view of Estes Park’s ridgeline, the best view all weekend. After overcoming the awesomeness of the landscape, fans advanced into the McGregor Ballroom to slam bloody marys and listen to the prolific Don Byron sit in with Sockeye, the jazz offshoot of Leftover Salmon’s rhythm section (Alwyn Robinson, Greg Garrison, and Erik Deutsch). Byron showed off his arsenal of clarinets and took the lead on the downtempo brunch performance. Byron is relatively new in the Denver Jazz scene, but...

Showbox Presents Seattle, WA Words by Erica Garvey Photos by Chris Davis Often bluegrass is categorized as folksy acoustic music, safe for a quiet night with the family out on the farm. And then a group like the Infamous Stringdusters comes along and reminds you that modern bluegrass is anything but that outdated perception, and attending a live show may require earplugs, goggles and steel-toed shoes. Minneapolis natives The Last Revel kicked off the evening with a set that was impossibly vibrant from such an unassuming trio. With minimal production (and a wardrobe that was proactively Midwestern), the group built on traditional bluegrass with every sound they could think of among the three. When violinist Vincenzio Donatelle was not on bass, the lowest sounds were filled in by lead guitar and vocalist Lee Henke nonchalantly operating a kick drum. In turn, Henke and banjo player Ryan Acker switched instrumental roles from song to song. Henke added harmonica to his stringed ins...

U.S. Cellular Center Asheville, NC Photos by J. Scott Shrader Photography View Scott's Full Photo Gallery Here! www.whoismgmt.com

New Orleans, LA Photos by Brandon Johnson Photography View Brandon's Full Photo Gallery Here! www.thebukuproject.com

The Lazy Dog Boulder, CO Photos by Doug Fondriest Photography View Doug's Full Photo Gallery Here! www.facebook.com/GeneticsGR

The Orange Peel Asheville, NC Photos by J. Scott Shrader Photography View Scott's Full Photo Gallery Here! www.flaminglips.com

Capitol Center For The Arts Concord, NH Photos by Drew Hines ( Hinesight Imagery ) View Drew's Full Photo Gallery Here! www.delmccouryband.com www.davidgrisman.com

Hyatt Regency Bellevue, WA Photos by Chris Davis View Chris' Full Photo Gallery Here! www.wintergrass.com

The Stanley Hotel Estes Park, CO Words by Kristin Zachman ( Direct Attention ) Photos by Blake Barit ( Direct Attention ) Attendees at Leftover Salmon’s bash at the Stanley Hotel woke up to sunny snow showers on the second day of the run. The first event was a relay race. For those who were brave enough, a course was laid out in front of the main hotel. The race was tight, but reigning champs the “Stanley Steamers” blew their competition out of the water for the third consecutive year. Once the champions had been named, guests at the Stanley anxiously waited for the day’s Mystery Matinee set. The static electricity throughout the grounds had people energized, and one could feel the anticipation around the special guest, Anders Osborne, the prolific folk blues guitarist from New Orleans. He started off the show by himself with his guitar and was later joined by Leftover Salmon. Osborne’s style brought a distinct flavor to the set, bringing out the blues in Salmon’s bluegrass. Aft...

Cervantes Other Side Denver, CO Photos by Ryan Fitzgerald ( Jarred Media ) View Ryan's Full Photo Gallery Here! www.reverbnation.com/wonderlic www.ponderthealbatross.com

The Stanley Hotel Estes Park, CO Words by Kristin Zachman ( Direct Attention ) Photos by Blake Barit ( Direct Attention ) It’s no secret that Leftover Salmon knows how to throw a party and they kicked off this weekend’s festivities at the Stanley Hotel in style. This marks Salmon’s fourth year doing this run at the Stanley Hotel, the infamously historic location that inspired Stephen King to pen The Shining. As if the breathtaking backdrop of Estes Park were not impressive enough, Salmon invited all of us to start the weekend off right with a cocktail hour in the McGregor Ballroom. Featured was the Stanley’s most excellent finger foods, complimentary beer from Breckenridge Brewing, and quality entertainment from a fellow Boulder-based band, the Gasoline Lollipops. On top of all that, Salmon employed two stellar face painters, conjuring ghoulish makeups in line with the Horror Night theme. The gathering became a sea of ghosts, werewolves, Freddie Kreugers, creepy clowns, and Wedn...