Dance Party Time Machine – December 11th – Cervantes’ Ballroom

Photo by Jim Mimna

The Scene: This past Friday night brought Denver unusually warm weather and a variety of choices for the Denver live music faithful to get down. Down at Cervantes‘, J2G Live Productions was ready to deliver their third installment of the Dance Party Time Machine, a collaborative effort of Denver’s finest musicians who come together to throwdown a mixtape of hits from throughout the decades of dance music. J2G Live has a mission to semi-annually deliver Denver with some of the funkiest, collaborative shows in the city with their various showcases including Love Shack, School’s Out or the ultimate Dance Party Time Machine.  While many local musicians are entrenched in their main musical projects around town, J2G Live Productions are a chance for players to jam with all of their musician friends and a chance to play with some national heavy hitters.  This year brought in Allen Aucoin, Aron Magner and Marc Brownstein from The Disco Biscuits, Jeremy Salken from Big Gigantic and Eddie Roberts from the UK funk outfit, The New Mastersounds.

Cervantes’ was abuzz as concertgoers were welcomed by the dance grooves spun by DJ Mikey Thunder who mixed in dance grooves from the 60’s, 70’s and 80’s. Back to the Future samples from Doc and Marty McFly hinted at the unpredictable setlist that was to come, a J2G Live signature.  The crowd was a mixed blend of local music fans, fans of the bigger national acts and groups of friends ready to step into the Dance Party Time Machine.  People even came dressed in their 70’s and 80’s throwback dance clothes and wigs, filling and warming up the dancefloor before the show began.

Dance Party Time Machine: The Dance Party Time Machine revved up with the year’s top dance hit, The Weeknd’s “Can’t Feel My Face” lead by Tiger Party’s Ashley Niven and slew of musicians from Denver’s hottest bands including YAMN, Fox Street, and Analog Son.  Following the 2015 opener, the Dance Party Time Machine landed in the 1960’s with The Temptations “Get Ready,” Sam and Dave’s “Hold On, I’m Comin’” and The Meters‘ “Cabbage Alley” which featured vocals from Devon Parker and Fox Street’s Jonathan “Skippy” Huvard.  The 60’s set of tunes also featured guitar virtuoso Eddie Roberts from The New Mastersounds who handled the slick guitar stylings from the 60’s funk era.  The 60’s portion of the show closed out with an extended jam on The Champ’s “Tequila” which had bartenders dancing, pouring shots and shouting “TEQUILA!” at the top of their lungs.

After the crowd was warmed up with the 60’s selections, the Dance Party Time Machine was ready to land in the 1970’s.  J2G Live staple sultress, Aubrie Hamrick, started the 70’s party with her take on Blondie’s “Call Me” followed by Devon Parker on The Bee Gee’s “Night Fever” and Su Charles take on Stevie Wonder’s “Sir Duke.”

The Disco Biscuits’ Aron Magner appeared for the first time alongside Bill McKay on the Dr. John hit “Right Place, Wrong Time,” a song that would fit easily into the Biscuits’ repertoire.  The highlight of the first set came next as Jonah Wisneski set up a new toy called the Omnichord, a touchpad / keyboard made famous by My Morning Jacket’s Jim James.  Jonah channelled the spirit of Jim James on his take of MMJ’s “Touch Me I’m Going to Scream, Pt. 2.”  Mr. Wisneski, along with Blake Mobley and The Magic Beans’ Casey Russell on keyboards, flawlessly executed the most psychedelic dance number of the night.

After a short break, the Dance Party Time Machine landed smack in the middle of the 2000’s with Adam Lufkin and Jeff Prah taking on Dr. Dre’s “Let Me Ride” and The Notorious B.I.G.’s “Mo Money, Mo Problems” featuring a rare verse from J2G Live founder, Gary Mellini, who channeled the notorious side of the Big Poppa by nailing his verse.  Adam and Jeff have been involved with the J2G Live concerts since their inception and always do an excellent job of bringing some much needed hip-hop to the set lists.

The highlight of the second set came when three of the four members of the Disco Biscuits’ took the stage along with Eddie Robert’s and Denver locals, Fox Street’s James Dumm and Eric Low as well as Jonah Wisneski and Bill McKay.  The Commodores’ “Machine Gun,” made famous for younger generations by the movie Boogie Nights, has been a frequently requested song from Disco Biscuits fans.  J2G took the opportunity to give fans what they wanted with an extended take on the instrumental groove.  Smiles abounded as Aron Magner and Eddie Roberts took turns exchanging solos throughout the jam and the crowd responded in kind, noting how much fun was being had in Cervantes’.

The second set finished strong as Super Magick’s Jenny Anderson brought the house down with “Fame” followed by Jeff Prah’s take on ZZ Top’s “Sharp Dressed Man.”  The most polished song of the night came when Su Charles took on Michael Jackson’s “P.Y.T.” which kept the crowd dancing and singing as the J2G collective flawlessly executed the only MJ song of the evening.  Aron Magner held down the keys for the last two songs of the set, the Huey Lewis classic “I Want a New Drug” which featured Jonathan Huvard on vocals and the ever-funky Talking Heads’ “Making Flippy Floppy” featuring Adam Lufkin backed by Analog Son’s Jordan Linit and YAMN’s Brian Hamilton taking on guitar duties.

J2G Live always saves the best for last and Friday night was no different.  With Jonah Wisneski and Jordan Linit on guitar, Blake Mobley and Aron Magner on keyboards, Eric Low and Allen Aucoin on drums and Marc Brownstein holding it down on bass, the J2G outfit launched into an extended take on The Who’s “Eminence Front” which was marked by high-energy interplay between the Denver locals and The Disco Biscuits members leaving the crowd sweaty and  delighted as the Dance Party Time Machine landed them safely back in 2015.

J2G Live has been gaining momentum with Denver music fans and musicians alike.  More than just novelty shows of dance hits, musicians relish in the opportunity to get to jam with all the up-and-coming players in the dynamic Denver scene.  For fans, it provides a great opportunity to let loose and watch their friends from various Denver bands strut their stuff toe-to-toe with national headliners.  

Energy: A
Musicianship: A
Sound: B+
Stage Presence: A+
Set/Light Show: A-

Overall: A-