Like all things in this human condition, art also follows the circle of life. Having just seen the memorials in honor of Aretha Franklin’s passing and feeling like there is a vacuum now in the world of great vocalist…suddenly the circle closed and the gap was filled by Rachael Price of Lake Street Dive.
The nearly full Bluebird Theater was packed with fans drenched in black waiting to see The Dreaming and Lola Black last Thursday. Lola Black struck the show in the face with the giant brass knuckle mic stand, tons of defiance and said hello by giving us all the bird. Lola herself immediately seemed like a force to be considered in her 6-inch platforms with spikes, fishnet stockings and the black teased hair. Her fans flaunted real Mile High love for this hometown group.
When Brittany Howard and the rest of Alabama Shakes walked out onto the stage the Ogden simply exploded in deafening cheers and, as the band tore into “Hang Loose” from their 2012 debut album Boys & Girls, those cheers morphed into a chorus of voices singing along in unison. From start to finish, Alabama Shakes delivered a set that was a moving and powerful reminder of just how good they really are at delivering Blues soaked Garage Soul music that soaks in deep and satisfies nearly every primal craving.
Night 2 of String Cheese Incident’s New Year’s run found us in a sea of glow sticks, glitter, and costumes at 1stBank Center. The pageantry and contagious good times nature of the fans radiated through the room. Everywhere we looked was another smiling face – a grinning mob indeed – and that set the mood for a fun evening of music that featured a great selection of classic Cheese favorites like “Little Hands,” “Texas,” and “Rhythm of The Road.”
Certainly no stranger to the Colorado EDM scene, L.A. based producer Kraddy made a triumphant return to Denver last week and gave the crowd the Hip- Hop/Funk/Dancehall experience they were looking for. The man has no lack of swagger, and he casually strolled, laptop and MIDI controller in hand, to the stage a few minutes after a manic Run DMT set had come to a close. On this night, Kraddy garnered much favor and fervor from the crowd, and for that reason we will always welcome his beats and preference for heavy sound back to our city.