Nashville Pussy snatches up Denver’s own as new bassist

Nashville Pussy :: Bluebird Theatre :: November 12

By Lisa Oshlo

Crossing the country in a whiskey-filled delirium, white-trash junk rockers Nashville Pussy is exactly the kind of band that your parents warned you about. This is caustic co-ed rock and roll at its redneck primal peak.

The band has recently kidnapped a bass player from Denver, released a new album, and scared the shit out of men, women and children across the U.S. and Canada, and they ain’t about to tap the brakes any time soon.

Nashville Pussy is no stranger to the open road, having toured steadily since Blaine Cartwright and wife Ruyter Suys founded the band almost a decade ago. Jeremy Thompson has been their drummer for about as long, and the band recently recruited Denver’s own Karen Cuda (bass player for Hemi Cuda) to rollick on the low end. Continue — Read more »

Umphrey’s McGee becomes the new darlings of the jam scene

Umphrey’s McGee :: Fillmore Auditorium :: November 12

By Karen Schneider

Umphrey’s McGee may claim that they’re not a jam band, but they should be holding their heads high as they take on the role of the Darlings of the 21st Century jam scene — a role which, to a large extent, has little to do with their sound.

“There’s a connotation of what a jam band sounds like,” Brendan Bayliss, guitarist and vocalist for Umphrey’s McGee, told The Marquee in a recent interview.

“I think, to a certain degree, we don’t fall into that. I just don’t like someone to have a preconceived notion of what we sound like,” Bayliss said.

The Chicago-based sextet (Brendan Bayliss – guitar and vocals, Jake Cinninger – guitar and vocals, Joel Cummins – keyboard and vocals, Andy Farag – percussion and groove box, Kris Myers – drums and vocals, and Ryan Stasik – bass) is definitely far from your ordinary ‘jam’ band. In fact, the band is not entirely satisfied with that label. With influences ranging from Miles Davis to Frank Zappa, there is not really any category the band comfortably falls into. A typical show can incorporate songs such as Motley Crue’s “Dr. Feelgood”, Peter Gabriel’s “Sledgehammer” and the theme song to “Family Feud.” This band is here to have a good time and play music. With songs ranging from death metal to circus tunes, Umphrey’s McGee refuses to be categorized. Continue — Read more »

Guthrie boards ‘the City of New Orleans’ for Benefit Train Tour

Arlo Guthrie :: 40th Anniversary Alice’s Restaurant Massacree :: Boulder Theater :: Nov. 10

By Bruce Lish

“After the hurricane, nothing was running. The planes were down, the roads were out, it was the one form of transportation that was still available, that could get close, and Congress wanted to cut its funding! It just don’t make any sense,” said folk and rock legend Arlo Guthrie, talking about trains and hurricanes. You could almost hear him throw in the word, ‘man!’ at the end, as his voice climbed just a little and he reminded me of the first time I heard “The Alice’s Restaurant Massacree” or “The Motor-cycle  [pronounced ‘sickle’] Song” as a boy.

In the mid-1960s, Arlo Guthrie, son of folk legend Woodie Guthrie, was one of the voices of a generation in rebellion. His presence and his words and music at the original Woodstock festival and beyond are now also the stuff of legend …“The New York Thruway is closed, man!” … “A lot of freaks!” … “Comin’ in to Los Angeleez, bringing in a couple of keys, don’t touch my bags won’t you please, Mr. Customs Man…” Continue — Read more »

Denver’s Tarantella cinematically blends Old-West, Argentina, italy and Colorado

Tarantella :: CD Release party :: with Munly and the Lee Lewis Harlots :: Bender’s Tavern :: Nov. 4

By Jeffrey V. Smith

Denver’s distinctive and edgy cow-town sound has emerged in more than a few of its seditious — and successful — underground bands in recent years. Bands like Slim Cessna’s Auto Club, Maraca 5-0, 16 Horsepower and its side-projects Woven Hand and Lilium, have all helped to define Denver’s sound and put the region on the nation’s musical radar. Now the sound has found its way into the music of Tarantella, a band that not only embraces and expands musical facets of its predecessors, it also includes a few of their members.

Tarantella’s sound, while incorporating hints of the region’s novel approach to traditional American music, is much more of an eclectic melting-pot of styles, moods and emotions than its contemporaries. The band’s roots and unique influences lie with lead singer and songwriter Kal Cahoone, who grew up in California and Colorado with an Italian grandmother and has lived in Argentina, where Calhoone married a well-known instrumentalist and composer doing “wild-West music” in Buenos Aires. She also teaches Spanish. Continue — Read more »

American Music Club comes back after 1O years with love songs for patriots

American Music Club :: Supporting Spoon :: Boulder Theater :: November 12

By Timothy Dwenger

“It was the same old story you hear every day; struggles with a major label, disagreements with management, and conversations with accountants about money you don’t have. The only way we could free ourselves was to break-up,” Tim Mooney, the drummer for American Music Club (AMC), told The Marquee from his home in San Francisco. AMC had spent 12 years being different and innovative in a haze of ’80s synth pop. They had been acclaimed by the likes of Rolling Stone and landed a major record deal with the Warner Brother’s subsidiary, Reprise. Yet in 1995, shortly after the release of San Francisco, they found themselves caught between creative decisions and business decisions. A place no true musician wants to be.

The break-up was amicable; however it was still a break-up. The band members went about their lives and pursued their own projects and interests. Mark Eitzel (vocals, guitar, songwriter) released a prolific 10 albums and toured extensively throughout the U.S. and Europe, keeping the extensive AMC fan base placated as they collectively held their breath for a reunion. Continue — Read more »

Broken social Scene emerges as canada’s indie-rock super group

Broken Social Scene :: Boulder Theater :: November 1

By Brian Kenney

Blame it on Canada? The northern half of the continent is no longer content taking blame. No longer will the country be the butt of jokes — certainly not music jokes. (OK, aside from Loverboy, Celene Dion and Bare Naked Ladies.)

Kevin Drew, founder, lyricist and sometimes frontman for Broken Social Scene, takes bites of a sandwich as his tour bus, crowded with a band large enough to warrant its own postal code, rolls through the outskirts of Ottawa shortly after the Toronto debut of their latest self-titled disc, and proclaims, “In this little Leave it to Beaver world that has been created, it’s all about fucking.” Drew spoke with The Marquee as his bus barreled down the highway.

Broken Social Scene has emerged as one of Canada’s indie-rock super groups, with a membership that is always in flux and fusion, growing or shrinking, but more often than not, growing. “Let’s see,” bandmate Charles Spearin tallies, “We’ve got 11 out with us this time.” Continue — Read more »

Fort Collins’ alt-country specialists Drag the River not about to run dry

Drag the River :: Aggie Theatre :: November 6 ::

:: Bluebird Theater :: November 7

By Cornelia Kane

It might seem to most folks like punk rock and country are sort of like oil and water: they don’t mix. Well, that ain’t necessarily true, as proved by Fort Collins’ own alt-country band, Drag the River.

Formed in 1996 by core members Jon Snodgrass (guitar, vocals), of Armchair Martian, and Chad Price (guitar, vocals), the band started as two guys messing around during off hours at a local recording studio. The Blasting Room — home to punk legends The Descendents and ALL. Continue — Read more »

8traC steps in as Boulder’s modern Motown connection

8traC

:: KGNU Monday Night Kabaret :: Nov. 7

:: CD Release Party :: Rhumba :: Nov. 8

By Chibo Acevedo

Since early in 2004, 8traC has been pounding out Motown sounds, R&B rhythms, soulful funky grooves and newer interpretations all along the Front Range.

Originally spawned as a cover band with old school R&B roots as inspiration, 8traC has taken strides to develop its own material and is now proving to be a powerful force in the Front Range music scene. Be it hard hitting funk with a message or passionate grooves with lush harmonies and musical integrity, the plight of the human condition is at the core of the 8traC vision. Continue — Read more »

Matt Nathanson leaves the big labels behind and finds himself independently

Matt Nathanson :

: Bluebird Theatre :: November 3

:: Aggie Theatre :: November 4

:: Fox Theatre :: November 5

By Yvette Rebik

With his recent departure from Universal Records, Massachusetts-born, San Francisco-based singer/songwriter Matt Nathanson has returned to his independent roots. He’s back on the road showcasing upcoming material from next summer’s new studio album, as well as classics from his extensive catalog, dating back to 1993.

Between building new  relationships with his audience and leaving a major record label, Nathanson is just beginning to catch his stride. Making witty remarks and dropping F-bombs left and right, Nathanson revealed to The Marquee what is most important to him in the music business. Continue — Read more »

Sol and Swift unify denver hip-hop scene with weekly meeting

Soul Warriors :: Appaloosa Grill :: Every Wednesday Night

By Neil McIntyre

Using samples and breaks, hip-hop music was born from all other musical genres. It was the incredible diversity and variety of culture in New York City in the 1970s that proved the perfect melting pot for its conception. Original pioneering deejays like Kool Herc and Afrika Bambaatta were known to play almost everything they could get their hands on, from funk to punk.

Hip-hop is all about unity and while present-day Denver is far from 1970s New York, it appears as if the local hip-hop scene has the unity concept down. Continue — Read more »

Boys Night Out takes a daring fugitive-style leap with conceptual Trainwreck

Boys Night Out :: Nintendo Fusion Tour :: Fillmore Auditorium :: November 9

By Brandon Daviet

Many bands wait until late in their careers to put out a full-fledged concept album.

Pink Floyd were well into their drug-induced ramblings before they released The Wall.  The Who were superstars on both sides of the pond when they released Tommy, and even Green Day waited until they were the established voice of the iPod Generation before they released American Idiot. Not so for Ontario, Canada punk rockers Boys Night Out, who have released the dramatic and conceptual Trainwreck as their third studio album. Continue — Read more »

From the barstool of the publisher

I was reading Chuck Klosterman’s Killing Yourself to Live this morning when the Zen God of pop culture once again burst my bubble and made feel even less cool that I already do.

Klosterman said, “Right now, most rock journalism is just mild criticism with a Q & A attached; nobody learns anything (usually) and nothing new is created (ever).”

Klosterman went on to point out that some time ago the former lead singer of Soul Coughing once “disregarded the entire career of Village Voice rock critic Robert Christgau by saying, ‘Let’s face facts here — what Robert Christgau does is write about his mail.’ And this is completely true; as a rock critic, you make a living reviewing your mail and anybody who disagrees with that assertion is kidding themselves. Thus, the deeper question that drives (and/or depresses) rock critics is this: ‘How important is my job?’”

I’d like to think that Klosterman was a geeky little kid who got picked on relentlessly from grade school through college. I really hope that he has suffered. That being said, however, I think it’s obvious that he turned inward during his troublesome formative years and developed a wit and knowledge that allows him now, as a hip author and senior writer for Spin Magazine, to come off as a cool mother fucker who can slice through my remaining shreds of dignity and hurt me. Hey, Chuck, I never picked on you as a kid, so stop making me feel like crap about myself, o. k.?

I am going to go down the incredibly self-defensive route of denial on this one and claim that what we do at The Marquee is important.

I believe that we’re more important than the news. Now, my co-publisher will certainly argue against me on this point, but I don’t care. If politicians botched the response to Hurricane Katrina, it’s not something that really affected me. Like most of our readers, I’m more concerned about who is signed on to play the benefit concerts in this area. “Yeah, bummer about that storm. I heard that they’re gonna put on an awesome benefit show for it. It’ll be sweet!” That is what impacts me, and thus The Marquee is more important than any political decision made in Washington, or elsewhere — argue all you want but that’s the point I’m sticking to.

So, yeah, I may write about my mail. I may present, as Chuckie-boy so simply put it, “mild criticism with a Q & A attached,” but I think people can and do learn from that — maybe not the most monumental facts in the world, but they learn nonetheless. And thus, I think Klosterman is just a sad little geek (albeit a cool geek now), still trying to get back at everyone who made him cry in the 1980s over his belief that Flock of Seagulls was going to revolutionize rock and roll.

See you at the shows.