:: Big Head Todd & The Monsters :: Boulder Theater :: Jan. 12 ::

:: Fox Theatre :: Jan 13 ::

:: Sold Out :: 

By Alex Samuel

Big Head Todd and The Monsters spawned from Boulder’s belly in 1986 and has gone on to be one of the Front Range’s most successful acts, taking over the venues and airwaves of endless cities globally.

Shortly after the band’s birth, Westword voted them as the best local rock band, calling them a “power trio worth its weight in hype.”

The Monsters lived up to the legend. In their early days they went on to have the top selling album in Boulder’s own Albums On The Hill, and in 1993 their album Sister Sweetly graced Billboard charts with three massive hits before going platinum.

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 :: Unlimited Sunshine Tour ::

:: featuring CAKE, Gogol Bordello, Tegan and Sara, and Eugene Mirman ::

:: Fillmore Auditorium :: January 25 

By Tim Dwenger 

“I don’t wanna go to Sunset Strip. I don’t wanna feel the emptiness, bold marquees with stupid band names,” sings CAKE front man John McCrea in his unique speak-singing style.  According to his longtime bandmate and trumpeter, Vince DiFiore, McCrea harbors a certain disdain for the music business. In a recent interview from the band’s studio in Sacramento, DiFiore told The Marquee, “John took his music to L.A. and formed a band there. He felt like the industry was taking advantage of him and other people were going to own his songs. He just didn’t like the big rock scene on Sunset Boulevard, it seemed so overblown, so he moved back to Sacramento and started CAKE.”

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:: INXS :: Denver Convention Center :: January 30 :: 

By Jonathan Keller 

When most bands are looking for a new band member, particularly a lead singer, they stay close to home, roaming through their contact grapevine of friends and fellow musicians. INXS, however, decided to go a very different route. They let their biggest fans try out for their vacant lead singer slot in a televised contest. The winner of the contest would become the lead singer of INXS — recording a new studio album with the band and then fronting them on a world tour. It seems INXS has finally found their man. 

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:: Hot IQs :: Hi-Dive :: January 28 :: 

By Cornelia Kane 

“We like hot girls with hot IQs,” croons Eli Mishkin, lead singer and guitarist for the Denver band Hot IQs on their debut album, 2004’s An Argument Between Brain and Feet, released on the independent Morning After Records. Their brand of smart lounge pop-rock has lately been earning the band critical acclaim, with opening spots for such established acts as Hot Hot Heat and Brian Jonestown Massacre. Fresh off a national tour opening for both Built to Spill and Tegan and Sara, Mishkin found time to talk with The Marquee about the band’s adjusting to life on the road and future plans.

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:: Arrested Development :: Fox Theatre :: January 11:: 

By Tim Dwenger 

For teenagers today “Arrested Development” is a TV show on Fox that stars Hogan Family alum Jason Bateman and comic David Cross. For teenagers of the ’90s, Arrested Development was one of the hottest hip-hop acts around. Chart topping hits such as “Tennessee” and “Mr. Wendal” broke the hip-hop mold and are still viewed as unique contributions to an ever evolving genre. 

Arrested Development’s leader and lyrical mastermind, Speech, spoke with The Marquee recently about his band, his solo career and the message that he brings with him to the stage. “We call ourselves 20th Century Africans. We are talking about self determination.  We want African people to have a sense of pride in who we are, a sense of accomplishment, and a vision of where we are going,” he said.

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:: Anthrax :: Fox Theatre :: January 18 :: 

By Brandon Daviet

2005 was a great year for Anthrax — the New York-based veteran metal band, not the white powdery substance favored by some terrorists.In the summer of 2005 the band, which along with Slayer, Metallica and Megadeth helped bring metal to the mainstream, reinstated original singer Joey Belladonna to their ranks and hit the road on what is being described by the band as a greatest hits tour.  Continue — Read more »

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:: Aquarium Rescue Unit :: Fox Theatre :: January 20 and 21 :: 

By Jeffrey V. Smith

For respected rock-fusion guitarist Jimmy Herring, stepping back into his role in Aquarium Rescue Unit (ARU) will be like putting on a pair of favorite shoes he hasn’t worn in a while. “It’ll just be so comfortable,” he recently told The Marquee. The band, which was a favorite of the early ’90s pre-jam band explosion, reunites briefly for a pair of shows at the Fox Theatre Friday and Saturday, January 20-21. The rare reunion shows are the only ones planned by the band at this time.

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:: Papa Grows Funk ::Oskar Blues :: Jan. 27 ::

:: Cervantes’ Masterpiece Ballroom :: Jan. 28:: 

By Matt Marty 

“Can you feel the music?” asks front man John Gros on the first track of Papa Grows Funk’s new album Shakin’. How could you not feel the music? Papa Grows Funk has power  — power to make its audiences get up, dance and play air guitar every time they hear Papa’s music. It is raw, funky and most importantly, just down-right good.

The New Orleans-based band contains a line-up of nothing less than stellar musicians, including bassist Marc Pero, Jason Mingledorff on sax and guitarist June Yamagishi, all of which provide the sail for John Gros to direct the ship with his Hammond B3 and funky vocals.

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:: Planes Mistaken For Stars :: Hi Dive :: January 6 (early and late shows) :: 

By Molly Chappell 

When most bands pack up to seek fame and fortune, they don’t bring thirteen of their friends to Denver. But Planes Mistaken For Stars aren’t like most bands.

The grassroots screamo band was voted the Best Underground Band in 2003 by a Denver Post readers poll. And that hype has seemed to follow them, as they continue to play Denver clubs, as well as touring, both nationally and internationally.

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It was reported in December by CNN, that hard-line Iranian president Mahmoud Ahmadinejad banned Western music from Iran’s radio and TV stations, reviving one of the harshest cultural decrees from the Islamic Revolution.

According to Iran’s Supreme Cultural Revolutionary Council, the ruling was “required.”

Now, I don’t know what life in Iran is like. I’ve never been, I don’t know personally anyone who has, and I don’t plan on visiting any time soon. But from the sounds of this report alone, it doesn’t seem like a pleasant place to live.

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Rick Rubin makes Neil Diamond an American icon all over again with brilliance on 12 songs

Neil Diamond

12 Songs

Columbia Records

5 out of 5

Who would have thought that a producer known for his work in hard rock and rap would help Neil Diamond, of all people, craft the best album he’s made in the last two decades, if not his entire career?

12 Songs shows the man who is known for sequins, cheesey love songs and the trite “rock” that some of our parents dig, as he once was — a brilliant songwriter who can make you cry, even when you’re smiling.

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