15th St. Tavern, resurrectedsort of
If you ask experienced local music fans in the Denver area about the 15th St. Tavern, you’ll run into some interesting paradoxes. For example, while they may describe the holes in the wall and the overbearing smell, they’ll do so with such an air of reverence that it may sound like they actually enjoyed it. There’s a simple reason for that: they did. The 15th St. Tavern was renowned for its chaotic punk shows, full of fire hazards and questionable behavior. For those who remember, there’s good news: the bar is back (sort of) in the form of the new Rockaway Tavern. Keep on reading!
Colorado bands that rock
With John Denver’s glory days long past (and was he even from Colorado, anyway?), it’s time to look at the up-and-comers of the Centennial State. Here are some groups that have us grooving.The Swayback: Don’t lump this Denver group in with the plethora of other 80′s-inspired dark punk groups. For all their atmospherics, the band still knows a riff when it hears one, and they’ll follow it as far as they can take it. Check out “Concrete Blocks” or “Earring in the Shag” for examples.Monofog: Singer Hayley Helmerick’s throaty vocals and Doug Spencer’s tight guitar jamming may initially suggest comparisons to the Yeah Yeah Yeahs, but Monofog has a few more tricks up its sleeve. Listen to the grunge-meets-art rock of “Sub Like Nothing”, and look for their album “Runner” on cdbaby. Keep on reading!