White Arrows & Shady Elders | Larimer Lounge | February 18

Larimer Lounge is always the venue that you look back and say, "I saw that band at Larimer Lounge and look at them now!" That's exactly how I feel about the bands we saw on last Wednesday night. But first, let me preface this review with an apology. First and foremost, I am deeply remorseful for using the hashtag #rockordie during Slow Caves set. I see now that it was a grave mistake and I am forever indebted to Castro and to our followers who had to see that. Secondly, I am sorry for this review being so late. I was one of the many fools who decided to venture up to the mountains for the "snowpocalypse". Which resulted in lot and lots of I70 closures and sitting in my car writing this story in my mind. Anyways, I hope that you fine readers can see past all of my imperfections and still find the time to check out these bands.

This was our second time seeing White Arrows, the first time we saw them was when they opened for The Neighbourhood at The Ogden Theatre. This time around there were less screaming tweens and more swooning 20-somethings. White Arrows definitely has this mysterious, rocker vibe down to a tee and the crowd was picking up what they were putting down, if you can catch my drift. To put it into perspective, in order to get decently close to the front one would have to elbow through 6 chicks staring doe eyed at the musicians and risk a perfectly manicured scratch to the forearm. For good reason though. Their looks and "swag" as the kids are saying were definitely on point, but more so than anything, it was their music.

White Arrows has upgraded from pop-punk into their own distinct genre. Ranging from indie undertones to rockish roots, they've fully grown into their skin. Throughout the night they introduced us to some new songs along with peppering in some of their classics. The new tunes were a refreshing surprise as it maximized the unique sound I mentioned earlier. They seem as though they've stepped away from poppy-ness of their youth and upgraded into full-blown indie heartthrobs. Also, they decided to bring Shady Elders along with them for part of their tour which is just another degree of awesomeness.

Shady Elders was the very first band that I saw play at Larimer Lounge. They opened for Youth Lagoon and immediately I was taken with how amazing they were. Listening to Shady Elders play is reminiscent of your first heartbreak where you were left sulking around solemnly and devastated. Where the only thing that dried your streaked cheeks was finally finding THAT album (you all know what it is...Elliott Smith, Conor Oberst...) that understood exactly what you were going through. The addiction you felt to the album at such a young age, is exactly how every song they play makes you feel.

Lead singer and guitarist, Fox Rodemich has a voice that is like an ethereal lullaby coupled with a Stevie Nicks-esq  raspy-ness. It is beautifully unique and hard to put down in words. We recommend checking them out and listening for yourself. They're Denver local and play a lot of shows around the city. Or as our Managing Editor, Castro likes to do when he finds a new band he loves: grab a bottle of his favorite merlot, pop in a pirated version on Fifty Shades of Grey and listen and cry to the album all night long. 

Check out both White Arrows and Shady Elders on Spotify and iTunes!