Brent Cowles Is At It Again With New Single "Cold Times"

Do not let the 75 degree fall days fool you, Denver. The Cold Times are coming - and luckily for you they have arrived early in the form of beautiful, twangy drawls from Denver’s sweetheart, Brent Cowles. 

Cowles ventured out into the solo-sphere in early 2015 after recent split from Fort Collins band, You Me and Apollo. He has since signed with our favorite burrito mongols’ record label, Greater Than Collective. With an easily identifiable voice and style, Cowles is making waves in the Colorado music scene and his latest debut is the fruition of hard work, perseverance and good ol’ American rock. 

Cold Times highlights Cowles' signature poetic lyrics with a rhythmic, soulful bass line. It’s a foot stomping, beer drinking anthem that is sure to persevere long after the cold months have passed us by.

Hard to compare, Cowles is humble, honest, talented and on the fast track to becoming one of those artists we all brag about seeing at the Hi Dive on a random Tuesday night. 

- McClain Morris

Top Ten Bands To See At Westword Music Showcase | Locals Only Spotlight

We aren't sure how many bands will actually be playing this year's festival but we decided to nail down a few "can't miss" acts for this years Westword Music Festival (In no particular order). These are all bands we have admired for some time now and it's time for Denver to take notice!

1. Brent Cowles

2. Spells

3.Milky.Wav

4. A. Tom Collins

5. Rossonian

6. Eldren

7. Ivory Circle

8. Chris Dismuke

9. Plume Varia

10. Kitty Crimes

A Love Letter To The Epilogues...

A love letter to The Epilogues.

Chris, Jeff, Jason, and Nate where do we begin? Let's start off with the first time I got a chance to see you guys play, If my memory serves me right it would have been December 9, 2008 when you guys opened for the Swedish band The Sounds. At that time I was writing for a magazine out of Los Angeles called Filter Magazine. I was familiar with the name as I may have heard a song or two on the radio. Right away I was intrigued by your sound and soon began to pop up at random shows here and there. In fact i'm pretty sure I have seen you guys more than any local band here in Denver. 

March 30, 2011 at The Bluebird Theater. It was billed as a video release for "The Fallout". I can still remember the amazing lineup, in fact the only reason I showed up was to photograph my buddy's band Mr. Right that night. Turns out some of Denver's finest filled the lineup that night including Input, Mr. Right, My Body Sings Electric, and Monroe Monroe. The video was amazing and the song instantly became my favorite from you guys. I remember standing outside with my limited edition print you guys were handing out hoping to get it autographed by you guys, it was the first time I got to meet you guys and you were all very gracious. The beginning of a beautiful friendship to say the least. 

Fast forward to UMS 2012 (maybe 2011), probably one of our favorite performances was on the main stage that year. For some reason the band was playing harder, faster, and stronger than I had ever seen them. I'm talking full on rage mode, so much so that Chris Heckman smashed his guitar into pieces that day and we were fortunate enough to somehow keep the head of the guitar which you guys later signed for us (we later pawned it to fund our trip to SXSW that year....just kidding).

From album releases to Halloween shows to the now defunct Inca House launch we have been through thick and thin with you gentlemen, it has been an honor seeing you guys play more importantly seeing you guys grow. You will sorely be missed. Who knows maybe we will see you at a UMS reunion show in 2020. 

-Robert Castro (Editor in Chief)

Denver indie-rockers The Epilogues announced today via their Facebook page that this summer will be their last. Lead singer Chris Heckman outlined the details of the split in an open letter (below). The band will be playing a string of shows in their home state of Colorado this summer, culminating with a farewell show/album release at Summit Music Hall on August 19th. The band's final album titled OK OK will be their fourth and final release. "There are far too many people to thank who have supported us over the years and we would like to use this last run of shows to do so" the band stated via Facebook. Included below are The Epilogues final shows...

June 25, 2016- Westword Music Showcase; The Church 4:35pm; Denver, CO

July 28-31, 2016- The Underground Music Showcase; date & time TBD; Denver, CO

August 6, 2016- Moxi Theatre; Greeley, CO

August 14, 2016- Bohemian Nights; Linden St. Stage 5:20pm; Fort Collins, CO

August 19, 2016- Summit Music Hall; album release/ farewell show; Denver, CO

For over a decade now I have had the immense pleasure of playing in the Epilogues with my best friends, Nate Hammond, Jason Hoke, and Jeff Swoboda. I can honestly say that being in a band is hard work; we probably spent just as much time washing dishes and cleaning bathrooms as we did playing music. We lived in a house with nine people so we could afford to tour, and we sold everything we owned to pay for studio time. We slept in a cramped van and ate imaginary sandwiches on our way to play shows in empty bars. But through all the scraping and struggling (and sharing a bunk bed with Jason), we couldn't have been happier. We got to make music and eventually, people actually started listening to it. We toured every inch of the United States, playing everything from basement parties to sold-out arenas. We heard songs we wrote on the radio and read our names on billboards all over the country. Looking back, I realize that we had achieved a level of success, and experienced a life that only a handful of people get to experience. And for that, I will be forever grateful.  
This fall, I will be leaving The Epilogues to attend the Berklee College of Music in Valencia, Spain. I will be learning to score for film, and video games, which is something that I have wanted to do my entire life. Leaving the Epilogues will be one of the hardest things I will ever have to do,  but I believe it is necessary for us to continue growing. I am so proud of my bandmates and I realize that we are so fortunate to be leaving on positive terms. Jason, Nate, and Jeff have been my family for over a decade and I am so excited to see what the future holds for them. I don't believe for a single second that this is the end of us as a group; I love these guys and we will always find ways to work together. 
Our final show will be Friday, August 19th at The Summit Music Hall in Denver, Colorado with South of France, Flaural, and Eros and the Eschaton. We will also be releasing our last album; OK OK, at this show, a project that we have been working on for over a year. This will be the only show we will ever play to support this new material, and we couldn't think of a better way to say goodbye. 

There are so many people who are responsible for our success and we will never be able to truly show our gratitude for their support. Thank you so much to our families, our friends, our label, and to the hundreds of people that helped push our music further. Thank you to everyone at Greater Than, 93.3, Sodajerk, and the thousands of fans who supported this dream of ours for twelve years.  Thank you! Thank you! Thank you! Nothing can ever replace the experiences that we have had, and we know that we wouldn't have been able to do it without you. We hope to see you all one last time at the Summit Music Hall on August 19th.
-Chris Heckman (The Epilogues)

The Epilogues through the eyes of Ultra5280.

A LOVE LETTER TO ILLEGAL PETE'S | Locals Only | November 5, 2014

I would like to qualify this little editorial with the simple fact that I am the only Colorado native working for Ultra5280. I've spent a majority of my life taking pride in the things that you can truly "only do in Colorado", and rubbing it in for friends who live elsewhere. I've watched just as many films at Red Rocks as I have concerts (well, maybe...), spent summers hiking through Chataqua and Rocky Mountain National Park, driven for hours up I-70 in the winter just to get one run in on the weekends between homework assignments, and I promise you that *no* day spent in Colorado could be completed in a better fashion than by eating dinner at Illegal Pete's. Pete's food has been a staple in my diet for as long as I can remember. While I was working my way through college, I took the bus to and from work through LoDo every day from my dorm on CU's Denver campus. On Tuesdays I worked until 12am, and would often not get back to the dorms until 2-3am depending on what bus I managed to catch - far too late to get any food from my dining hall. I had few food options that late in the evening, and Illegal Pete's became my surefire choice for dinner each week. Slowly but surely, the staff at Illegal Pete's on the 16th Street Mall began to recognize my face, and would even sometimes delay their close just so I could run through the door and beg them to make one last Queso Burrito before their register closed for the evening. 

The amazingness that is Illegal Pete's does not start or stop with starving, college-aged Maddie. But grown up, post-collegiate Maddie is heartbroken by the negative words being shared regarding the monicker of my favorite burrito haunt, and i've come to take a stand. The older I've gotten, the more involved I've become in both Denver and the world around me. This deeper understanding has shed light on just how deeply rooted this restaurant is in it's community, and how important it is for us to celebrate. From serving local meat in all of their dishes, to the Greater Than Collective record label they run, Illegal Pete's is a community-based company full of like-minded thinkers who strive to make the world a better place. Their efforts to focus their time and financial resources here in Colorado benefits both their staff members and patrons in ways the average joe could never imagine. Unlike their globally franchised counterparts (who are also Colorado based, mind you), Pete's has stayed local, working to help make our Mile High state the best it can be. The fact that so many people are hung up on their choice of name opposed to the good this company brings to our community is absolutely tragic, and weighs heavily on my heart. Illegal Pete's has been a happily functioning restaurant in Colorado since 1995...that's nearly twenty years of happy people eating happy burritos without caring what the word "illegal" could accidentally ensue. Why must we now, in 2014, find the tiniest thing to nit-pick when Illegal Pete's is merely trying to expand their positive reach to another Colorado community?

CU Denver students rocking out at Illegal Pete's during the 2014 Underground Music Showcase.

No one seems to care that the restaurant's name is an homage to owner Pete Turner's beloved father who carried the same given name as he. It also seems that no one cares to educate themselves on all of the community-focused programs Illegal Pete's has to offer to the great city of Fort Collins. Instead, they've chose to focus on the sad, miscommunicated understanding of one measly little word. Illegal Pete's is more than just a name. Illegal Pete's is more than just a restaurant. Illegal Pete's is one of the few remaining local treasures that we as Coloradans are blessed to have all to ourselves, and they give back to this community in immense ways. Owner Pete Turner took his simple dream to open a place with a "fun and energetic atmosphere with music playing (and) employees having fun" and has turned it into a successful, well known food chain spread across the front range. He's created a hugely successful record label that supports some of Denver's most talented musical artists, and has expanded that support to artists worldwide through the Starving Artist Program, which feeds out-of-town bands at no cost while they travel through Colorado. Pete's also supports charities like the American Cancer Society, the Hatian Earthquake Relief efforts by the Red Cross, stepped in to help the Aurora Police Department after the movie theater shootings, the Colorado Springs Red Cross after the fires, the Boulder Flood Relief efforts and many more. 

How can the people of Fort Collins look past these incredible actions of a business, and get so hung up on one adjective that has taken on a sadly negative connotation in this new era of over sensitivity? Times like these make it clear why the world's good people are growing harder to find, as their actions are overlooked to focus on petty battles instead. I urge the citizens of Colorado to lay their negative thoughts to rest, as they will do no one an ounce of good. Rather, I encourage all of you to become more informed, and choose your battles not based on new-age stigmas, but rather based on facts. I hope that this will make all of you choose to research the companies you support just a bit more, and celebrate local heroes like Illegal Pete's, who've asked for no praise for their goodness other than the simple ability to open a new location. Ultra5280 are proud Pete's lovers, and owe them a great debt for late night business meetings, hangover breakfasts, and stopping the dreaded post-UMS "hanger" episodes. We hope Pete's stays "illegal" forever, and hope that Fort Collins can come to love them just as much as we do. 

-Maddie

 

If you'd like to learn more about Illegal Pete's, please read these articles on their namesake, as well as "Seven Facts You Didn't Know" right here: 
http://illegalpetes.com/blog/community/concerning-the-name-illegal-petes/
http://illegalpetes.com/blog/community/7-things-you-might-not-know-about-illegal-petes-but-you-should/

The Epilogues: Cinematics | Album Review

Denver based indie/dance outfit The Epilogues are set to drop their new album, Cinematics, a month early for us Coloradoans on October 6th at a Record Release Party taking place at Summit Music Hall. The album will be released on homegrown label Greater Than Collective.

We had a chance to get our hands on Cinematics last week during their listening party and have been playing it for the past few days.  The Epilogues are not strangers to the Denver music scene, in fact, some have described them as “one of the hardest working” music acts around.  I have had the privilege to see them live on a few occasions and can say that their live shows are energetic and lively.  The band consists of Chris Heckman on vocals and guitar, Jason Hoke on drums, Jeff Swoboda on bass, and Nate Hammond on keyboards.  

Cinematics is a record that describes the blood, sweat and tears it takes to be successful in a saturated city full of talent. The record conjures up an emotionally charged battle cry letting us know that The Epilogues have arrived and are here to stay.

From the opening track it is easy to make comparisons to the Silversun Pickups, in fact it is astounding how similar Heckman and Brian Aubert, Silversun Pickups front man, sound. I hate to make comparisons but this it is completely accurate. On “The Shadow King”, the opening guitar is accompanied by an infectious drumbeat that carries the song and makes for an impressive opener.

Chris Heckman of The Epilogues during The UMS (Photo Credit: Robert Castro)​

With influences on this album channeling that of early Smashing Pumpkins, it is the distortion-driven guitar riffs and complimenting bass, keys and drums that make every song on this album radio-friendly and infectious.

On the fourth track listeners will recognize “Hunting Season”, a track that has been a staple on 93.3’s rotation for sometime now.  The same can be said for “The Fallout”, whose video still haunts me today (see below). 

Overall, you get a sense of musical maturity by the foursome along with raw pasion. Though it took some time to put out a new album, the production was spot on and really captured the message of the album. Cinematics will take you on a journey that will have you hitting the repeat button over and over again.