New Headliners Announced For This Years Westword Music Showcase

The Westword Music Showcase has just added to its impressive lineup with the announcement of three new headliners including Treepeople, Phantoms, and St. Lucia. The three acts join an already impressive lineup that includes Galantis, Bonobo, Joywave and more. Tickets are currently on sale an as an added bonus if you use promo code ULTRA5280 you will score discounted tickets

Treepeople was an alternative rock band from Boise, Idaho, although it spent most of its time and was officially based in Seattle, Washington. The band was composed of Pat Brown, Wayne Rhino Flower, Doug Martsch, and Scott Schmaljohn.

A Los Angeles-based EDM duo featuring the talents of Kyle Kaplan and Vinnie Pergola, Phantoms deliver icy/hot electro-dance beats with a dash of techno and heavy dose of pop hooks. Friends since the age of 15, the pair dabbled in the Disney side of the television and film industry -- Kaplan was featured in Hannah Montana and 10 Things I Hate About You while Pergola appeared in That's So Raven and Miss Behave -- before shifting all of their focus onto music. After honing their chops as DJs, the duo began producing their own music under the Phantoms moniker, releasing their eponymous instrumental debut EP via OWSLA in 2013-

-All Music

Essentially the solo vehicle for singer/songwriter Jean-Philip Grobler, the Brooklyn-based St. Lucia make shimmery, '80s-influnced, synth-driven pop. Born in Johannesburg, South Africa, Grobler grew up singing in the Drakensberg Boys Choir School, which found him touring and performing around Europe, Japan, and Australia. After leaving the choir, Groblerattended music school in England before relocating to New York City. Once there, he began writing his own pop songs and recording under the name St. Lucia. The band's self-titled EP appeared on Neon Gold in 2012. In 2013, St. Luciareleased their full-length debut album, When the Night, featuring the single "Elevate." The album entered the Billboard 200 and hit number six on Billboard's Top Heatseekers Albums chart. Grobler and his band then spent the better part of the next few years touring, playing summer festivals and opening for other artists including Charli XCX and Ellie Goulding. In 2016, St. Lucia returned with their sophomore full-length album, Matter, which included the singles "Dancing on Glass," "Physical," and "Love Somebody."

-All Music

UME: Interview

ultra5280 had the opportunity to interview Austin's UME as they touched base in Denver for the Westword Music Showcase. We found out about where they come from and where they're going, as well as why they were late to their mainstage set (it was the van curse).

Eric Larson, Lauren Larson, and Rachel Fuhrer make up Austin band UME

Next we asked UME about some other artists. They told us if they could collaborate with a hip-hop artist from Houston, it would be the Ghetto Boys; UME actually recorded at the same studio as the Ghetto Boys, Rap-A-Lot Records. When we asked who they would go on tour with, all three of them had a different answer for us. Lauren said Radiohead (sweet!), Eric said Roger Waters (the girls snickered), and Rachel chimed in that she thought the Original Black Sabbath would be cool. I can only imagine what kind of tour it would be if all three of them got their wish! We finally asked them who they thought the "next big thing" from Austin would be; Lauren threw out Ringo Death Starr and The Sword almost immediately. We'll be keeping tabs on those guys, too.

These guys are dedicated to the music; even after missing most of their set at the festival (the van's fault, not theirs), they scrambled to find another place to play a show. They found a house off south Broadway and apparently ended up playing a late-night house party set. I don't know if you know this, but they're kind of a big deal; they recently competed for a spot on the cover of Rolling Stone magazine after someone at the publication heard an advance copy of their upcoming record Phantoms. Lauren told us there's a possibility that UME will be back in Denver in August or September for another show, so we will be keeping our eyes peeled and we'll let you know as soon as we hear anything. In the meantime, check out UME's website, and follow them on twitter @umemusic.