Khruangbin Ends 2018 On A High Note In Denver

December 16, 2018

Khraungbin with an epic last night of their tour. (Photo Credit: Robert Castro)

We may as well call 2018 “The Year of Khruangbin”, it was a coming out party for the Texas trio (formed of Laura Lee on bass, Mark Speer on guitar, and Donald Ray "DJ" Johnson Jr. on drums) as they ended their US tour in our fair city this past Saturday night. The band has been around for a couple years but this year they managed to put the world on notice. The trio brought their unique musical blends of genres to a sold out house and managed to turn the venue into their own dance party. Relying heavily on their influences of soul, funk, rock, hip hop, psychedelia, disco, and Thai influences, the band took us on a two hour musical journey. With the opening chords of “Bin Bin” to the last rousing applause of “Maria Tambien” that evoked an emotional response from the band as they laid their instruments down one last time for a well needed break, toss in one of the best instrumental mash-ups we have ever heard and it made for a magical December night at The Ogden. Opening the night was one of our favorites from SXSW this year The Marias, the LA band was a last minute opener and meshed well with their soul influenced roots that won the crowd over.

Words and Images- Robert Castro

Laura Lee always looking fabulous. (Photo Credit: Robert Castro)

An epic setlist to close out their tour. (Photo Credit: Robert Castro)

Courtney Barnett Kicks Off Tour In Denver With A Bang!

October 1, 2018

Denver got a double dose of Australian rocker Courtney Barnett this past weekend. Supporting her latest album Tell Me How You Really Feel, Barnett filled every nook of The Ogden Theatre for back to back nights. The start of tour shows can be either hit or miss, but for Barnett she was delivering on all cylinders with her customary gritty guitar play and recognizable drawl. Opening with “Hopefulness” off the new album, Barnett and company set the done for the rest of the night with all new material and a few carry overs from her first album. The voice remains the same and her sound has evolved, after all the last time Barnett was in Denver was election night 2016, while our political landscape changed dramatically that night, there is still hope that music lovers alike can still enjoy themselves at a good ole rock and roll show.

Words and Images: Robert Castro

TOKiMONSTA brings EDM to Bar Standard

April 6, 2018

Jennifer Lee, more popularly known as Tokimonsta sold out Bar Standard on Wednesday night. Packed in like sardines, bass heads and music snobs alike came to see the L.A. producer do her thing. The cutest DJ you will ever see in demeanor, Tokimonsta’s movements are almost animated, her style cool, and her beats hiting hard, she tops the list for female producers.

Exploring many genres, she showed the crowd the best of pop, hip-hop, rap, and EDM, all while keeping everything fluid and energetic. Songs by favorites Kendrick Lamar, Missy Elliott, and A$AP Ferg were remixed and brought the crowd back to something familiar after a few songs of potentially unfamiliar territory. That territory being her newest album Lune Rouge, released last year. She most memorably played “We Love (ft. MNDR)” and “Rouge”, but there wasn’t a dull moment during her set. She included fan favorite “Go With It”, which she has played every time I’ve seen her, but it slaps every single time and gets the crowd involved more excited than the last. In addition to playing a really awesome set, Tokimonsta also played longer than she was expected to, which is always a nice surprise for the crowd.
We’ve previously talked about all the struggles Jennifer Lee experienced during the time period this album was created, and remembering how far this wonderful woman has come in her passion and career, awe for her and her music continues. Colorado would obviously love to keep seeing you, Tokimonsta! Bring back the bass!

Do303 Has Landed! Come Celebrate This Saturday!

February 28, 2018

We have been part of the DoStuff family for many years, stemming from our many adventures over the past years in Austin, Texas with the Do512 Crew (since 2006-2007). It has always been our go to guide for anything cool happening in that city when we visit, from SXSW to Austin City Limits Music Festival. After a couple years of planning and rumored plans of them arriving in The Mile High City, we finally get to experience one of the coolest and reliable (to-do) guides for our city and Boulder.

What are you going to do tonight?

Built on the foundation of local industry experts working together in the community, Do303's mission is to help people find fun, through curated event listings and guides to the best stuff going on. But we're much more than that, and we'd like for you to celebrate with us.

Do303's intention is to help you have the best night of your life. We’ll do that by connecting Denver and Boulder locals with the best music, food, drink, and nightlife events aggregated and curated on our platform, engaging locals through online, social, and daily emails serving up the best stuff to do each day of the week.

We invite you to celebrate the launch of Do303 on Mar. 3 at 730PM at Summit Music Hall. Do303 is proud to present an evening of music, food, drinks, giveaways and endless, epic entertainment. This event is free with RSVP here.

To stay in the know in Denver, download the DoStuff app, check out our website, follow us on Facebook, Instagram, and Twitter - and sign up for our Daily Emails to find out about breaking show announcements, exclusive party invites, and of course - everything going on tonight.

About DoStuff:

DoStuff is the only multi-local network that answers “What am I going to do tonight?” Local teams in 21 cities - using our app, email, social handles, and websites to drive where local people go and what they do.

You might say we’re experts on how to have the best night of your life.

“Algorithms can’t tell you what to do tonight. You need a local who knows the scene.” - TechCrunch

"The front range offers so many opportunities for people to get out and experience life at different angles. I think Do303 is a chance to really showcase all of those things; to create moments for people. Our main priority is to help people discover something new, whether it’s music, art, the mountains, or a new chef in town....and Do303 will do just that. It connects people with the experiences that they love." – Peter Wallace, GM

“All too often I’m asked, "What are we doing tonight?” and all too often, I don’t have the answer. My partners and I found out about DoStuff Media and after using Do512 in Austin last year, we had to bring this technology to Denver and Boulder. We want to make it easy for people to find out about concerts, happy hours, comedy and other events with one easy click. We live in one of the best markets in the country and we look forward to Do303 becoming a big part of this incredible and progressive community.” - Brian Schwartz, Partner

Visit www.do303.com for any questions about Do303, or feel free to email General Manager Peter Wallace at peter@do303.com.

The Killers Still Put on an Incredible Show

February 6, 2018

The Killers sound exceptional live; the instruments are intricate and clear and front man Brandon Flowers' voice sounds just as smooth and passionate in person as it does on their professional recordings. That (in addition to the spectacle of their show, which I will get to) is why after sixteen years, The Killers are still so popular and continually sell out tours worldwide. If you like their music, even just some of it, you will enjoy their show. This was so evident last night in Denver, where the First Bank Center was packed completely full of the widest range of people - guys, gals, old, young, and a full array of fashion. Literally there were grey haired old men, girl groups, guy groups, couples, and three little kids in the row right behind us. The coolest part was that so many of these different people knew the words and stayed until the end of the show, encore and all, on a Monday night no less.

The show itself was a grand spectacle of components (which they're known for) that reached the boundaries of what the First Bank Center is capable of, complete with lasers, interesting backdrop screens, flashing lights all around the stage, blasted confetti, streamers, even pyrotechnics! I'm telling you, their shows are always a grandiose explosion of light, sound, emotion, energy and joy. See for yourself on our Instagram.

They played for about 2.5 hours and went till midnight on a Monday. The merchandise tables had a line every time we walked by, from 2 hours before the show, to after The Killers had ended. As usual, they played songs from all of their albums, but they didn't play any cover songs this time, maybe because they have another whole album to play songs from now. For this new album released last year, Wonderful, Wonderful, the band strove to make a more mature record and focused on emotional authenticity. While there are more personally emotional, lyrical songs on the album, The Killers also include their signature keyboard laden, big chorus, dance songs we know them for.

The show was a blast, the band members delivered, and everyone got to leave with confetti and red, white and blue streamers. The Killers will continue their tour across Europe, Mexico, and many festivals throughout the year!

Review by Tiffany Candelaria

Bring Me The Horizon/Underoath Photo Essay: 1st Bank Center: March 29, 2017

March 30, 2017

British rockers Bring Me The Horizon made a stop in our fair city last night. We were on hand to capture their extravagant production as we were all taken back to our metalcore days. Check out our photos.