Getting To Know: Porlolo

We have been loyal fans of Ft. Collins outfit Porlolo for sometime now, from their epic performance at last years UMS to their new recent project. The band is playing tonight at Lost Lake for their EP release, be sure to drop by and enjoy some amazing music.

Formed in Denver in 2002 by the eccentric and prolific Erin Roberts, Porlolo is a highly collaborative effort. A true labor of love, Porlolo has become a project of good friends finding peace and adventure through musical connection. Roberts--a self-defined sister, swimmer and stunt artist—is a powerful songwriting force, cranking out grungy, sometimes twangy, often pure pop hits. Over her last 15 years of deliberate wandering through Denver, Gunnison, Eugene, and most recently Fort Collins, Roberts draws inspiration from the dramatic landscapes and even more dramatic personalities she encounters.

Porlolo releases Awards EP on April 27, produced and engineered by James Barone (Beach House). Players include Tom Mohr, Anna Morsett (The Still Tide, Brent Cowles), Jake Miller (Esmé Patterson, The Still Tide, Brent Cowles), James Barone (Beach House), and Pat Meese (Nathaniel Rateliff and the Night Sweats).

Awards EP showcases Roberts’ thoughtful and playful songwriting, fully supported by the talent of her influential friends and bandmates. The EP combines indie rock and folk, amplifying Roberts’ songwriting with its delicate balance of rustic guitar, punchy percussion, and precision hooky riff. Says Roberts of her current lineup: “Porlolo has been an incredibly powerful force in my own life, providing equal amounts of sanity and absurdity, keeping it weird when life gets tedious, heavy and too adult.”

Porlolo discography includes What Would This Be For (2002), Storm and Season (2004), Meadows (2006), Pony Trekk (Split EP with Kate Magnus, 2009). In December of 2014, Porlolo released Everything, Barely (2014), a three song EP produced and recorded by James Barone (Beach House). Erin Roberts also released Fill Your Lungs (2012) with the Denver-based band Ending People. Porlolo has extensively toured the US, playing alongside Jessica Lea Mayfield, Cass McCombs, Destroyer, Magnolia Electric Company, Fleet Foxes, Phosphorescent, Two Gallants and more.

New Music from The Velveteers Check Out The Video For "Death Hex"

We have a tasty gem for you on this fine Monday afternoon courtesy of The Velveteers. They have just released the video for "Death Hex" and it's pretty amazing. Easily climbing the ranks in the Colorado music scene led by Demi Demitro's penchant for no holds barred rock and roll. Much like Alison Moshart of The Kills, Demitro's voice is raw, grungy, and embodies something unique. The band is set to travel over the pond for a few dates opening for Deap Vally (see dates below). 

EUROPEAN DATES:

Sept 15 Thekla - Bristol, United Kingdom

Sept 16  Islington Assembly Hall - London, United Kingdom

Sept 17Leeds University Stylus - Leeds, United Kingdom

Sept 19  Electric Circus - Edinburgh, United Kingdom

Sept 20  Invisible Wind Factory - Liverpool, United Kingdom

Sept 21  Concorde 2 -  Brighton, United Kingdom

Catching Up With Bandits | Interview

We had a chance to catch up with locals Bandits recently and got their take on recording vinyl to their upcoming tour dates with Black Pistol Fire (long time favorites of ours). We love recognizing great talent and this band is on the rise for sure. They have a show coming up this Saturday at Larimer Lounge which should be a blast. Tickets can be purchased here.

Ultra5280 Tell us your background as a band, we understand it’s quite the musical family?

LuLu: Both John and I had a very musical upbringing, we both learned piano at a young age and were listening to lots of music. John and I both love rock and roll so we decided to start a band. We were in need of a drummer and Andrew was our top choice. We've all been playing together for about a year and a half now.

Andrew: I grew up playing drums in school and have been in several different Colorado based bands over the last ten years. I joined BANDITS in February of 2015.  

Ultra5280 You have a couple new songs you will be playing at your show Saturday, tell us about them and what does your writing process look like?

John: We are excited to be playing our new songs for everyone. We've got a really heavy and different set we're going to play so it should be a BANDITS show like you've never seen before. Our writing process usually starts with Lulu or I bringing a seed of a riff or lyric in to practice and growing it from there. 

Ultra5280 What made you guys decide on a vinyl release? You're a band I can definitely see recording for Third Man Records at some point.
 
Andrew: Vinyl has much higher sound quality than other mediums, and has so much more significance than CD's in terms of being an object you can hold and display. Vinyl has been making a huge comeback recently, and it's cool to see companies like Third Man Records encouraging that trend.

Ultra5280 What do you guys do outside of the band? jobs? school?

Andrew: We all work various odd jobs, but we all make playing music a priority in our daily lives outside of the band as well. 

Ultra5280 You guys are playing UMS this year, what can fans expect?

John: UMS is gonna be crazy this year. Last year, we had an awesome show at The Irish Rover and this year we are gonna be fresh of the road, itching to get back to Denver and play with all the locals bands. It's a great line up this year. 

Ultra5280 You guys had a run of shows at SXSW earlier this year what was that like?

Andrew: SXSW was crazy, as always! It's a very cool experience. There are so many great bands playing in Austin that week that it's almost overwhelming. We were lucky enough to be super busy, and had the opportunity to play a ton of shows to a lot of new fans. 

LuLu: Yea, we had a great time at SXSW this year, it was our second year at SX. Fortunately we were able to see some pretty iconic shows. John and Andrew managed to sneak into the Iggy Pop show, that was a big highlight. We met some of the people from Steve Madden at SXSW and will be collaborating sometime in the future with them through Madden Music. They've worked with the likes of The Kills, Deap Vally, July Talk, and more. We can't wait to get something cooking with their team. 

Ultra5280 You guys were once known as Branded Bandits and now simply BANDITS, why the change?

John: We changed the name because we felt it better suited our sound and new direction. We started the band when we were younger and now that we've grown up and into our instruments we've found a name that fits our band. 

Ultra5280  Finally what can we expect from your show this coming Saturday?

LuLu: A lot of new BANDITS music. We have Meeting House & Blanket Empire opening. It's going to be a rowdy, loud, rock and roll show. We got a great local tattoo artist Rachel Paton of Ritual Tattoo Gallery to do artwork on our Vinyl Sleeves. It's something we're really proud of. We are also about to hit the road next week with Black Pistol Fire, we will be playing some incredible venues in the south. Come see us at Larimer Lounge before we hit the road for a while. 

7/2 Larimer Lounge in Denver, CO
7/7 House of Blues in New Orleans, LA
7/8 The Syndicate Lounge in Birmingham, AL
7/9 The Masquerade in Atlanta, GA

Music | Spokezbuzz, Lincoln Center Announce the Local Link Season Schedule

Spokezbuzz band Eldren rocking the crowd at UMS (Photo Credit: Andrew Rios)

One thing about our thriving music scene is that it extends north to our friends up in Ft. Collins. In fact I used to live in Ft. Collins for five years and remember catching many shows while living there as well as experiencing many Thursday nights at Wash Bars and happy hour shenanigans at The Rio on Fridays. Our good friends at Spokezbuzz always have something cool going on and this is just one of the things they are doing to promote music in our great state. Pleas make sure to check them out and many of the bands they represent at events like these.

SpokesBUZZ, a Fort Collins-based music nonprofit, and the Lincoln Center, Fort Collins’ premiere performing arts venue, announced today the full series schedule and lineup for The Local Link, a series showcasing local bands at The Lincoln Center in Fort Collins. The live music concerts -- featuring Colorado bands throughout the 2015-2016 season -- are a collaborative effort by the City of Fort Collins and SpokesBUZZ to connect emerging bands with music fans in The Lincoln Center’s unique performance facilities. 
 
The Local Link series will feature themed events in a club environment, with local bands performing around various holidays throughout the 2015-16 season. The schedule includes:

  • Aspen Hourglass: Thursday, October 29, 7 - 9 p.m.
  • The Shaley Scott Band: Thursday, December 17, 7 - 9 p.m.
  • Shatterproof: Sunday, February 14, 7 - 9 p.m.
  • Grim&Darling: Thursday, March 17, 7 - 9 p.m. 
  • iZCALLi: Thursday, May 5, 6 - 8 p.m.

The Local Link is intended to satisfy the need for “an earlier set time in a sophisticated environment, with the best regional alternative bands,” said Dani Grant, SpokesBUZZ executive director. “The Local Link is a tailored music set geared toward a cocktail party environment: a bit softer, more acoustic in nature -- a performance that allows for dancing, listening, and a conversation in the room,” Grant said. “I’m 45 years old, have three kids and a full-time job. Both my husband and I enjoy live music; we have always been concertgoers and keep up as best we can with new music and local music. It is a rare occasion that we get to see live music before our bedtime, 10 - 11 p.m. More often, we attend a city festival in the heat of summer on a steaming asphalt parking lot, or force ourselves to attend a show in a sticky dark room at midnight. We will still do that on occasion, but having this event is exciting.”

Members of iZCALLi giving us a dose of rock and roll. (Photo Credit: Andrew Rios)

With a full service bar, tapas/light appetizers, and an affordable ticket price -- $12 per show or the opportunity to purchase a $50 5-show season pass -- Grant said The Local Link provides a comfortable and approachable introduction to emerging local bands. 

“Patrons can bring friends who aren’t sure about local and unfamiliar music to join them and fall in love with these bands,” Grant said. “Small businesses may choose to bring the office team and spouses to the December show to host a holiday gathering there, rather than reserving restaurant meeting space or planning a party.” 

The Local Link launched on Saturday, August 1, with an acoustic show featuring members of Wiredogs. Season sponsors for the series include KUNC and Shaped Music. Season tickets for the series and tickets for individual upcoming shows will be made available at www.lctix.com. 

About SpokesBUZZ Fort Collins
Created from a love for music, amplified by radical collaboration with like-minded organizations, and funded by people and partners who recognize the extraordinary economic and cultural community impact, SpokesBUZZ raises global awareness of Colorado sound and culture by bringing worldwide attention to local bands. Find out more at www.spokesbuzz.org. 

About The Lincoln Center
The Lincoln Center is one of Colorado's largest and most diverse presenters of professional theatre, dance, music, visual arts and children's programs. It features two performing art spaces (a 1,180-seat performance hall and a 220-seat theatre), three galleries, and an outdoor sculpture/terrace/performance garden. It also has two conference/special events rooms available for rentals. The mission of The Lincoln Center is to be a leader in cultural experience and make it an essential value to the community. Find out more at www.lctix.com.