Hayes Carll hasn't been resting on his laurels since topping critics polls and winning awards for his 2008 album, Trouble in Mind. Instead, he's been on the road nearly nonstop, and along the way he's been inspired to write a crop of new tunes that the have been called "a layman's take on our country - a snapshot of America in some small way." The result: the sharply drawn collection KMAG YOYO (and Other American Stories). Fiery rock, twangy country, pensive folk and even a touch of gospel comprise KMAG YOYO's sonic palette, and Hayes will be sharing that palette unplugged when he arrives in Denver.
His 2008 album Trouble in Mind won raves from such pundits Entertainment Weekly’s Ken Tucker, agreed saying Carll, "was the creator of one of the year’s best country albums." Carll’s sardonic, yet catchy "She Left Me for Jesus" raised the ire of conservative radio programmers and TV evangelists, but drove Don Imus to declare it "the greatest country song ever written."
The New York Times recently proclaimed that Houston, Texas, native Robert Ellis sounds “equally inspired by Jackson Browne and George Jones.” Not a bad reference point for an artist only twenty-two years old. Photographs, the young songwriter’s second release, is an impressive and diverse concept album split between five breathtaking folk songs and five soon-to-be country standards. Listening to Photographs, one finds it difficult to pigeonhole Robert Ellis. It’s even harder to remember that he’s barely just begun.
Tom Rush is a gifted musician and performer whose shows offer a musical celebration...a journey into the tradition and spectrum of what music has been, can be, and will become. His distinctive guitar style, wry humor and warm, expressive voice have made him both a legend and a lure to audiences around the world. His shows are filled with the rib-aching laughter of terrific story-telling, the sweet melancholy of ballads and the passion of gritty blues.
Rush's impact on the American music scene has been profound. He helped shape the folk revival in the '60s and the renaissance of the '80s and '90s, his music having left its stamp on generations of artists, including James Taylor and Garth Brooks.
Singer-songwriter John Statz travels have taken him from Colorado to Wisconsin to West Virginia to Hungary. Hi album Ghost Towns was written during this time on road and has been called "a full-length dripping with folk-rock immediacy and the kind of grit that cooled heels never gather.” (Jason Heller, Westword)
Dakota Blonde Saturday, February 11 at 8 pm L2 Arts & Culture Center
The vibrant harmony trio of Mary Huckins, Don Pinnella and Tony Raddell return with their down-to-earth, sentimental, and humorous tunes that reflect their influences of folk, bluegrass, and country. Award-winning songwriters, their song “Somebody’s Brother” won the 2001 Walnut Valley Festival New Song Showcase and Mary Huckin’s song “Dig Real Deep” was a finalist for the 2002 MerleFest Chris Austin Songwriting Contest.
They’ve shared the stage with myriad artists of great caliber, from Nickel Creek to John McEuen, and Jimmy Ibbotson to Tony Furtado, to name but a few. They were also showcased at our Denver Folk & Roots Music Festival (now known as RootsFest) in 2008, headlined by Bruce Cockburn and Nanci Griffith, where they brought the house down!
Join us for an intimate evening of music with Mike Butterworth and Jason Walsmith of the Nadas performing an acoustic concert.
Des Moines rockers The Nadas set out last January to record their seventh LP, Almanac, virtually live. The rules were simple: the band would write, record and release one song a month all year. What’s more, every step of the process would be streamed live on the band’s website and with unprecedented access to the creative process; fans were allowed to become an integral part of this album. By joining the band’s web-based Almanac Project, fans could monitor their blog and read the band’s project journal.
Comments and criticisms on everything from lyrics to instruments were welcomed and even, in a few choice cases, incorporated into The Nadas’ music. In September of 2009, select fans that had joined the Almanac Project were extended an exclusive invitation to a special songwriting session arranged to write that month’s addition to this most unique album.
Despite (or perhaps because) of the rigorous, self-imposed deadlines and wildly public creative process, the 12 tracks produced on Almanac finds The Nadas in top form.
Their previous efforts The Ghosts Inside These Halls (2007) and Listen Through The Static (2005) have found the band (rounded out by bassist Jon Locker, drummer Jason Smith, and violinist Becca Smith) alternating between alt-rock and alt-country. Now, Almanac finds the band fully embracing muscular, anthemic rock.
Ruthie Foster and Paul Thorn have forged a compelling path for the next generation of songwriting blues and soul artists. Rich with honest spirituality and possessing vocal abilities that have critics comparing her to Ella Fitzgerald and Aretha Franklin, Ruthie’s passionate songs and scintillating live performances always make for an uplifting experience. Paul Thorn is an authentic new voice in the modern blues scene, bridging classic forms with twenty-first century sensibility. Performing on their own and together with Ruthie’s band, it's an evening of raw musical emotion, soulful singing and finely honed musical virtuosity guaranteed to be good for the spirit!
