BandWagon Magazine - February 2021 - Battle of the Bands by BandWagon Magazine

MUSIC reviews

BandWagon Magazine

Jess Parsons PG. 4 Isadora EdeN PG. 6 Yung Lurch PG. 8

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Single PREMIERES

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WAYNE WATTS

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Jess Parsons Hear Me Calling

Kevin Johnston

BandWagon Magazine

Stop sifting for obscure ‘70s soft-pop on Spotify playlists like “candle-lit living room slow dance” and buy Jess Parsons’ Hear Me Calling . The Denverbased songstress is known for her work with acts as diverse as the tongue-in-cheek, softglam of Alex Cameron and experimental, chamber artpop of Bluebook, but proves she’s got her own thing going via this, her second proper EP, which dropped in January.

Often compared to Fleetwood Mac, Parsons finds her true groove somewhere between Jenny Lewis, Aimee Mann and the disco side of Feist. Hear Me Calling has a core of sweet, singersongwriter sincerity, but keep a spot on your dance card free for that special someone, because it’s got hips. Attentive accompaniment of tasteful synths, mildly overdriven vintage guitars, organ, and occasional orchestral counterpoints from horns, all tuck neatly beneath Parson’s understated, romantic melodies. Notably keen drumming by Kim Baxter drives Parsons’ mid-tempo party bus with a soft and steady snare drum, crunching lightly like footsteps on fresh snow. “Heat Emoji’’ echoes the Twin Peaks theme via Miles Eichner’s guitar in its spooky, supporting role. The track is

beautifully arranged leaving ample room for Parsons to stretch her leading-lady legs and coy, subtle swagger. “Wasted Time” cloaks Parsons’ backup band in fluted, atmospheric delicacy, bringing us fully in the winter of 2021 with snowy soundscapes on par with Sigur Ros. No drums to propel things here, but as heard on each of the EP’s tracks, the real enchantment is woven by Parsons’ straightforward vocal. Keeping things simple, beautiful and by putting her

heart on her sleeve, Parsons carries Hear Me Calling on the strength of its no-nonsense songs. The album impresses, but it doesn’t dazzle, and that’s because it doesn’t have to. Parsons knows well that charm and honesty go a long way. If the cards fall in her favor, that could be all the way to true timelessness. Visit jessparsonsmusic.com to check out Hear Me Calling and more.

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Isadora EdeN All Night

Kevin Johnston

BandWagon Magazine

If you’re willing to stop and listen, the understated can be the most powerful of art forms. This truth is beautifully demonstrated on Isadora Eden’s second EP, the vulnerable All Night, which opens like a dark, reverberated flower in your headphones. With recording as the only medium in which to experience new rock bands these days, the full-throated belting and high energy antics which work onstage aren’t always the way to tap into an audience’s feelings. The truth is, the opposite tactic does the trick. Today, from our homes, we seek connection, communion, and acknowledgement that all this isolation is hard. And giving into the gloom – even just for the length of one, intimately recorded EP – can

be more of a cure than ignoring the darkness by pumping your fist.

All Night was fully recorded and produced in Loveland, Colorado, though Eden’s residential history includes New Orleans, Brooklyn and her current home, Denver. The soft elocution in her young, muted alto reflects this welltraveled soul; one who’s stories we believe regardless of how few words they contain or how many years they took to accrue. Together with co-writer/band-mate Sumner Erhard, Eden builds thoughtful musical structures and well-woven instrumental textures throughout. All Night’s producer, mixer and mastering engineer Corey Coffman (Gleemer, Slow Caves, Corsicana) should be given due credit for framing Eden’s minimalistic, melodic exhilations with just the right amount of dramatic rock beauty. Like a shoegaze-y Soccer Mommy cloaked in timid sincerity, Eden’s voice offers sad solidarity to those who will listen, while she, Erhard and Coffman carry her shy messages on the shoulders of stately guitars, dignified drums and echoey atmosphere. All Night by Isadora Eden is out February 5 - visit isadoraedenmusic.com for more. Her video for “Ghosts” premieres this month via BandWagMag.com

Yung Lurch B ALL IN

Laura Giagos

BandWagon Magazine

Denver based multiinstrumentalist Brent Somermeyer, under the name Yung Lurch, is not an artist tied down by conventions. If ever that was apparent, it is on his new EP entitled B ALL IN, a four-track peek into the life and work of a unique recording artist deeply entrenched in the music making process. The third EP from Yung Lurch (and second of 2020), B ALL IN is the sonic exploration of a lot of different elements. Somermeyer brings

together dub, funk, electro, post emo, and one sweet drum solo, all held together by his eclectic vision. A background in drums and piano, Somermeyer attended the University of Colorado, Denver where he studied audio engineering. After graduating, along with the help of some amazing people, Somermeyer opened up Catadawn Studios, an analog mixing and mastering studio where his goal was to provide bedroom producers a chance to master their work on professional and classic gear. That love of analog equipment being used in a modern sense is at the core of Yung Lurch’s sound. To bring BE ALL IN to life, Somermeyer sampled sounds from his vinyl record collection which he triggers live on his MPC in the vein of J Dilla’s Donuts. The richest example on the EP is “Colfax Cruzin,” a love letter to Colfax Avenue, Denver’s longest and weirdest street. This track captures the experimental nature of both Somermeyer’s music and day-to-day life on

the wild animal Coloradans affectionately call Colfax. If you’re looking for straight up dubstep or electro, this isn’t for you. B ALL IN is the type of sonic experimentation that all musicians should do once. It’s a returning to the roots, a letting go of the cutting edge which makes this EP a

stand out amongst Somermeyer’s peers. Sometimes the best thing a musician can do is shut down their computer and learn all the ins and outs of the gear in their arsenal. Check out more on Yung Lurch at instagram.com/yunglurch and peep Catadawn Studios via catadawnstudios.com

Single PREMIERES by Kevin Johnston

Pie Lombardi Some People

Northern Colorado’s Pie Lombardi presents his finest work to date with the moving single “Some People.” Etching honesty into the stone of postemo indie rock reminiscent of Silver & Gold (of which he is a founder) Lombardi finds a new musical space, distinct in its everyman delivery and folk-song realism. On this effort, Lombardi shines as the humble leader of a bar room chorus shouting the refrain “Walking forward staring at the ground - saw you blame the world when you fell down.” It’s a rally cry of calling-it-like-itis, marking a highpoint of Lombardi’s keen ability to be direct.

Noel Afan Billups (ssiigghh, it’s just bugs, Bright Silence). Mickey Postillion joins Lombardi in building a golden wall of guitar shimmer and Samantha Brewer reinforces the vocal rally cry. The Blasting Room’s Chris Beeble provides bass, mixing, engineering and well earned producer’s credit. “Well’s running empty for shit that I can say,” Lombardi laments through a working man’s tightly clenched jaw. But “Some People” is clear evidence that it ain’t. “Some People” premieres via BandWagMag. com on Thursday, February 11.

The chorus of voices is only part of the personnel lifting the song from solo to nearly symphonic. Dan Salisbury’s brilliant drumming puts an angular, polyrhythmic spin on the outset of the tune’s arpeggiated keyboard via synth wizard/audio engineer

Goth Club Sweep Me Up

Caleb McFadden is known to most on the Northern Colorado music scene as leading the rocking, left-of-center guitar / bass / drum trio Chess At Breakfast. In his new solo project Goth Club, McFadden maintains some of the dark, rock oddities Chess At Breakfast fans will know and Primus fans will recognise, but he brings a new level of classic synthgoth to the party. “Sweep Me Up,” Goth Club’s third release, is a black lipstick affair. It sinks to the halfspoken, sultry depths of Monster Magnet’s “Paradise” or even Ramstein with an added layer of synths and old-school drum machines akin to an early Depeche Mode. It must be noted that Mike Davis, McFadden’s “Chess mate” so-to-speak, contributes some heavy lifting by polishing the track from a production standpoint. And the freedom to experiment which McFadden and Davis display is a direct result of pandemic

isolation and introspection. McFadden looks directly into the black mirror on “Sweep Me Up,” finding shadows, distortion and sludge within it. But seeking the depths offers some release, allowing one to reach an endpoint where the only way onward is up. “Sweep Me Up” premieres exclusively via BandWagMag.com on Thursday, February 18.

Ron: Weekdays 6am - 10am While listening to music beds to play at 7:30 for Today In Music History , I realized all of these could help you get through this part of the winter! 1. Cliff Nobles & Co. - “The Horse” – This ’68 gold record was the 1st hit for the horn section that became MFSB in the 70s! Did your high school pep band play this at games? 2. Les Dudek - “Old Judge Jones” – I forgot what a dang catchy tune this is from the guy who played with the Allmans on Brothers and Sisters. I also forgot this song has lyrics. 3. Eric Johnson - “Cliffs Of Dover” – Back in ’90 while in Steamboat Springs, I got introduced to the FANTASTIC guitar work of Johnson - the son of a whistling enthusiast. (really!) A great tune for us air guitarists! 4. Johnny Pate - “Shaft In Africa” – Of course we know Isaac Hayes’ theme to the 1st Shaft film, but how about this one from the terrible THIRD Shaft film?!? 5. Young-Holt Unlimited - “Soulful Strut” – You may not care that there’s still a few weeks of winter when you put on this upbeat gem from former members of the Ramsey Lewis Trio.

Margot: Weekdays 10am - 3pm The new Top 20 of ‘21 question for February: It’s a short month so we decided it would be fun to find out your favorite short song! We’ll count the top 20 short songs as voted by you at the end of the month. Tell us your favorite at coloradosound.org 1. Pigs On The Wing (Pt.1)” - Pink Floyd – Off the 1971 album Animals, this love song is only 1:26 but it is so good it doesn’t need to be any longer. 2. “Particle Man” They Might Be Giants – You can always count on short bursts of goofy fun from They Might Be Giants. 3. “London Dungeon” - Misfits – Creepy and short. Just what one expects from the Misfits. 4. “Hawaii Five-0” - The Ventures – The theme to the television show is instantly catchy and will probably stay in your head long after you hear it.

5. “All” The Descendents – This 1 second song (yes, 1 second) memorably begins the 1987 album of the same name. By the way, the sequel to the song clocks in at 2 seconds). We may have a winner!

Stacy: Weekdays 3pm - 7pm It’s been a wild start to 2021. Time for some good news! 1. Bike from coast to coast on the Great American Rail Trail - This ambitious project will eventually connect 145 “rail-trails” from Washington DC to Washington state. Rail-trails are former railroad corridors, turned multi-use public trails. An easily accessible, great way to enjoy the outdoors, coast to coast! Nearly 2,000 miles of the route have been completed so far! railstotrails. org/greatamericanrailtrail/ 2. Rewilding Britain – A new nature network plans to “rewild” 300,000 acres of land in the UK, in a bid to boost biodiversity. The first animals to be re-introduced to the English woodland are European bison. Upcoming projects include the reintroduction of beavers, white-tailed eagles, red kites and the enormous Dalmatian pelican. rewildingbritain.org.uk 3. Adidas’ makes vegan leather shoes – Adidas has announced it’s launching a line of sneakers made from mushroom-based leather. The new Stan Smiths will be entirely vegan, created using mycelium: that is, the vegetative part of fungi that produces mushrooms. Gives a whole new meaning to foot fungus! 4. Monserrate Hill Hummingbird Sanctuary - After ten years of restoration, Monserrate Hill on the outskirts of Bogota, Colombia, has been transformed from a deforested eyesore to a bird sanctuary. An oasis of calm amidst the city of 8 million people, it is home to over 115 species of birds, including 18 types of hummingbirds. 5. A More Courteous Conversation – A Norwegian TV show called Einig? (meaning Agreed?) is taking some of the toxicity out of current political debate by forcing guests to be courteous to each other. The show’s philosophy: no name calling, no interrupting and actually try to understand your opponent.

Benji: Weekdays 7pm - 10pm 1. Barry Gibb – Greenfields – Barry Gibb has delivered one of the most surprising records in a long time. Gibb headed to Nashville and worked with producer extraordinaire Dave Cobb to rework some classic Bee Gee material. Guests include Jason Isbell, Brandi Carlile, Gillian Welch and many more. Not a bad song on the record. 2. The Bee Gees: How Can You Mend A Broken Heart on HBO Max – While on the topic, be sure and check out this documentary. It’s easy to forget all of the accomplishments this band has had, but enough time has passed since the disco era to give a whole new appreciation to a band that is so much more than Saturday Night Fever. 3. I’ll Be Gone In The Dark on HBO Max – This documentary has two different agendas. The first: the pursuit and capture of the Golden State Killer. The other: the exploration of true crime writer, Michelle McNamara’s life. Instead of a typical crime documentary, viewers are treated to healthy doses of humanity and compassion for those affected. 4. Nick Waterhouse: “Place Names” – Whether producing others or creating his own music, Nick Waterhouse always delivers quality. “Place Names” is no different. It’s the first single from his upcoming release Promenade Blue; a tribute to Waterhouse’s upbringing in the Bay area and visit to the California of yesteryear. 5. Beach Bunny – “Good Girls (Don’t Get Used)” – Upbeat, catchy, and clever, Chicago’s Beach Bunny delivers another audio assault. Singer Lili Trifilio is not a fan of people who choose not to be present and this song lets us know.

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JOY AS RESISTANCE WAYNE WATTS RAPS DECOMPRESSION FOR REVOLUTIONARIES BY GABE ALLEN

Like any truly great emcee, Wayne Watts is a man of letters.

“It was right before everything changed for the worse,” he said.

Though not in the stuffy, antiquated sense of a bespectacled professor speaking in Shakespearean soliloquies, Watts is a man who is always thinking about words. He consumes them en masse from authors Ta-Nehisi Coates, Jason Reynolds and N.K. Jemisin, and from his favorite rappers — Jay-Z, The Notorious B.I.G. and Lupe Fiasco. He carefully selects them from daily interactions with friends, colleagues and family, from newspaper articles and novels.

After a year of success in expanding his vision, community and family, 2020 hit Watts hard. The pandemic shuttered the Denver venues in which he once performed, and The Dream Create Inspire Tour was forced into a virtual existence. A seemingly endless string of police brutality incidents against black Americans dominated the news cycle.

“I pick up different phrases that I hear in the world that resonate with me,” Watts tells BandWagon. Ultimately, the power of Watts’ dedication to words lies in the myriad of ways in which he employs them. In addition to performing, Watts is also an educator and activist. In 2018, Watts co-founded The Dream Create Inspire Tour with his partner Destiny Hardney. The couple rallied videographers, sound engineers, educators and artists for a nine city tour in 2019. Along the way, Watts conducted songwriting workshops, collaborated with local musicians and hosted open mics. “The intention has always been to create an incubator to give disenfranchised creators a platform,” he said. Just months after the tour ended, Watts and Hardney welcomed “the legendary Iya’Jade Ali Watts” into the world; their first child.

“In 2020, a lot of my music and a lot of my performances were marked around a death,” he said. During this chaotic time, Watts turned to a daily meditation ritual to ground himself and clear his head. Every morning he would return to the same words. Words that were meant to focus his energy towards love and connectivity. “They’re filled up with a lot of manifestations and affirmations,” he said. “I treat my mantras like songs.” It was through this process that Watts found the inspiration for one of the first songs on Homegold | 001, one of three mixtapes that he released in 2020. “Life Ain’t Sweet” begins with a mantra. “Breathe in life, breathe out love,” Watts sings in unison with Brionne Aigné, the exceptionally talented vocalist featured throughout the release. After a few repetitions, Aigné and keyboardist Ronneka Cox improvise over soulful changes while Watts embarks on a stream-of-consciousness flow. “Just as important as having knowledge is feeling empowered,” he raps. This is what Watts wants you to know. In the most trying

of times, it’s especially important to connect with that which feeds your confidence: joy and love. “It was written after watching endless police brutality incidents,” he said. “I wanted to make music for revolutionaries to decompress to. While you’re fighting these things it’s really essential to remember to breathe.” It’s not that Watts is advocating for a particular kind of resistance against systemic racism. Instead, he is advocating for a specific mindset from which to practice resistance. “If you meditated and thought it through, then that’s the best you could do at that time,” he said. “And I’m not just speaking to somebody else. I’m talking to myself.” In November, Hardney and Watts collected footage and music from black artists and musicians to create

a “visual mixtape.” The resulting 20-minute video was projected onto the 325-foot Daniels and Fisher Tower in Denver, the intention being to create a virtual performance that defied racism by honoring individuality.

“Resistance isn’t monolithic, just like black experiences aren’t monolithic,” Watts said. “Resistance can come from anger, but resistance can also come from joy. Black joy is a devastating blow to white supremacy.” In the subsequent Homegold mixtapes, released in August and

November of 2020, Watts practices what he preaches. The songs convey a sense of intimacy and roughness — at times they’re almost conversational — although the flow is undeniable. Watts, a charmingly positive person conversationally, allows himself to experience sorrow and anger on tape. “I done felt joy and pain and thrill right here,” he raps on the track “I Ain’t Calling For No Good News, Yo” from Home Gold |002, and later, “In the city where they want us really all to get killed right here.” According to Watts, he owes at least some of this authenticity to the person he has been spending most of his time with during the pandemic: his daughter. “Seeing how fast a kid can go from crying to laughing has been a constant reminder to honor your emotion,” he said. “If you gotta cry: cry. If you gotta be mad: be mad. If you want to smile: don’t hold it in.”

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All The World’s A Stage: BandWagon’s Battle Of The Bands a microcosm of the music industry’s pandemic predicament.

fter weeks of our 9th annual band-battle’s preliminary rounds in early 2020, twelve of sixteen bands had been eliminated. The build-up of excited momentum towards a winner was at its peak. The semi-final round had just determined which four would go head-to-head, live, to take home the prize of $1,000 (and gracing the cover of BandWagon Magazine) via the final round that March. We all know what happened next. The world’s day-to-day was abruptly halted like – well, like a global pandemic hit. The world changed. The music stopped. The battle’s trajectory was lost. Band members quit, tours were cancelled, recording studio sessions were postponed, even career-level jobs playing music were lost. The joy of performing was sucked away like air from a balloon.

But somehow, all four bands carried on. They made their own recordings, found new players and learned how to harness the power of positive thinking (and the internet). Some even grew big-ass beards – after all, it’s been a whole year! And so we find ourselves, finally, at the precipice of the long-awaited conclusion to the 2020 BandWagon Battle of the Bands – in practically a whole new era. We spoke with Graham Good & The Painters, Hannah & The Cuddies, Lady Denim and Nelsen on the longest battle of their musical lives, one which will finally conclude on Friday, March 12, 2021 at The Moxi Theater in Greeley.

GRAB YOUR TICKETS AT MOXITHEATER.COM FOR THE SHOW ON MARCH 12TH AND SIZE UP THE COMPETITION FOR A BATTLE THAT’S BEEN A LONG TIME COMING. READ ON, NOCO!

BATTLE PROFLE:

BY DAN ENGLAND

Graham Good & The Painters

or nearly two years, Graham Good Glenn Miller Orchestra. Instead, he & the Painters had a stash of songs had to move back in with his parents. ready for their first full-length But Good is relentlessly upbeat. album and they knew exactly which one they would release as the first single. Not only is that really his last name, it’s his nature, and it’s the band’s aesthetic. The song’s title, “Slumber,” belies the Even the band’s website greets tune, as it’s a Roadrunner-quick romper. you with “I believe good things are coming.” He wants people to be happy. “That’s one of our most highSo naturally, Good tried to approach energy songs ever,” Good tells BandWagon. “In our worst year we’ve the pandemic optimistically. He admits all ever seen, we thought, ‘Let’s get they could have done more marketing people out and bouncing around’.” or released more videos, but he’s proud of keeping the band together through Yes, COVID-19 hit his band about Zoom meetings, idea sessions where as hard as it did everyone else. Before bandmates could bounce musical ideas the coronavirus, they were planning a off each other. He calls the band his big Midwest tour, had played the well- family, and so sometimes, those Zoom known rock venue Summit Music Hall meetings turned into bitch-sessions (the biggest place they’d ever performed) about how crappy it was to be at home and were coming off a gig at the while a deadly virus swept through prestigious Bluebird Theater in Denver. the world. As a part of the continued bonding, the band even played a “We were riding a high,” Good July 4 gig in Thompson’s parents’ said. “We were feeling hot and not backyard to pick up everyone’s spirits. afraid to keep moving at a fast pace.” “The brotherhood helped keep That Bluebird gig was the last the some heads above water,” Good band played before the outbreak. The said. “It was really good to have that.” pandemic was a bummer for individual members of the band and the group as Good’s optimism allowed for a whole. Daniel Thompson, for instance, pandemic opportunity as well. He took a had just been hired as a pianist by the class on how to record music at home.

“It was divine timing in a way,” Good said. “We have all this time to write music now. Thank God we were able to do that. I would have been going crazy if I didn’t know how to make these demos.” The result is the band’s first full-length album Graham Good & The Painters. Good had many of the songs worked out as late as 2019, though he did make adjustments after recently adding Lance Ruby as lead guitarist. He recorded piece-by-piece, flying to Minnesota for drum parts and relying on his home studio for others. He’s proud of the music the last year produced and is shopping the album around to different labels. He’s had a couple offers so far, and he is, of course, optimistic about its chances. In gearing up for BandWagon’s Battle of the Bands at the Moxi, Good admits having mixed feelings playing indoor gigs — almost all of the band’s infrequent gigs were outdoors over the past 10 months — but he also said things are feeling a little better with the release of the vaccine. “We definitely want to play by the rules,” Good said. “But you know, music lifts people up. I am hopeful! It’ll just be good to play again.”

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BATTLE PROFLE:

Hannah & The Cuddies H

annah Rodriguez knew the Cuddies were entering a new chapter in January of 2020 when they won the first round of BandWagons’ Battle of the Bands. She eagerly planned their finalist set and looked forward to the future. But the future had changes in store.

“”WE JUST WANT TO ENTERTAIN PEOPLE AND HAVE FUN DOING IT,” said Rodriguez

The Cuddies still have to adjust for those original line-up’s Bandmates graduated from The missing bandmates by bringing in University of Northern Colorado and moved away, though some members of substitutes, but one original member the band would carry on after garnering will be driving from his new home in some local popularity. They opened for Casper, WY, specifically to do battle. The Burrough’s annual New Year’s Eve “I’m nervous about going in with a party (a sell-out at Greeley’s Moxi theater to a crowd of over 400) and planned different group of people. Part of why we to record an album in the summer of were fun is because we were all friends, so 2020. But March hit, and COVID-19 we connected on stage,” said Rodriguez. left their calendar suddenly empty. But Rodriguez also looks forward But that wasn’t the end of things to her future as an artist in the individual as friends. The Cuddies found ways sense. She found more time to write to play together in smaller groups and during quarantine, allowing a more occasionally hang out at an apartment organic songwriting style to emerge where a few of them were roommates. while she finishes her last semester at With the popularity of live stream events, they enjoyed a few more UNC. So whether or not the Cuddies moments together with Greeley’s have a strong future, her solo work MayPlay, The Burroughs Variety Show functions as an extension of the band. Telethon, and the Moxi Live! summer With the optimism of a vaccine concert series. Now, with the Battle of and being booked for their first live gig the Bands resuming and a rescheduled with a real audience in 2021, Rodriguez studio date, they have a purpose to hang around a little bit longer. is ready to play music once again.

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BATTLE PROFLE:

Nelsen

At the start of 2020, Nick Nelsen barely had time to sleep. The 21-yearold musician had promised away his time so enthusiastically that any opportunities for non-productive waking moments had disappeared.

“I wish we would’ve won all of them,” he said. “But then it’s also sweet, because the friends I have now were there to experience it.”

Of course, Greeley’s theater of musical war was closed to battle before 2020’s competition could be decided. Like almost every other band around the country, the pandemic forced Nelsen into a temporary retirement from live performance. Not only was Nelsen in his senior year as a Bachelor of Music at the When the Battle finally University of Northern Colorado, reaches its ultimate conclusion in he was also playing regular gigs March, Nelsen tells BandWagon with his eponymous band, teaching the band will be in good company music at the Boys and Girls Club – regardless of the outcome – of Weld County and composing praising the other bands in the scores for a slew of indie horror films. competition, and reminiscing on a Nelsen had lived an overcommitted tender moment with Graham Good. life since moving to Colorado in 2016 “We headlined a gig and he from a small farming community went on right before us. Graham in Nebraska. During college he was talking to me and he was like, played varsity baseball, released two ‘You know, we mesh really well albums and dove into an ambitious together on a lineup. We make curriculum of composition, recording and music performance classes. the audience feel good, and you guys make the audience... feel.’” “I was already used to barely If Nelsen’s latest single, “This sleeping and barely eating,” he said. is the End,” is any indication, the Despite Nelsen’s deadline band has refined its emotive addiction, though, Nelsen (the sound over the past year. In the band) was finally hitting its stride. heart-on-sleeve balad, the band trades melodic leads between ”THE MOMENTUM WAS Nelsen’s rich baritone and wailing REALLY GOOD,” HE SAID. “WE slide guitar from Elliot Turner. “The way I got through it was to never think about anything,” Nelsen said. “I would just do whatever I needed to do in that specific second, because if I looked forward I would have freaked out.”

WERE DOING FOUR GIGS IN A Although Nelsen says that ONE-MONTH SPAN.” the song’s narrative voice is

On the first day of February last year, the band beat out Hot Tub Wrestler, Ethan More or Less and the Able Dogs in round one of BandWagon’s 2020 Battle of the Bands. The success was three years in the making. Nelsen had also competed in 2018 and 2019, never to make it past the first round.

a fictional creation, he admits that, as with all of his music, he drew from personal experience. “It’s a character I created, but it’s kind of like me earlier in life when I found it hard to commit,” he said. “No matter how much love anyone gave me, I was always thinking about how they could hurt me at any second.”

Even so, Nelsen (the human man) says the win felt bittersweet. Armed with tearjerkers, new In the spring of 2019, the band’s original guitarist, Conner Shaw, and and old, Nelsen is poised and ready original keyboardist, Landon Mills, to make the audience “feel” when both left Colorado for California. the Battle of the Bands returns.

BY GABE ALLEN 19 19

BY DIEGO FELIX

BATTLE PROFLE:

LADY DENIM

ick Lundeen remembers February 2020 well. His band, Lady Denim, was coming off a string of successful headlining gigs across the Colorado Front Range, gathering a cult following with a growing catalog of memorable tracks. To top it off, the 80’s inspired indie rock quartet were selected as finalists for BandWagon’s Battle of the Bands.

of COVID-19 began to flare up, the band Denim has been cutting the amount walked out to a crowd of less than 50. of recording they are doing in order to devote full attention to their live show. And after a run of spring shows were cancelled, and seeing major festivals “There’s definitely going to be postponed, the reality began to set in. first show jitters, like we’re back to the very beginning of it because it’s been so long. It feels surreal to come “THE SILVER LINING back to it – like how the Olympics got OF IT ALL WAS THAT postponed; now we’re having the 2020 WE WERE ABLE TO Battle of the Bands in 2021. We’re just making sure we are ready to go SET ASIDE TIME AND with these new songs,” Lundeen said. RECORD,” Lundeen reflects.

But just as BandWagon announced finalists, the COVID-19 pandemic reared its ugly head and flipped the world upside down. The Battle, the music industry Known for their dreamy, uptempo, and life in general, were placed on hold. indie vibe, Lundeen said the lockdown gave Lady Denim time to continue “We were starting to get the developing the group’s sound. Trading ball rolling, you know, the snowball rehearsals for recording sessions effect,” recalls Lundeen, Lady not only brought the band closer, Denim’s lead vocalist, of the band’s but also yielded the seeds for what momentum heading into March Lundeen said will be their next release. 2020, “and then it all got paused.” With lockdown restrictions in the Lundeen looks back on the band’s state of Colorado being dialed back, last headliner at the Aggie Theatre in Lundeen said he is excited to return to the Fort Collins, where the band walked stage. In preparation for the rescheduled out to a crowd of 450. At a show a final round of BandWagon Magazine’s month later on March 13, just as news Battle of the Bands, he said that Lady

CATCH THE BANDWAGON MAGAZINE BATTLE OF THE BANDS IN MARCH & LISTEN TO LADY DENIM’S DREAMY UPTEMPO INDIE SOUNDSCAPES AT LADYDENIMBAND.COM

“Our live performance is where you get to see and feel a lot of the emotion,” Lundeen continued. “I’m very excited to see the turnout; and I think it will be really good for the community of Northern Colorado. Live music has a special charm. It’ll never depreciate in value as far as what it stands for. Movie theaters, you can replace that with Netflix, or if you look at shopping malls, then there’s just Amazon. But something about live music, having it right in front of you – the energy that it’s surrounded with and the people that come, it’s something that can never go away.”

Applications are now open to submit your music for placement on film and television with Assemble Sound.