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BandWagon Magazine northern colorado’s arts & entertainment magazine DECEMBER 2012
BandWagon Magazine northern colorado’s arts & entertainment magazine DECEMBER 2012
ALBUM REVIEWS Austin Wahlert Self-titled
Jay Wallace BandWagon Magazine
while not completely original, it is a good song. There’s the shit-kicking good-old-boys song (with a semireligious twist) with “Hell of a Guy.” Austin Wahlert has a background Wahlert tips his hat to the troops that doesn’t sound out-of-place with “We Salute You,” and a couple for a country singer: Growing up songs about love and lost love such on a ranch in northern Colorado, as “Tonight” and “Set this Love on he participated in junior rodeo Fire.” associations and continued riding The song “Fire and Gasoline,” bulls into high school. Wahlert got about a relationship gone south, a college rodeo scholarship and stands out. The lyrics and the headed to Odessa College in Odessa, composition just have a nice flow. Texas, to pursue a business degree. While Wahlert’s personal life is He brought along a guitar he and his probably not as dramatic as the grandfather bought when Wahlert songs he sings, his songs never was sixteen, and after getting a sound insincere. They may sound couple injuries he decided to pursue like clichéd songs that come to music. mind when people think of country This is Wahlert’s first album, music, but Wahlert does seem to be and it’s surprisingly polished. It speaking from his heart. sounds like a studio-backed album In general, is it a good album? that’s on par with most country Yes, but it is not faultless. “We Salute singers out there. The songs, overall, You,” in particular, sounds like a are easy listening for anyone who generic patriotic country song. It’s has a taste for country. Not really not as chest-thumpingly nationalistic a hacky song on here, though the as other songs of its type, but it is subjects of the songs themselves are sort of bland. “Pop a Bottle Top,” a not unique among country music. partying anthem, also feels a little There’s “Rodeo Man,” a melancholic plain. It almost feels as if Wahlert telling of a man who’s used to was obligated to put those two songs heartbreak. Country music is full of on his debut album according to melodramatic songs of this kind, and some contract he signed. He could
definitely write better variations of those two songs if he felt like it. Put up against other, more prominent country singers out there, Wahlert can hold his own. He has talent, but he could stand to make his music stand out a little more to separate himself from other newcomers. Country music has a lot of new guys and gals out there every year, and many of them do fairly well despite all sounding very similar. But the guys who make a lasting impression take risks and put their personal stamp on the genre. Kenny Chesney was once thought of as “all hat,” meaning he was just another pretty face without chops, but two decades later he’s still out there making great music. Wahlert has the ability to do that. His debut album shows the makings of a great country singer.
Sufjan Stevens Silver & Gold
Sean Hunter BandWagon Magazine After releasing his forty-two track Songs for Christmas album back in 2006, Sufjan Stevens continued to write and record surreal music for the holidays. Now Sufjan has returned with a five-album, fifty-nine song box-set of timeless holiday classics and avant-garde music for the winter. Silver & Gold, which was released on November 13th, not only features a massive collection of music but also harbors some of the weirdest Christmas kitsch around. The boxset includes stickers, temporary tattoos, essays, and a build-yourown paper ornament kit. The Silver & Gold box-set itself may hold all the makings for Christmas cheer, but it would be nothing without the
wonderfully bizarre music put forth by Sufjan himself. Silver & Gold is broken into five different chapters, each encompassing its own CD: Gloria, I am Santa’s Helper, Christmas Infinity Voyage, Let It Snow, and Christmas Unicorn. Originally used by Sufjan as a musical Christmas card to friends, each chapter corresponds with the year it was recorded, spanning from 2006-2012. I am Santa’s Helper and Christmas Infinity Voyage are the biggest, but ultimately most disappointing chapters of Silver & Gold. The truncated song size of each section never give songs like “Mr. Frosty Man” or “Happy Family Christmas” time to bloom. Sufjan’s take on “Do You See What I See” ultimately ends up sounding more like a They Might Be Giants b-side than a song for the holidays.
Silver & Gold really finds its stride with the Gloria, Let it Snow, and Christmas Unicorn chapters. With Gloria and Let it Snow, Sufjan find the appropriate balance between traditional and experimental. “Lumberjack Christmas” is the kind of bouncy but cynical song that features heavily in Sufjan’s other work with lyrics like, “If drinking makes it easy / The music’s kind of cheesy / The specials on the TV”. Additionally, Sufjan’s take on “Let It Snow” turns the campy Christmas classic into a haunting song presented in minor-chords. Christmas Unicorn, Silver & Gold’s final section, contains both the most outlandish and somber tracks off the box-set. The songs “Justice Delivers Its Death” and “Christmas Unicorn” tackle the growing commercialization of Christmas. Addressing what seems to be at the heart of Silver & Gold, Sufjan writes, “Lord come with fire / Everyone’s wasting their time / Storing up treasure in vain” With a variety of interesting covers and a bevy of new music written for the holidays, Sufjan Stevens’ Silver & Gold is more rich than you might expect. Surreal, entertaining, and ultimately warm, Silver & Gold is the ideal music for the season’s most alternative fans.
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BandWagon Magazine northern colorado’s arts & entertainment magazine DECEMBER 2012 Kendrick Lamar
good kid, m.A.A.d city Mikey Unruh BandWagon Magazine In 2010, Dr. Dre found time between working on his stillunreleased final album and marketing headphones bearing his name to begin working with and mentoring Kendrick Lamar, in the same manner he did with Eminem and 50 Cent in the past. Kendrick released an independent record, Section.80, in 2011 before deciding to sign to a joint record deal with Dre’s Aftermath Entertainment and Interscope Records to release his major label debut, good kid, m.A.A.d city, on October 22, 2012. While the influence of Dre and Lamar’s crewmates ScHoolboy Q, Ab-Soul, and Jay Rock are evident throughout good kid, Kendrick takes the West Coast street rap image and makes it his own. While gang violence, petty crime, and drug use are prevalent on the record, they aren’t glorified like traditional gangsta rap. Like the title states, Kendrick is a good kid caught up in something crazy and that defines how the entire record plays. The stories feel more authentic and personal and are filled with regrets, rather than exaggerated boasts about completed crimes and insincere reminiscing of fallen friends. And, contrary to the typical rap mindset of having sex with as many women as possible, Kendrick has a muse, Sherane, a recurring element and the titular character of the opening track, “Sherane a.k.a. Master Splinter’s Daughter.” Lamar chronicles his introduction to Sherane, their summer fling, and his introduction into Compton gang life, over hazy, low-key production and pitch shifting drums. The production is prominent enough to set a mood, though subtle enough to make the vocals the focus, and with a strong narrative, rather than punch lines or relatively unrelated, oneline brags, the raps are always engaging. The entire album is framed by samples of cell phone messages to Kendrick from his mom as she tries to get her van back and his friends pestering him about Sherane and their exploits. These samples aren’t necessary for the stories to be powerful, but they give context and lend an authentic feel to the story. “The Art of Peer Pressure” begins by stating that it is a “true muthafuckin’ story told by Kendrick Lamar,” recounting how he began doing drugs and committing petty crimes over a light, laid back, piano-driven beat that becomes deeper and bassheavy with the line “One day it’s gon’ burn you out.” The obvious transition in the beat comes with a change in Kendrick, as he grows from an innocent kid pressured into doing something bad into a consenting participant. The track
concludes with Kendrick and his friends narrowly avoiding being caught by the police after robbing a house. The story doesn’t play out in a linear manner, but rather reveals the person Kendrick wants to be or the person he’s become because of the company he keeps through a collection of stories that don’t rely on placement in a larger timeline. The pair of tracks “good kid” and “m.A.A.d city” juxtapose his desire to maintain his education and relationships with the consuming nature of gang culture. The production mimics the contrasting ideals in the two tracks. A wandering bass line and smooth strings and woodwinds give “good kid” a sense of drifting and confusion as Kendrick sorts through his divided life, while “m.A.A.d city” provides the hardest beat, with driving prominent drums and simple repeated synth work, a perfect framework for the horrors of really living a gang life. “Swimming Pools (Drank),” the lead single, while an obvious choice for a single because of its club-friendly beat, finds Kendrick drinking in excess because he’s pressured into it. Given the context of the more extreme acts on the album, drinking too much seems almost inconsequential, but doesn’t really detract from the overall narrative. The easierto-stomach subject matter of the track makes the following sample of Kendrick’s friends getting involved in a shooting, resulting in the death of his friend, much more striking and guides Kendrick to escape street life in “Sing About Me/I’m Dying of Thirst.” Kendrick voices his fallen friend, begging to have his life sung about and to be remembered. Then, from his own perspective, Kendrick begins to repent and search for forgiveness for the bad he’s done. While many other rap albums will have more chart-topping singles, few have the honesty and unique perspective that Kendrick gives on good kid, m.A.A.d city. He developed a record that holds tight to a concept without becoming stale or relying on fiction to stay interesting. With a number of bigname features, including Drake and Dr. Dre, to provide credibility and A-list production that pays homage to past West Coast staples while staying fresh and original, the record has all the potential to become a classic.
BandWagon Magazine northern colorado’s arts & entertainment magazine DECEMBER 2012
are famous for. The song “Insulin” reflects the gritty tone that best characterizes Crystal Castles and is a minute and a half of pure noise. One of the strongest songs on the album, “Violent Youth,” has Jordan Wood album yet, with only twelve tracks. a pleasantly distorted tone with BandWagon Magazine It opens with “Plague,” which is an lyrics to match. Crystal Castles introduction to the lighter side of posted a version of the song Crystal Castles. However, it does played backwards on their blog Canadian-born Ethan Kath include Alice Glass’ signature that turns the song into something and Alice Glass began making shrieking vocals paired with the completely different but equally music together in 2004 under the excellent production of Ethan appealing and seems to be (III)’s moniker Crystal Castles. These Kath. On previous albums, each hidden treasure. unique artists are known for their song was an entirely new musical This album is perhaps the chaotic style and equally wild experience. On (III), the songs beginning of a slightly new live performances. “Electronic seem to coincide experimental,” “dream pop,” and with one another “noise” are what some critics have more. Each song labeled the music of Crystal Castles. contributes to the Despite being music that might album as a whole be an acquired taste to some, they piece of art rather easily made an impression within than being its own the growing modern electronic separate entity. The music scene. After releasing their song “Pale Flesh” is first full-length album in 2008 more reminiscent and their second (II) in 2010, they of older Crystal began periodically releasing tracks Castles songs, online from their newest and highly beginning with an anticipated album (III). eerie melody that (III) was scheduled for release beeps as if it is a on November 12th, but was released machine processing five days early on iTunes and information. Alice Spotify on November 7th. (III) has Glass comes in been met with mixed reviews from later, “Place the ash fans and critics thus far, moving on their foreheads in a slightly different direction / An impression than their previous albums. It has to embed / Born a smoother, more fluid feel, and is again before less jarring than the sound of (II) teething / Collect and their debut album. To someone tears from their who has never heard the music of weeping.” With the Crystal Castles, the smoother feel more club-friendly might sound more appealing, but track “Sad Eyes,” to those who appreciate Crystal (III) moves into a Castles’ infected, grimy vibe, (III) more traditional may be a slight disappointment. electronic sound (III) is Crystal Castles’ shortest than the one they
Crystal Castles III
direction for Crystal Castles. Regardless of musical taste, (III) is clearly the product of a band that has matured, and continually appears to challenge themselves as musicians. Although (III) may be the beginning of a slightly different direction for them, it is still a solid body of art from a band that is wonderfully weird. For fans and people eager to shock their ears with something entirely new, listen to (III) free in its entirety on Spotify or on CrystalCastles.com.
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BandWagon Magazine northern colorado’s arts & entertainment magazine DECEMBER 2012
FILM REVIEWS Wreck-it Ralph 2012 - 101 minutes – Rated PG Jay Wallace BandWagon Magazine
Skyfall 2012 - 143 Minutes - Rated PG-13 Jay Wallace BandWagon Magazine This year marks the 50th anniversary of James Bond on the big screen. Since 1962, the famous British Secret Agent has been on screen for 23 films and played by six different actors. Daniel Craig currently rocking the tux. This year, that anniversary was celebrated with Skyfall, which continues the story of Bond in a nontraditional way. Skyfall begins with Bond in pursuit of a baddie with Eve (Naomie Harris of 28 Days Later). Said baddie has obtained a hard drive containing the identities of undercover NATO agents. M (Judi Dench) orders Eve and Bond to retrieve the hard drive at whatever the cost, resulting in a car chase, a rooftop motorcycle chase, a fight on the top of a train, and eventually Eve accidentally shooting Bond. Bond is presumed dead, and the British government is royally pissed at M for losing the hard drive. The government wants to force M to retire, but she refuses to do so until the hard drive is retrieved. After MI6 headquarters are blown to bits, Bond resurfaces and M puts the out-ofshape secret agent to work to find the hard drive and the person who has it. 007 soon comes across Silva (No Country for Old Men’s Javier Bardem,) a former agent who wants M wiped from the face of the earth. The previous Craig films were attempts to modernize Bond for the Jason Bourne/Batman Begins
era. Gone were the gadgets such as the invisible Aston Martin or the BMW driven with a cell phone. The elaborate sets such as an Ice Castle, and ludicrously deformed villains were also thrown out with Pierce Brosnan. Craig’s Bond rarely cracks wise, he knows parkour, can drive like an F1 racer, and in general doesn;t shag every young and hot lady (Quantum of Solace’s Strawberry Fields was a good catch, though.) Skyfall has taken a decidedly different tactic. It’s still a Bond film, but it feels more like a throw-back to the Connery era of drama. The Aston Martin featured in Goldfinger makes an appearance in this film. The legendary gadget master Q, played here by Ben Whishaw, also makes a return. Whishaw’s younger, snarkier Q hands off to Bond a tiny radio beacon and a Walther PPK with a palm print reader that only Bond can use. When Bond expresses disinterest in the gadgets, Q makes a remark about how MI6 doesn’t use exploding pens anymore. The dramatic touches of the film could probably be attributed to director Sam Mendes not spending much time on action scenes, instead focusing on what makes Bond tick. It’s a cool change of pace to study Bond and dig into what makes him MI6’s top agent. It feels more like an homage to Bond’s legacy, which is clear from the beginning song
Wreck-It Ralph follows the titular character, voiced by John C. Reilly (Talladega Nights and other Will Ferrell productions.) Ralph is the villain of a classic arcade game, Fix-it Felix Jr., where he smashes up an apartment building that is then repaired by Fix-it Felix, Jr. (voiced by 30 Rock’s Jack McBrayer.) After 30 years of being thrown off the roof of the building by the tenants – usually after Felix fixes the apartment and gets a medal – Ralph has gotten tired of being a villain. He leaves the game, via Game Central Station, (the surge protector in the arcade Ralph’s game is in,) and finds himself in the new first-person shooter Hero’s Duty, his goal being to get a medal so he can return to Fix-It Felix Jr. and be celebrated by the apartment tenants. This creates a problem though: When Ralph doesn’t appear in the game, a girl playing Fix-It Felix Jr. tells arcade owner Mr. Litwak that the game’s malfunctioning, which means that the game could be unplugged. Felix sets off to find Ralph, first heading to Hero’s Duty where he encounters Sergeant Calhoun (voiced by Glee’s Jane Lynch) and become smitten. Ralph, meanwhile, has an accident in Hero’s Duty involving an escape pod and crash lands into Sugar Rush, a kart racing game, and comes across Vanellope von Schweetz, (voiced by comedienne Sarah Silverman,) a bratty, glitchy
and title sequence, sung by Adele. It sounds like it came right from the 1960s. But the movie isn’t just continuity porn for Bond fans. The film’s action sequences – the opening chase scene in Istanbul, a chase through London to save M, the ending – are well put together but, unlike Quantum of Solace, are not the main focus. Much of the film is semi-quiet drama, mostly about how Bond’s (and M’s and Silva’s) tactics are outdated but that sometimes the old stuff works best. It’s not deary, though. It’s also a fun film, from Craig’s banter with Harris’ Eve to Whishaw’s wet-behindthe-ears Q. The references to past Bond films are lovely touches. In the end, Skyfall is probably the best Bond film in years, and is a unique changeof-pace for the franchise. Catch it in theaters while you can. 10/10
character who’s been ostracized in the game. Ralph partners with Vanellope to help her win a race in the game (and help get him a medal) but soon they realize something is amiss in Sugar Rush that could threaten the entire arcade. Pixar’s films have dominated Disney’s output over the last two decades because of what they were not: sappy musicals with villains more interesting than the heroes, which is what Disney largely trafficked in with their hand-drawn fare. With WreckIt Ralph, it’s clear they learned from the success of Toy Story by crafting some interesting, unique characters and settings. The premise of the world of Wreck-It Ralph even borrows a similar idea from Toy Story: When humans aren’t around, the characters from video games come to life, leaving their games and hanging out in other games, such as Tapper, a real-life video game about a bar. The film starts with Ralph at a support group for video game villains, run by one of the ghosts from Pac-Man. It plays
with the tropes of video games, ranging from classic arcade games to modern shooters, and with that comes animation and in-jokes that are most definitely up-to-par with Pixar. One setting for Sugar Rush, a candy-themed racing game, has Ralph and Vanellope in a cave that has a Diet Coke lava pit with Mentos stalactites above it. Hero’s Duty looks like a good spoof of soldiers-shooting-aliens games with a gritty world out of James Cameron’s Aliens. Fix-it Felix Jr., of course, is an old-school arcade game that’s relatively simplistic, but very charming. There are cameos by famous characters such as Chun-Li, Dr. Eggman, Pac-Man and Sonic. It’s that level of detail that gave Pixar its critical edge and is something Disney should aim for in the future. Don’t think that you need to be a gamer to get Wreck-It Ralph. It’s a fun movie to watch and enjoy for all ages. 9/10
BandWagon Magazine northern colorado’s arts & entertainment magazine DECEMBER 2012
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BandWagon Magazine northern colorado’s arts & entertainment magazine DECEMBER 2012
BandWagon Magazine northern colorado’s arts & entertainment magazine DECEMBER 2012
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BandWagon Magazine northern colorado’s arts & entertainment magazine DECEMBER 2012
Ben Pu Jed Murphy BandWagon Magazine If you don’t recognize the name, then you will recognize the face and the music of Ben Puchalski from the countless shows he does all around Greeley and the rest of Colorado with his various projects. He has released four CDs since he started playing music seriously and a two-disc album dropping this month. His style of folk and rhythm and blues has been capturing audiences for years, making him one of the most prolific musical acts in northern Colorado.
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Photo by Rachel Waltman
think that has transferred over well. Everywhere I’ve played, everyone has been nice to me as long as I kept that social worker mentality. : What are some of the most profound experiences you’ve had in your music career? : Obviously, the first few times leaving Colorado were cool. The first time I decided to quit my job and become a full time musician, I had a friend book me for this little Fall festival up in Chicago. It was solo and I remember feeling like it was a turning point and thinking, “Hey, this might actually work.” : Biggest influences? : Well Stevie Ray Vaughan is a huge influence. That’s more my bluesy side. My acoustic side, you got Big Head Todd, Dave Matthews, and Ben Kweller. Pretty much most jam bands. [laughs] I’m really into jam bands. : What is it about jam bands that drew you into that scene? : There’s that element of surprise to jam bands that I just love. You never know what you’re going to get to show and I try to incorporate that into my music. : Where would you like to see your career go from here? : Ultimately, I would like to be touring around pretty permanently. Especially in today’s music scene, it’s obviously hard to make a living with a big Top 40 hit. Yeah, that gets your name somewhere originally, but it doesn’t get you in the scene for very long unless you’re one of the lucky ones. I feel like the live music scene and jam band music scene has a lot to offer for longevity.
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: How long have you been playing music? : I’ve been playing music ever since I was a little kid, actually. Probably since the first or second grade, I was already being taught guitar by my dad, and then had my first band and trying to do my own thing by the sixth grade. : You went to college in Durango where you got a degree in psychology. What brought you back to Greeley? : Originally I came back to Greeley because it was too expensive to live Durango. I ended up moving back and had to start paying student loans, so I moved in with my parents and got a job. Probably the reason I’ve been here since is because everyone has been pretty damn supportive. Everyone has been real nice and given me gigs and I can pretty much find a place to play anywhere. That’s led to me actually being able to make a living as opposed to have a job. : What did you do before you were a full-time musician? : I was a long-term care social worker at a nursing facility. That sounds awful. [laughs] It was pretty rough. I was there for seven years. : Do you think that To check out more about Ben Pu influenced your music in and all his various projects, visit any kind of way? Facebook.com/BenPuAndCrew, : Oh yeah. It gave me a lot Facebook.com/BenPu&MeganT, time to work with people. Facebook.com/BenPuMusic, and Learn how to create relationships BenPuMusic.com. that withstand some time, which is part of how you get gigs. You create these relationships so people want you back and show you’re not a dick. You can’t be a dick and a social worker and I Photo by Jade Ehlers
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BandWagon Magazine northern colorado’s arts & entertainment magazine DECEMBER 2012
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BandWagon Magazine northern colorado’s arts & entertainment magazine DECEMBER 2012
Photos by Rachel Waltman
The Nutcracker Jed Murphy BandWagon Magazine When the Christmas season comes around, Debie Larsen is ecstatic. Not because of the usual holiday festivities that sweep through Greeley, but because of a few performances that come only one time of year. “After eleven years I’ve never gotten tired of this. I never got tired of the rehearsals. I never got tired of the music. I love it,” Larsen said during a break in a Sunday afternoon practice. The girls (and guy) of the senior company taking a much-needed rest, echoed Larsen’s excitement about putting on a timeless classic like Tchaikovsky’s The Nutcracker. “It’s better than Christmas!” said Melissa Davis, 19, with a smile. Davis knows that performing and producing The Nutcracker is not what some people would consider a normal Christmas. Where many see the holiday season as a chance to re-
at the UCCC Dec. 7th-9th
lax and step back from their hectic lives, the Colorado Dance Theatre steps forward and embraces what is in most cases the most physically and emotionally demanding time of their year. In her eleventh year as artistic director for the Colorado Dance Theatre, Larsen took over the role after a choreographer left and she has not looked back since. Putting together a production of this size is no small task. With expenses that exceed $40,000 and 115 dancers in the show itself, everyone involved consistently goes above and beyond what is asked of them. Larsen credits a very active board of directors for taking on a heavy share of the burden themselves, stating that many boards will delegate work to other people, but the CDT board will tackle large projects themselves. The CDT is also a nonprofit so all funding is done through fundraising of their own and private business donors. Ticket sales go towards ex-
penses, but it is the local support that keeps them up and running. Each year, it is the donations from people here in Northern Colorado that lays the foundation for such an impressive endeavor. It is the dancers that ultimately make the show and it is their dedication and energy that Larsen obviously enjoys. None the dancers with the CDT’s senior company are pursuing a career in ballet. “They do it because they love it,” said Larsen, relishing the fact that she is working with performers who care deeply about the art and place the success of the show before any personal glory. With dancers ranging from six years old to women in their fifties, the cast comes from all walks of life. Nutcracker Prince, Colten Bray, 20, is a nursing major at the University of Northern Colorado and came to dance with the CDT because of the physical challenge he found in ballet. He started with hockey and did figure skating
as a means of improving his skating. From there he found a natural transition into dance. From mothers and professionals to full time students, the dancers for The Nutcracker give up a large portion of their already busy lives to be in this performance. In the weeks leading up to the show, they will spend sometimes up to eight hours a day, six days a week rehearsing their parts. In all that time together, everyone in the senior company obviously becomes close-knit. “Everyone helps each other a lot,” said Lizzy Vestecha, 19, explaining the open door policy of the CDT. No dancer who walks through is turned away. Only the best make it into senior company (each dancer in senior company has over ten years of dance experience) but Larsen makes it a point to find a place for anyone who wants to be involved. Auditions are in August and to make it into senior company
the dancers must know the steps to the show beforehand. However, not making it into senior company or not really having experience with dance does not exclude someone from the show. The performance of Tchaikovsky’s The Nutcracker by the Colorado Dance Theatre has become a tradition that invigorates the fine arts side of Greeley and is not something to be missed. Though those going in expecting something put on by a huge dance studio with a lot of funding will probably not get what they want, they will be impressed by how much a relatively small operation can do with limited resources. The CDT is not trying to compete though. Rather, they are simply putting on a show they love and put their all into, and that alone is worth seeing. Make sure not to miss a single night when they play December 7th through the 9th in a spectacle that will truly make this holiday season a memorable one.
BandWagon Magazine northern colorado’s arts & entertainment magazine DECEMBER 2012
BATTLE OF THE BANDS
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BandWagon Magazine northern colorado’s arts & entertainment magazine DECEMBER 2012
A Boy and His Kite Ely Corliss BandWagon Magazine Dave Wilton, a 29-year-old Colorado resident and long-time sound engineer and producer, recently released his self-titled first studio album under the moniker A Boy and His Kite. A lifelong musician, Wilton began his music career as many do, in his high school rock band: Lucid Chrysalis, which his twin brother played bass in. When his bandmates left for college and the band called it quits, Wilton decided to go to recording school. “Music was such a big part of my life [at that time] and since I couldn’t make it with my friends I decided to go to school and help others create and capture music, and I set out to learn the craft of music production.” Since then, Wilton has been working fulltime in his old Catholic church-turned-recording studio in Lafayette, Colorado. Wilton has produced, recorded, mixed and mastered music for an impressive list of artists, including some of which you may recognize; The Autumn Film, Trace Bundy, Aaron Strumpel, A Mouthful Of Thunder, Derek Webb, Josh Dillard, Beats Noir, Loud Harp, Sam Hughes, The Thought Process, Jacob & Lily, Tim Coons, The Lovely & Talented, and The Emporiums. Constantly working on others’ music, Wilton’s own musical aspirations were put on hold until about two years ago, when his wife and kids went on a vacation to visit family in Illinois. “I had three weeks to write and record an album. I used the first week to record my other project, Loud Harp, and the next two weeks were spent on this album.” said Wilton. His other project, Loud Harp, is a duo with Asher Seevinck of Provo, Utah. The band writes and performs Christian rock songs. They have been featured at Christian worship conferences across the country, like the annual Resound Conference in Colorado. Since the initial recordings in 2010,
finishing the record that would become A Boy and His Kite has been a long process, but it is well worth the wait. His recent claim to fame came upon the release of the 5th and final installment of the Twilight movies; Twilight Breaking Dawn: Part 2, where Wilton’s single “Cover Your Tracks” is featured on the soundtrack. But A Boy and His Kite is more than a single on a hit movie soundtrack. Elements of the album sound reminiscent of Copeland, Band of Horses, Radiohead, and Blind Pilot, while simultaneously creating a unique and individual sound that is approachable and easily digested for both the wannabe and avid indie rockers alike. Wilton crafts each track with a diverse array of musical instrumentation and vocal tracks, layered to perfection. Clarinets, strings, thick yet subtle percussion, and electric and acoustic guitars paint the soundscape with a flow and continuity that any great album should possess. The production quality, song structure, and songwriting are top notch and can easily stand next to any alternative indie folk recording out there today. This is easily one of the best albums of 2012. Latifah Phillips, of Denver bands The Autumn Film, and Page CSVI co-produced the album and co-wrote with Wilton on several tracks as well. The Twilight track happened as a result of Phillips sending out the unfinished recording of “Cover Your Tracks” to her music licensing agent in LA on Dave’s behalf. When all was said and done, the song was selected. As for the future, Wilton plans to assemble a band to tour and play the new album. For now, catch A Boy and His Kite for a very special solo performance at The Atlas Theater right here in Greeley, Sunday, December 2nd.
Photos by Shannon Kaple ShannonKaplePhotographer.com
What is a Boy and His Kite?
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Boy and His Kite is music from Colorado artist Dave Wilton. His song, “Cover Your Tracks,” was recently included in the film and soundtrack The Twilight Saga: Breaking Dawn Pt. 2, quickly establishing this singer-songwriter as an emerging voice within indie music. Although a debut album, Wilton’s sound and influences have been shaped and inspired by a decade of helping other artists craft and create music in his Colorado recording studio St. Ida’s. A metaphor for a child being at the mercy of the wind, this self-titled album proves Wilton’s ability to compose music in the places where struggle is met with hope. The lyrical compositions reveal grounded storytelling intertwined with discovery, exploration, and romanticism. A Boy and His Kite layers vocal stylings likened to Ben Gibbard (Death Cab for Cutie) and Jeremy Enigk (Sunny Day Real Estate) with music that offers folk flavors, chimey electric guitars, and percussive orchestration to produce a collection of songs that are honest yet emotionally articulate. Fans of Bon Iver and Elliott Smith will be at home with A Boy and His Kite.
BandWagon Magazine northern colorado’s arts & entertainment magazine DECEMBER 2012
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BY JED MURPHY For Mitch Jones, Mike Hammock, Josh Skillman, and Erik Lindstrom, who have been dubbed the Four Horsemen of Comedy, a stand-up routine is more than just telling a few jokes to a crowd in a bar. To them, it is a way of not taking on the world’s problems (because that is the work of other comics with much bigger audiences,) but rather to shine a light on all the ridiculous and unbelievable things that happen in the lives of most people. Sometimes when people are fed up with the troubles of everyday life the best medicine is to simply laugh it off. But for the Four Horsemen, laughing about bad grades or having a crappy job just isn’t enough. To them, the best way to deal with a problem is to find humor in not only the worst aspects of life and human nature, but of all the things society finds taboo. Their goal is not outright to offend people, but rather to be edgy enough to engage their audience. “We like to be slightly outrageous and slightly offensive. Except Erik, who is completely offensive,” said Jones. What has earned these up-and-coming comics the title of Four Horsemen of Comedy is their very similar styles and desire to push boundaries while entertaining their audiences. All four share a similar sense of humor, making them not just compatriots in their craft, but close friends as well. But don’t let the title fool you: They are not a comedy troupe or something akin to a band, but rather a group of guys who all laugh at the same things. Each comic has his own ambitions and careers, doing shows individually the majority of the time. “We’re kind of like the Avengers, where we all do our own thing, but we come together on occasion for something big,” added Jones.
“As a group, we run the gamut for guys’ humor. A lot of women like our comedy but it’s a great mix of dirty, nerdy humor that’s smart at the same time,” stated Hammock. “As for me personally, I like getting groups, ideas, and individuals that don’t normally get joked about. I’d say about 90% of my comedy comes from my general hatred for my generation and my absolute lack of understanding of women.” Lindstrom cites similar inspiration for his material. “I don’t think our individual styles and our styles as a group differ a great deal. Obviously we like to write about different things, but we all like most of the same comics, have similar influences, laugh at the same shit, etc. So I think that dynamic makes it more comfortable to go out on a limb and really be ourselves, because we know anyone who likes one of us is most likely gonna like all of us—and if they like more than one of us, they will definitely like all of us. I know a lot of my style is derived from discontent with society and everything else—whether I find something bothersome or amusingly stupid, I enjoy pointing and laughing at how much of a failure we are as a species.” The four of them each got their start around the same time, doing open mics at places like the Jager in Greeley and the Cork in Fort Collins and, according to Jones, have all been developing and improving at the same rate. Now, as they each enter their third year as comedians, they use this similarity to push each other and better themselves. “It’s a thrill seeing your pal crush, but then the comedian part of you wonders, ‘I hope I can be that funny—or funnier—shit, I hope I don’t kill the vibe.’ So it definitely gives me added incentive to give a hundred percent onstage,” said Skillman. “What I like best about performing with these guys more than
with any othe comics i I can see material grows. W ‘crack the Jones. Each on aspiration comedian the dream thing they film a DVD the Come have a su Until they routines th doing show crowds of “Better meth,” Ham Don’t m comedian Greeley on
er is that e how their progresses and Watching someone like code’ on their joke,” added
ne of these guys has their own ns for the future as professional ns. Their goals are slightly different, but m is the same: to make a living doing the y love. Skillman and Jones each would like to D in Denver. Lindstrom would like to headline edy Works in Denver, and Hammock aspires to uccessful comedy career, rivaling Kevin Federline. y reach that point, they will continue performing their hroughout Colorado. When asked what they love about ws in northern Colorado, Hammock stated it has the best f anyplace he had played. than Wyoming?” Skillman asked. “Better crowds, worse mmock joked. miss out on a chance to catch these four incredibly funny ns for their show at the Down Under Comedy Club in n December 28th.
PHOTOS BY DREW SMITH
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BandWagon Magazine northern colorado’s arts & entertainment magazine DECEMBER 2012
BandWagon Magazine northern colorado’s arts & entertainment magazine DECEMBER 2012
Photos by Jay Wallace
Local Business Profile:
Jay Wallace BandWagon Magazine Located at 802 9th Street, below street level, is the lime green door that leads to Batter-Up Cakes. Run by Jerri Jantz and her husband, Dan Mandt, the pastry shop bakes great pizza loaves and addictive cake truffles. Batter-Up Cakes employs only nine people who make cakes, truffles, croissants, and pizza loaves and serves coffee for just a dollar. It’s a cozy place. Its aesthetics are in line with many of the businesses in downtown Greeley. Despite being a bakery, it has the atmosphere of a coffee shop. The shop was opened in November of last year. Before that Jantz rented commercial kitchens to make cakes and pastries. She started baking five years ago thanks to an old friend. “A girlfriend of mine was a decorator,” Jantz said, “and she kind of peaked my interest.” Jantz started making wedding cakes. She escalated from wed-
ding cakes to pastries and got busier and busier. She eventually rented out two kitchens. This led Jantz and Mandt to get their own shop. “[We were] just looking for a second career,” Mandt said, “because we’ve both already put in over 20 years of our previous and current careers. The Big Guy Upstairs put it in our laps and said, ‘run with it.’” Mandt primarily does the bookwork for the store while Jantz manages the store and bakes. It’s not their only job though; Jantz also works as a dental assistant for Greeley Dental Health. According to both Mandt and Jantz, Batter-Up Cakes is just a bakery and was intended to be only that. Jantz started to fill up the space outside the kitchen with tables and chairs, turning it into a small café. This year, they started to serve more lunch items and breads. Their focus is still on baking though: custom cakes, wedding
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cakes, birthday cakes, breakfast pastries like cinnamon rolls and sticky buns, pizza loaves, quiches, pies, cookies, and their specialty cake truffles. Their unique cake truffles have been shipped to Germany and Hawaii, and Batter-Up Cakes won a contract in the past with the Colorado Eagles hockey team to serve cake truffles at the games. Mandt was a self-admitted fan of the Eagles and was happy to get the contract. Jantz, however, said that they are not doing anything with the Eagles this year. The cake truffles aren’t Jantz’s favorite dish served at Batter-Up Cakes. The fruit dumplings are her personal favorite. “I just like the taste of the dough,” Jantz said, “and of course the fruit inside.” If you ask Mandt and cashier Natane Blackwolf, sticky buns are another known speciality of Batter-Up Cakes. Blackwolf started working at the shop in June, and recommends the cupcakes the
shop makes. “[Customers] should definitely come at five o’clock,” Blackwolf said, “because everyday we have half-priced cupcakes from five to six. Cake truffles, people always get addicted to those. And our Krautburgers, we’re working on our Krautburgers and our pizza breads. They’re very good.” Mandt said in the past the bakery has gotten positive feedback from the community. For Christmas, along with upping production on the cake truffles, Jantz said they’ll be making Yule Log cakes. Mandt also said they would like to start serving soups. For those interested in giving Batter-Up Cakes a shot, check them out at BatterUp-Cakes.com or visit them in person Tuesday through Saturday. They’re open from 7:00 am until 6:00 pm Tuesdays to Thursdays and close at 8:00 pm on Fridays and Saturdays. Try the cream cheese croissants while you’re there.
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BandWagon Magazine northern colorado’s arts & entertainment magazine DECEMBER 2012 Local Artist Profile:
Kelly Cook BandWagon Magazine Don’t be surprised when Luke and Mallory Leasure are a household name. Their photographic eyes have taken them all over the country to do weddings of friends and strangers, artfully capturing scenes from Peru to New York City. Luke and Mallory are a team. They both took up photography back when cameras used film and they were just friends. Now married, they aspire to do this work full time. “We would love to do photography [as a career,]” said Mallory. “Our dream is to do photojournalism so we can travel and help tell stories of people all over the world. “ Living off of paychecks from other jobs, they spend much of their free time photographing themselves, others, and the places they travel. They have a simple and warm do-it-yourself lifestyle that fits well into their love of finding beauty in everyday rituals and patterns. It’s clear from their work that they think “art first.” The composition and coloring of each shot creates a signature. They work with the light, the setting, and the client to create more of a story than a photo-
graph. It’s hard not to see each capture as a work of art. It’s no wonder that Mallory has an ever-growing following on Instagram (her account, hellomalloryanne, has close to 800 followers at the publishing of this article.) Her voracious appetite to capture the moment spills over into her daily life. It is rare to find her or Luke without a camera of some kind. Inspired by the people they meet, Luke admits that capturing a photo is wonderful, but even better are the relationships they build as they get to know their clients. “I love watching people get excited about the images that we produce and knowing that they feel honored in their photographs,” Luke said. “We do the best we can to showcase the beauty and personality in every person that we work with. Our best pictures come across when people are comfortable being themselves and we have
Photo courtesy Luke and Mallory Leasure
become friends with them. I love that. Photography puts us in situations where we are usually with someone all day, like at a wedding, for instance. During that time it is nearly impossible to avoid getting to know one another on a deeper level.” When asked what advice they would give to anyone seeking a photographer, Luke said to pick someone “based on what you like. Make sure you choose a photographer who you feel comfortable with as a person, and that you identify with their style as well.” It is certain in the pictures they take that their clients find that identity and comfort with them. You can find more pictures and contact Luke + Mallory for booking at LukeAndMalloryPhotography. com.
BandWagon Magazine northern colorado’s arts & entertainment magazine DECEMBER 2012 The CID Initiative DJ Competition @ Hodi’s Half Note - Fort Collins
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w w w. s l a u g h t e r h o u s e d e r b y g i rl s . c o m
Wednesday December 5th Mechanical Roots w/ Murder the Cat, Sentient Cement, and Rip Saw Susie @ Larimer Lounge - Denver
COLORaDO CONCERT CALENDAR Saturday December 1st Eldren w/ Duchovny, Sunflowers in Straitjackets, Howlin Wolves @ A.F. Ray’s - Greeley
Johnny Burroughs @ The Jager Greeley
Grouch & Eligh w/ PROF, Mellowhype, Pigeon John & Special Guests @ The Aggie Fort Collins Griz @ The Fox Theater - Boulder Iamtheshotgun with As the Sky Darkens / Polarization / the Dawn Chose @ The Marquis Theater - Denver moe. w/ The Congress @ The Ogden Denver
DubSkin w/ Abstract Rude and DJ Mikey Thunder @ The Bluebird - Denver
Equally Challenged @ Pourhouse - Loveland Jake Sharon w/ Brian Blank @ Down Under Comedy Club Greeley
PRISM Plays The Disco Biscuits @ Hodi’s Half Note - Fort Collins World Famous Johnsons w/ Coupstick, Sibling Rivalry 3 @ The Gothic Theatre - Englewood
Sunday December 2nd
A Boy & His Kite @ The Atlas Theater - Greeley
Monday December 3rd
Mugnight Presents “The Funk Jam” @ Hodi’s Half Note - Fort Collins
Tuesday December 4th
The Sword w/ Gypsyhawk and American Sharks @ The Bluebird - Denver
Rock Yourself To Sleep Tour with Dance Gavin Dance / a Lot Like Birds @ The Marquis Theater - Denver
5 th Annual
Kreayshawn @ The Fox Theater Boulder
40 oz to Freedom w/ Nick Pauly @ Hodi’s Half Note - Fort Collins
7pm - Doors open 6
Thursday December 6th
The Coast is Ours w/ Harlequin Dream, Midnight Roulette, Hit or Miss @ Larimer Lounge - Denver
Horse Feathers @ The Fox Theater - Boulder Harpoontang w/ Marvin and the Cloud Wall, Werkout Palace @ Hi Dive - Denver
No Bragging Rights with Altars / Forever Came Calling / Flagship / Hem @ The Marquis Theater - Boulder Macklemore & Ryan Lewis w/ DEE-1 and Xperience @ The Ogden - Denver
$10
STUDENTS SENIORS VETS $8 Kids 12 & under $1
AT THE
KILL FL OOR
237 22ND ST., GREELEY, CO
Todd Park Mohr @ The Bluebird Denver Dave Connelly acoustic @ Pourhouse - Loveland
Kyle Hollingsworth Band w/ Eric Krasno @ Hodi’s Half Note
Friday December 7th
Cassian w/ Hollagramz, Black Amex, and Stephen Barns (DJ Set) @ The Larimer Lounge - Denver Perpetual Groove @ The Fox Theater - Boulder
The Broadway w/ The Portrait, Saving Verona, Regret Night, and September Skyline @ Summit Music Hall Denver
BandWagon Magazine Battle of the Bands Final Round Leghounds, Grits & Gravy, The Squid Kids, Carols @ A.F. Ray’s Greeley
Gíí Astorga @ The Jager - Greeley Ty Bray @ Tavola - Greeley
Horse Feathers w/ Frank Fairfield @ The Bluebird - Denver NOFX w/Teenage Bottlerocket & Guests @ The Fillmore - Denver The Dangerous Summer with Young London / Viretta @ The Marquis Theater - Denver Sole w/ Wheelchair Sports Camp, Man Mantis, Sky Rider @ Hi Dive Denver
Pepperment patTies VS THE Misfit toys VS The Naughty list
Stone Soup @ Pourhouse Loveland
Rick Bryan w/ Derrick Rush @ Down Under Comedy Club Greeley
Biodiesel For Bands Fundraiser w/ Wasabi, Mosey West, The Mason Howlers @ Hodi’s Half Note - Fort Collins The Nutcracker @ Union Colony Civic Center - Greeley
The Malone Brothers (Tommy of the Subdudes and Dave of the Radiators) w/ Erica Brown Band, Andy Sydow @ The Gothic Theatre - Englewood Live poetry feat. Eric Fox, Noel Shelley, Kristy Gallegos @ Syntax Spirits - Greeley
Saturday December 8th
ZZ Ward w/ Yellow Red Sparks @ Larimer Lounge - Denver
Kintetix: Red Hot Chilli Pepper Tribute w/ Genetics @ A.F. Ray’s - Greeley Ty Bray @ The Jager - Greeley
Rachel & the Kings w/ Serious Moonlight, Blind Strike, Ashida @ Hodi’s Half Note Fort Collins
Good Gravy w/ Dead Winter Carpenters @ The Aggie - Fort Collins
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BandWagon Magazine northern colorado’s arts & entertainment magazine DECEMBER 2012
Of Monsters and Men @ Boulder Theater on 12/12 Medeski, Scofield, Martin and Wood @ The Boulder Theater Boulder Never Shout Never @ The Fox Theater - Boulder
Monroe Monroe, “Interiors” EP Release w/ Common Anomaly, My Body Sings Electric, Swing Hero @ Hi Dive - Denver
Public Enemy w/ X-Clan, Monie Love, Schoolly D, Leaders of the New School, Wise Intelligent (of Poor Righteous Teachers), Son of Bazerk & No Self Control, Awesome Dre, Davy DMX, and DJ Johnny Juice @ The Ogden -
Denver
Perpetual Groove w/ Technicolor Tone Factory @ The Bluebird - Denver Gigamesh & Mindelixir with Munson Meeks @ The Marquis Theater - Denver A Conscious Alliance Benefit: EOTO, Vibesquad, NiT GRiT w/ Alex Grey @ The Fillmore Denver
Marty Nightengale w/ Joe O Bryan @ Pourhouse - Loveland Rick Bryan w/ Derrick Rush @ Down Under Comedy Club Greeley
Sunday December 9th The Punch Brothers @ The Boulder Theater - Boulder
Monday December 10th Capital Cities w/ Mouthful of Thunder, and CC/NN @ The Larimer Lounge Denver
Lamb of God w/ Special Guests In Flames, Hellyeah, Sylosis @ The Fillmore
Tuesday December 11th
Vetta Star w/ Nick Llobett, and I am the Wolf @ The Larimer Lounge - Denver
Motionless in White w/ Chelsea Grin, Stick to your Guns, The Witch Was Right, and Upon This Dawning @ Summit Music Hall - Denver
High On Fire w/ Goatwhore, Lo-Pan, and Black Sleep Of Kali @ The Bluebird Denver
Sour Boy Bitter Girl @ Hodi’s Half Note - Fort Collins
Wednesday December 12th Otic w/ The Griffins, The Dust Stompers, and Neptune’s Only Daughter @ Larimer Lounge Of Monsters and Men @ The Boulder Theater - Boulder
Vices I Admire w/ Take to the Oars, The Yawpers @ Hi Dive - Denver Corey Smith @ The Bluebird Denver
Kyprios & The Chapperones w/ Prime Element @ Hodi’s Half Note - Fort Collins
Thursday December 13th
fun. w/ Of Monsters & Men, Churchill @ 1STBANK Center - Denver Kyprios and Chaperone w/ Qabala and Deadbeat Dom @ Summit Music Hall - Denver
BandWagon Magazine northern colorado’s arts & entertainment magazine DECEMBER 2012
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BandWagon Magazine northern colorado’s arts & entertainment magazine DECEMBER 2012 Marquis Theater - Denver Ben Pu & Crew @ Tavola - Greeley Andre Nickatina @ The Boulder Theater - Boulder Solterra w/ Read You and Me, Dirty Heavy, T Shirts 4 Tomorrow, the Broken Blue, Resonance @ Hi Dive Denver Peter Lopez @ Pourhouse Loveland
SpokesBuzz CD Release Vol III @ Hodi’s Half Note - Fort Collins
Friday December 14th
Creature Feature w/ Mitch Black, futurebabes, Flux~mon~Do @ A.F. Ray’s Greeley Travis Houle @ The Jager - Greeley Presyce w/ Knew City Vibe, Krooked Drivers, and Reverb & The Verse @ Summit Music Hall - Denver Trace Bundy & Josh Garrels @ The Boulder Theater - Boulder Zappa Plays Zappa @ The Fox Theater - Boulder
Jingle Bell Rock Tour with Eddie Money, Edgar Winter Band, and John Cafferty & Beaver Brown Band @ The Ogden Denver Sounds on 29th Fest FaceMan w/ The Knew, the Outfit, the Raven and the Writing Desk @ Hi Dive - Denver Divine Fits @ The Bluebird Denver
Govinda with D.V.S.* (Derek Vanscoten) / Soulacybin / Lost Optical @ The
Nathan Lund w/ Kevin O’Brein @ Down Under Comedy Club Greeley
Saturday December 15th Breathe Carolina w/ Victory Heights, Kill Paradise, Bleach Blonde, and Carson Allen @ Summit Music Hall - Denver Hip Hop for the Holidays Benefit Concert @ A.F. Ray’s Megan T. @ The Jager - Greeley
Big Head Todd & The Monsters @ The Fox Theater - Boulder The Canopy w/ Places, Color Clinic, Words In Flight @ Hi Dive - Denver
Air Dubai w/ Tone Loc, SuperVision, and Flashlights @ The Ogden - Denver Two Fresh and Cherub @ The Bluebird - Denver
Dying Fetus with Malignancy / Cerebral Bore / Kill Syndicate @ The Marquis Theater - Denver Tyler T @ Pourhouse - Loveland Nathan Lund w/ Kevin O’Brein @ Down Under Comedy Club Greeley
Arcanium w/ SKINNED, Wyvern Spire, After Dark @ Hodi’s Half Note - Fort Collins
Lola Black w/ Glass Delirium, 8 Bucks Experiment @ The Gothic Theatre - Englewood
Sunday December 16th
Big Head Todd & The Monsters @ The Aggie - Fort Collins
Megan T. @ The Jager in Greeley on 12/15
Monday December 17th Sonata Arctica with Arsis and Kobra and the Lotus @ The Bluebird - Denver Tuesday December 18th Wednesday December 19th Thursday December 20th
Colleen Glynn @ Tavola - Greeley Matthew E. White w/ Elin Palmer, C.P. Carrington, and Luke Redfield @ Hi Dive Denver Dillon Francis with Kill Paris and AViVA @ The Ogden - Denver The Foodchain and 9th Wonder (DJ Set) with Myke Charles, Spoke In Wordz, and DJ Chonz @ The Bluebird - Denver
Cracker @ Pourhouse - Loveland The Velvet Rope @ Hodi’s Half Note - Fort Collins
BandWagon Magazine northern colorado’s arts & entertainment magazine DECEMBER 2012
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BandWagon Magazine northern colorado’s arts & entertainment magazine DECEMBER 2012
Friday December 21st End of the World Party Feat. DJ Sylent Efx @ A.F. Ray’s Greeley
Johnny Burroughs @ The Jager Greeley Hot Soup & Dead / Phish Orchestra @ The Fox Theater Boulder
The Whales “End of the World Party” w/ Mosey West, and We’s Us @ Hi Dive - Denver Forty Fathoms with Before We’re Done@ The Marquis Theater - Denver
OneRepublic with Big Head Todd & the Monsters, Flobots, and Zach Heckendorf @ The Ogden - Denver Illuminado Comeback Show! w/ Anterrior and Will Daniels @ Summit Music Hall - Denver Railbenders with Johnny Hickman & Band @ The Bluebird - Denver
KBPI’s ‘Hell Freezes Over’ featuring Clutch @ The Fillmore - Denver Bad Brad and the Fat Cats @ Pourhouse - Loveland
George McClure w/ Will White @ Down Under Comedy Club Greeley
Born in the Flood w/ Nathan and Stephen, In the Whale @ The
Gothic Theatre, Englewood
Saturday December 22nd Ugly Sweater Party Featuring: DJ CoDe @ A.F. Ray’s Greeley Ben Pu @ The Jager - Greeley
Of Man and Machine w/ Empyrean Eclipse, and Strategem @ Summit Music Hall Denver
James Egbert & Ecto Cooler @ The Fox Theater - Boulder Wayne “The Train” Hancock @ Hi Dive - Denver The Nuns Of Brixton with Dogbreath (Ultimate Tribute to The Replacements) and Truckasaurus @ The Bluebird Denver Delta Fusion @ Pourhouse Loveland
George McClure w/ Will White @ Down Under Comedy Club Greeley
ScotFree’s “Broke on Payday” CD release Party @ Hodi’s Half Note Fort Collins Ska jam feat. Contraband @ Syntax Spirits - Greeley
Sunday December 23rd Monday December 24th Tuesday December 25th Wednesday December 26th Thursday December 27th Crushed Out w/ Ned Garthe, and Oliver Bravado @ Hi Dive - Denver
Friday December 28th Ethyl & the Regulars (High Octane Honky Tonk and Western Swing) @ A.F. Ray’s - Greeley Ben Pu & Megan T. @ The Jager Greeley
Yonder Mountain String Band @ The Boulder Theater Boulder
The Wailers Perform “Survival” @ The Fox Theater Boulder Speedwolf w/ Space in Time and Drunken Arrows @ Hi Dive Denver
The Family Band @ A.F. Ray’s Greeley
The Four Horsemen of Comedy @ Down Under Comedy Club Greeley
People Under the Stairs @ The Fox Theater - Boulder
Steve Manshell @ Pourhouse Loveland
Orgone @ Hodi’s Half Note - Fort Collins Frogs Gone Fishin’ w/ The Drunken Hearts, She Said String Band @ The Gothic Theatre, Englewood
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Saturday December 29th
Trombone Shorty & Orleans Avenue with JC Brooks And The Uptown Sound @ The Ogden - Denver
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Ethyl & the Regulars @ A.F. Ray’s in Greeley on 12/28
Gíí Astorga @ The Jager - Greeley Yonder Mountain String Band @ The Boulder Theater - Boulder
Zomboy with Coult45 and Badbwoy BMC @ The Bluebird - Denver Sound Tribe Sector 9 @ The Fillmore Green Genes @ Pourhouse Loveland
The Four Horsemen of Comedy @ Down Under Comedy Club Greeley
Turn 4 w/ The Stubby Shillelaghs, The Hoopligans @ Syntax Spirits - Greeley
Sunday December 30th
Yonder Mountain String Band @ The Boulder Theater - Boulder
Space @ The Bluebird - Denver Sound Tribe Sector 9 @ The Fillmore
Monday December 31st DJ Largechild w/ Cripp Nipp @ Sky Nightclub - Greeley
Fierce Bad Rabbit (CD Relaease) @ Hodi’s Half Note - Ft. Collins Yonder Mountain String Band @ The Boulder Theater - Boulder The Motet @ The Fox Theater Boulder
The Lumineers with Shovels & Rope and Paper Bird @ The Ogden - Denver The Black Angels with Snake Rattle Rattle Snake and Chains Of Love @ The Bluebird - Denver Sound Tribe Sector 9 @ The Fillmore - Denver Troy Baxley @ Down Under Comedy Club - Greeley
The Motet @ The Fox Theater Boulder
3Oh!3 w/ The Epilogues, Chain Gang of 1974, My Body Sings Electric @ The Gothic Theatre Englewood
The Black Angels with The Swayback and Hearts In
Goodnight Gravity w/ Knockout Kid, From the Sidelines, LAMA Live, Face Over Fire @ Hi Dive - Denver
The Lumineers with Nathaniel Rateliff and Shovels & Rope @ The Ogden Denver
Friday January 4th
BandWagon Magazine northern colorado’s arts & entertainment magazine DECEMBER 2012
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BandWagon Magazine northern colorado’s arts & entertainment magazine DECEMBER 2012
A
Few
Christmas Stories
A creative story by Sean W. Ryan
Jakarta, Indonesia, December 16, 2008 Once again, Christmas is coming sooner than expected, as always seems to happen to me at this point in my life. I actually like Christmas in Indonesia— it’s like it was in Taiwan up until about five years ago; there are decorations around, there’s Christmas music playing, but it’s not in your face. Taiwan now is just as bad as the US; they start putting up decorations right after Halloween and you are completely inundated with Christmas commercialism. The worst thing about it is it’s not even a national holiday in Taiwan anymore; you actually have to work on Christmas Day there. I didn’t mind that as much as I minded the school at which I worked insisting that all the foreign staff do Christmas performances anyway. In my opinion, the Taiwanese government has the right to observe or not observe whatever holidays it wishes, but if it chooses not to observe a Western holiday, its right to insist on “whitey” singing and dancing on that day is forfeit. So this is the one time of the year I really prefer living in Indonesia; Christmas in a Muslim country is pretty lowkey, just how I like it. As a family man now, I’ve started enjoying Christmas in a way that I haven’t since I was a kid myself. Every year, my wife, Enny, my stepdaughter, Okki, and I put up and decorate our fake tree and drink hot chocolate with my favorite Christmas music in the background. On Christmas day, we make a big breakfast, exchange gifts and go out for Christmas dinner at one of the hotels in Solo, Central Java. This year, though, it’s going to be different; my best friends, Paul Martin and Teresa Schunter (a married couple, by the way), are on a tour of Asia and will be coming through Indonesia right at Christmastime. They’re both Buddhists and they don’t observe Christmas, so Enny, Okki and I will be putting off our Christmas activities until they leave on the 27th. I’m a Buddhist, myself (in fact, it was Paul & Terese who got me into it in the first place), but I still like to celebrate Christmas for
tradition’s sake. Actually, I’ve had some pret-ty interesting Christmases over the years. Without a doubt, the most interesting Christmas Eve I’ve ever had was when I was living in Taichung, Taiwan in… oh my God, I can’t remember the year! I want to say 1999, but the Christmas I’m talking about was with my friend, Gerry, and I think he’d actually left Taiwan by then. I know it wasn’t 1998 because I was back in the States at that time. So it must have been 1997… but that seems too early! Jeez! Well, there’s a simple explanation why it’s so hard for me to remember details from that time: I was a daily pot smoker and a weekly LSD user, and from the mid-90s to 2001 I had traded in illegal drug use for the less socially stigmatic habit of alcoholism. Let that be a lesson to you, kids—drinking and drugs really are bad for you. Well, whenever it was, it was in the late 90’s. I had a friend who was a lesbian and she had taken me to this bar near the train station. This was no ordinary bar; it was a private club for gays, lesbians and other people of less traditional sexual orientation. This place was not open to the public; you actually had to know somebody to be allowed in. My friend had, one way or another, had gotten to know the owner of the place, a burly lesbian named Charlene, and one night had taken me there to show me the place. Since then, I had become friends with the owner myself. So on one Christmas Eve in the late 1990’s, my friend invited me and another friend, Gerry, to the club where they were having their own Christmas party. I enjoyed the place and Gerry was curious to see it, so there we went. The evening progressed pretty much as I had expected it would, with nothing unusual going on, even for that place. I chatted with some of the girls there and tried to avoid direct eye contact with the sex workers and the transvestites. Suddenly, a girl came in, dressed in a skimpy Santa-style outfit and accompanied by two guys that looked like gangsters. Charlene informed me that she was the entertainment scheduled for the evening. Before long, she was on the dance floor, dancing and stripping. She grabbed Gerry by the hand and pulled him, somewhat to his consternation,
onto the floor. She then started gyrating around him and pulling off his belt. As soon as it was removed, Gerry sheepishly returned to our table, relieved to be out of the spot-light. Then the dancer started stripping again and she took off everything! The gangster guys started handing out red envelopes into which the patrons (matrons?) put money to give to the stripper. There I was, Christmas Eve, in a lesbian bar watching a nude dancer! I said to Gerry, “This has got to be the most sacrilegious Christmas I’ve ever celebrated!” He said, “Do you think I can get my belt back?” I wish I could say that the best Christmas I’ve ever had was three years ago, when Enny, Okki, our older daughter, Tikka, and I went to Colorado together for the first time. That was actually the first time my new family met my parents—Enny had recently seen the movie Monster-inLaw and was nervous as hell about meeting hers, despite my constant attempts to reassure her that my mother was a very nice woman and the two of them would get along fine. In fact, they got along more than fine— Enny was like the daughter my Mom always wanted, but never had. My stepmother, Patti, was even more tickled at the idea of being a “Grandma” than Mom was and she was often going on about how beautiful Okki’s skin was. This was a bit of a shock to Enny and the girls because their skin was so dark and people in Indonesia, especially the women, put more value on lighter skin. That was also the first time they met my aforementioned best friends, Paul and Terese. It was a great Christmas trip and definitely the best Christmas Enny, Okki and I have had as a family. However, it’s not the best Christmas memory I have—although it does run a very close second. Actually, my best Christmas memory is from 1995. Yes, I am sure of the year this time; 1995 and 1991 are the only two years from the 90s that I do remember clearly—the rest of my 20’s is pretty much a blur. Anyway, I was working at a halfway house run by a mental hospital (I said, “Working!”) at the time. The pay was pretty lousy, so I usually worked extra shifts during that time to collect on the holiday pay (time and a half is a pretty big deal when
you’re only making about $700 to $800 a month). My last three Christmases had all been spent on acid trips and earlier that year, I had decided, for the second time in my life, to quit drugs (this led to an increase in my drinking and use of overthe-counter sleeping pills, but I wouldn’t notice that for another four years; and I wouldn’t actually quit everything and finally get my shit together for another two years after that— but that’s another story). So… it was my first Christmas Eve sober (relatively speaking) and there I was, working the night shift at Weld Mental Health. I was listening to the radio—103.5, the Fox, one of my two favorite radio stations and the one I always listen to at Christmas, because every year, they would intersperse their usual classic rock repertoire with Christmas songs. I especially loved it when somebody would call in with a request for a classic rock song that was cleverly tied in with a Christmas theme—most notably, one guy called in saying he was getting sick of trying to call his family in another state and getting the “long-distance runaround,” so he requested the song of the same title by Yes. I was feeling pretty good about life in general at that time and I decided to call the radio station to request my two favorite nontraditional Christmas songs: “Happy Christ-mas” by John Lennon and “Jingle Dogs,” a version of “Jingle Bells” using a recording of dogs barking in place of the lyrics (c’mon, everybody, you know the song: Ruff-ruff ruff! Ruff-ruff ruff! Ruff yap woof ruff-ruff!) The first hitch I encountered in this endeavor was that I could not make long-distance calls on the office phone. However, I was desperate to get my requests in, so I called the opera-tor to see if I could make a long-distance call from the office phone, but have it charged to my home phone number. The operator told me I could, but it was about three times the cost of a direct longdistance call. “Fine,” I said and had them connect me with the radio station. Unfortunately, they didn’t have “Jingle Dogs” and they had played “Happy Christmas” just over an hour ago. Then the DJ, Shark, I believe (I don’t mean I believe his name was “Shark”—I know they have
a DJ called “Shark” [not his real name, I’m assuming]; I mean, I believe that Shark was the DJ with whom I was speaking. I actually did see Shark at a Rush concert in 2002 and thought of approaching him to ask if, in fact, it was he that I talked to that Christmas Eve—too bad I chickened out, though; it would have made a great addition to this story. Let that be another lesson to you, kids: Don’t be such a fuckin’ pussy! You never know what opportunities may come your way), asked me what I was doing that night. “Working,” I said. “Third shift, eh?” said…oh, what the hell, let’s just assume it was Shark! “Yep.” “So what do you do, Sean?” “I work at a mental hospital.” “No kidding! You sure you work there?” “Ha-ha.” And so it went. Shark decided he wanted to chat with me on the air for a while, since he was probably as bored as I was, working on Christmas Eve. I remember him telling me his idea and then reminding me that we were broadcasting publicly, so I had to be careful not to curse while we were on air. “Holy shit!” I thought, “Am I actually gonna be on the Fox? How cool!” He asked me about what it was like working at Weld Mental Health and we swapped jokes about insanity while half the state of Colorado was listening. About twenty minutes into it, another guy, drunk off his ass, called and requested an Elvis song. Since the Fox played classic rock (i.e. rock from the 60’s and 70’s), they had no Elvis Presley and therefore couldn’t oblige him (had he requested an Elvis Costello song, however, that might have been another matter). Shark then asked me, “So, Sean, do you want to try to sing an Elvis song for this guy?” “Okay.” “You know ‘Love Me Tender’?” “Not really.” “Well, neither do I. Let’s try it, anyway.” And there we were; me, Shark and some sot whose name I can’t even begin to remember, on the radio singing: Love me tender Love me true I don’t know the words Eventually, I had to call it a night and get back to my rounds. The phone call cost me about sixty bucks, which, considering my current financial status and my usual habit regarding phone calls (or lack thereof), was astronomical. But it was worth every penny; I got my fifteen minutes of fame and then some! It’s not just my favorite Christmas memory; it’s one of the best memories of my whole life! So, as the timeless song by Slade goes, “Merry Xmas Everybody,” especially to you, Shark, wherever you are!
BandWagon Magazine northern colorado’s arts & entertainment magazine DECEMBER 2012
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Greeley’s Growing Downtown Austin Wulf BandWagon Magazine Downtown Greeley is probably best known for its 9th Street Plaza. That block is one of the biggest in the city for nightlife featuring a number of bars, restaurants, and local retail shops. But with the recent news that the Shaw Dry Goods building at 804 8th Street would become the location of a new Chophouse restaurant, some much-needed attention is coming to downtown’s 8th Street Plaza. “[Chophouse] is going to be a very special place to go,” said Pam Bricker, executive director of the Downtown Development Authority. “It is something Greeley hasn’t seen for a long time: a real special-occasion place.” Bricker expects the new restaurant to bring visitors from all over town. For her, it will be “the place to go before or after events” at the nearby Union Colony Civic Center. Bricker hopes the new restaurant will help bring more business to the plaza, which currently suffers
from a lack of foot traffic. Currently on the block are a few retail shops— the Lincoln Park Emporium, a large consignment marketplace, and Mariposa, a florist and gift shop—in addition to a law firm, an engineering firm, a dance studio, and the offices of Senator Mark Udall. The Shaw Dry Goods building is the only open space on the block currently being renovated for a new business. Other spaces are open, the biggest of which is the old Nelson’s Office Supply building. Previously occupied as one business, the Nelson’s building offers three open spaces. The building’s owners plan to restore the facade of the building, making a clear street-front separation between the three spaces. “Everybody likes to think we have all these empty buildings on 8th Street,” Bricker said. “We only have a few key spots. So I’m telling people who are looking that they shouldn’t hesitate. [The spaces] won’t last long, particularly when the restaurant activity starts over there.” She hopes to see more retail shops open up once foot traffic improves and said she’d
Concept designs courtesy of the Downtown Development Authority
like to see a second restaurant open in one of the Nelson’s spaces. “I think it takes at least two [restaurants] on a plaza to make it jump,” she said. “You can’t have too many restaurants or entertainment venues down here.” And there is definite interest in the other open spaces on the block. “We’ve had microbrewers looking down here, boutique owners... But nothing is a done deal until it’s signed.” 8th Street is not the only part of downtown being improved. The DDA is working with the City of Greeley and the University of Northern Colorado to freshen up the greater downtown. Facade improvements and beautification will take place along the 8th Avenue corridor from 16th to 11th street in an effort to connect what many think of as “downtown Greeley” with the equally-lively 16th Street block and University of Northern Colorado campus. Chuck Leonhardt, vice president of University Relations at UNC, has worked closely with the DDA to represent the university’s constituency in the greater community. “8th Avenue is not an inviting road,” he said. “There’s kind of a barbell effect [right now,] with 16th Street and 9th Street thriving. In between, though, the street feels unwelcoming, both to consumers and businesses.”
Leonhardt’s hope is that the improvements to 8th Avenue, which will include trees and shrubbery in the medians and benches and better lighting at intersections, will bring the two ends of downtown together. The goal, he said, is that “you begin to have a perception that 8th Avenue isn’t as large as it is as it becomes more pedestrian in scale. We’d like people to see that you can walk all the way up and down [the corridor] and visit businesses all the way between 16th and 8th Streets.” The City of Greeley has already set aside funds for these improvements. They plan to start with the intersection of 16th Street and 8th Avenue. Bricker said the DDA is already “actively working with businesses to approach them about facade improvements starting at 16th Street.” The DDA is also offering facade grants to these businesses—they will match what it costs to improve the frontage of businesses along 8th Avenue. According to Rebecca Safarik, the assistant city manager for the City of Greeley, the improvements are estimated to cost the city between $400,000 and $500,000 per intersection. City council has set aside $400,000 for work on the first in-
tersection. Funds, controlled by the Urban Renewal Authority of Greeley, come from the federal Community Development Block Grant program through the Department of Housing and Urban Development. Safarik said that these funds can only be used for pedestrian improvements; the median project has not been funded yet. They will seek grants and and are looking into alternative revenue sources in order to complete the entire project. The next step, Safarik explained, is construction design at the 16th Street corner. The city will survey and complete construction design for the intersection over the Winter months. They hope to put it to a bid by June of next year. The corridor improvements will aid the growth of both the 9th Street and 16th Street districts. “We’re starting to fill downtown up in a hurry,” Bricker said. “I’m actively seeking the kinds of businesses that I know we’re lacking in that would [also] be a good addition to what we have already.” She said the corner of 8th Avenue and 8th Street will be a priority retail corner for the DDA. Her ideal new business? “I would love to get a specialty cooking and kitchen store there,” she said.
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