BandWagon Magazine - June 2012

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BandWagon Magazine Greeley’s live music and entertainment magazine June 2012

Madison and Main Celebrates 25 Years Kelly Langley-Cook BandWagon Magazine When I first came to school in Greeley a million years ago, I wasn’t sure about the town. I dropped off the six boxes that contained my new life and walked north from the UNC campus. A block later I happened upon an the area that would become my home away from home. The corner of 10th Ave. and 16th St. was the reassurance I needed that this was, indeed, a town I could live in.

Margie’s Java Joint, the Book Stop, and the collective gallery known as Madison and Main are the center of this now bustling downtown community of galleries and arts.

Organized in 1987, Madison and Main is a cooperative gallery of potters, jewelers, sculptors, wood crafters, stained glass artists, fiber artists, photographers and mixed media artists who are dedicated to a life of art.

While Madison and Main may be a place for artists to sell and showcase, it is more than simply a gallery.

“Madison and Main represents something important about the power of creativity,” says member Lisa Arata. “We get ideas from people and events that were generated by people. We produce works of art that require materials to be made and stores to sell them. We put our inspiration into a medium and then others can see and experience it, so

we share an experience in common.

And we need a place to sell it, so we hire someone to let us use their space. I’m very happy to be part of this process. It’s alive.”

Last month, as they celebrated their 25th Anniversary, Madison and Main demonstrated exactly how amazing First Friday and support of the Arts in Greeley can be. With perfect weather, a large reception, food, conversation, and patrons hanging out on the Margie’s porch space, the good vibe was palpable and the arts scene in Greeley was real.

The artists’ love of creativity extends into the community that they serve with a desire to open Greeley up to the world of local art.

Susan Nelson, who is the Director of Community Arts at UNC and a long-time Madison and Main member, knows that Madison and Main is more than just a gallery.

Demonstrations, a chance for new artists to show their work and friendships (new and old,) are a big part of the Madison and Main group. Learning from others and watching artists grow is inspiring. “[This] artist co-op is a wonderful community resource - its twentyfive year history demonstrates the community support as well,” Nelson says.

Madison and Main is open to the public Monday through Friday 10a-4pm. Find them at 927 16th St.

BandWagon Magazine Greeley’s live music and entertainment magazine June 2012

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ALBUM REVIEWS The Stubby Shillelaghs

Blues Jam at

Whiskey Business

Jed Murphy BandWagon Magazine There are few local bands that can draw a consistent crowd on a weekly basis. Most new local bands from the area go through a growing period, when they build their local fan base, but after playing every show possible for a year, the show-goers just don’t turn out in the numbers they used to. This isn’t because their music got worse; in most cases they have only gotten better, but the people who go to concerts just get tired of hearing the same set every week.

For the Stubby Shillelaghs, this is not the case as each Tuesday at Patrick’s Irish Pub (or Stubby Tuesday as it has been dubbed.) Fans and patrons pack the space for a chance to listen to the Stubbies’ take on traditional Irish folk tunes and contemporary classics.

In March, the Stubbies released Whiskey Business, a sixteen-track ode to Irish culture and all the things they love. The band consists of Andrew “Ace” Mithun on lead vocals, percussion, and tin whistle; Jacie McConnell on violin and backing vocals; Shaughnessy “Shag Nasty McD” McDaniel on mandolin, guitar, and backing vocals; and Ryan “The Knaubler” Knaub on bass, guitar, and backing vocals. To those who have not experienced Stubby Tuesday, know

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that it gets loud, tight, and inebriated.

There is not a lot of room for ballads or technical guitar work when Mithun is pouring whiskey directly into the crowds’ mouths.

Whiskey Business gives us a look at the Stubby Shillelaghs many people have not taken the time to get to know: four extremely talented and wellversed musicians. Mithun, McDaniel, and Knaub all have a long history of playing in metal bands, exploring the genre’s technicalities. McConnell is a classically trained violinist, and McDaniel got his start performing as Jake Blues in a Blues Brothers cover band while he lived in Scotland during 2006. Whiskey Business is a closer look at their talents.

Celtic music fans will find a nice mix of classic Celtic favorites like “The Black Velvet Band,” some hilarious and honest originals like “Nerd In Love” and “Club 2 Da Pub,” and a few beautiful instrumentals like “Sgt. McConnell.” Listeners who don’t know the genre or the music will probably have a hard time telling one song from another, but for those who understand melody and production value, the album is a fun mix of well-crafted and entertaining songs.

The harmonies throughout are complementary to each member’s voice and are non-abrasive. The instrumentals showcase a few things they learned from their respective metal bands. Overall it is McConnell’s

EvEry Monday aT 7:30pM STarTing May 14Th!

Be There!

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violin that ties it all together. Her experience and class turn our favorite drunk Gaelic boys into a respectable outfit and elevates them from simply being three guys in Pantera shirts playing Celtic folk songs at the open mic nights.

They pull no punches though, and show themselves to be completely unapologetic or ashamed for liking the things they like or behaving the way they do. Yes, they reference the Vulcan mating ritual “Pon Farr” from the TV series Star Trek, but that doesn’t matter. What matters is that they are having fun and that fun translates to their audience.

Recently their close friend and loyal fan Stephen Pike passed away, and the song “Molly Malone” is now dedicated to him because it was his favorite. This shows how extremely grateful they are to all the people who continuously come out to support them. They continue to grow as band, branching out to other venues as well as Colorado’s long list of Celtic festivals, thanks to their fans.

3621 W. 10th St. 970-346-1198

EvEry Monday aT 7:30pM STarTing May 14Th! 3621 W. 10th St. 970-346-1198

Nasty Bunch of Bitches Apathy

Mariah Foster BandWagon Magazine

Music as a medium for change is not a revolutionary idea, but it seems to have been a while since we’ve seen a band issue the challenge to live in conscious awareness of our actions and their consequences. As such, we’ve slowly settled into the habit of consuming music with the same detached attitudes of boredom and complacency that we buy our sweat-shopped Walmart clothes with. We want easily digestible

music that we can drunkenly grind to, and we want it now. There are those, however, who refuse to participate in the perpetuation of the status quo and consider the reinstitution of honest songwriting a duty of musical morality.

Greeley’s brand spanking new punk band, Nasty Bunch of Bitches, approaches their music with a very South Park style of subversive sarcasm. Just as many claim that every joke contains a hint of truth, every irony exposed by the Bitches is presented in subtle hilarity, whether by mocking use of auto-tuning or through an unapologetically startling portrayal of a problem’s futility.

“I wish I had a word that was derogatory/ That I could use to describe half of everybody/ You get one and I want one, too/ All you talk about is what your bitches do” begins “Bitches,” a song capturing the strong feminist foundation of the band. The Bitches write what needs to be said: the messages people have stopped listening to. And though the brutal honesty can come as a kick to the balls, it quickly becomes obvious that every seditious lyric is sung with a smile. “The joke is on the people who don’t get the joke,” explains guitarist Michael Olivier.

Even the title of

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their first album, set to be released this month, is an ironic representation of a miserable American truth. Crowned Apathy, the fourteen-track compilation pokes at everything from politics to personal experience in tunes we can all rock out to. “Innocence never really was my thing,” sings frontwoman Kayleigh “Jack Stallion” Gustkey, who brings her life perspectives to the album in songs like “Lower Management Sucks,” “Blood Bubbles,” and “Aids- The Best Present I Never Got.” Of course, it just wouldn’t be a punk band without contemptuously addressing consumerism with lyrics like, “I am not a consumer/ I’m a human.”

In a track titled “My Trailer’s a Mansion in Uganda,” audiences are reminded that “you don’t know what poor is.”

The band truly lives the beliefs that they preach, something exemplified by the fact that their new album has been entirely self-made. Kayleigh, Michael, and rhythm guitarist Brett Caton are all audio production students who have shouldered the entire responsibility for the project, from initial recordings to mixing and mastering.

Apathy is the perfect antidote to our sickeningly sterile society. After its release, Nasty Bunch of Bitches will begin playing more live shows, including the Chris Lopez Memorial Charity Show at Sky Nightclub on June 21st.

The group can be followed on Twitter and on Facebook at Facebook.com/ TheNBBand. Brace yourselves; Greeley is about to get nasty.

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3621 W. 10th St. • 970-346-1198

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3621 W. 10th St. • 970-346-1198

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BandWagon Magazine Greeley’s live music and entertainment magazine June 2012 Every Time I Die Ex-Lives

Tony Hurst BandWagon Magazine This is Every Time I Die at their unrivaled best. In the grand scheme of things, it’s just another stepping stone in their ascension to becoming kings of hardcore. But, to set ETID’s new album Ex-Lives on the back burner would be a big mistake. How the band has been able to constantly one-up their previous releases for over a decade without making any major genre blurring switches is quite impressive. ETID is not a band that follows the constantly-changing trends of the music world. They are survivors of the emo/screamo/hardcore craze.

As bands around them jump on board these sinking ships and ride the waves to oblivion, this band sticks to its

guns. With each of their six full length releases they have garnered the respect of more fans and struck further at the pulsing heart of the hardcore scene.

The album starter, “Underwater Bimbos from Outer Space” is a perfect showcase of ETID’s new sound and of course the brilliance of Ex-Lives naming conventions. At a breakneck pace and with more technical stick work than is usual for ETID, new drummer Ryan “Legs” Legger won me over before the song was even thirty seconds in. Meanwhile, singer Keith Buckley belches out “I want to be dead with my friends” with more rasp than I have ever seen him muster. The three-minute song carries out with a breakdown almost reaching the oneminute mark. The guitars repeat one murky eerie sounding riff over and over like clockwork as Keith screams “I refuse to be the only man/Put to rest in

ma{RAWR!} amin tsunami Self Titled

Willow Summers BandWagon Magazine Some might call her poetry raw and emotional, others, a spotlight of lyrical encouragement that sparks a fire to burn with empowered uniqueness.

Either way, Mariah Foster’s self-titled album, ma{RAWR!} amin tsunami is an innovative slam poetry creation.

Released at Zoe’s Coffee Shop on Friday, March 30, ma{RAWR!} amin tsunami is a powerful mix of spoken word. Foster’s tone moves through several octaves of vocal emotion. This movement creates a strong, powerful, and at times

chilling presence. The poet introduces herself the first poem, “Expectations?

Great” when she says, “You want an idealist grounded in reality/And I’m trying/My poetry/This CD/Everything really/Is for you.” From the beginning, Foster ignites a casual but truthful and sometimes difficult conversation between the listener and her poetry’s tumultuous topics. Self-proclaimed personification of chaos, Foster unveils the battles faced with psychological scars and strained relationships. A touching but at times difficult poem, “Self-Titled” carries the audience to an uplifting point of view about diversity and diagnosis that demands society

a mass grave.”

The next two songs, “Holy Book of Dilemma” and “A Wild, Shameless Plain,” while both under two minutes, are jam packed full of enough knockout power chords to deafen your grandparents and enough of ETID’s signature southern drawl to fill your cup to the brim with Kentucky Deluxe.

“Typical Miracle” and “I Suck (Blood)” are guaranteed to get the party started with their catchy breakdowns and angst-ridden choruses. It seems every metalcore band needs at least one song that references vampires, but I won’t give them shit for it. After all, it does fit the dark lyrical theme quite well.

The party can’t stop yet: “Partying Is Such Sweet Sorrow” brings some experimental ideas to the table. The song begins with a twangy banjo lick that is played out and then duplicated by a distorted guitar over the top. As the drums and second guitar join in, Keith speaks metaphorically about a night out drinking and the song blooms in full. The song takes a brief vocal intermission where a clean track

and a screamed track are dubbed over each other. The song punches back in with Keith screaming “At least I’m in good company/I’ll drink to that.”

Next up, and my personal favorite on the album, is “The Low Road Has No Exits.” It displays numerous progressive elements and provides an intro to the most differentiated song on the album, “Revival Mode.” This is undoubtedly the first song in ETID’s entire catalogue to have more clean vocals than not.

The track is catchy and oozing emotion like a bloody sieve, while the guitars provide a fiery outro solo allowing the band to walk away with every ounce of their dignity still intact.

You would be hard-pressed to pick out one element of Ex-Lives musical composition that hasn’t gotten exponentially better since their last release. With frontman Keith Buckley’s vocals rawer and stronger than ever before, and the addition of new drummer Ryan Legger, Ex-Lives has taken their music to heavenly heights.

Even down to the lyrical themes and track names, this album is truly a gem.

allows others to be their chaotic and at time irrational selves.

The poem “Dear Matt and Trey” is a proud historic look at Greeley that mentions the city’s founder, Nathan Meeker. In this reply to South Park creators Trey Parker and Matt Stone, Foster states to them and others who complain about Greeley: “Still don’t agree/Then shut the fuck up or leave/ Have you tried moving to Hawaii/As if the problem really is geography/Just please stop whining/Some of us are trying to be happy/Many more of us really are happy here, in Greeley/I am happy here.”

“Luv Letter” illustrates a bond with family, community and friends, but also displays the disagreements and lost relationships that are encountered along the way. Foster shifts beat and cadence throughout each poem by playing on end rhyme, slant rhyme and

frequent use of anaphora. Ma{RAWR!} amin tsunami sketches tolerance for a heterogeneous culture. At times it would have been nice to see the poems in print. Because Foster’s style is so lyrical but also chock full of enjambment and pauses that tiptoe between commas or line breaks, I would have liked to see the poems, just as a band would produce lyrics with their CD. All the same, perhaps, the point of a poetry CD is its focus on the vocal; furthermore, perhaps the sound produced by the voice can never be equivalent with the effect of the same poem being viewed on a page.

Despite this historical poetry paradox, Foster is a new local talent worth noticing, whose talents slightly parallel Colorado slam poet, Andrea Gibson.

Both poets express a great deal of passion in their poems, and Foster’s

Having grown up outside of Buffalo, NY, the hometown of ETID, there was a time I would have considered them just another one of Buffalo’s vast musical offerings. At this point, it has become clear the band will batter down every last door until they can claim the fame they deserve. But don’t take my word for it. Buy the new album and take theirs.

focus on expressing the things we love. A worthwhile purchase for those interested in the up-and-coming trends for slam poetry and vocal performance, ma{RAWR!} amin tsunami can be purchased by contacting Mariah Foster at poetmarawr@yahoo.com.

BandWagon Magazine Greeley’s live music and entertainment magazine June 2012

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FILM REVIEWS The Evil Dead & Evil Dead II (TED) 1981 - 85 Minutes - Not Rated (EDII) 1987 - 84 Min - Not Rated Jay Wallace BandWagon Magazine

Bruce Campbell. Ever heard of him? You’ve probably seen him at least once or twice before. He was in all three Spider-Man films being a general annoyance to Tobey Maguire, played a smarmy hack in the Coen Bros.’ The Hudsucker Proxy, and currently plays former covert op Sam Axe on Burn Notice. Campbell got his start alongside Spider-Man director Sam Raimi when they started making short films in their teenage years. In time, the two ended up creating not one, but two of the best horror films ever made: The Evil Dead and Evil Dead II. Both films aren’t that different, but they showcase how filmmakers and actors progress in their work.

The first film is the template for this year’s homage to American horror films, The Cabin in the Woods. Five college students – Ash, (Campbell) his sister Cheryl, (Ellen Sandweiss) his girlfriend Linda, (Betsy Baker) his roommate Scotty (Richard DeManicor, credited as Hal Delrich) and Scotty’s girlfriend Shelly (Theresa Tilly, credited as Sarah York) – head up to a cabin in the woods.

When night falls, the door to the cellar mysteriously flings itself open. Scotty and Ash head down and find a shotgun, a reel-to-reel tape recorder, and an odd book filled with twisted drawings. The book is, of course, the Book of the Dead, and the tape player belongs to someone who was studying the book. Playing the tape recorder, the previous owner on tape recites a demonic incantation. Hell

breaks loose shortly thereafter.

The movie garnered an NC-17 rating from the MPAA and got put on the UK’s Video Nasties list when it was first released. The big reason probably has to do with a scene where Cheryl gets raped by the foliage surrounding the cabin. An eye-gouging occurs. The final act is an explosion of gore. Watching this, it’s easy to understand where horror directors like Eli Roth and Rob Zombie get their inspiration. Unlike comparable films of the time, though, one does not snicker while watching The Evil Dead. It’s still frightening.

The Evil Dead is a little rough around the edges in regards to its special effects and general production values, but like the black-and-white photography of Clerks, that roughness gives the film a bit of charm. Unlike other B-grade trash of its era, it’s clear Raimi, Campbell and producer Rob Tapert didn’t halfass anything. The cinematography is original and ingenious, adding to the unease of the characters. The monster make-up, which at times does look a little amateurish, looks fantastic. The sound work should be mentioned too; like John Carpenter’s Halloween, the sound design adds to the creepiness of the film.

Evil Dead II has been mistaken as nothing but a remake of the first film. This isn’t true; it’s a proper sequel, but the events of the first film were retconned (altered continuity) because the filmmakers couldn’t get the licensing to use the original film’s footage. EDII strips away Cheryl, Scotty and Shelly, leaving us with Ash and Linda (Denise Bixler) en route to

The Avengers

2012 - 143 Minutes - Rated PG-13 AKA Captain America. Mark Ruffalo is Jay Wallace Dr. Bruce Banner, and when he’s angry, BandWagon Magazine

“I have returned from The Avengers.

I’m not sure I like it or not. My vote for best action flick of 2012 is still The Raid.”

This is what I tweeted on May 7th, letting writer-director Joss Whedon’s adventurous take on Marvel’s The Avengers stew in my mind. This was unusual for me: I’m the kind of person who walks out of a movie definitely loving it, liking it, hating it or “meh”ing it. I don’t have a “meh” attitude towards The Avengers, but I wasn’t immediately sold on the finished product. It took time for me to go, “Yeah, I like this. It was pretty cool.” This review is basically me figuring out why I liked it.

I should probably preface this piece by stating that the only Marvel Studios films I’ve seen have been Jon Favreau’s Iron Man films, and that the only work of Joss Whedon I’ve seen and enjoyed has been a couple episodes of Firefly and Angel, The Cabin in the Woods and Dr. Horrible’s Sing-along Blog. I say this because I do not want Whedonites and Marvel fans to say I needed to watch soand-so to fully appreciate the movie – no filmgoer should have to do homework to fully enjoy a film.

For those living under a rock, The Avengers is a crossover film of Iron Man I & II, The Incredible Hulk, Thor, and Captain America: The First Avenger, a blockbuster years in the making for Marvel Comics’ film division. Robert Downey Jr. is former weapons designer Tony Stark, AKA Iron Man. Chris Evans is WWII super-soldier Steve Rogers,

The Incredible Hulk. Chris Hemsworth returns from Asgard as Norse god Thor.

Scarlett Johansson returns as S.H.I.E.L.D. agent Natasha Romanoff, and is joined

by Jeremy Renner’s Clint Barton, AKA Hawkeye, an assassin with a love of archery. Backing them up are S.H.I.E.L.D. director Nick Fury (Samuel L. Jackson) and agents Phil Coulson (Clark Gregg) and Maria Hill. (Cobie Smulders) Fury brings together this group of superheroes when Asgardian god and Thor’s adoptive brother Loki (Tom Hiddleston) appears at S.H.I.E.L.D.’s headquarters whilst the agency is looking into the Tesseract, an energy cube. After events that took place in Thor, Loki seems to be hungry for power, with the goal in mind of ruling Earth. He enlists an alien race called the Chitauri to help take over the planet, giving them the Tesseract in exchange. In due time, Fury gathers the team members, all initially at odds with each other and S.H.I.E.L.D., in the hopes of taking down Loki and his army.

If I went into detail on each actor’s performance, this review would be far too long, so here’s the Cliff’s Notes version: Downey and Jackson own the screen as Stark and Fury, as would be expected, but Downey’s performance does seem to have been put on a leash.

That could be because Stark’s presence is crowded out by the other characters, or because of Joss Whedon’s direction – Whedon is a born-and-bred television writer, and his scriptwriting often takes precedent over actors when he’s directing. Downey’s Stark is still a glib,

the cabin. The beginning is a recap: Ash finds the tape recorder, plays the incantation, Linda becomes possessed, Ash beheads her, the sun rises, Ash is tormented by the demons, tries to escape, bridge is out, sun goes down, and Ash is once again at the mercy of the evil forces, which include his possessed hand that he’s forced to cut off with a chainsaw. The rest of the film deals with the daughter (Sarah Berry) of the tape recorder owner – an archaeologist who discovered the Book of the Dead – arriving at the cabin with her colleague and two redneck guides, soon pairing up with Ash to take down the demons.

cocky genius, but the gravitas Downey brought in Iron Man is restrained a bit.

Stark, however, still manages to steal the show in the end.

Johansson is given more to do compared to IM2, and she plays well against Ruffalo, Renner and Evans, but her role still feels underused. She’s a more interesting character in IM2 than she is in Avengers. Renner as Hawkeye – the first film to properly feature the master archer – is excellent, given how small the role is. Evans and Hemsworth in their respective roles are great, but given that I haven’t seen Thor and Captain America yet, it’s hard to accurately judge their contribution to the film.

Evans as the Captain is the team member most out-of-place (given that he was frozen for 70 years and struggling to adapt in the 21st Century) but also the only one willing to step up and lead the way. Hemsworth’s Thor is strangely the most paternal – he’s cares for Earth like it’s a priceless treasure, and only wishes to return to Asgard with his adoptive brother for a trial – and the most passionate, ferocious member of the team. His personal stake in Earth and Loki makes him more of a loose cannon than Banner.

Speaking off which, if anyone really stands out amongst the ensemble, it’s Mark Ruffalo’s portrayal of Bruce Banner, AKA The Incredible Hulk. The role has been played most recently

by Edward Norton and Eric Bana, and while I haven’t seen Norton’s take on the character, Ruffalo’s Banner is done with more nuance and less dreariness than Bana’s version. Ruffalo plays Banner as a man on edge, sold prominently during an argument amongst the team when he admits he attempted to commit suicide. (“I didn’t see an end, so I put a bullet in my mouth and the other guy spit it

Evil Dead II is a bit of genre shift for the series. Not interested in dealing with the UK government, Raimi decided to make the second installment a bit more comedic. The movie still has its creepy, bloodsoaked moments, but it’s all undercut with humor. The highlight is probably Ash’s possessed hand smacking him in the head with dinner plates until he passes out, followed by the hand cutting mentioned earlier.

Ash also sets a new level in badass.

After one of the rednecks throws the newly-found, necessary pages of the Book of the Dead in the cellar – now occupied by the possessed, reanimated mother of the archeologist’s daughter

– Ash replaces his missing hand with a chainsaw and sets about slaughtering demons. Compare this to the first film, where Ash is a male version of The Virgin stereotype of horror film. It’s an awesome step up for Campbell.

I admire The Evil Dead for its ambition, for punching above its weight and delivering an imaginative, shocking horror story that’s still scary years later. However, I enjoy Evil Dead II for exceeding the ambition of the first film and making one of the best horrorcomedies of all time. Both are groovy.

TED: 8/10. EDII: 9/10.

out.”) Next to the Captain, he’s the most I would love to see a stand-alone Hulk film starring Ruffalo.

I still stand by my declaration that The Raid: Redemption is the best action film of the year so far. The action setpieces, while impressive, are thorough CG fests. Joss Whedon, like Jon Favreau, put quite a bit of emphasis on the characters, so the action is relatively minimal. There’s also quite a bit of humor sprinkled throughout, more so than Iron Man, which past viewings of Firefly lead me to expect. It’s a fun film, a real popcorn muncher.

My biggest complaint about the film regards Clark Greggs’ character, Agent Coulson. I’ve dug Coulson since Iron Man, and it was awesome to see his role expanded in The Avengers and watch him interact with the characters, as a confidant to Thor, a fanboy to Cap, Natasha’s co-worker and Stark’s main annoyance.

Then the bastards killed him.

Granted, it was Loki that fooled him and stabbed him in the back, but still, the filmmakers knocked him off, mostly to unite the divided-and-beaten members against Loki and the invading army. It’s a plot device in storytelling as old as time (And Whedon is apparently fond of using this, according to Buffy The Vampire Slayer fans,) but it honestly feels weak. Coulson is, for all intents and purposes, an office drone to the others.

An awesome office drone, but an office drone nonetheless. The emotional stakes surrounding his death just doesn’t seem like strong enough motivation for The Avengers.

In the end, I liked The Avengers.

I suspect further viewings on DVD will solidify my interest in the film.

Something tells me Dark Knight Rises will be the better film, but The Avengers could be the more entertaining film. And in the end, that’s all that matters. 7/10

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BandWagon Magazine Greeley’s live music and entertainment magazine June 2012

BandWagon Magazine Greeley’s live music and entertainment magazine June 2012

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BandWagon Magazine Greeley’s live music and entertainment magazine June 2012

Down Under Comedy Club Slate Entertainment Brings Laughs to NoCO

Willow Summers BandWagon Magazine

Pictured Above: Some of the Down Under’s stand-up comedians: (Left to Right) Captain Jsin, Marcus Fowler, Jonny Shipman All photos by Breanna Nosal

Ingeniously funny, witty, and economically priced, the Down Under Comedy Club is reentering the Greeley nightlife scene. Located on the back side of the University Square shopping center, off of 11th Ave and Highway 34 behind the King Soopers, the old Down Under Comedy Club has been revamped and refurbished, ready to host a series of funny and fantastic events. The owners of Slate Entertainment, Josh and Danyelle McCannon, would like to utilize the Down Under for a variety of entertainment options. As customers from the comedy club’s past, Danyelle says, “We used to come to the [Down Under] when we were in college. It was dark, smoky, raunchy, but it was still great comedy. You had to come an hour to an hour and onehalf before stand up began just to get a seat. We have that entrepreneurial spirit.

We like comedy and wanted to bring some quality entertainment to Greeley.”

On Mondays, The Down Under hosts an open mic night for local stand-up comedians to perform. Jonny Shipman, a regular performer on Monday nights, says, “You have a stage. There are no people playing pool or a jukebox; instead, the club tries to gear the atmosphere for the performer and comedy. Usually you have to go to Denver or Fort Collins, but now a hilarious and different aspect of life and living is available in Greeley throughout the week.”

Although The Down Under is closed on Tuesday and Wednesday nights, Thursday nights feature musical comedy improv for free admission. In a spin off of the ‘90s TV series, Whose Line Is It Anyway, audience members are encouraged to tip their entertainers. Captain Jsin’s Medicine Show featuring Chuckle Buket, complete with guitars, drums, accordions, and pianos, is an interactive, phantasmagorical event that will spawn into melodic comedy. Musical

comedy improv night’s doors open at 7:00 p.m. and the show begins at 8:00 p.m.

Excited to work and create relationships with local businesses, the Down Under is currently promoting a date night special with Roma. If a couple goes to Roma for dinner and they bring in their receipt, admission is half price. On Friday and Saturday nights, The Down Under brings in nationally-recognized touring comedy acts.

To select the weekend comedians, Josh says, “We require a background and bio from every comedian we invite to perform.

We look at their credentials. There are always two comics; a 20-30 minute opener performs and then the headliner for an hour or a little more. We bring in the cream of the crop on the weekends. It’s a whole new level of comedy that’s sure to bring laughter.”

Several of Weld County’s residents are starting to filter into The Down Under, ready to laugh about the silly idiosyncrasies that connect audiences in comedy. A rising local comedian, Mitch Jones, has made several performances at The Down Under. Jones says, “I love The Down Under Comedy Club. It’s a godsend and Northern Colorado’s only comedy club. Greeley has a really bad stigma around it. People think it’s just a town that smells like shit or we’re all gangstas. Greeley may have its faults but the people here make the city. This place is so full of creative people: artists, musicians, and comics.”

The creative forces that denote Greeley’s talent are of prime interest to Danyelle and Josh, who would like to promote The Down Under as a space available for rent.

Birthday parties, private company comedy shows, you name it, The Down Under is a space as versatile as its comedians.

For more information about upcoming comedians, drink specials, and events, check out The Down Under on Facebook, Yelp, Foursquare, and GTownSlate.com.

BandWagon Magazine Greeley’s live music and entertainment magazine June 2012

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BandWagon Magazine Greeley’s live music and entertainment magazine June 2012

BandWagon Magazine Greeley’s live music and entertainment magazine June 2012

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Streets of Berlin, 2012 Joe Lee Parker BandWagon Magazine

Top Left: Berlin Wall, Mauer Park Top Right: Artist BLU, Berlin Middle: Open lot, Berlin Background: Skatehalle / Summergarden, Berlin

Sometimes we have no idea what ignites our passion. But in this case, I know exactly.

It was two years ago, on the very same streets of Berlin, when I happened across an “alternative” tour that launched my obsession: photographing powerful images as I roam through the streets and alleys of the cities I love.

My trip started in London, where there’s no shortage of anything.

Architecture, people, street art, fine art, historical landmarks, you name it and London’s got it. Like other relatively “clean” cities, I found a lot of stickers and small stencil work on the back of street signs, on power boxes, light poles and walls. Everywhere I looked I saw something competing for my attention and waking up the senses.

Being a music fan, I moved on to Liverpool for a few days. Now, Liverpool is a relative cesspool, but I found a lot more mural work and bigger pieces in addition to the usual stickers and stencils. However, it’s not a bike-friendly town and way too big to cover on foot. The hostel recommended a surprisingly cheap private cab that would pick me up and drop me off anywhere I wanted.

With research, I was able to plan my excursions accordingly. I did the Beatles tour with the cabbie who stood by to let me take pictures and linger a while at each location. I hit all the spots and still made it back for afternoon tea.

But the best stuff happens at city center, where I was able to navigate my way around on foot and catch the most intense pieces. There was even an old Banksy paste-up I found after asking the locals. Mind you though, it’s never easy to understand a Liverpudlian (or Scouse) so my patience and persistence were amply rewarded. I was surprised by the volume and quality of the street art I was finding and, again, the overabundance of stickers kept me on my toes.

Next up was Amsterdam. I took a four-day layover and loved every

minute of it. For a place with so many “coffee shops” though, it’s surprisingly difficult to find a good place to buy a cup of coffee! What I didn’t like about Amsterdam was the density of tourists. However, I found it surprisingly simple to navigate and the tram took me everywhere I needed to go.

The street art here was just how I like it: out-of-control! It was great to see new pieces by established artists and some powerful new artists that I’d be seeing more of along the way.

I even saw a few pieces by LA-based artists.

I stumbled upon a variation of the “Art Lab” concept called a “popup gallery,” where a gallery would just “pop up” in a vacant space for a limited time and feature various artists’ work, along with traveling musicians who jammed for the crowd.

Also, I witnessed firsthand a new street art method where an artist paints a traditional canvas, only to leave it on the street to see how long it stays before someone snatches it up; the opinion being the better the art, the quicker it’s gone (or something like that.) Amsterdam was indeed a very healthy and vibrant scene that set me up well for my return trip to Germany.

I spent a few days in Cologne meeting old friends and blitzing the city. I love Cologne for various reasons. It’s a lot more laid back and conservative than Berlin and therefore it’s easier to just chill.

However, I was pretty pumped after Amsterdam so I got a bike and hit the city hard. I was probably averaging about 500 photos a day during this leg of my journey. I know Cologne well and it’s small enough to get around exclusively by bike. I was staying with a friend at city center, so even the far reaches were accessible.

Upon arrival in Berlin I remembered my way to the hostel, about a two-mile trek. I like to hoof it, as walking helps me connect with the city right away and get the feel of it as I make my way towards my home away from home. I stayed in the same place I stayed two years ago. How I find these spots that end up being perfect in every way is a bit beyond me, but I don’t question fate.

The next morning, I picked up

a bike. It’s an essential first move.

Once I was on my way, I could feel the city opening up to greet me, there’s nothing else like it. I’ve been to a good many big cities but for lots of reasons, Berlin is by far my favorite. As far as street art goes, it’s in the top five, if not the top ten.

Through friends, I found some new spots that I would have never found otherwise. I even got to meet El Bocho, my favorite area artist and all around nice guy. I’d been in touch with him but I didn’t want to get my hopes up. As it turned out, we were both at a gallery opening and he came up and introduced himself. I’m glad it worked out that way because, like any good street artist, his appearance was a mystery to me. We had a great chat, and I was able to hear him talk about his experiences as an international street artist. He even had an ongoing show at a posh gallery across town, where his fine art pieces were selling for 6,000 euros and up. Meeting him was certainly a highlight and it gave me some insight into the genre from his perspective.

My trip to Berlin was everything I hoped it would be and more. I met new friends and reconnected with old acquaintances. I revisited some of my favorite places and found a lot of new ones. It’s the trip of a lifetime in a city that is always changing. The people, the energy, the art, the history, and the vibrancy has a way of fueling my soul and inspiring my spirit. The food’s pretty good, too.

I knew I’d be both pumped and drained after Berlin, so I scheduled an extra week back in Cologne to unwind before my trip home. This is where my experience paid off. Not only did I get back to Cologne to hang with my friends, but it was May Day as well. Everyone takes the day off and goes to the park. Luckily it was a perfect summer-like day and a great way to cap off a trip. Plus, I noticed some new art had gone up since my last go around, so I was still able to grab some new shots before heading home.

All in all it was time very well spent. I’ll be paying off the bill for a while yet but it was worth every penny—and I’ve got 5,000 photos to prove it!

All photos by Joe Lee Parker

BandWagon Magazine Greeley’s live music and entertainment magazine June 2012

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BandWagon Magazine Greeley’s live music and entertainment magazine June 2012

Band arton

the 2012 greeley blues jam

une 9th Zachary Martinez BandWagon Magazine

The Vaughan surname is almost synonymous with guitar greatness, whether it is Stevie Ray or his older brother Jimmie. This year, at the eighth annual Greeley Blues Jam, Northern Colorado will get to taste that greatness as Jimmie Vaughan takes the stage as the headlining act. Born in a small town near Dallas, Texas, Jimmie Vaughan was raised on old school blues and rock ‘n roll, which is apparent in both his solo career and the Fabulous Thunderbirds, who have been active since the mid-seventies.

Clearly, old time music gods had a deep and lasting influence on Jimmie Vaughan.

His music – a hybrid of old rock ‘n roll and blues – often has its foundation in fourbeats on the drums, which is typical of the early rock stars, fused with minor pentatonic blues scales.

Take, for example, Jimmie Vaughan’s hit song “Boom Bapa Boom” and compare it to Chuck Berry’s “Johnny B. Goode.” You’ll notice that both songs are based on the fourbeat in the percussion and adding fifths to the chords in guitar riffs. This combination creates the energy that is typical of early rock ‘n roll and of Jimmie Vaughan.

Also take note of the role of the piano in both songs, as it harmonizes with the melody and helps maintain the song’s energy.

For all the similarities between Vaughan and his rock ‘n roll predecessors, Vaughan breaks with them at a noticeably important point. In “Johnny B. Goode,” Berry’s lead riff is based in the major pentatonic scale, keeping the high energy and upbeat feel of the song; however, in “Boom Bapa Boom,” we see Vaughan breaking with tradition and writing his

lead riff in the minor pentatonic, which is more typical of blues music and actually offsets the upbeat drums and guitar. This is most prevalent in the solo near the end of the second minute, and it is in this solo that we hear many of the elements that have made Jimmie Vaughan and the Fabulous Thunderbirds so successful.

Vaughan’s rise to fame began with the Fabulous Thunderbirds. Although they have not ascended to the same level of super-stardom as some of their contemporaries, their level of success is high. They have shared the stage with some of rock and blue’s biggest names, like the Rolling Stones and Eric Clapton. Their song “Tuff Enuff” reached number ten on the Billboard Hot 100 and was featured in the films Gung Ho (1986) and Tough Guys (1986). Jimmy Vaughan left the band in the early nineties to work with his brother, Stevie Ray, and he recorded his first solo album, Strange Pleasure, in 1994.

Since his break with the Fabulous Thunderbirds, Vaughan’s critical reception has increased dramatically.

He has won four Grammy Awards: 2001 Best Traditional Blues Album for Do You Get the Blues, 1996 Rock Instrumental Performance for “SRV Shuffle,” 1990 Rock Instrumental Performance for “D/FW,” and 1990 Best Contemporary Blues Album for Family Style, which he recorded with his brother. Fender has even produced a signature Jimmie Vaughan Stratocaster, called the Tex-Mex. Even at age sixty-one, Vaughan continues to escalate his career, as he still performs and releases new music. He has also become politically active, supporting Ron Paul as a presidential candidate in 2008 and performing at Ron Paul campaign appearances at the University of Texas and Rally for the Republic in St. Paul Minnesota. In 2010, he performed at the Crossroads Guitar Festival and on Conan.

His most recent release, Plays More Blues, Ballads, and Favorites, features Lou Ann Barton, a name inextricably bound to the

Vaughan name. Barton performed with Stevie Ray in Triple Threat Review and in Double Trouble. Now, her voice can be heard backing Jimmie on his 2011 release.

This years, as a part of his cross-country tour, Vaughan, along with Lou Ann Barton and the Tilt-a-Whirl Band, will hang his hat up in Greeley for one very special night: the Greeley Blues Jam. He will take the stage at Island Grove Park with some exceptional blues artists, like Otis Taylor, the Soul Rebels, Kelley Hunt, and many others over the course of the two-day annual festival.

The Blues Jam is Greeley’s summer kick-off event, opening a summer schedule that includes the Greeley Stampede and the Block Party, all of which are heavily music-oriented events. However, the Blues Jam differs in that it, more than either the Stampede or the Block Party, caters to Greeley locals. The Stampede attracts people from all over the United States and Canada and the Block Party caters to college students, many of whom are long-term guests to the area. The Blues Jam, however, primarily caters to the local public, which is evidenced by the fact that the Blues Jam is a non-profit and supports local charities. Blues albums will be on sale at the event, from which proceeds will benefit the Greeley Boys and Girls Club.

Last year, all proceeds from the Blues Jam went to building a new homeless shelter in Greeley. So, not only is the Greeley Blues Jam an important part of the summer for those of us who spend 365 days a year in our little town, it is also an integral part of Greeley community building and betterment.

It is only fitting that a blues event be so intent on helping those less fortunate: blues themes often focus on the misfortunes and hardships of their performers. Blues and rock ‘n roll have often served as a voice for the underdog, and not only is it fitting for a blues event to be intent on serving the community, it is also perfectly fitting for an artist like Jimmy Vaughan – who is a son of an asbestos worker – to take center

stage. As his younger brother, Stevie Ray, once said about their childhood, “It wasn’t a comfortable Leave it to Beaver kind of deal… There was a lot of tension.”

In many ways, the Greeley Blues Jam and events like it bring the artists like Jimmie Vaughan full circle. Vaughan rose to stardom against adverse circumstances.

He was the son of a blue-collar working man and a secretary, yet he’s played with some of the greatest guitar players of all time and, indeed, he is their peer. And his rise to fame was due to his own audacity, which drove him to blend musical aspects that are not often found together. It is hard to think of a better kind of musician to place in front of children from the Boys and Girls Club, as he is proof that audacity and creativity can lead to great things. In Vaughan’s case, it led to four Grammies, film soundtracks, and the Billboard Hot 100 list. The Blues Jam reinforces the local music community by bringing huge acts to a Greeley stage and helps communitybuilding organizations by giving money to their efforts. All of the aforementioned give the City of Greeley and the Greeley Chamber of Commerce the occasion to invite musicians like Jimmie Vaughan – who is both an incredible musician and a symbol of values found in blues music and the Blues Jam – to play in one Northern Colorado’s better music festivals. Don’t regret missing such an artist as he does what he does best in your town.

Jimmie Vaughan will play from 8:45 pm-10:15 pm on the Main Stage at Island Grove Park in Greeley. Tickets are $25 in advance and $30 at the door. Tickets are available at the Union Colony Civic Center, the Greeley Chamber of Commerce, and a few other local businesses, as well as online at GreeleyBluesJam.com. Look there for a list of places where tickets are available.

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BandWagon Magazine Greeley’s live music and entertainment magazine June 2012

THE SOUL REBELS Showtime: June 9th, 6:30 p.m.

Tickets at GreeleyBluesJam.com New Orleans natives Lumar LeBlanc and Derrick Moss initially formed The Soul Rebels Brass Band after breaking away from Dejean’s Young Olympia Brass Band with the desire to create a new sound.

Both men were more than familiar with New Orleans jazz, but new styles of music started to sink into their psyches and influence their tastes.

Taking their style from marching bands and mixing in influences from R&B, hip-hop and funk, LeBlanc and Moss found a middle ground and began to accrue band members: trumpet players Marcus Hubbard and Julian Gosin, trombone players Corey Peyton and Paul Robertson, saxophonist Erion Williams and sousaphone player Edward Lee Jr. LeBlanc and

Moss play the snare and bass drums respectively. Along with doing originals, they also perform covers of songs such as “Sweet Dreams” by Eurythmics. All of them are proud to call New Orleans their home.

Cyril Neville of the Neville Brothers coined the band The Soul Rebels when LeBlanc and Moss’ group opened for them. The group has toured extensively, going as far as Europe and South Africa.

It hasn’t been easy for the band, though. When Hurricane Katrina struck in 2005, the band scattered across the region. While some members relocated to Texas, the band often reformed in New Orleans to play shows, this time with a renewed purpose.

“Music has been the number one vehicle for Katrina recovery,”

says LeBlanc. “That catastrophe has brought so much worldwide attention to our music.”

Since Katrina, the band has been more or less acting as an international ambassador of the New Orleans sound.

Earlier in the year, The Soul Rebels released their twelfth album, Unlock Your Mind, featuring guest appearances by Cyril Neville, Trombone Shorty and Meters guitarist Leo Nocentelli. They have opened for the likes of Green Day, The Roots, Counting Crows, and Robert Plant & Jimmy Page, just name a few. The band also has appeared on Treme and Discovery’s After The Catch. By the looks of things, they are not slowing down.

Hendrix—and that’s only one of the awesome things about his music. His crunchy, powerful rhythm guitar sound accents his smooth, soulful vocals just right.

Turner’s voice may have a familiar quality, but his guitar solos

are all his own. With just the right blend of rock, blues, and a hint of jazz, they have an electrifying quality that will set your soul on fire. This Cuban-born bluesman is sure to light up the stage at the Greeley Blues Jam. By: Austin Wulf

By: Jay Wallace

Eddie Turner Showtime: June 9th, 12:00 p.m.

Tickets at GreeleyBluesJam.com

When you first listen to Eddie Turner, you might have to pinch yourself to be sure you’re not having an acid-fueled dream about Jimi Hendrix rising from the dead. Turner’s voice carries a striking similarity to that of

BandWagon Magazine Greeley’s live music and entertainment magazine June 2012

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OTIS TAYLOR BAND Showtime: June 9th, 4:00 p.m.

Tickets at GreeleyBluesJam.com Chicago native Otis Taylor plays a unique style of blues that can be best described as “trance blues.” Elements of Delta blues, folk, and rock can all be heard in Taylor’s songs. His lyrical content is heavy, discussing such topics as slavery and civil rights, but Taylor describes himself as “not a particularly unhappy person.” He is a modern and remarkably relevant blues singer with a classic-sounding voice reminiscent of Muddy Waters.

On some level, his instrumental style is also classic, but it has a strange quality to it that is the essence of his “trance blues” sound. Taylor is a multi-instrumentalist, playing the traditional blues instruments (guitar and harmonica) as well as typically bluegrass instruments: mandolin and banjo. Musically gifted and lyrically deep, Taylor will surprise and delight any blues fan.

By: Austin Wulf

THE Delta Sonics Showtime: June 9th, 5:30 p.m.

Tickets at GreeleyBluesJam.com

Kelley Hunt

Showtime: June 9th, 2:00 p.m.

Tickets at GreeleyBluesJam.com It’s obvious that Kelley Hunt knows her way around the ebony and ivory. Listen to her rock the keys just once and you’ll be impressed—and hooked. Hunt’s gospel-infused brand of rhythm and blues will have you tapping your toes and snapping your fingers to its upbeat and fun sound. Her talent doesn’t just lie in her fingers, though: this

lady has some serious pipes. Her powerful voice blends well with her Ray Charles-esque gospel style.

Hunt’s latest release, Gravity Loves You, features a healthy mix of moving slow jams and up-tempo tunes. Released in 2011, the album is about being “the most authentic you that you can be,” Hunt says.

Expect a dancing crowd when she rocks the stage at the Blues Jam.

By: Austin Wulf

Established in 1992, the Delta Sonics Blues Band have become one of the top blues acts in Denver.

Chicago Blues, West Coast Swing, New Orleans R&B – they can do each, and they will. This will be their third appearance at the Greeley Blues Jam, following their performances in 2006 and 2009.

Al Chesis, a Washington, D.C. native, leads the way as the band’s harmonica player and vocalist.

Since the 1980s, Chesis has played with the Mojo-Matics, opened shows for the likes of Elvin Bishop and Albert Collins, and been on stage with Tommy Castro, Homesick James and Canned Heat.

Since the formation of the Delta Sonics, Chesis has been officially

endorsed by Hohner Harmonicas.

Jeremy Vasquez is the band’s guitarist and a back-up vocalist. A Los Angeles native, Vasquez has been in Colorado for six years, fronting for Shuffletones and headlining The Jeremy Vasquez Band.

John Butler plays bass in the band, having played the instrument since he was 13. Butler acted as Big Al of the oldies act Big Al & the HiFi’s, and has played with some of Colorado’s top blues bands, such as The Homewreckers and Chicago Skinny. Butler has also opened for the likes of Kim Wilson and Delbert McClinton.

Drummer Tony Pantelis, like Vasquez, has worked alongside

the Shuffletones, as well as Big Bill Morganfield and Willie Houston.

He also plays with the Colorado Municipal Band.

Together, these guys have dominated the blues scene in Colorado, being featured at the Denver Blues & Bones Festival three times, the Cherry Creek Arts Festival, The Yellowstone Jazz Festival, and many more. They have also opened for nationally known blues artists Taj Mahal, The Radiators, The Fabulous Thunderbirds, and Koko Taylor.

Given their drive, it’s not surprising they’re in-demand as a back-up band for national blues artists.

By: Jay Wallace

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BandWagon Magazine Greeley’s live music and entertainment magazine June 2012

BandWagon Magazine Greeley’s live music and entertainment magazine June 2012

DJ Logic

Tours Through Colorado Jon Hann BandWagon Magazine The jazz, hip-hop, jam band, and turntable artist DJ Logic is making his way to A.F. Ray’s on Saturday June 30th. Don’t miss this great opportunity to see young DJ Logic’s talent and style come to life on A.F. Ray’s stage. This artist has been pushing turntables and making beats for over fifteen years and continues to become more talented and diverse. Jason Kibler, or DJ Logic as he is better known, has created his own turntable style not limited to dubstep or techno, but rather a hip-hop and jazz-based style that makes his beats unique, soothing, and entertaining.

Making music since he was a young teenager in the 1990s, DJ Logic has put out several different albums, such as Zen of Logic, Project Logic, and The Anomaly, in addition to appearing on several other bands’ albums, like O.A.R.’s King, originally released in August 2011. DJ Logic has also made appearances with artists like the Yohimbe Brothers, Jason Miles, and Charlie Hunter, along with other jam bands throughout his musical career.

One of DJ Logic’s most popular songs, currently, is “Spider Dance” (released in 2010.) The song features a slow, soothing, ambient beat with a female vocal track that is entrancing, engaging, and sets a peaceful mood. Several other DJ Logic songs, such as “Lap Dance” or “Hope Road” (2006,) carry a more upbeat funk base, with flutes and horns used in the background to set the tone. DJ Logic seems to be talented at creating beats that give off a euphoric, light, ambient feel and beats with a more jazzy, funk, jam band feel, with hip-hop bass lines. Along with DJ Logic’s diverse style, he makes his live tracks unique

with his turntables always on stage and ready to mix it up.

Perhaps one of DJ Logic’s main trademarks is his ability to smash out, mix up, and create songs. Since the mid-1990s, DJ Logic has been making an impact on the American hip-hop culture by creating new music with style and great control on his turntables. As a result of his talents, DJ Logic has become well-known from coast to coast, creating smooth-jamming beats for the hip-hop and jazz genres and their talented vocal artists. Continuing to push his own style however, DJ Logic makes his way to Colorado on a solo tour, ready to jam.

Born in the Bronx, DJ Logic found his talent with turntables from going to parties as a teenager, and has been slowly making his move through the underground hiphop and jazz scenes for the past few years.

By establishing his own style with a mix of jazz, hip-hop, electronic, and jam beats, DJ Logic has made an impression and is on tour once again. His 2012 tour will make stops in Georgia, Florida, Colorado, and in his home state of New York.

Don’t miss this great opportunity to see a truly unique DJ live in concert at Hodi’s Half Note in Fort Collins on June 28th, The Bluebird Theater in Denver on June 29th or as he leaves his mark in Greeley at A.F. Ray’s on June 30th.

If bands like O.A.R., Dispatch, DJ Shadow, or Chris Joss grab your ears, this is one concert that you’re sure to enjoy. If you’re interested in jazz, hip-hop, or smooth jam band music, DJ Logic’s A.F. Ray’s show is a must-see for your summer. DJ Logic is coming all the way from New York to scratch, bump, and slide his turntables with his own style and catchy beats; making this a concert you won’t want to miss.

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BandWagon Magazine Greeley’s live music and entertainment magazine June 2012

Local Band Profile:

Sunflowers In Straitjackets

Willow Summers BandWagon Magazine Unblocking the crowd’s chakras and perspectives with their psychedelic vibe, Sunflowers in Straitjackets is budding into the Colorado music scene. The three-member psychedelic/garage/chakra rock band includes Alex Graff on vocals, Shawn Pachl on guitar, and Ryan Radford on drums. With a blues groove within a harder rock sound, Sunflowers in Straitjackets includes traces of Chuck Berry’s bouncy rock and blues, Anthony Kiedis’ fast-paced syntax, and Jack White’s thick guitar

beat. The members work constantly to complement each other’s musical craft. They believe that if three people constantly play lead in everything they do during practice, then their sound can only manifest into a natural flow of positive creation.

When discussing their song “Damning Your Mind”, Alex Graff said, “This song aligns with the theme of chakra rock and getting back into what is more existentially truthful to you. Stop damning the flow of life within your stream of time. It’s all about getting back to what makes us most human, which isn’t our body or mind. Those are tools or vessels for this existence. It’s about something much deeper than that, [and] that’s what the song is about. That’s why it’s a good one to start out with, because it kind of centers the

TAINTED HEARTS

band and the audience.”

Friends since the age of twelve, Alex and Shawn have been making music since sophomore year of high school. Originally, Alex was on bass and Shawn was on drums. When Shawn moved in with Ryan, the two began jamming. Alex joined on vocals, and now the product is gracing Denver and the local Greeley scene with its philosophical/musical outlook on life and social revolution. Centered on the commonality of the human condition, other songs like “Revolution Tonight” offer up a hard-rock anthem for a nonviolent approach to peace. Shawn said, “We channeled more of a ‘50s-era in ‘Revolution Tonight’.

There is a very Chuck Berry kind of bounce in the drums. We have a few other songs based on that rhythm, but this is definitely our

favorite. It harks back to that era of rock and blues, which we are influenced by.”

The band’s name is metaphorically representative of their struggle and their cause.

Sunflowers follow the sun much like people are drawn to being in the sun. Society often places individuals in symbolic straight jackets. The band blends these two metaphors into psychedelic grunge that spouts one love.

Ryan said, “Our musical chemistry as a group is insane.

Shawn would think of a riff, and it just comes together. We don’t even have to consciously think about it.” This summer, the group will be recording a demo and playing

shows throughout Colorado. Alex said, “I couldn’t be happier to be in a band in Greeley. I feel like this is what Seattle felt like in the late ‘80s. I think that Colorado is the next place that not just music is gonna bloom.”

To find out about upcoming performances and to love on Sunflowers in Straitjackets in general, check out their Facebook page.

BandWagon Magazine Greeley’s live music and entertainment magazine June 2012

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Photo by Tamara Infante Pictured: Occupy Greeley protesting fracking in May.

Occupy Greeley: “We’re Here to Stay” Austin Wulf BandWagon Magazine Lincoln Park may not be an impromptu campsite anymore, but the people of Occupy Greeley are still kicking.

Unlike the encampment in New York City, though, Greeley’s Occupiers abandoned their tents by choice, not by force. The cold winter and a lack of resources were among the reasons behind the decision. But while the literal occupation has ended, the protest has not.

“We’re not going away,” says Mil Hart, who has been involved with the group since its outset. “This is an idea whose time has come, and we’re in it for the long haul.”

Since shuttering its tent flaps, Occupy Greeley has remained active in town, holding film screenings—showing documentaries like Inside Job, which explains the financial crisis in detail—and protesting a number of causes.

Among those causes is fracking, the latest hot-button issue for Occupiers across the country. Fracking (hydraulic fracturing) is specifically an environmental issue, a controversial method of extracting natural gas, petroleum, and other fuel sources.

It’s an issue that many in Northern Colorado are passionate about, and it ties into the core issue of Occupy. Hart says that fracking “is a symptom of the larger problem of greed.”

Occupy Greeley is indeed not going anywhere anytime soon, as Hart says. They will be involved in Greeley’s Fourth of July parade,

putting on a skit about the greed of the financial sector.

The group also plans to have “pop-up protesters” following Senator Cory Gardner on the parade route. “No matter where [Gardner] looks, he’ll see a sign with our message on it,” Hart says. Occupy Fort Collins has also confirmed they will be involved in what the group is calling the People’s Parade on July 4th.

In addition to their presence in the parade, Occupy Greeley will have a booth on the lawn of the Unitarian Universalist Church at 921 15th St. The booth will be up for the duration of the parade and for some time after, as long as people are in the area.

Volunteers from the group will be handing out literature and answering questions about Occupy and issues like fracking and the economic collapse.

As the summer continues, Occupy Greeley will host a film series at the Lincoln Park Library, co-sponsored by the local branch of the Women’s International League for Peace and Freedom. The screenings will occur every second Tuesday, beginning in June, at 11:45 a.m. Politicalthemed documentaries with a focus on Occupy’s messages will be shown. In addition, a discussion group will meet at the same time and place on alternate Tuesdays. That group will speak about the recently-released Dialogue and Initiative 2012: Special Issue on Occupy, discussing a few chapters at each meeting.

Tamara Infante, who, like Hart, has been working with Occupy Greeley since its

start, says there are no current plans to reoccupy Lincoln Park or anywhere else in town. “Part of what we’ve done is to change what the concept of Occupy looks like,” Infante says. “We’ll have events at the park where we will occupy for short periods,

but we’re trying to mobilize where public will be—just not on a ‘round-the-clock basis.”

That said, the group has no plans to discontinue their action anytime soon. Since the original occupation in Zuccotti Park in New York

City, Occupy Wall Street has evolved from an event to a full-blown, nationwide social movement. “We’re not gonna stop this crap this year or this decade,” says Hart. “This is an ongoing effort—probably lifetime, at least for me.”

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BandWagon Magazine Greeley’s live music and entertainment magazine June 2012

Untitled, 1999 A Creative Story By: Jon Ward The first time it happened, I was seven, on the train heading to school.

My father worked in the industrial district and couldn’t take me that early in the morning, and my mother taught music lessons to one child who had after-school engagements so he came before he went to school. My mother, calm and eternally serene, walked me to the subway station near my house and waited for the boy and his father. These were days that I loathed at the time, but now look back at with a certain fondness. Most of the days have formed a periodic blur, but this day was a special one.

I remember staring at the man, pondering what his life was like.

Thinking about where he was coming from, where he was going, or, better yet, who he was going to see and what kind of life he had. Had he any friends? Family? He was middle-aged and darker than the average person in my city, maybe Turkish, definite auslander, he had thick, stumpish stubble that looked like it snagged and caught the blades when he shaved, not like the soft light-colored facial hair that my father and my friends’ fathers whisked away from their faces with their electric shavers every morning. He must have have felt me looking at him, as he would glance at me to see if I was still looking and then look away. It’s a peculiar thing, really, when somebody is staring at you and you feel strange just for looking back at the intruder, even as you feel him applying a fresh coat of meddle and gaze to the side of your innocent face, a goddamn veritable enigma with all the makings attached.

I’ve been kickin’ now for fortysomethin’-odd years, seen a guy thrown out of a moving vehicle, had a gun pulled on me in anger two times, watched a van take down a drive-thru menu and I can tell you those are the worst kind of people. The other day, for instance, I was driving “our” daughter to the store when I was cutoff by one of these kinds of people and was forced to accelerate to forty mph and slam into the back of this person’s car. I say “our” to implore to you that I’m still happily married, and that nonetheless, our daughter (our as in mostly mine), has graduated, with honors, from our local state university. I won’t say which one, out of respect for the institution, but I will say that with all the young pride that a strapping, handsome father might pronounce amidst his “able” young progeny after five long years of higher education that I finally feel vindicated and that one arm and one leg are starting to grow back. I must confess, I think it may have just been my fate that bestows me with such good fortune to have such great children and a wife so fit, a veritable enigma! A fate me and the auslander did never share as he would be dying soon. “What if this man just died right now?” A reasonable question, I think.

Before you cast your more-thanwonderful aspersions on me, I must tell you what I mean is that I think I’m secure in positing what most of us have... In our more thoughtful moments. The man was dressed nicely; he had a grey suit on and a pink collared shirt underneath a black peacoat. He looked like he may

have had money, but more likely worked in the service of people with money. This did not matter to me at the time; I was too busy imagining his head exploding. First there would be the burst of blood-red head guts all over the window and the lady’s fur coat next to him, then the look on her face when she first noticed the headless passenger, then the scream, lots of screaming. Just then, he began to cough. It was strange coughing, though, that sounded like he may have been laughing. A lady next to him even smiled politely, mistaking his coughing at first for a chuckle.

His chuckling soon turned to gasping and before long he was on his knees, clutching his heart and spitting up snot. He fell over with his head on the floor and out of his pocket a small key lined with gold fell. One woman put her hand on his back, looked up at another passenger and said, “He’s dead,” with a tone that seemed somewhere between statement and question. The other passenger’s eyes got large and he turned to the person in back for approval or distance or closure or something. The key was affixed to a small Faberge egg, so fragile and ornate! I do admit my first thought was shock, but then the incredible insight of my redemption, he was never poor! And I was not a bad person, just a curious one. The train stopped, I capitalized on their confusion, grabbed the key and ran off the train. One person yelled “Hey!” and turned to me but his attention went quickly back to the fallen man, the key’s importance dimming in comparison to him.

The second time was last week somewhere in between the seatbelt sign and the final approach to Dulles.

I was contemplating at the time if I was too much of an asshole to the cabbie: I told the driver that “I knew the way” and that I also would not “be paying for any streets that weren’t along it,” and even if your company was known to me to be of a very discernible quality and you were to have called me an “asshole” for the act I would still tell you, even now, I felt justified about it, in that I’ve heard that sometimes on some random nights, to some random people in this very city, unbeknownst to them, ill-natured scheming cab drivers will take a cunningly “dubious” route on purpose to dupe good citizens like you and I out of their hard earned cash! I’ll even tell you that I’ve heard of that happening to a guy on more than one occasion! I always say that “the proof is in the pudding” and with that logic in mind you can see how I could have been caught up in the damaging mindset, sitting there thinking about how this cab driver is a “fucking douche bag” and that if this smoky motherfucker dies on us I’m going to have to jump over the fucking seat and handle this shit. You know, same as if the airplane pilot has a heart attack and your the only doctor on board, it doesn’t matter if it’s a just a Ph.D, just jump in the hot seat and pray motherfucker, pray, who knows, maybe you might come out of this shit a hero and alive. Of the details I do not remember much, but let me tell you at the end of it all there may or may not have been a moment where I was brandishing a firearm.

Things got crazy, real crazy, forty stories of sheer adventure, packed on an airplane moving just under 700

mph and not a not a single doubter in the house, I still always say that it was the positivity of those good folks on board that helped keep the goal in mind for me, and god bless airport security who kindly tried escorting me off the premises, I would have done the same thing in their situation, and maybe have even slipped a few kicks in to show them I dominate and “fucking rule” in regards to standards of physical wit.

God bless them though, and if it weren’t for this next moment this story would have nothing to do the aforementioned shit at all, but amidst the ruckus and confusion surrounding that single aircraft, the airport security guy must have mistaken me for some rowdy villain and not the obvious hero I was came running towards me at full sprint screaming “citizen, please stop!” as he attempted to tackle me to the ground.

The effect was a dance between us, my left arm pressed against his chest, left hand awkwardly next to his heart, his left arm saddled around my waist, right hand pressed against my forehead, pressing down with a rather unremarkable, somewhat brute, but still amateurish force, sending my neck downward into my shoulder.

The resulting motion jerked my head back and my eyes were seen to have rose wide in the air, I was told I made a choking sound that sounded as if I was stuttering to throw up. A strange onomatopoeic moment where I embodied the sounds coming out of my mouth with clumsy grace. As we spun in circles, I felt the odd effect that time was slowing and that a million hands were reaching up, guiding me into heavenly slumber, again I later learned that people passing by made individual judgement calls to side with him and began punching, kicking and hitting me with their fists and luggage. Before, I was thinking that I would casually and defiantly wrap my leg around his to drop him, then make my escape to an unoccupied gate, where I would calmly double back, this time with sunglasses on, and make my way to the terminal and into the loving arms of a cabbie who would unknowingly be my getaway driver, the perfect accessory as long as I had the fare. But in dealing with my haste and physical expression, the security guard suddenly keeled over, seized, and died. Little did I know at the time that he was an unrepentant type-2 diabetic who would suffer a massive heart attack as a result of his malevolence, and physically unequipped to suffer the likes of me, a big heaving man. It’s crossed my mind a few times that maybe it doesn’t count and that he was just waiting for the right degree of physical stress to just up and die or that maybe it was the gun, his gun, that I may or may not have been pointing at him that finally did it. I’m not a doctor, emergency personnel, or a coroner and I don’t claim to be, but I can’t help thinking that it was my mind that did it, after all, even you would think the same after a second time.

With these certain facts in mind, I set out on an irrehensible journey, I thought it certain that I have the power of life and death, the same power the very grim reaper was charged with. But I could not live with this. I have stolen a wallet in Mexico, but I couldn’t not be the bringer of death, maker of worlds. A

very dubious situation, to be certain you have power against such an indisputable force, it was suddenly as if I was the only person who could defy gravity, a veritable enigma.

Terrorizing when you feel as if you could float into the utter expanse of space and time, doomed to float in vacuum indeterminately. What will become of me if I do not meet my maker, as I have never encountered my ender, must every thing have an end when nothing can own its end?

The plague grew on me for years, as I became older more and more people died. It started with car accidents, then suicides, then overdoses, then cancer, then this and then that, I couldn’t be sure, I wished no one close to me to die but when they did I never took it as a surprise. Only one way to be sure, a reasonable exposition, I would try it on the boy.

The boy might have been the best thing about me, half me, half her, I knew I could never wish him harm. The one person who never wronged me, who was me. I would sound unrepentant now if I said I had no reservations about it but doubt is a cancer that grows in the mind and I had to know. If he died then I’d be sure, but no one else would know. Yes, I’d have my terrible secret, but it’d be my terrible secret. No over zealous gas station attendant, bullish thug or intrusive cop would ever be safe again to harass me with their maniacal machinations. The entire plight on the world of bad people would be eliminated with the new found zeal of justice. I could systematically cleanse the world of all who I deemed wrong, at least the people in my life. Maybe this would even blossom into political or financial pursuits. Promotion? Ha! I’ll just kill off all my bosses until I’m the last one left! And my wife? Well she just signed a virtual pre-nup and doesn’t even know it. Everything’s coming out Teddy. But my son, how could I live with myself if someone were to find out that I could live with myself after something like this? I grappled with these truths for the better half of a minute. How can I scoff at an opportunity like this, fate has provided me with its apt instrument and here I sit considering that maybe I’ll blow it off for simple familial obligations, how tribal. I will, I must.

I would do it tomorrow at dinner, I would sit and think of it happening, no more than a worried mother with an active imagination, and if fate willed, we would know.

I did not do much that day, I skipped breakfast and ate a light lunch so I would appear hungrier than usual, and therefore much too busy to manifest such an act, why after all, that would just be crazy. I sat by myself in the study for the entire afternoon, mostly I sat clutching the key and the egg, daydreaming about arguments I might find myself engaged in, wittingly closing all of my opponents channels of argument until they are forced to frustratingly concede to me. This grew into greater daydreams and more exotic situations, so around 8 pm, soon after I was forced to guarantee my freedom, beating all odds to represent myself after being wrongly accused at trial, I was given reprieve and allowed to see my family again and they came home from their usual lives. Sometimes I give my daydreams real world transitions so they resolve right and

Jon Ward is a graduate from the University of Northern Colorado with a degree in political science.

make sense. My wife came in to tell me that she bought dinner tonight and that it was ready. This threw me off a little as I thought there’d be some time before dinner for me to spend with my son. Blankly, I put the key in pocket, not back in the desk drawer and rose to go to the dining room.

The roast was dry, but the juice at the bottom of the tray made for a pretty good gravy. I took a biscuit too, wouldn’t want to miss this without a biscuit. I sat down in my usual spot, across from me was the seat where he would be sitting after he was done getting his food. Behind that spot was a window, there were a few drops on the window, I did not yet know if it was raining or just some water from a sprinkler or a neighborhood kid. This would not be unusual because in our neighborhood you can hear kids playing well into the evening hours. He interrupted my thought by sitting down, looking down at his plate pondering what he would try to eat and what he would try to rearrange to make it look liked he ate more, like we weren’t going to be sitting across from him the whole time. I had thought a little bit about which death I would imagine, I felt too bad about a painful death, instead first deciding that he would contract a rare disease but bravely fight on until he proudly and dutifully accepted his fate, leaving a legacy of hope and profound perspectives on our own demise. After all, if such a young kid could be so brave, couldn’t we all? Would they have to pay me for the movie rights? This took too long, we were already halfway through dinner and his hair hadn’t even started falling out from the treatment yet. There I sat, sitting in my usual seat staring blankly at my son gnawing on a piece of roast futility imagining his demise. Then to my amazement, can it be? A cough, followed by a lunge, followed by yet another cough! He sat up and made a motion for his throat.

Yes, a motion for his throat! Thank goodness we never went to the CPR/ First Aid class at the rec center like my wife had told us to do, then I wouldn’t been able to say that I knew what do and that what I thought the Heimlich was just in the movies for moments of physical comedy when you just have to see someone humped. My wife, acting with the immediate motherly instinct of a lioness, asked “Are you OK?” She did not yet have time to gauge the situation properly and hadn’t even made a move to get out of her seat, anybody with kids cans tell you this is a fairly frequent happening. By now the rain was coming down in torrents and before I could think again or my wife could move, a half-second passed and his body began to relax, he managed the food down and now exhibited a free flow of air. I would have to think about a more direct mode. I sat there for ten minutes thinking about tripping him, the way I had thought about tripping the poor man in the airport. No result, I thought once he may have been going to scratch his leg but he turned out to just be hiding food. I yelled at him and told him “not to do that” then went back to thinking about his head exploding. As for the head explosion? Same thing, no luck and after twenty more harrowing minutes, I simply could not continue, I had eaten too much meat and my stomach hurt. It was at this moment that I realized the essential gem of parenting, if the kid is going to die, he’s got to do it himself.

BandWagon Magazine Greeley’s live music and entertainment magazine June 2012

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