Bring on the jams

August packed with music around town

by Stephen Sellers

Greetings, dear readers! Those sweet monsoons have finally arrived, ushering in what promises to be a beautiful month, full of amazing local music. Here’s just a few of the dozens of great shows happening. As always, be sure to check the Telegraph’s calendar to get the full scoop. If you’re new to the area, consider taking a rain jacket with you for any outdoor shows. The rain doesn’t usually last for long, but it sure ain’t fun dancing with soggy socks and a plunging core temperature. Take care of each other out there, and be sure to buy some merch from your favorite artists if you can. Let’s rock.

• Aug. 5 – Rock Fest at Rotary Park: Calling all shredders: Rock Fest is this Saturday at one of Durango’s most intimate outdoor venues, Rotary Park. The distortion-drenched lineup includes Mommy Milkers, I’m Broken (a Pantera tribute band), Morbid Justice, Crimson Kiss, Leviathan Axe, Skinwalker, PFYT, One Bullet Away, Psyality, Anarchy Hammer and Phantom Lord (a Metallica tribute band.) The show runs from 1-5 p.m. Tickets are available at the gate.

• Aug. 8 – Satsang and Graham Good, Animas City Theatre: Satsang is the roots-driven brainchild of band leader Drew McManus, who currently resides in the hills of Montana. If you’re a fan of Sturgill Simpson, Colter Wall or Tyler Childers, then prepare to encounter the same deeply reflective, country-twinged Americana that has become synonymous with those three musicians over the past several years. Graham Good, the messiah of funk-rock-folk, shares the bill, ensuring a not-to-miss, feel-good night of music. The show starts at 8 p.m. and tickets are $23. Find out more at www.animascitytheatre.com

• Aug. 11 – Garrett Young Collective and the Bellamy Brothers, La Plata County Fair: Fresh off their opening duties for the Nitty Gritty Dirt Band in Gunnison last month, La Plata County’s very own Garrett Young Collective dusts off its Stetsons and telecasters to make way for the Grammy-nominated Bellamy Brothers. Garrett Young is a ripper and a phenom, and his band packs an equally prodigious punch. They won’t be playing honkytonks and bars for much longer as they jettison onto the national scene. You might know the Bellamy Brothers from their hit “Let Your Love Flow” way back in 1976. Or, perhaps you’ve heard one of their collaborations with Dolly Parton, George Jones, Alan Jackson, Buck Owens or Flaco Jiminez. We’re in for a night of boot-scootin’ with this one. General admission tickets are $25, reserved bleacher seating tickets are $45, and the Garrett Young Collective starts things off at 6:45 p.m. Find out more at www.laplatacountyfair.com

• Aug. 25-26 – San Juan Brewfest, Buckley Park: You know it, you love it. The San Juan Brewfest is back. Thanks to Eugene Salaz and the Animas City Theatre, there’s another great lineup of music on tap. Cousin Curtiss will be dispensing his blues-infused bluegrass music on Friday. On Saturday, the Crags – Durango’s psych-rock royalty – will be opening the festival with their desert-tinged cactus rock. All roads lead to headliners, The Buzz, kicking things into high gear. The Buzz is a five-piece jam band out of Longmont and should be especially interesting if you’re a fan of bands like Goose, STS9 and the Disco Biscuits. The San Juan Brewfest sells out. It always does. So, if you want a ticket, hop over to www.sanjuanbrewfest.com to find out more.

• Sept. 1 – Desert Child, Desiderata, Animas City Theatre: Last month, Desert Child orchestrated a small festival on the banks of the oxbows north of town. Dubbed “Durango City Limits,” the day included a lineup of four bands: Desert Child, Heavy Diamond Ring, Desiderata and Ora (full disclosure: a band I play bass in). Several hundred people materialized over the course of the afternoon, as well as sprinkles of rain and an honest-to-god double rainbow during the last song of Denver’s Heavy Diamond Ring. This much we now know: if there was ever any doubt, Desert Child knows how to throw one hell of a party. Within seconds of their first notes, hundreds of people were dancing, laughing and enthralled with the moment. It takes a special band to pull that kind of wizardry, and Desert Child is such a band.

Expect Durango’s tightest and kindest band to bring the house down at the Animas City Theatre for this one. Opening the show is a band I’m most excited about in our local scene right now, Desiderata. Their early 2000s indie-pop is both psychedelic and playful, rooted in vocalist Autumn Ford’s impeccable vocal delivery. My jaw was on the floor, and yours will be, too. The show starts at 8 p.m., and tickets are $20. Find out more at www.animascitytheatre.com ■