Denver Music Round-Up #1
Spotlighting the local scene with reviews of new tracks, albums and more.
Well lookie here,
Yet ANOTHER new column is debuting on Loops!
I’ve lived in Denver for over two years now, so I don’t claim to be an “OG” or owner of any definitive knowledge on the music scenes in this large city. But I’ve seen and heard of many names thanks to my fiancée (also a musician), friends who are artists and DJs and some standard journalistic research (i.e. Bandcamp, baby).
So I’d like to share some of what I’ve learned and listened to over the last few weeks in this new column, the Denver Music Round-Up. My hope is to get you in touch with the music coming out of Broncos Country, whether you live here or not.
This round-up will give me a chance to critique and highlight what’s coming out. So, if you’re a Denver artist and want me to potentially review your work, send it over by replying to this e-mail or writing to liveloveloops@gmail.com.
The first edition of this column features five works centered around healing, either for the listener or the artist itself. Dip into in the warm waters:
American Grandma — Rare Knives of Light
A Denver band making bedroom indie cloaked in effects, American Grandma upgrade the sound they’ve explored in earlier tapes. The production is cleaner and brighter, which serves the pristine guitar and synth work spread over Rare Knives of Light (released April 7). However, Jensen Keller’s vocals and lyrics never reach the same depths as the instrumentals and could benefit from being submerged further into the mix. Overall, American Grandma use the somber sounds of shoegaze and post-rock to draw the listener into their world.
Paul DeHaven — Death Beach
DeHaven says Death Beach (released April 14) is dedicated to the people who contributed to his medical expenses after breaking and dislocating his upper arm. (The record, he said, was made using only his right hand.) Based purely on the project’s first track, “Playa de los Muertos,” one could deduce this is his ambient project; shorter cuts like “Morphine” and “Coyote (The Tower)” justify that hypothesis. Yet the songs featuring DeHaven’s vocals stand out as uncomfortable mixes of singer-songwriter, ambient and synth-pop tropes. Closer “Everything Becomes Me,” in particular, is better suited for a slam poetry event than a deep meditation. It’s a scattershot record, but there is beauty to be found within.
Midwife & Vyva Melinkolya — “Miss America”
Midwife, the ambient/lo-fi project of Madeline Johnston, has built a reputation over the years for grainy, melancholy rock songs with deep, exposed wounds. Her album-length collaboration with Vyva Melinkolya, Orbweaving (out May 10), takes her signature slowcore sound and combines it with the latter’s shoegaze tendencies. Recorded at Johnston’s New Mexico studio, “Miss America” is an ode to a life filled with grief, whispers rising above fingerpicked guitar and sweeping notes reminiscent of the desert wind.
Listen on Bandcamp.
Paul Riedl — “Searching for Light”
Paul Riedl says he’s encumbered the world enough with the overwhelming, punishing sound of his main project, the death metal band Blood Incantation. So he made Ocean of Peace, his first album under his own name (out April 28). “Searching for Light” focuses in on the epic drones found in his sprawling mixtape series. Synths rise and fall over a sonic canvas, eventually reaching a slow, blissful release.
Steez Erkle — Slipped Disc Mixtape
Denver’s Steez Erkle says this mixtape, released March 31, is a way to raise funds for medical expenses while recovering from a fractured lumbar spine. Even for an impromptu release, Slipped Disc Mixtape is surprisingly cohesive, Erkle layering synths, samples and drums to create vibrant electronic music. Like with DeHaven and American Grandma, the singing and songwriting can become a distraction, but the album as a whole is breezy and cool for a warm summer day. Special props for a pulsing remix of Charli XCX’s “Claws.”
And there you have it. What did you think of this column? Did you listen to any of the music? Are there other artists you think should be featured on here?
Let me know. Until next time,
Miguel