Features

Interviews and profiles from the Northern Colorado and Wyoming scene.

583 stories · Page 9 of 30

FeaturesWreckno: B-Queen Drops it Like a BossAn unlikely icon has burst onto the EDM scene. Brandon Wisniski, known eponymously as Wreckno, creates earth-shaking bass drops, raps about pulling up on your dad and refers to himself as a “FULL TIME BUSSY BOPPER” on Twitter. He may be the biggest, loudest, gayest producer the bass scene has ever seen, and he’s just getting started. Wisniski’s music melds together the aggression of old-school gangster rap with the manic energy of bass music and the glamour of a drag show. It’s a perfect fit, but it has never really been done before.Gabe Allen · Oct 14, 2021FeaturesTech N9ne: New Torment in a Faster WorldEven when he’s in bed, trying to calm his crazy mind so he can sleep, Tech N9ne keeps his phone within reach.Dan England · Oct 4, 2021FeaturesAlways Moving: Graham Good & The Painters Bring the Optimism“Keep believing in yourself. Keep believing in your dreams and the value you bring to the world,” Graham Good tells BandWagon.Laura Giagos · Sep 16, 2021FeaturesBirth of The Band: Delvon Lamarr Steps Into the Spotlight with DLO3.“When you believe in something, you don’t have to sell it,” Delvon Lamarr tells BandWagon. The Delvon Lamarr Organ Trio were playing festivals before they had recordings and the way Lamarr shreds across the keys and seamlessly grooves the organ pedals with his feet, you’d think he had been doing this his whole life. But he didn’t even touch an organ until his early 20s. And with guitarist Jimmy James and drummer Dan Weiss on board, Lamarr says “the combination felt unique and connected. No one person makes the band, but what puts it in perspective is all of us.”Valerie Vampola · Sep 15, 2021FeaturesIf You Build It: That 1 Guy on Making an Instrument and Setting Songs FreeMike Silverman – AKA That 1 Guy – knew what it would take to make it. Only his band wasn’t willing to live that hard life. So he did it himself. “I was working so hard to fill this cosmic space,” Silverman said of the bass, “and I was playing on this thing that wasn’t meant to do that.” So he built an instrument that would help him create a big sound. “It was very hard,” he said. “Some instrument builders study their whole lives to do this.”Dan England · Sep 3, 2021FeaturesThe Infamous LP hits Edge Fest with Irreverent, Vulnerable Pop“I don’t think they could deal with what I looked like and what I sounded like,” LP tells BandWagon. “Jay-Z was there and L.A. Reid and everybody. They made me perform three or four songs in completely disparate directions. I was one of the artists dropped at the end of the session.” Fourteen years later, LP is at the height of her career as an international pop star. She has billions of streams to her name and devout fans from Italy to Poland, Mexico and all over the world. “It went from ‘who do you think you are?’ to ‘who are you?’,” she said. On August 28, LP brings her irreverent, vulnerable, one-of-a-kind pop to Edge Fest; a free show in Cheyenne’s West Edge District with special guest Tai Verdes.Gabe Allen · Aug 13, 2021FeaturesRoll Over Reverend: Reverend Peyton’s Big Damn Band clings to nostalgia for Hard TimesThe Reverend Peyton always had an appetite for nostalgia – everything from the traditional country blues that influenced his guitar picking, to the vintage 1950’s outfits he and his wife Breezy wear on stage.Valerie Vampola · Aug 12, 2021CommunityBuckle Up: FoCoMX Drive and Jive Continues Despite BoHo NoGoTaking place on Sundays this month at the historic Holiday Twin Drive-In, FoCoMX: Drive and Jive continued its live offerings last month with further programming into August and beyond. Reimagining the series to feature a mix of established veteran Colorado acts as well as “discovery” artists from the region, Drive and Jive aims to build engaged audiences and more. In light of yesterday’s news that the Bohemian Foundation’s recently announced Bohemian Light Music Festival is now in fact cancelled due to COVID precautions, the Drive and Jive series offers a live music format which has proved to function well under pandemic restrictions.Kevin Johnston · Aug 7, 2021CommunityBohemian Light Brings Heavy Hitters Back to Famed Fort Collins FestivalThe Bohemian Foundation will put on a music festival this summer in downtown Fort Collins, and though the headliners are big names, fans of Bohemian Nights at NewWestFest should temper their expectations somewhat. Dubbed the Bohemian Light Music Festival, free, live concerts will commence two nights instead of three, featuring psychedelic soul band Black Pumas and singer-songwriter Randy Newman, plus Shovels & Rope and dozens of Colorado’s top bands.Dan England · Aug 3, 2021FeaturesOrville Peck: Home On The Fringe“I don’t get blowback from traditional country fans,” Orville Peck said in an interview with BandWagon. “There’s always been something new introduced to that genre, whether it’s an instrument or Willie singing about weed or it’s me singing about men and wearing a mask. Everyone freaks out and says it’s not country, and then slowly it becomes part of it. I don’t mind that blowback. That means I’m doing it right. I take it as a challenge.”Dan England · Jul 19, 2021FeaturesYawper Goes West: Nate Cook Defies Death; Cycles Nation-Wide for Musicians’ Sweet Relief“I’m terrified. The scope of this is insane and it’s going to be heavily publicized,” The Yawpers’ front man Nate Cook tells BandWagon. The last time he attempted a feat a quarter as intense, he stated: “I was absolutely certain I was going to die.” This summer, Cook’s attempts a nation-wide, musicians charity bike ride stretching from Greeley Square in NYC, through Death Valley in August, to LA in September with live gigs along the way. With characteristic dark wit, he quips: “I’m concerned about failing, although, I feel like if I get hit by a car or something it will drive donations even more.”Gabe Allen · Jul 2, 2021CommunityMake More Everything: FoCo Film and Music Collide and Connect“A lot of people that are emotionally driven tend to gravitate towards the arts,” musician Maxwell Tretter tells BandWagon. “But, then they also hit this pivotal moment between the path of isolation or the path of connection. I’m sick of hearing about the tragic origin story. I want to hear about the well connected, like, ‘life went great for me and I made amazing shit’ story.” And thus sparked Make More Everything, a “game of telephone between writers, musicians and visual artists.” Tretter collaborated with film-slam organizer Jesse Nyander, culminating in a bonanza, multi-media event Friday, July 2nd at The Lyric in Fort Collins.Gabe Allen · Jun 30, 2021FeaturesIan Munsick Finds His Own LaneWhen he’s reminded that he will open for Dwight Yoakam, who was country before country was hip the way it is now, Ian Munsick’s reflexive response is exactly what you’d expect…Dan England · Jun 15, 2021FeaturesFlobots: Our Patriotism Is Future-FacingAs footage of the capitol riots circulated online, James Laurie, aka Jonny 5, watched with a unique kind of discomfort.Gabe Allen · Jun 7, 2021CommunityFor Life: Emily Nelson on The DrumsEmily Nelson had a feeling the universe had something in mind for her. “The drums were just a fun way to get healthy again,” she said, “and a year later, Erica was there.” Erica, Brown, the Denver blues diva and Greeley favorite, brought Nelson in to her all-woman band the Cast Iron Queens after several life-changing events gave Nelson the strength not to be paralyzed by perfectionism.Dan England · Jun 3, 2021FeaturesHome Team For The Win: The Burroughs’ “Zero Sum Game”After a year, The Burroughs have re-emerged with a new video and single, “Zero Sum Game,” a first time songwriting collaboration between drummer Mary Claxton and frontman Johnny Burroughs.Valerie Vampola · May 7, 2021FeaturesPump Up The Jam: Festivals Get the OK in Vaccinated NoCo – We Break It DownJustin Watada sighed through a tired laugh. “I’ve had better years,” he said. Watada’s run 17 Greeley Stampedes and this year’s been the toughest. Yes, this year, even with the good news that there will actually be a 2021 Stampede. “We are on version 10 of our budget this year,” Watada said. “We are 50-some days away, and there’s still so much unknown.” Still, even more big events look promising, The Greeley Blues Jam, May Play, Friday Fest, The Greeley Arts Picnic and more promise to happen, but what they’ll look and sound like remains to be seen. If last year was a bummer, this year is more like chaos. Let’s Dig In.Dan England · May 3, 2021CommunityJust Wanna Have Funds: Did the Colorado Arts Relief Grant Support the Organizations it Intended?Over 63 days, Colorado Creative Industries (CCI), created a set of criteria, launched an application, administered the selection process and allocated just under $6 million to organizations and businesses state-wide including music venues. “We were given the charge to distribute the funding as quickly as possible,” a CCI spokesperson told BandWagon. This hasty allocation of public funds was met with cynical speculation from independent venue owners who were not awarded money. Until now, the controversy over the grant has remained purely speculative. No one has pointed to specific evidence of nepotism or neglect on CCI’s part. But, thanks to the Colorado Open Records Act, BandWagon was able to obtain a copy of the scoring rubric used to evaluate grant applicants.Gabe Allen · Apr 5, 2021FeaturesTom Amend: Ditching the Band Scene for an Improvised Life~ It Don’t Mean a Thing if it Ain’t Got That Swing ~Valerie Vampola · Apr 3, 2021FeaturesInto The Great Wide Open: NoCo & WY Venues Hopeful for a Full-Capacity FallPresident Joe Biden believes we’ll have smaller gatherings with family and close friends by the Fourth of July.Dan England · Mar 31, 2021