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Dan England

45 stories

Features100 to 16, Now Down to 4: BandWagon’s Battle Of The Bands Closes in on Title BoutEternal Glory, $5,000 and the cover of BandWagon Magazine are grounds for musical fisticuffs in Colorado.Kevin Johnston · Dec 6, 2022

Bearded man in a tan hat and dark vest rests on a wooden chair with a black kitten against a painted backdrop.

FeaturesLanghorne Slim: A Semblance of StillnessLanghorne Slim’s “Strawberry Mansion” was the result of a burst of creativity that emerged from the pandemic and after winning a battle with clinical anxiety and prescription drug abuse. He’s still happy to talk about that time and his never-ending struggles, and he remains honored to share his experience with mental health organizations. But sometimes he has to remind people that those are things he’s dealt with his whole life. They do not necessarily define him. “I’m also having fun too,” Slim said with a laugh in a phone interview with BandWagon. “It’s not beating me every day. For the first time ever, I was finding some semblance of stillness. I wasn’t running from myself because I wasn’t able to.”Dan England · Nov 3, 2022

Black-and-white portrait of a man with tousled hair, palm-print shirt, and chain necklace, holding a hat by a wall.

FeaturesNothing to Hide Behind: Wheelwright’s Jared Kolesar After The Mill“I think there’s an element of a lonely cowboy out on the trail,” Jared Kolesar of Wheelwright tells BandWagon. “There’s many songs now with a story that is best told while I’m alone with my guitar.” The reworked songs give his Jared & The Mill fans a chance to preview his new sound, one he calls more sonically interesting, with more synth and more effects to his vocals to go with some new hip-hop vibes. He calls the sound Neo-Western and compares it to a mix of 80’s futurism and Americana. Or, in his own words, “like Blade Runner with more cowboy vibes.”Dan England · Oct 10, 2022

A man in a green Greeley Stampede shirt and cap gestures on an empty concrete stage in a grandstand arena.

FeaturesA Century of Country – Greeley Stampede’s New Stage Set for Brad Paisley and MoreThe Greeley Stampede’s new stage was built with Brad Paisley in mind. The last time he played here, in 2007, Paisley had 10 semi-trailers full of equipment, said Justin Watada, executive director of the Stampede. Way back then, three “up and coming” acts performed with Paisley, including a young lady named Taylor Swift. The brand new stage is bigger and much better, with all the fixins you’d expect from a show at Red Rocks, including a platform that will allow the artists to walk 50 feet out into the crowd. And Paisley is back as the Stampede’s biggest act in a lineup that includes Stone Temple Pilots, Jon Pardi, Cole Swindell and Jordan Davis.Dan England · Jun 21, 2022

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FeaturesOGT: To Re-Write a LegacyKodean IX doesn’t know where he would be without music, but he knows it wouldn’t be good.Dan England · Jun 15, 2022

Nine people in jackets and sunglasses pose in a sunlit autumn woodland with fallen leaves, no instruments visible.

FeaturesPolyrhythmics and the Definition of VibeWhen the Polyrhythmics first gathered in a Seattle recording studio a decade ago, they planned to make a vinyl record and then, perhaps, go their separate ways … “When we started, we wanted to perform the music we recorded,” Bloom said, “and now our live set is a living, breathing thing that we do every night. There is this ethos from the fans that they want to see something new, and that feedback has played into what we do live. We are still sort of trying to reach something every night. We are trying to leave room for magic.”Dan England · May 31, 2022

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FeaturesJoshua Ray Walker: King Of The Honky-Tonk MisfitsJoshua Ray Walker’s role model for his hit “Sexy After Dark” was not Tim McGraw, Billy Ray Cyrus or Keith Urban. It was Conway Twitty. Twitty, Walker said in a phone interview with BandWagon, was sort of a goofy guy who managed to sing some of the most romantic songs in country music. It’s not like Twitty belonged on the cast of Hee Haw, but he wasn’t Elvis. One of the intentions of “Sexy After Dark,” Walker said, was to pay a backhanded but lighthearted tribute to all the people like Twitty. “There’s a history of country crooners who aren’t sexy – putting out sexy songs,” Walker said. “‘Slow Hand’ is one of my favorites. Twitty is so goofy-looking, but he sold it. He really sold it.” The other intent, Walker said, was to poke fun at himself. He knows he’s also not Elvis.Dan England · Apr 8, 2022

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FeaturesRight Back Into It: Ben Pu Stays TrueAt the end of most of his gigs, and in conversations with other musicians or friends, Ben Puchalski gets the question: “Dude, why aren’t you bigger?” Puchalski, these days,…Dan England · Mar 2, 2022

A man in sunglasses and a red t-shirt plays an acoustic guitar and harmonica under tall palm trees and a blue sky.

FeaturesStill Thirsty: G. Love & The Juice Stir it UpThe band still carries his name, but G. Love is taking a step back from the spotlight.Dan England · Feb 23, 2022

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FeaturesYou Can’t Bullshit Metal Fans: Soulfly’s Max Cavalera“Little by little, my own tastes came through for Soulfly,” Max Calverra tells BandWagon. “As I get older, you’d think I’d get more mellow. But I like the heavier and heavier stuff. When you get older, you play what you like. You play what you feel.” “Riffs are my church,” he said. “That’s my paradise. I will spend hours riffing on the guitar and just chugging on the guitar. I call it Chug Life. When you finally find a killer riff, man, it’s like you’ve won the lottery.Dan England · Feb 18, 2022

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FeaturesTX2: A Punk with Pull“There was a point where I was trying to end my whole life,” Evan Thomas – aka TX2 – tells BandWagon. “I felt worthless. And I had friends help me out. Once people feel like they’re alone, they need someone to talk to. I feel like that helps save lives.” In addition to putting on cathartic, high energy pop-punk shows, Thomas is the founder of The X Movement, an online safe space for his fans (and anyone struggling) after battling with his own mental health.Dan England · Jan 12, 2022

Five men in caps, jackets, and casual streetwear pose side by side in front of a corrugated metal wall outdoors.

FeaturesPecos & The Rooftops: More Than One Damn SongThe night Pecos & the Rooftops wrote the song that gave them their breakout success, they really weren’t even a working band yet – just a bunch of friends who liked to hang out and jam to cover songs. The quintet’s frontman, Pecos Hurley, had just begun writing songs, and he was playing the chords to one when magic struck: One of the other guys began singing a chorus to it. “Damn, that’s good,” Hurley recalled saying during a phone interview for BandWagon. “Do you care if I try to finish it?” Finish it he did, and the result, “This Damn Song,” was a smash hit.Dan England · Jan 3, 2022

A large folk ensemble performs under green and blue stage lights, with banjo, guitars, upright bass, fiddle, and keys.

CommunityUPLIFT: FoCo – New Generation on the Rise“My thinking was, ‘Yeah, get me off this bus,’” Andy Whilden said. He decided to leave touring as a musician for a job at The Matthews House, a place for underserved youth. Starting the Uplift: FoCo festival two years ago gave Whilden more personal satisfaction than he expected. The benefit festival will feature acts that are acoustically driven. “They can play any genre,” Whilden said of the house band, though the 2021 installment will also deliver something different, and, well, a little less tenured.Dan England · Dec 2, 2021

Photo for “BandWagon Expands: Tony Mason Hops On as Booking Stretches from Colorado Springs to Sheridan, Wyoming”

FeaturesBandWagon Expands: Tony Mason Hops On as Booking Stretches from Colorado Springs to Sheridan, WyomingAfter leaving his job as the lead talent buyer managing Lost Lake, Larimer Lounge and Globe Hall in Denver, Tony Mason saw a new position booking for the famed Gas Monkey in Dallas turn into a depressing slog of cancelling shows remotely from Denver during the pandemic. Now, Mason will put his contacts to use to work for an expanded BandWagon enterprise which will offer a full-on, regional concert promotions and event production entity from Colorado Springs to Casper, Wyoming.Dan England · Nov 30, 2021

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FeaturesTech 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, 2021

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MusicAlbum Review: We Are William – We Are WilliamListening to Fort Collins-based We Are William gives a refreshing perspective on just how difficult it is to play progressive metal, and the band deserves props.Dan England · Sep 7, 2021

Photo for “Album Review: Southern Avenue – Be The Love You Want”

MusicAlbum Review: Southern Avenue – Be The Love You WantAt their best live, Southern Avenue finds enough soul, R&B and pop to please middling blues fans while maintaining enough roots and respect for the genre to satisfy hardcore blues veterans.Dan England · Aug 11, 2021

Portrait of a performer in a red felt cowboy hat and long burgundy fringe face covering, wearing a teal satin shirt.

FeaturesOrville 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, 2021

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CommunityTurning The Dial: Radio’s Stu Haskell Passes OnStu Haskell shot rattlesnakes for fun and shot tequila with co-workers.Dan England · Mar 3, 2021

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FeaturesKolby Cooper’s Best, Worst YearKolby Cooper returned through single-digit temperatures and deep snow to his East Texas home on January 17 to find the hallways full of water.Dan England · Mar 2, 2021