Local artists took full advantage of September, releasing a boatload of new music that gave us lots of fresh tuneage to share. So without further ado, here are the best new releases by Colorado musicians this month:
Lord Velvet
Astral Lady
Lord Velvet introduced itself to Denver’s stoner-rock scene on September 1 with its debut EP,
Astral Lady. While Taylor Webb (vocals), Scoot Scott (guitar), Matt Funk (bass) and Mike Barnes (drums) only started jamming together a year ago, the group’s sound is rooted in the 1970s, when bands such as Deep Purple and Mountain were doling out hard rock and psychedelia. The five songs on
Astral Lady are crushing bursts of cosmic fuzz in the same vein, but with more contemporary, polished production. “Night Terrors” and “From the Deep” both clock in at just over six minutes and showcase Lord Velvet’s low-and-slow doom side, while “Black Beam of Gemini” and “Snakebite Fever” gallop along with punchier precision.
Public Opinion and
Rex Tycoon
“Bug”
The Denver punk-rockers in Public Opinion first made a splash with their 2022 EP,
Modern Convenience, via hometown label Convulse Records. With a sound that’s equal parts garage rock, ’90s alt-rock and Brit pop, the group is joining the modern punk resurgence. After touring with Pittsburgh pop-grunge group Rex Tycoon last year, Public Opinion teamed up with the band for its new single, “Bug,” which was released on September 5. The song feels fresh but nostalgic, with Public Opinion guitarist/vocalist Kevin Hart’s barking lyrics and mid-tempo indie guitar tone reminiscent of Black Francis and the Pixies.
Wayfarer
“To Enter My House Justified”
Denver’s Wayfarer made a name for itself with its brand of “black metal of the American West,” and the band is back at it, dropping a new single, “To Enter My House Justified,” on September 6. The song follows the July release of “False Constellation” and gives eager listeners a taste of the band’s upcoming album,
American Gothic (out October 27 via Century Media). Similar to the band’s 2020 record,
A Romance With Violence,
American Gothic will chronicle more Old West wickedness, with “To Enter My House Unjustified” following a lonely frontiersman’s journey as he faces the harsh elements of life on the plains and his own mortality.
Relate.
“Linger”
Relate. isn’t like other Denver pop-punk groups. Instead of pulling influence from genre creators such as Blink-182 and Green Day, Relate. is more “post-pop punk,” the band says, and emo. Think back to those Warped Tour lineups of the 2000s, which listed prominent bands of the time, like Saosin, Circa Survive and the Wonder Years, among others, to get a feel for what Relate. is really going for. Or if you can’t remember those hot afternoons before your parents picked you up, just listen to the new single, “Linger” (no, it’s not a cover of the Cranberries), which the band shared on September 14.
Blood Incantation
“Obliquity of the Ecliptic” and “Luminescent Bridge”
At this point, fans should expect the unexpected from Blood Incantation. Yes, the Denver band, which shares members with Wayfarer, makes some of the most brutal death metal you’ll ever hear, but it isn’t afraid to also explore trippy, progressive synthwave soundscapes, as evidenced by 2022 release Timewave Zero. The four-piece shared two new songs — “Obliquity of the Ecliptic” and “Luminescent Bridge” — on September 15 that showcase the duality of the alien-obsessed outfit. “Obliquity of the Ecliptic” is straightforward progressive death metal, complete with harsh vocals and searing guitars, while “Luminescent Bridge” is a spacey instrumental carried by otherworldly synths. The result “plunges listeners into the depths of the abyss and the furthest reaches of space,” Blood Incantation states.
Sun Way Street
Sun Way Street
Singer-songwriter Steven Eli currently splits his time between Switzerland and his native Ireland, while local multi-instrumentalist Leor Manelis lives here, in Lafayette. But ever since the two met through Instagram during the pandemic, they’ve been making music together as Sun Way Street, releasing their debut self-titled EP on September 15. The three new songs — “Clarity,” “Young Fool” and “Forever in Grey” — also spotlight several other Colorado musicians, including Megan Burtt (vocals), Adrienne Short (violin) and Tyler Cuchiara (piano), with whom the duo worked in the studio. Given his background playing with local artists such as Gregory Alan Isakov and Covenhoven, Manelis brings a certain sonic gravity to Eli’s longing lyrics over the EP’s eleven-plus minutes.
Dragondeer
Across the Waves
Denver indie-blues band Dragondeer teamed up with New Mastersounds guitarist and Color Red record label founder Eddie Roberts to produce its new album, Across the Waves, which was released on September 15. With Roberts behind the board and using analog recording techniques, the group tapped into everything from funk to neo-soul and Afrobeat while creating the record. Throughout it, Dragondeer addresses topics such as inclusivity (“The Says Who”) and positive encouragement (“Grow Some Love”) while also nodding to the twentieth-century Futurist movement (“New Dawn Get Down” with Will Trask), when groups of philosophers plotted to burn down museums and the archaic ways of the elders.
Grace DeVine
Taste of Heaven
Denver singer-songwriter Grace DeVine has become local “pop royalty,” says Westword culture editor Emily Ferguson, ever since she began sharing her singles in 2020. DeVine further solidifies that status on her third EP, Taste of Heaven, which was released on September 15. The five new songs clock in at just over thirteen minutes and beautifully display DeVine’s dreamy pop music via tunes such as album opener “Taste of Heaven” and “Just Around the Corner.”
DeVine’s pipes are soothing, but her lyrics are more somber than anything, if you take a moment to listen to them through the upbeat, catchy melodies. The juxtaposition makes Taste of Heaven cathartic in a relatable, you’re-not-alone way.
Ipecac
Ipecac
If you haven’t heard of young Denver rock-and-roll band Ipecac, it’s time to crawl out from the rock you’ve been living under and check out the group’s new four-song EP that dropped on September 23 via local label Sailor Records. After receiving Westword‘s 2022 Readers’ Choice award for Best New Band and treating the audience to a high-energy live set at HQ during this year’s Underground Music Showcase, the members of Ipecac are ready to take the next step in becoming bona fide rock stars. Founding member/guitarist Ariadnee Ziady, vocalist Isabella Osborne, drummer Kanyon Dickerson and bassist Tayte Eubanks share their maturing chops on the new EP with epic songs such as previously released single “Everyone Deserves Love.”
Culture Bloom
“Nightmare”
On September 29, Culture Bloom, the local duo of Jared Bakst and Jared Barnes, released the first single from its upcoming debut EP, “Aren’t You Proud?” (set to be released October 20), accompanied by a “love letter video to Denver and the people that surround the band,” Bakst says. “I wanted to create a video myself to make it as personal as possible. I simply got shots of little moments throughout the recording of this EP and the people who are important to us.” Such a personal touch, paired with a combination of acoustic and heavier indie influences, gives “Nightmare” a sense of “soaring nostalgia,” as the Jareds put it, similar to the art rock of Icelandic act Sigur Rós.
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