A New Path Forward
A New Path Forward for the Music Industry

An Empty Red Rock Amphitheater
Unique Times - Early 2020
Festivals all over the world are being canceled, postponed, or reimagined due to the Covid-19 outbreak. Since the dawn of the internet, there have never been such far-ranging closures, travel restrictions, gathering prohibitions, government-mandated lockdowns, and stay at home orders. Seemingly overnight, the world has changed. The world has adapted. Many people are 'working from home' as a result.
Two of the most startling visual representations of the drastic change experienced across the world include:
- The Decrease of Pollution in China as Seen from Space
- The Decrease in Percentage of People Traveling Within Cities Across the Globe
The drastic changes in society have caused many artists to rethink their approach, dust off their online marketing skills, and rekindle those email lists. Gone are the golden days of the recording industry when artists could make money from physical sales of CDs, Tapes, and Records. Are the golden days of touring gone too? Many artists have turned online for answers.
New Opportunities
It seems as though this is just the beginning. The door has been opened for a while but people are catching on to the possibilities afforded by high-speed internet and the creations of talented computer software engineers who make the whole process happen seamlessly. While earning money online is not novel, it is becoming more widespread and mainstream. Festivals are popping up online. Artists are streaming from their homes, and people are finally tuning in to be apart of the live events happening left and right. Bands are playing to in-person crowds of zero while streaming their sets to thousands. Large organizations are amplifying the movement even further and some are even raising money for charities on top of that.
A New Frontiers - Online Festivals
Let's take a deep dive into a recent online festival. Beatport hosted an online festival, ReConnect.
The festival featured 33 hours of uninterrupted music, featured artists from around the world streaming from their homes, and raised over $180,000 in the process. Get this, the cost of a ticket was $0!
Not even Live Nation's greedy little hands could tack on a $10+ digital 'convenience' charge. According to Beatport's' website, all of the money raised was donated to the WHO’s COVID-19 Solidarity Response Fund as well as the AFEM (Association for Electronic Music) Members’ COVID-19 Hardship Fund. Although, on a different page there is the "Bridges for Music" organization that is cited as a recipient of donations. Regardless, the money was definitely donated to several charitable organizations.
How did they do it you might ask? They corraled a top-notch list of acts and leveraged the artist's networks to promote the event. Sure Beatport has its own reach but by collaborating with artists, who promoted the event and their set times, amplified the awareness for the event and leveraged geographically diverse 'influencers'. The event was an Electronic Music Event and According to Alive 365,
ReConnect reached over 8.5 million people!
Hey Boomers, only 400,000 people attended Woodstock, for reference. That is over 21x the size of Woodstock! The nature of the event is completely different than traditional concerts with artists live-streaming their sets from their homes. It was an intimate party. Families, friends and strangers alike tuned in on their preferred platform. Twitch, a gamer-centric live-streaming company helped provide the servers and tech so that millions could take part in the event. People tuned in on YouTube as well. All the while, live chats and donations streamed in. It is an incredible feat for technology and artists alike that people were able to come together on short notice and "ReConnect" the world through music. It is perhaps the largest music festival ever to have occurred. A list of the largest concerts top out at 3.5 million people and the largest festival tops out at 3.1 Million attendees.
The Initial LineUp from ReConnect featured electronic musicians and DJs from around the world and included: A-Trak, Agoria, ANNA, Axel Boman, BLOND:ISH, Bonobo (DJ set), Carl Cox, Chris Liebing, Destructo, Duke Dumont, Eats Everything, GRiZ, La Fleur, Nastia, Nicole Moudaber, Nina Kraviz, Nora En Pure, RÜFÜS DU SOL (DJ set), Sébastien Léger, Themba, Todd Terry, TOKiMONSTA, UMEK, Wax Motif, Waze & Odyssey, Gorgon City
** More artists played. The initial 24-hour lineup above.
What does the future hold?
So back to the questions... 1. Is this the start of a major shift in the music industry? 2. Will live-streaming events continue to reshape the music scene? 3. How long before VR (Virtual Reality) / AR (Augmented Reality) live-streamed events become commonplace? 4. Will music and musicians benefit from such shifts in 'attendance'? 5. Will new forms of art emerge from the remote presence? 6. Can I still dance with people at a show? 7. Will Music Creation Change? 8. Will Music Die?
I will attempt to answer the following questions and provide my predictions for the future. I know the only thing I know about the future is that I don't know it... Yet. I will take the questions in stride and embrace the uncertainty. My predictions to the above questions are addressed in order.
1. I believe this is the start of a new shift in the music industry. No longer are we going to movie theaters to enjoy the entertainment but we now stream it from our phones, TVs, and tablets. Concerts, especially the largest artists and acts, will have a majority attendance from a remote location. Currently, most artists have an 'in-person' audience of 0, so you could argue that it has already happened. However, I would like to believe that live in-person events will come back as strong as they were in 2019. Another major shift in the music experience is already underway, moving from in-person to a remote live experience.
2. Live-Streaming Events will continue and will complement the live in-person experience for years to come. By the year 2030 there will begin to be a noticeable absence of in-person attendees at events. To compensate for this, events will begin offering 'digital perks' at live in-person events to slow the shift. This could mean AR (Augmented Reality) art installments at live events only available for in-person attendees. In short, there will be in-person perks offered only to those who attend physically, in an attempt to motivate people to get up off their couch and dance.
3. This answer hinges on the word "commonplace". I must start by referencing a great quote. "The future is already here, it is just not evenly distributed"- William Gibson. This is a question of human behavior not a question of technology. According to recent stats (from early 2020) the world has a human population of 7.8 Billion people and 3.8 Billion people are not yet 'online'. So is the internet commonplace now? Some might argue yes. So perhaps commonplace, for the purpose of this article, represents a ~50% market share. To get back to the question, it is already possible to have a VR conference. Here is an article about a virtual reality conference that the writer attended in 2018. So in short, yes. VR and AR music events are coming. It is just a matter of time before the equipment evolves and the price point is lowered so that many people can enjoy and attend the digital experience. Live stream events in the regular 'flat' format will take over first before VR / AR live events. When the technology finally arrives and is standardized with common formats, like mp4 videos, and can be played on a myriad of devices (Magic Leap, Google Cardboard, Oculus VR, Apple VR, Android VR, etc) live-streaming on a 2D 'flat' screen will be old fashioned, like watching a movie on a Black & White TV. VR has been like a mirage, with interest peaking in 2016 (according to Google Trends as of the writing of this article). My estimated time frame for a majority of content creators to start making the switch from 'flat' videos to 'VR' content is 2030. I predict that a key technology will be the 'flattening' of the content from 'VR' to the current standard formats so the older executives can justify the switch because the content will be 'backward compatible' to run on legacy technology like your brand new smart TV.
4. I certainly hope that musicians benefit from the evolving technology but expect the future to be similar to the past. When the record labels suffered, from the transition from physical to digital sales, so did musicians. I think that derivative works will be sorted out using technology and therefore musicians will earn more money from future recreations and remixes of their work. I suspect that the future transition will be another difficult transition for many artists but ultimately, I believe that artists will end up leveraging their global audience and benefit from doing so.
5. I believe that artists will work together to create immersive experiences. Android Jones, a renowned digital artist has collaborated with top tier electronic musicians, to create 3D visual experiences accompanied by octatonic sound. One of his signature pieces is called Samsakra. I suspect that in the future visual artists will become as important as the audio arts. Creating a unification of experience will be the result. Humans are visual creatures and visuals will become more intertwined with music as 3d spaces are created and enjoyed. To take this one step further, there should be a term invented to represent a group of cross-disciplinary artists who perform together. I imagine a DJ and a visual artist will create works together with one working with pressure waves and the other working with light waves in a harmonic duo. There is no need to limit to two people and groups of the visual form are just as likely to form. These artists could sell tickets to their virtual experiences so, in theory, they are opening up their presentation to the minds and homes of anyone in the world.
6. As clothes become smart, filled with sensors and our digital worlds begin to merge through VR and AR, I do think that you could dance 'with' someone from the other side of the globe. 5G is purported to bring latency down to under 12 milliseconds. Some even speculate that that number could be as low as 1 millisecond. With a virtual avatar in a VR / AR environment, is seems feasible as though you could truly dance together without noticing a time delay between your movements. One critical difference is, you won't "step on anyone toes" or bump into someone, for in the virtual space mass does not actually collide. However, you may get a haptic response, like a rumble pack on Nintendo 64.
7. Music is already created, recorded and modified digitally. While analog techniques are likely to be used for an effect, a majority of music is already digitally altered. This trend will continue and I predict many new digital instruments will be created. One innovative example created by a small team here in Boulder, Colorado is Specdrums, which enables you to drum on different colors and create different audio frequencies based on your digital program. Musicians and DAWs (digital audio workstations) will begin to support and create quadraphonic and octatonic sound. What is 16 called? How many angles can sound come from and still be distinct? The bitrates of audio files will likely increase but sample rates will not likely increase much (as the Nyquist sampling rate and Nyquist Frequency dictate) as a higher sample rate is only applicable to frequencies beyond human hearing.
8. No.
It would surprise me if virtual events leveraging VR and AR do not start popping up this decade. With 5G just around the corner, faster connectivity speeds are here to stay. New Software Languages and Platforms will emerge as tools for artists and businesses to leverage. When Apple's rumored AR / VR Glasses come out and Googles "Glass" project comes out of hibernation, more devices will hit the market incentivizing business, developers, and content creators to leverage the platform. Consider the fact that a mobile app was not created until the iPhone. The AR/VR devices are in their infancy (think Motorola's Razor, cool at the time but not that functional compared to modern smartphones) and many different twists and turns are coming. Eventually, when things get standardized, I suspect entertainment and music to be one of the first broadly utilized applications for these new platforms.
Stay Tuned ~
Back to the music!
Some of my favorite sets from ReConnect included:
Griz
Nora En Pure
Rufus Du Sol
The Sunday Night Get Down
The Sunday Night Get Down - The Motet

Photos by: Molly Buckiewicz (https://www.mojophotography.org/)
Listen to the Motet's Latest album:
Concert Review
Writing by: Greg Powell
Hailing from Colorado, The Motet has gathered a cult following over the last few years and doesn't seem to be slowing down anytime soon. I remember seeing them for the first time at their annual, Halloween mountain show and having it be the highlight of my year. I felt like I was in a time warp back to the funk era. It was refreshing to hear such a passionate tribute to old school funk, performed with such energy and raw musicianship. It was obvious at the time that they were in a league of their own, demanding a larger stage and much-deserved recognition. Since then they have released several albums, built a devoted fan base and worked their way up to be Red Rocks headliners.

Sunday’s show at the Midtown Ballroom in Bend, OR was one for the books. The venue was packed early with excited fans ready for a night of shameless dancing. The opener, John Medeski’s Mad Skillet, got things warmed up quickly with their jazz-influenced jams. Medeski was a master on the keyboards and the use of a Sousaphone as their bass instrument really added another element to the performance.

By the time The Motet took the stage the whole crowd was ready to move. They eased into their set with the lights turned low and an instrumental jam. Lead singer Lyle Divinsky jumped on stage and the band dropped into a hard-hitting single from their new album. People of all ages and backgrounds crowded the front, ready to let loose. The band built more energy the longer they played and were able to streamline their set, with minimal downtime between songs. There are not many groups that can start a party with the opening song and keep the crowd dancing hard through their encore.

Their latest release, Death or Devotion, is a 10-track studio album, released via their own music label. It is a well-rounded compilation of catchy singles and badass funk tunes. Make sure to give it a listen and stay up to date on The Motet’s upcoming tour dates, most notably July 12th when they will be back at Red Rocks with Galactic for another rowdy night of music and good times.
For more check out our podcast episode with Dave Watts, the founder of the Motet.
Groove Cruise – 2019 Lineup

GROOVE CRUISE MIAMI 2019 CELEBRATES 15TH ANNIVERSARY & ANNOUNCES PHASE I LINEUP FEAT. KASKADE, ALY & FILA, HOT SINCE 82, MK, MARKUS SCHULZ, SIMON PATTERSON + MORE!
August 8, 2018 — Dance your way across the turquoise waters of the Caribbean with Groove Cruise Miamiwhich announces Phase I of their highly-anticipated 2019 lineup today. Setting sail on the deluxe Celebrity Infinity next January 10th - 14th, 2019, Groove Cruise Miami will offer up an array of electronic music legends and up-and-coming acts, primed to deliver the best in house, trance and techno. Don’t miss this opportunity to dance, discover, and follow your inner compass to an experience of a lifetime.
As Groove Cruise celebrates its monumental 15th anniversary, the soundtrack for this year’s cruise will be provided by an amazing roster of 2019 headliners that include critically-acclaimed Chicago-bred EDM superstar Kaskade, Egyptian trance duo Aly & Fila, Yorkshire-based house/techno phenom Hot Since 82, Detroit house legend MK (Marc Kinchen), German-born, Miami-based trance icon Markus Schulz, and Irish house music extraordinaire Simon Patterson.
Supporting artists on the Phase I lineup include Anthony Attalla, Blackgummy, Chus & Ceballos, Cocodrills, Eli & Fur, Leftwing & Kody, Liquid Todd, Prok & Fitch, Roger Sanchez, Technasia, Adam Scott, Chris Garcia, Dancetronauts, Dean Mason, Drums of the Sun, DSK CHK, Eva Kane, Geronimo, Grube & Hovesepian, Kristen Knight, Kristina Sky, Laser Assassins, Luccio, Scotty Boy Scooter & Lavelle, and Stellar — more TBA in the coming months.
As part of his headlining act, MK will bring his globally - renowned AREA10 party straight to the decks of Groove Cruise, consistently known for featuring some of the hottest names in electronic music as special guests. Groove Cruise Miami will also feature a stellar series of hosted stages, ensuring that there is more than enough music to keep cruisers dancing ‘til sunrise. Look forward to stage takeovers by Coldharbour, Eve, Future Sound of Egypt, Incorrect, Never Going Home, Rubber Ducky, Stereo Productions and Under the Radr.
Surrounded by bumping beats and the beloved GC Fam, captains aboard Groove Cruise Miami will voyage to two new destinations in 2019—the stunning, tropical island of Cozumel, Mexico and Key West, Florida. Known for its clear, aquamarine waters, vibrant snorkeling, and culinary delights, Cozumel will add an extra layer of travel and culture to Groove Cruise’s already impressive itinerary. The Groove Cruise family will also be making a stop in Key West, an intimate island hub and favorite Floridian destination. Rolling out further initiatives to heighten the peak experience Groove Cruise Miami delivers, the ship will now depart from the port of Ft. Lauderdale. What was once an arduous cab ride from airport to port is now direct; GC Fam will be able to travel from plane to boat in a matter of minutes.
Among the first passenger cruise vessels to be powered by smokeless turbine engines, the premium 2,170-passenger Celebrity Infinity is elegantly themed with its iconic three-level foyer grand staircase and sophisticated decor. Captains will discover a bevy of novelty features including a retro restaurant, Egyptian-themed casino, basketball court, jogging track, shuffleboard, indoor solarium and pool, fine dining, and more than 100 spa cabins. From sprawling penthouses (complete with butler and baby grand piano) to the petite and elegant Sky Suites, Groove Cruise on the Celebrity Infinity will undoubtedly be the most luxurious festival experience yet—welcome to the suite life! Click here to snag one of these epic suites before they’re booked. More info surrounding on-board activities and artists activations coming soon!
For those who reside on the West Coast, Groove Cruise Cabo is extending the party to land, air and space with their San Diego pre-party taking place from 8pm - 12am on October 9, 2018, the Tuesday before the festival sets sail. Blasting into San Diego’s iconic Air and Space Museum in Historical Balboa Park, the GC Fam will imbue the museum with outrageous fashion, good vibes, and thumping dance music, giving attendees a flavorful taste of the Groove Cruise experience. A surprise lineup of soon-to-be-announced DJs will transform this sanctuary of science into an intergalactic dance party unlike any other.
For tickets & more info: Groove Cruise Miami 2019
STAY CONNECTED
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About Groove Cruise
What started in 2004 as a group of 125 thrill-seeking house-heads (led by founder Jason Beukema) sailing on a cruise together has erupted into the world’s first and largest floating dance music festival. Groove Cruise is the only music cruise to sail from both East and West coasts, and is a non-stop experience comprised of four straight days of beach, pool and theme parties, great food, EDM and luxurious destination parties. In addition to the standard cruise amenities, there are also artist activities, yoga classes (often paired with deep house), costume parties, and various onboard events that rival the best dance music festivals in the world. Groove Cruise is produced by Whet Travel.
About Whet Travel
Over 12,000 people each year choose Whet Travel for their music cruise adventure. Whet Travel has executed 24 full ship charters including Groove Cruise Miami January 10-14, 2019 (15 year anniversary), Cabo and LA as well as Salsa Cruise (20 year anniversary Oct 29-Nov 2 overnight in Havana Cuba). Whet Travel received the prestigious Charter Partner of the year award from Carnival and Norwegian Cruise Lines and Inc Magazine ranked Whet Travel as the #4 fastest growing travel company in the USA.
Press
“Combining the luxury and travel of a cruise ship with the pulsating, all-night party of an electronic music festival, it is no wonder that this event sold out so quickly.” — Huffington Post
“The Groove Cruise is The #1 Place in The World to Get Your Groove.” — Travel Channel
”Only after attending can one understand the logistical marvel that is Groove Cruise.” — LA Weekly
“No VIP area or backstage or green room, and it was obvious how it made people feel: free.” — YourEDM
“Just like most movie sequels and TV reboots, Groove Cruise Miami is floating proof in a monsoon market of spinoff rave boats that nothing ever quite lives up to the original.” — Billboard
Photo Recap Sonic Bloom 2018
World’s Finest
The Domino Room-February 17th, 2017
Last Friday at the Domino Room in downtown Bend, Oregon, we were able to catch Leftover Salmon’s opener, World’s Finest. Featuring an electric banjo, saxophone, and vintage guitar, they had a rustic and organic vibe. Blending elements of ska, bluegrass and reggae, they were able to touch on several familiar sounds while adding their own character and a bit of a twist.
Juggling genres and different styles, it was obvious the group drew inspiration from assorted backgrounds. There were many moments of feel-good-bluegrass easily associated with Portland and The Pacific Northwest. Both upbeat and rock influenced it reminded me of groups like Fruition. Other times they would tone things down and switch over to reggae and ska. Some highlights included “Rub-a-dub” reggae and well timed breakdowns to group acapellas. With flexible musicianship, they were able to showcase a few covers as well. My favorite was their funky-bluegrass cover of “Pick Up the Pieces” by Average White Band. The nostalgia of the song, accompanied with their provocative saxophone, was a great way to close out the set.
Full of fun energy and a feel good vibe, World’s Finest had very personable crowd interaction and seemed to thoroughly enjoy their time on the stage.
Check out the links below for music and more on the World’s Finest!
Pigeons Playing Ping Pong
The Volcanic Pub Theater-February 12th, 2017
Wildly entertaining, eccentric and funk-nasty. The words that come to mind after last nights show at The Volcanic Theater in Bend, Oregon. I knew to expect some funk with an East Coast jam band influence. What I didn’t expect was a roller coaster of spacey interludes, mambo break-beats, and jazz waltz noodling. And yes, of course there was always a sneaky funk breakdown to tie it all together. On point transitions and tight coordination amongst the group allowed for fresh switch ups and genre blending. It’s hard to explain exactly how I would classify their style, but just take my word for it, you don’t want to miss them live. Its beautiful, musical madness at its finest. With a packed house on a Sunday night, Pigeons Playing Ping Pong definitely have a following and were a perfect fit for the wacky Bend crowd, looking to get the most out of their Sunday night.
It’s rare that you come across such an animated front-man as lead singer and guitarist Greg Ormont. Sporting pajama pants and a frizzy Afro, I’m pretty sure he never blinked. His wide array of facial expressions were both engrossing and humorous. My initial hesitation slowly grew into captivation and it became hard to look away. Incredibly skilled guitarist Jeremy Schon really took it to the next level. It was clear that this type of seasoned musicianship demanded a bigger stage. With a calm, natural presence on stage, Ben Carrey laid down filthy, funk bass lines to back the group. Drummer, Alex Petropulos playfully transitioned between different tempos, genres and moods with ease. All together, this group was a tight knit team. Their raw and playful energy on stage really reflected their confidence to push their music to new boundaries.
This group is big news and word is spreading fast. They had so much support that they were able to fund their new studio album “Pizazz” through contributions from their followers. It should be releasing sometime this Fall. Also, make sure and check out their new live album “The Great Outdoors Jam” coming out February 17th!! For those of you out in Colorado, Pigeons Playing Ping Pong will be playing at Red Rocks, August 13th with Moe and Twiddle!
Written by Greg Powell
Photography by Molly Buckiewicz
For more info on upcoming tour schedule, music and the band check out the links below!!
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Sonic Bloom 2016
Sonic Bloom 2016 has a stacked lineup producing incredible performances too numerous to describe here. It is safe to say, “SonicBloom has become one of the best electronic music festivals in North America!” It is worth noting the international talent attracted to the base of the Colorado Rockies to share their vision, talent and art. To see the full lineup click here.
The mindfulness and vision to attract the top talent from across the globe, must be recognized and commended. The three official stages vibrated with historic house music. This festival is the nexus of the Colorado electronic music scene. The location is perched atop a beautiful space of land with the foothills of the Rockies to the west and windmill filled fields that go on to meet the eastern horizon. The festival has succeeded at curating a fertile ground for the world-wide cutting edge of musical maneuvering.
The sound systems are tuned to the valley and can bump through the entire festival grounds. The security is appropriately staffed and energetically aligned. The friendly faces can be found throughout the campgrounds, stages, in swinging hammocks, in high fiveing security guards, or the dancing chefs who happily serve nourishing food at reasonable prices. The ice, in high demand in the hot sun is the only noticeably overpriced product at $1/lb. The showers run at full capacity as people line up for their chance to clean off that layer of accumulated dust and dirt that is kicked up from all of the movement. The sunny and beautiful weather also brings with it the dryness enabling the dirt to turn to dust. The wind is welcome and the stream is an oasis for people looking to take a dip and cool off.
The unofficial or ‘renegade’ stages include tipis and camp sites stacked with speakers and subs. The colorful crowd and the apex of art have arrived to create an immersive experience that people are willing to dedicate four days to. Some of the crowd has traveled from across the continent to enjoy the this dreamed up reality.
This festival has become a small close nit group of people who are looking out for one another to form a utopic village for just under a week. The production continues after the last set as everything needs to return to its original order; stages must come down, lasers, lights, projectors, sound & lighting boards, 1,000’s of yards of electric wiring, speakers, microphones, instruments, and framework to name a few. The thankless work of setting up all of the stages and hauling in the gear was executed with time to spare and enough technology to entertain even the most avid of festival goers.
People in their ‘A-Game’ costumes come energetically into the festival entrance in groups. Everyone has made 10+ new friends and friendly neighbors. The exchange of ideas, paints, music and visual art permeate the mind of every attendee. One cannot help but be inspired by something of unique beauty.
Day in the Life; at Sonic Bloom:
Winds whip down the hills and across the plains. Dust moves in a hurried Eastwood direction. Every walk of electronic culture strolls through the grounds interacting with experiences, sonic vibrations and frequencies across the perceptible spectrum. Cars have been rolling in for over 12 hours at a steady pace filling up the campgrounds. The lucky and wise are nestled among the 6′ shrubbery whose neighbors are bushes and trees. My neighbors on the other hand-made the pilgrimage to SonicBloom from Louisiana. A tightly packed vehicle of four young energetic and enthusiastic beautiful artistic human beings. As a group, it does not seem possible to gather so many like-minded humans in a place to enjoy and thrive in a collaborative environment.
Friendly staff greet the goers. The hippy chicks and the electric glowers.
From the lighting to the sound, from the stages to the camp ground, there are smiles to go around. With the hammocks from Yammocks, and the beats from the peeps the festi is full of fun-loving music geeks.
Three stages of stacked sets featuring some of the top electronic acts from around the world. American electronic music lovers treat this event as an annual pilgrimage to discover and reunite with the music, people and source of creative energy that is the foundation of a festival. Creativity flows from the ornately decorated stages and sublimely composed tracks that suddenly take hold of the listeners and create a simultaneous bodily expression of enjoyment including but not limited to twerking, spinning, jumping, dropping, exploding or floating.
The breeze kicked up into a howl for Nightmares on Wax’s last song featuring one of the most recognizable guitar riffs around. The high energy Bonobo set was filled with masterfully woven bass lines pulsing through the night. The crowd can be heard cheering for miles.
The late night stages rage like there is no finality to human diurnality. The artists continue to stoke the flaming crowd into the next adventure and from one set to the next. The solitude of night embraced with the warmth of bass and faces.With the evolution of the performances, the pulse of the festival was amplified and magnified by the exemplified beat technique. The audible entertainment abruptly ended, with a slow retreating high pass filter that faded out for 15 min or more notifying the audience that the silent disco was starting. With headphones on, the party rolls on…
The nexus of Colorado electronic music counter-culture is here; at Sonic Bloom, on the beautiful property at Humming Bird Ranch.
Front Country – Concert & Album Review
It was the night of May 5th at Swallow Hill Music Hall in Denver, Colorado. The rain turned to sleet and the sleet turned to heavy snow. The arrival of the Californian Bluegrass band was greeted by nasty weather and a packed house filled with music lovers of all ages. The night began with Rail Splitters from Boulder, Colorado warming up the theater with their quick pick’n and melodic music. By the time Front Country took the stage the audience was ready for steady rhythmic bluesy bluegrass. Front Country is one of those bands who cannot be easily fit into a box or genre. They expand upon all of their individual strengths to blend, mold, and shape the sound until it’s profound.
Front Country’s songs are inspired by a range of topics including but not limited to the snowy state itself, Colorado, and an old time song about a gold mine prostitute. When Melody picks up the Kashishi she woos the crowd with her shakin’ while both Adam and Jacob trade instruments between songs to bring a new sound.
Front country’s album, Sake of the Sound, was created by a sextet (six members). Three of the six band members on the Album have jobs outside of the music industry. The momentum the band is riding keeps gaining speed, propelling that ‘Gospel Train’ around the country. With diverse musical backgrounds, they feed off each other musically to break through traditional boundaries. They have earned University degrees studying, jazz guitar, vocals, classical guitar, and jazz bass. They have worked hard to get to where they are today and it is clearly paying off.
Sake of the Sound
Album Credits: Released 16 September 2014. Mandolin by Adam Roszkiewicz, Guitar and Vocals by Jacob Groopman, Guitar and Vocals by Melody Walker, Banjo and Vocals by Jordan Klein, Violin by Leif Karlstrom, Stand-up Bass by Zach Sharpe. Produced by Kai Welch. Engineered by Scott Bergstrom. Engineered by Scott Bergstrom at 25th Street Recording – Oakland, CA. Mixed by Erick Jaskowiak at J Studio – Nashville, TN. Mastered by Eric Conn at Independent Mastering – Nashville, TN. All songs arranged by Front Country. Photography by Robert Perry. Album Art by Danielle Diessner
They dedicated 10 consecutive (16+ hour) days to the recording of their debut album, Sake of the Sound. While many bands struggle to find a collective sound due to their individualistic desires, Front Country is a band of stars, shining together. Their collaborative spirit is revealed as they dynamically alter their music for maximum impact.
If you enjoy acoustical harmonies with some fast pick’n solos, this band is not one to miss. If you missed the show, the good news is that Front Country will be back in Colorado and touring the country once again in a few weeks. With stops at festivals, such as Campout for the Cause and Meadow Grass, this band is only getting started. They won a place on the main stage at Telluride Bluegrass Festival, and they are on their way to a city near you.
To check the latest Front Country tour info: click here
To listen to the FreioMusic interview with Front Country: click here
Arise 2014 Video
Official FreioMusic Arise Festival 2014 Video
Arise Festival 2014 in Loveland, Colorado. Freio Music’s talented team captures the cultural gathering with energy with style. Arise Festival features artists from across the musical spectrum. Share it. Enjoy it. See you next year!
Credits:
Produced by Freio Music
Directed by Joe Morahan & Daniel “Buddy” Thomas
DP by Daniel “Buddy” Thomas
Editing by Daniel “Buddy” Thomas
Time-Lapse Photography by
Melissa Harrison, Isaiah ‘Scott’ Brown, & Michael Morahan
Music by
Polish Ambassador