Artist Interviews Category

It’s the middle of winter in Colorado, but you’d never know it with the 60 degree weather in Denver tonight. I’m at Larimer Lounge, an intimate venue in the River North neighborhood, that I’ve walked by a million times but have never been to before. Larimer Lounge is close to full already, even though it’s still before 8 PM. To be honest, I’m not even sure who the headliner is – my friends and I are here to see the opener – A R I Z O N A. WithRead More

It’s quarter to seven on a Saturday night in the heat of summer in Denver. I’ve given myself plenty of time to find parking downtown, but a spot is evading me. I finally find a place to park, sweating a little, both from the heat and from worrying that I’ll be late. I race across a couple busy streets, but make it into the lobby of a swanky LoDo hotel a few minutes before seven. Again, I’ve cut it a little close, but I’m beyond excited to do my firstRead More

It’s early on a Friday morning and I’m sitting in my studio apartment in Denver, waiting for a text form across the globe. The message I’m looking for comes through and I press “call” on my phone. It takes a number of shaky rings for the call to connect, but eventually, I hear a surprisingly clear, “hello,” come through. With that, I start into conversation with South African producer/DJ Sketchy Bongo who is currently in Botswana. Producing from a young age, Sketchy Bongo is finally seeing the fruits of hisRead More

Scandinavia is often regarded as the birthplace of the World’s hottest DJs, but producer FTampa is proving that great dance music is also created in the heart of South America. Hailing from Brazil, FTampa has erupted onto the dance music scene.   Producing since 2010, FTampa has really come into his own over the last year or so. The young DJ has not only released multiple tracks that have broken the Beatport Top 10, but he also played the mainstage at Tomorrowland Brazil last year. Now, with the support ofRead More

With electronic dance music (EDM) gaining popularity everyday, we see more and more would-be producers throwing their hat in the ring to compete with names like Calvin Harris and Avicii. Not everyone can hang with EDM royalty, but one young producer is well on his way. Dutch-born Julian Calor is only 21, but has accomplished much in his years. Calor got off to a hot start as his first single was released on EDM heavyweight Hardwell’s Revealed Recordings. Since then, nothing has seemed out of reach for Calor. The young DJ hasRead More

“Excuse me, sir. Do you have a minute to talk about rock and roll?” The question comes somewhat meekly during a break in an otherwise vicious wall of sound. Wearing a sharktoothed sundress, Rebecca Bortman looks more Alice in Wonderland than garage rock heroine. Nevertheless, she and her monochrome bandmates that make up lo-fi outfit Happy Fangs serve up the good word of rock and roll with a feverish bite. The night is still young at the Silverlake Lounge in Los Angeles. At 9PM on a Tuesday, I’m usually plopped onRead More

It’s 10:30 p.m. on a Saturday and I’m standing backstage at the National Western Complex in Denver. I look down at my tennis shoes then readjust the horn on my head, wondering how the LED will look when I turn it on later. Let me explain… I’m about to interview one of the biggest names in EDM and I’m dressed as, you guessed it, a unicorn. Did I forget to mention it’s Halloween? No matter the holiday, I look a little ridiculous, but I’m trying not to let that distract meRead More

CHULA VISTA, CA – No matter your age, it’s always a great time to follow your passion. This is a mantra many of us forget as we grow older, but not Ruben Montoya. Since his early 20s, Ruben has been selflessly producing and engineering music for a variety of other bands, helping them gain notoriety in the local San Diego music scene. But now, in his late 40s, Ruben is finally embarking on a new type of project. His own. This is Chill The Giant. Chill The Giant In 2015,Read More

JP and Sam of Cash Cash stand up and immediately Dave of Tritonal sits down. Let me refresh your memory- I’m in the “green room” (nook under the stairs) of the Bluebird Theater in Denver just before seeing Tritonal and Cash Cash play back to back on the Colorado leg of their “Untouchable” tour. Having finished up chatting with Cash Cash, it’s time for me to talk to Tritonal. It’s my first attempt at consecutive interviews and I’m hoping I can keep my composure as well as my questions interesting. MadeRead More

The green room at the Bluebird Theater in Denver is not so much a room as it is a little nook under the stairs that lead down from the stage. There’s a small couch wedged directly under the stairs and a few chairs, but little room to move when you add in two DJ groups, their crew and tour manager. So when I sit down on the edge of the couch to speak with Cash Cash’s JP Mahklouf and Sam Frisch, I’m maybe, at most, four feet from either ofRead More

The throng inside Anaheim’s famed House of Blues presses toward the stage in silent, rapt attention. In the heart of Downtown Disney with all its lights, glamor and themed uniformity, one doesn’t expect to witness the raw expression and stripped-down performance of the act currently in residence. Keith Goodwin and Dan Schwartz of Philly folk trio Good Old War — armed with only an acoustic guitar and their searing vocal harmonies — hold the crowd in the palm of their hand. “When you play this way, the songs have to beRead More

My first live experience with W&W was at Decadence in Denver almost a year ago. I remember being at the set and being astounded by how high energy it was, how much the two interacted with the crowd, how into the music they seemed to be, among other things. But mostly I was struck by how they did all these things so seamlessly. Now, even after 10ish months, I can still feel the energy of that performance. So, when I found out W&W would be playing Denver’s legendary nightclub, “TheRead More

I was recently fortunate enough to be able to sit down with Erez Eisen of legendary Israeli psychedelic/electronic act Infected Mushroom at the Gothic Theater in Denver, CO. Erez comprises one half of the core of Infected Mushroom, along with Amit Duvdevani. The two have been performing together for almost 20 years, making new and entrancing music. Both Erez and Amit had a deep love for music at a very young age. Erez is classically trained on the organ while Amit grew up playing the piano. As the two grew older, their loveRead More

Every time a major dance music event goes on in Denver, we put out multiple interview requests, hoping that a producer or two will want to chat with me before or after their performance. Going into Skylab 2015, we’ve sent out five to seven requests, knowing that chances of even an answer to one is slim because of the big names on the lineup. But the morning of night one, I get an email from Amsterdam – Laidback Luke’s people are reaching out with interest in an interview. I’m ecstatic.Read More

At 19 years of age, most of us have no idea what we want to do for our weekend, let alone a career. And virtually none of us are traveling the world performing music. In the ever-populating suburb of Temecula, CA, lives a teenager who is already turning these ambitions into reality. Welcome to the life of Hunter Pea. The talented guitarist might be young, but he has the musical IQ of a person twice his age, and a drive for success that some people never attain. Since his early days of youth,Read More