The title of this review does not just come from my opinion as a music writer in the scene since the mid-nineties. I have heard this from nearly every person that I have heard talk about STS9 for the last year or so including members of the band. I was lucky enough to catch half of their four-night run at the Fillmore Auditorium in Denver, and I saw them at least three other times in the past year.

It’s interesting to be able to think back on the music of the 1990s, let alone the 2000s and what evolved in the live music concert experience. The reemergence of the multi-day music festival gave the jam band revival a venue to gig multiple shows at once and get closer with the fans. What also changed was what kind of music was being performing in a live setting. There was always a separation between the deejay persona and electronica music from the whole rock’n’roll bands that jammed. That certainly changed with the growing popularity of summer music festivals.

Railroad Earth returned after two years to The Pageant on January 17^th to open with The Forecast and Tim Carbone on violin. Following a large crowd welcome, the band started up into a soulful Long Walk Home that had us swaying. The band got rolling with an upbeat Lordy, Lordy and got us to jump and stomp to Gold Rush. RV made everyone dream of taking a road trip due to the weekend’s warm weather and also had Andrew Altman on the double bass.

Fox Street is one of those bands I wouldn’t expect to be based in Colorado. Florida possibly, Texas I could see, but Colorado is a bit of a wildcard. Maybe it’s Jonathan Huvards’ throat churning, rocky road vocals. Then again it could be the picking, sliding and stomping of their close-knit instrumental unit that screams southern roots.