Colorado based Americana Quintet The Drunken Hearts hosted their “Love & Thirst” album release party on a Thursday night at the Bluebird Theater in Denver.  A far cry from the soulless popular music seeding festivals and stadiums, The Drunken Hearts played an intimate and emotional set.

The potentially rainy day at the nation’s most beautiful outdoor venue made the perfect backdrop to what was about to transpire. The Flaming Lips, with their elaborate stage set up for over one hundred performers, were going to play their entire album entitled The Soft Bulletin with the Colorado Symphony led by conductor Andre de Ritter.

What to say about this show? I will say it was a Phish show: not a Mike show, not a Trey show, not Page show, not a Fish show. It was a Phish show, a whole band who interacted and engaged in a musical conversation throughout. Wrigley Field provided the place for them to engage us, the audience, in their conversation.

This was a big night at the Lazy Dog Saloon in Boulder, CO for the indie rock star supergroup All Chiefs. They just finished recording a new EP “Fashion Forward” at the famous Coupe Studios Inc. in Boulder, and they were ready to show their fans and the local crowd what they were made of. After a couple of opening acts, the anticipation was building.

While iconic guitarist and bandleader Jerry Garcia passed away nearly twenty-one years ago, his influence and high-esteem continues to mount. It’s miraculous that so many fans of the beloved guitarist and Grateful Dead bandleader never actually witnessed the legend perform. The expansiveness of his covers was equally impressive as his originals. That’s why Garcia and the Dead continue to grow their fan base, much like jazz music, there’s something ethereal about simply listening and taking in.

This funk show was one of the most powerful shows that I have ever seen. Turkuaz is the best and hottest funk band in the world at this moment. There is no doubt in my mind. The Nth Power is not very far behind them in their mastery of their cross genre collaborative. Both of these bands days of playing in small venues like the Fox Theater in Boulder, are numbered.

Euphoric dancing paired nicely with a rock ‘n’ roll varietal that included flavorful notes of blues, psychedelia, and other jam-happy material on June 3, as performed by the David Nelson Band at the Center for the Arts in the Sierra Nevada foothill community of Grass Valley, California.

Hot Buttered Rum, one of the most honest-to-goodness fun bluegrass bands to come out of the San Francisco Bay Area celebrated the release of their latest project with a hint of class and a formal Black and Red Ball at The Fillmore on Friday, May 13.

Pennsylvania Americana group Mason Porter formed over a decade ago in West Chester initially gaining steam, as most bluegrass acts must, as a relentless touring act. While the festival circuit is where improvisational prowess often makes its mark, Mason Porter’s ventures in the studio these past few years has clearly distinguished them.

It was red noses all around on May 22 in Southern Sonoma County, as thousands converged at the Mountain Event Center to celebrate Wavy Gravy in merriment and song on the occasion of his 80^th birthday.