Reviews
On a cool Saturday night my buddy Dean and I drove down to the Ashkenaz on San Pablo Ave. to catch two outstanding Grateful Dead cover bands I have seen quite frequently in the Bay Area over the last year, The Dead Guise and Play Live Dead (formerly known as Live Dead.) Dean had never been to a show at Ashkenaz, nor had he seen either band, so I was quite excited to introduce him to this incredible live music, especially because he was a big fan of The Dead like myself.
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Tatanka made its way to a speaker near me on Feb 3rd, 2010. Hodi’s Half Note in Fort Collins welcomed them with a free keg of PBR for this Wednesday night show. Ladies, if you want to find your very own fried egg, you can probably pick one out from the sausage fests known as free keg night at Hodi’s.
I arrived after the keg had dried up and the remains of the crowd resembled a frat party. However there are key differences.
It’s been four years since I have seen Reverend Horton Heat. The last show I witnessed the magic that this band projects was at the Wakarusa Music Festival in 2006. Coincidentally, it was the first review that I ever wrote. I was anticipating the same amount of energy, if not more since the show was in Boulder, and they always have a great cult following here. One notable pre-show note that I made was about the ticket prices.
The anticipation outside San Francisco’s Bill Graham Civic Center was at an all time peak! Dead Heads everywhere with their long hair, dread locks, beards, hemp necklaces and tie-dyed clothing were lined up outside the venue either in line or holding up their pointer finger praying for a miracle ticket. This was the kind of atmosphere I had dreamt about for years! It was beyond a rock n’ roll concert! It was the indescribable coming together of thousands of Dead Heads, who are a tribe, who become joined into one strong force once they step a foot through those auditorium doors.
When I first heard the word remix I was a bit skeptical. Many of the remixes I have listed to over the years have been nothing more than a cheap and easy way for the record companies to make money. Throw down some new backgrounds and you have yourself a remix. My Brightest Diamond’s Shark Remixes are the furthest thing from sounding budget.
Catching hometown jamgrass legends Yonder Mountain String Band has become a Denver holiday tradition, as the band has performed New Year's Eve concerts here every year for the better part of the last decade. From electric performances at the Paramount Theater, a supporting/collaborative effort last year with Widespread Panic at the Pepsi Center, to multiple showings at the Fillmore Auditorium the band has routinely and successfully rung in each New Year with the Colorado faithful.
There have been a number of fantastic albums over the past decade. Take this list at face value. The title sums it up perfectly. Here are simply 10 of the many albums I have enjoyed over the past 10 years. I have not bothered to number them. That would be foolish. I hate sources that number their lists. They are too absolute and definitive. If you have not had a chance to listen to these, I cannot urge you enough to go to your local record store and check them out.
Enjoy,
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