“If melodramatic anime movies featuring star-crossed lovers had good soundtracks for a change, they would probably sound a lot like what Roniit Alkayam has been doing for the past couple of years. Alkayam has been a purveyor of moody, ethereal, electronic pop songs that evoke a more meditative Switchblade Symphony or a house-oriented Siren Project. The duo’s 2011 self-titled debut was a fully formed blend of late-’90s EBM and modern techno-pop. A new EP, In the Shadows, finds the band exploring further depths of its atmospheric palette.”  Tom Murphy – The Westword Weekly (Denver, Colorado)

AEG LIVE is proud to present The Midnight Circus featuring darkwave pop music artist Roniit along with supporting acts Glass Delirium, Larissa Vienna, and Hydrogen Skyline live in concert at Denver’s Bluebird Theater Saturday August 3rd, 2013.  Advance tickets are $10 and are available during box office business hours at the Bluebird Theater, the Ogden Theater, the Gothic Theater, and online at www.bluebirdtheater.net. The show is all ages (under 16 must be accompanied by parent or guardian).

AEG LIVE’s Midnight Circus concert event marks the first time Roniit has headlined Denver’s legendary Bluebird Theater. We are happy to coordinate email and phone interviews in advance of this show directly with Roniit and can make available complimentary “All-Access” media & photographer concert passes to select music writers, bloggers, and photographers. Please let us know your name and media outlet you work with so we can coordinate as promptly as possible. Noted below are highlights, weblinks, and various excerpts of information you may find useful. Thank you in advance for any and all media consideration.

Singer, songwriter, and vocalist Roniit is fast becoming a popular musician in the dark electronic pop music world.  Her dazzling live performances feature panoramic sonic textures of piano and lush vocals, esoteric circus performers, an array of ethereal visual elements, and a full backing band.  Roniit will make you dance with her electro pop songs, then strip it down to just a piano and vocals for a heartfelt ballad.  Fans who attend her live performances dressed in costume also enjoy complimentary tarot card readings.

With a very popular debut EP along with a professionally produced cinematic music video for the song “Lost At Sea” (and a second album set to be released later this year), Roniit has attracted a strong, intensely loyal international fan following.  Although Roniit resides in Colorado she has also performed outside the state on a few well received regional and national solo tours. Roniit’s voice is also featured on numerous collaborations with various DJs and producers from around the world.

Link to high resolution artist photograph: http://www.roniit.com/images/full-screen/06.jpg

Link to high resolution event poster: http://www.roniit.com/Roniit_bluebird_poster.jpg 

Link to “Lost At Sea” music video: http://youtu.be/UF4YY8xsEZQ

Link to debut EP “In The Shadows”: http://bandcamp.roniit.com/

Visit Roniit’s website at www.roniit.com for more information, including links to streaming music and videos. You may also reach Roniit direct at (303) 995-0107

by Joel Center

For the past ten years, one group alone has been at the forefront of psychedelic Indietronica; Black Moth Super Rainbow. Founded by songwriter/producer TOBACCO in the woods of western Pennsylvania, BMSR is a group that sounds like nothing you’ve ever heard before. Packed full of synths, keys, pads, vocoders, and occasionally a few “normal” instruments like a guitar, bass, and drums, the music thrown into your ears at a Black Moth show is a dreamscape of summery tonalities that irresistibly seduces any fan in attendance into a trance that is utterly relaxing and inspiring.

Much mystery surrounds this group of electronic maestros. They are prone to hiding their faces in music videos, promo photos, and even live shows, and they are certainly not the type of group to hype themselves up by putting their songs in commercials or embarking upon huge national ad campaigns. Black Moth fans are attracted to that electronic dreamland because of its unmistakable uniqueness and curious intrigue. The vocoded lyrics speak of love, joy, and other profoundly human emotions, but in a tone so robotic that you can’t help but wonder whether or not there is a certain level of irony involved. Either way, once those well-crafted electronic timbres enter the ear of a listener, they are instantly transported into a world of happy, technicolor psychedelia that they’d be only too happy to remain in forever.

This Friday, May 17, residents of the Mile High City will be able to experience a bit of the trippy sonic glory that is Black Moth Super Rainbow live at the Bluebird. Because the group has been gaining popularity at a steady rate, this is an excellent opportunity to catch the band at a fairly intimate venue before they are selling out the Fillmore, and at only $17 advance / $20 door, it’s a bargain that can’t be beat!

For a little over a decade, Something Underground has been consistently bringing universal love through their music. Born, rooted in musical families, this trio was has always been shaped to become the musical force they are today. The Larson brothers, Josh and Seth, with their capacity for harmonies that are seemingly out of this world, create a sense of amazement in each listener. The strong beats brought by drummer Trevor Mariotti, drive the sound that some might call hypnotizing, others divine. One thing is for certain; this trio has the ability to move you physically, mentally, spiritually, and emotionally on this musical journey through the human experience.

Bang! Bang! Crisis members have played everywhere from Italy, Belgium, and the Netherlands to New York, L.A., and Oklahoma. Musical influences of this Denver based alt-rock band range from “that one time I watched the Labyrinth soundtrack” to “I kind of liked the second Killers album once.” Nonetheless, technical influences include a wide scope of modern music, including The Yeah Yeah Yeahs, The Pixies, Ani DiFranco, R.E.M., and The Kinks.  Their debut album will be released in July 2013 followed by a summer tour to the west coast.

Jammin Joe Van Dyke was born a poor black child (at heart) and found the guitar at the tender age of 7. At the age of 16, Joe married his high school sweetheart, loaded up his guitars and went into the coal mines in Pineville, WV. It was a very trying and dangerous time. He was almost killed “twice” while employed there. After leaving the mines due to the extended stikes in 1978, Joe joined the U.S. Army during the Irianian Hostage Crisis to do his patriotic duty. Joe has performed at over 300 hundred venues in Western Europe, Canada and the US. Joe’s songs now being produced are a direct result of his life experiences. You can’t beat a true story!

Bringing together the traditional sounds of roots reggae, dub and dancehall, HIGHLINE is an energetic band dedicated to creating a truly authentic reggae sound. The band members come from diverse musical backgrounds, and together now make their own infectious brand of reggae music. Thumping bass-lines, hard hitting drum beats, jabbing horn lines and soaring vocal harmonies combine with the edgy, often politically charged rapid-fire vocals of Mr. Brown will surely get you off your feet and dancing.

FOLLOWED UP BY ANNUAL ROCKY MOUNTAIN BASS SLAM

World renowned Bassists Chuck Rainey, Doug Johns and Quintin Berry ,  will share their knowledge

for a half day on Saturday June 8 from 1:30pm – 4pm.

Mojo’s MusicAcademy in Longmont is gearing up for their fifth hosting of the Mile High Bass Camp.

As always we will be presenting the best in music education and musicianship to

a room full of not only bassists but also drummers of all abilities and ages.

Leaving everyone inspired and wanting to get home and practice.

Chuck Rainey – Played on numerous Top 10 albums Steely Dan Aja, Aretha Franklin Rock Steady ,

Jackson 5 Dancing Machine, LEGEND

Doug Johns – Bass Player Live Concerts , Doug Johns Duo ,  Endorsed by Pedulla Basses

Quintin Berry – bassist for The UglyStik band,performed w/ Victor Wooten, Own Signature bass by Spector

On  Friday June 7^th  we kick off the weekend with some private instruction by Chuck Rainey and Doug Johns and drummer Jordan Simms.

Lessons are held at Mojo’s music from 11am to 1pm cost is $40 per 30 minutes or $80 per hour.

Call or email Mojo’s music to reserve your lesson times 303-776-3373  paul@mojosmusicacademy.com

Friday Night will be a live performance in Boulder from  6-8pm “Bass Jam in the Canyon”
Featuring Chuck Rainey Doug Johns, Quintin Berry and Paul Rogalski, owner of Mojo’s
$10.00 donation
Eldorado Springs Colorado
at the Eldorado Mountain Yoga Ashram
2875 County Road 67 Boulder, CO 80303

OPEN to The PUBLIC and we hope to see you there.

Tickets can be purchased online at www.mojosmusicacademy.com

Saturday day 2 of  Mile High Bass Camp Continues with More private lessons

At Mojo’s Music

From 10am – 12pm

With Chuck Rainey, Doug Johns and Quintin Berry

Call or email Mojo’s music to reserve your lesson times 303-776-3373  paul@mojosmusicacademy.com

Saturday Afternoon the festivities continue with a Bass Clinic

From 1:30-4pm Doug, Chuck Quintin at Mojo’s MusicAcademy

They will take turns performing and talking about their different styles and will all sit for a round table question session as well. You can bring your bass if you’d like you never know what can happen or just come listen ,take notes and ask some questions.
$25.00

Call or email to reserve your seat or online at www.mojosmusicacademy.com

 
Sunday June 9th is the Grand Finale !!! The 6^th Annual Rocky Mountain Bass Slam

he RMBS is a Celebration of Colorado Bass talent of all styles. This event is for all music lovers – especially those who dig the bottom dwelling bass players in our music community.

This annual event celebrates the commitment to the GROOVE and raises money to donate bass guitars to individual youth and music programs at local schools or communities in Colorado.  This year we will be donating a bass to the Blue Star Connection- a local charity organization that puts musical instruments in the hands of children patients.

The 2013 event will be held on June 9th, 2013 from 1:00 p.m. to 6:00 p.m.

This year we are bringing the bass slam to the Historical Oriental Theater in Denver.

Chuck Rainey, Doug Johns and Quintin Berry will all perform at the event. Numerous local bass players will be taking stage as well throughout the day.

The day consists of bass performances of all styles and scenarios from solo to duo, some with a drummer

Some with 3 bass players. Bottom line it’s all about the bass.

We have a great number of sponsors involved that donate product for the event so we can raise funds to at least break even in our investment. This year sponsors include the International Institute of Bass, Pedulla basses, Premier Bass guitars, Spector basses, Genz Benz bass amps, Drum city/guitar land, and Acme bass amps. Please join us this year for another successful event.

All the info you need is available at www.rockymountainbassslam.com

by Jenn Cohen

Denver’s Nate Cook (the Yawpers), and Josh Lee (Eldren) are sick of people being nice, so they’ve formed a partnership, a “cross-genre, unholy marriage of men,” they say collectively, laughing. “It’s more than just playing shows together,” says Lee.

“We started talking about doing a podcast together in a general effort to speak up [about the music scene], and hopefully inspire musicians to raise the bar a little bit,” says Cook. “There is this glad-handing element to the music scene, that you feel like you have to kiss the other band members’ babies in the hope they’ll give you a show.”

Eldren and the Yawpers are playing many shows together as of late and while it’s not your typical partnership for a billing, that’s precisely why they’re doing it. “There’s no one on the planet who would go to an Eldren show and then to a Yawpers show and say, ‘Oh, those are similar bands,” says Cook. “They are totally different. We put on psychedelic, prog rock country shows,” says Cook. “Why the f*ck not?”

Concerning criticism, Cook says, “I’ve gotten bad reviews from every side of the board . . . bring it on! It crushed me for a few days, then I came to certain realizations about what they were talking about, and it created a desire to get better. If you’re above reproach, as an artist, then get the f*ck out of the game.

“There’s a movement in the music scene at large, kind of a pontification of musical identity to the point where people are playing the most white-washed pedantic bullsh*t you can imagine,” says Cook. “A lot of that boils down to [the fact that] there’s not a lot of criticism. If you’re in a band that’s trying to make it in the Denver music scene, you would never say to another band, ‘Hey, you guys weren’t that good tonight.’ And we (Yawpers and Eldren) try and do that with each other. There’s this whole attitude of just being nice to the point that it doesn’t allow for any growth or inspire people to be more creative or interesting, or more honest. If you continue to let shitty art to be represented because it’s cheaper, then you cheapen the scene; it demeans the true value of music.

“There has to be some sort of scale, you’re either above it or you’re not. There’re plenty of weekend warriors out there who watered down the music scene to the point that it’s hard to get a $600 guarantee,” Cook continues, “and you’ve spent 30-40 hours a week practicing, nine months on the road, six months recording a record, and then you go out and play a show–you should be able to make a living off of it, if you’re good enough.

“The venues need to change their attitudes about it, too,” he says. “Think about the hi-dive. The hi-dive has a built-in crowd because they’re exclusionary; they get good bands to play there, so people go there to see good music. Cervantes Other side, on the other hand, has no built-in crowd because any jerk-off who is willing to play for $80 for three hours can get in there.”

They hope to stir up a little bit of controversy, get people talking, and angry, even, if it means that bands will be more selective of who they play with, so as to not saturate the scene with the same thing over and over. “What happened to the Jim Morrisons?” asks Lee. “What happened to all the fanatics who actually brought rock and roll to what it was?”

“If you think about it, every great scene that has ever really been burgeoning has always been a scene of exclusion,” says Cook. “Scenes of inclusion generally tend not to be good scenes. Scene of exclusion tend to have really strong ethos attached to them, really stringent musical ideas, and that’s where you see these breakouts of punk, grunge, hardcore—they’re scenes of exclusion.

“It’s more about creating awareness. There is a lot of good music out there, music is not as subjective as you think it is,” says Lee. “Good food is good food. You will feel it when you eat it. You might not prefer it over everything else, but there’s no way you can deny that this plate in front of you is the most amazing style of that cuisine.” And if you don’t like? “Then you should tell someone.”

“Unsolicited criticism would be borderline asshole behavior, which is definitely not the goal,” says Cook. “There is a real lack and need for honesty in the scene that doesn’t exist.” Adds Lee, “We’re tired of musicians being nice, just to kiss ass. There is 80% marketing and 20% productivity because we’re not speaking up; we’re not doing our job.” Adds Cook, “If the end goal isn’t to make art, then you’re really just a corporate piece of shit cocksucker.” Feel free to comment; in fact, bring it on!

Upcoming Shows: May 2, Oskar Blues; May 4, Shine Boulder; May 17,
Stoney’s Bar & Grill

Online: yawpers.com and eldrenmusic.com