Butter, a Wartime Blues side project, squeezed onto the Hi-Dive stage just before their brother band, giving us a four-song teaser and leaving everybody wanting more.

Butter
8.26.2010
Hi-Dive, Denver, CO

Source:  Oktava MK-012’s > Lunatec V3 > digi-coax > Oade Mod Edirol R44 @ 24/48 >
SDHC > Adobe Audition 3.0 > Resample to 16/44.1 > CDWave > LAME > mp3
Taped by:  Lance Stack

Setlist:
1. Polly Ann
2. Skelator
3. Track #03
4. Track #04

A zipfile of the mp3s is available here.
FLAC files can be downloaded as a zipfile here.

Portland’s Blue Giant made their first Denver appearance last week at the Hi-Dive in support of Bobby Bare, Jr.  After performing their own set of indie country/folk, they took the stage a second time as Bobby’s supporting band.   Blue Giant’s eponymous debut, released in July, is available for purchase from Amazon.

Blue Giant
9.15.2010
Hi-Dive, Denver, CO

Source:  Microtech Gefell M300’s > Lunatec V3 > Oade Mod Edirol R44 @ 24/48 > SDHC > Adobe Audition 3.0 > Resample to 16/44.1 > CDWave
Taped by:  Lance Stack

Setlist:
1. Go On
2. Wesley
3. The Game
4. Target Heart
5. The Void Above the Sky
6. Lonely Girl
7. Wasn’t Born To Follow
8. Run Rabbit Run
9. Blue Sunshine
10. Clean The Clock

A zipfile of the mp3s is available here.
FLAC files can be found via BitTorrent at Dime.

One month after their well-received performances at the Underground Music Showcase, Montana’s Wartime Blues returned to Denver for a headlining slot at the Hi-Dive.

Wartime Blues
8.26.2010
Hi-Dive, Denver, CO

Source:  Oktava MK-012’s > Lunatec V3 > digi-coax > Oade Mod Edirol R44 @ 24/48 > SDHC > Adobe Audition 3.0 > Resample to 16/44.1 > CDWave
Taped by:  Lance Stack

Setlist:
1. Courting the Queen Manor
2. Sugar Hill Thump
3. Track #03
4. Track #04
5. Track #05
6. Doves & Drums
7. Judas Horse
8. Goathawk
9. Track #09
10. Youth
11. Track #11

A zipfile of the mp3s is available here.
FLAC files can be downloaded as a zipfile here.

(Photo by Michelle Browning.)

The Mile Markers
8.26.2010
Hi-Dive, Denver, CO

Source:  Oktava MK-012’s > Lunatec V3 > digi-coax > Oade Mod Edirol R44 @ 24/48 > SDHC > Adobe Audition 3.0 > Resample to 16/44.1 > CDWave
Taped by:  Lance Stack

Setlist:
1. Way Downtown
2. Dance Around Ladies
3. Take To the Road
4. A Little Rain
5. The Cuckoo
6. Police
7. Come Up Short
8. How You Make It
9. The Lowlands
10. Revival

A zipfile of the mp3s is available here.
FLAC files can be downloaded as a zipfile here.

After coming through Denver many times to play the Lion’s Lair, Birds and Batteries scored a headlining slot at the Hi-Dive this month.  The band’s upcoming album Panorama is available for pre-sale in LP or CD format via Spune, and hits stores on October 12th.

Birds and Batteries
9.01.2010
Hi-Dive, Denver, CO

Source:  [Microtech Gefell M300’s > Lunatec V3] + [SBD > 1/4″] > Oade Mod Edirol R44 @ 24/48 > SDHC > Adobe Audition 3.0 > Mixdown > Resample to 16/44.1 > CDWave
Taped by:  Lance Stack

Setlist:
1. Lightning
2. The Villain
3. Sneaky Times
4. Strange Kind of Mirror
5. We’re an Industry
6. Squeeze Box
7. Star Clusters
8. Lonely Guns >
9. Out in the Woods
10. A Million People

A zipfile of the mp3s is available here.
FLAC files can be downloaded as a zipfile here.

(Photo by Tim Weilert of Something Like Sound.)

As previously noted, Owen Ashworth is on his last U.S tour ever as Casiotone for the Painfully Alone.  He stopped in Denver last night to serve up one more helping of tunes awash in disappointment, desolation, aspiration, and love. While a little light on early albums (only one song each from Twinkle Echo and Pocket Symphonies), CFTPA nevertheless covered the breadth of a 13 year catalog. Two rare covers also emerged, Christmas in Oakland and John Prine’s Christmas in Prison. Australian trio Otouto backed Owen for most of the show, and also opened with a set of their own material.

Casiotone for the Painfully Alone
9.11.2010
Hi-Dive, Denver, CO

Source:  [Microtech Gefell M300’s > Lunatec V3] + [SBD > 1/4″] > Oade Mod Edirol R44 @ 24/48 > SDHC > Adobe Audition 3.0 > Mixdown > Resample to 16/44.1 > CDWave
Taped by:  Lance Stack

Setlist:
1. intro
2. Harsh the Herald Angels Sing
3. Toby Take A Bow
4. Nashville Parthenon
5. White Corolla
6. Young Shields
7. Tonight Was a Disaster
8. Ice Cream Truck
9. Man o’ War
10. Old Panda Days
11. I Love Creedence
12. New Year’s Kiss
13. Natural Light
14. Christmas in Oakland
15. Christmas In Prison
16. Northfield, MN
17. Killers
18. Cold White Christmas
19. Bobby Malone Moves Home
(Encore)
20. White Jetta
21. Optimist Vs. The Silent Alarm (When The Saints Go Marching In)
22. White on White

Notes:
OTOUTO played as Owen’s backing band.

A zipfile of the mp3s is available here.
FLAC files can be found via BitTorrent at Dime.

Vitamins were lying low for most of the summer, but returned in August and September with plenty of new jams.  All but two of the tracks below are unreleased!  The band’s last studio EP, Songs For Stem Cells, can be downloaded from Amazon and iTunes, or picked up in physical form at Twist and Shout.

Vitamins
9.01.2010
Hi-Dive, Denver, CO

Source:  [Microtech Gefell M300’s > Lunatec V3] + [SBD > 1/4″] > Oade Mod Edirol R44 @ 24/48 > SDHC > Adobe Audition 3.0 > Mixdown > Resample to 16/44.1 > CDWave
Taped by:  Lance Stack

Setlist:
1. Track #01
2. Annual Bi-Centennial
3. Track #03
4. A Fear Of Rattles
5. Track #05
6. Track #06
7. Track #07

A zipfile of the mp3s is available here.
FLAC files can be downloaded as a zipfile here.

(Photo by Tom Murphy via Westword.)

With the level of chatter present on this recording, I had decided to shelve it.  But someone mentioned wanting a copy the other day, so here’s Damon and Naomi opening for A Hawk and a Hacksaw last fall.

Damon and Naomi
10.16.2009
Hi-Dive, Denver, CO

Source:  Microtech Gefell M300’s > Lunatec V3 > digi-coax > Oade Mod Edirol R-44 @ 24/48 > Adobe Audition 3.0 > Resample to 16/44.1 > CDWave
Taped by:  Lance Stack

Setlist:
1. intro
2. Song to the Siren
3. Eye of the Storm
4. Ueno Station
5. Lilac Land
6. New York City
7. Turn of the Century
8. I’m Yours
9. Bird on a Wire [Leonard Cohen]

A zipfile of the mp3s is available here.
FLAC files can be found via BitTorrent at Dime.

Of the four CD releases in Denver on this particular night, I was only able to capture the Safe Boating is No Accident show.  Filled with therapy, conspiracy theories, (staged) fights and more, this show was quite a spectacle!  The band invited Yuzo Nieto (Pink Hawks, Pee-Pee) to play saxophone on several songs, and finished out the night with a nod to Pee-Pee, who would be playing their last show on the following night.

Safe Boating is No Accident
9.03.2010
Hi-Dive, Denver, CO

Source:  [Microtech Gefell M300’s > Lunatec V3] + [SBD > 1/4″] > Oade Mod Edirol R44 @ 24/48 > SDHC > Adobe Audition 3.0 > Mixdown > Resample to 16/44.1 > CDWave
Taped by:  Lance Stack

Setlist:
1. soundcheck (Two States)
2. therapeutic intro
3. Theme from Broken Window Song *
4. Boom Boom *
5. Song is Colour Blue *
6. I Will Be Surprised
7. tech problems/banter
8. I’ve Been All Around This World
9. Satyr’s Day Parade
10. Ladyfriend Waltz > “Breakup 2 Makeup” > Ladyfriend Waltz
11. Libertines *
12. Tiny Little Universe
13. Who Will Marry You?
(Encore)
14. banter/crowd
15. Over That Hill [Pee Pee]

Notes:
* = with Yuzo Nieto on saxaphone
EP release party for “Isn’t it Fun?”

A zipfile of the mp3s is available here.
FLAC files can be downloaded as a zipfile here.

(Photo by ultimate engineering badass Tim Weilert.)

Special thanks to John and Rose from KGNU, and also Airshow, for covering the bases and capturing most of Friday-night’s Hi-Dive shows at UMS last year, including this performance by The Wheel!  (I was occupied at Michelangelo’s and Rule Gallery that evening.) Both audience and board versions have been provided below…note that the board feed suffers from occasional distortion.

The Wheel
7.24.2009
Hi-Dive, Denver Post Underground Music Showcase, Denver, CO

Audience Source:  Oktava MK-012’s > Edirol R-09HR > Adobe Audition 3.0 > CDWave
Taped by:  John Schaefer and Rose Brunning

Setlist:
1. unknown
2. unknown
3. Whimper and Wail
4. Boil and Fight
5. Brakeman
6. A Lamb on the Stone
7. You Should’ve Seen the Other Guy
8. Once in a Great While
9. Early Spring Till
10. Laughing
11. Pounds and Pounds

A zipfile of the audience mp3s is available here.
Audience FLAC files can be downloaded as a zipfile here.

SBD Source:  SBD > ? > WAV > Adobe Audition 3.0 > CDWave
Board Feed Provided by:  Airshow Mastering

Setlist:
1. unknown
2. unknown
3. Whimper and Wail
4. Boil and Fight
5. Brakeman
6. A Lamb on the Stone
7. You Should’ve Seen the Other Guy
8. Once in a Great While
9. Early Spring Till
10. Laughing
11. Pounds and Pounds

A zipfile of the SBD mp3s is available here.
SBD FLAC files can be downloaded as a zipfile here.

(Photo by Christopher Kuehl.)

It’s hard to get anyone out to the Hi-Dive at 8:30, so those in attendance for this set were mostly friends and family.  The sparse turnout didn’t impede Caleb Slade, who staged a stellar performance.  In fact, this intimate setting was a perfect complement to Caleb’s personal lyrics.

Caleb Slade
8.05.2010
Hi-Dive, Denver, CO

Source:  Microtech Gefell M300’s > Lunatec V3 > digi-coax > Oade Mod Edirol R44 @ 24/48 > SDHC > Adobe Audition 3.0 > Resample to 16/44.1 > CDWave
Taped by:  Lance Stack

Setlist (unknown song titles noted in quotes):
1. (intro)
2. “Always on My Mind”
3. Given A Chance
4. “Come On”
5. “Shook and Stirred”
6. Andrew and Valentine
7. “Sure as Hell”
8. “Hurting You”
9. (Gavrilo Princip intro)
10. “Country and Blood”

A zipfile of the mp3s is available here.
FLAC files can be downloaded as a zipfile here.

200 Million Years
7.17.2010
Hi-Dive, Denver, CO

Source:  [Microtech Gefell M300’s > Lunatec V3] + [SBD > 1/4″] > Oade Mod Edirol R44 @ 24/48 > SDHC > Adobe Audition 3.0 > Mixdown > Resample to 16/44.1 > CDWave
Taped by:  Lance Stack

Setlist:
1. Tokyo Daydream
2. Ma
3. Watched It All Just Happen
4. Head in the Clouds
5. Brain Body Disconnect
6. Mouth Like Metal

Notes:
Opening for the Dualistics CD release.

A zipfile of the mp3s is available here.
FLAC files can be downloaded as a zipfile here.

Highlighting songs from the recently released Indulgent Space​-​Folk Vol. 3: Binary Beach, along with other new material, the Outer-Space Party Unit was in fine form opening for the Dualistics’ CD Release.

Mike Marchant’s Outer-Space Party Unit
7.17.2010
Hi-Dive, Denver, CO

Source:  [Microtech Gefell M300’s > Lunatec V3] + [SBD > 1/4″] > Oade Mod Edirol R44 @ 24/48 > SDHC > Adobe Audition 3.0 > Mixdown > Resample to 16/44.1 > CDWave
Taped by:  Lance Stack

Setlist:
1. Left You Cause I Loved You
2. Canon City
3. Steps into Shadows
4. Surround Me
5. Collide, Ride On
6. Brief Encounters After Hours
7. Mexico
8. Moonshining >
9. In Heaven
10. Broadcast Light

A zipfile of the mp3s is available here.
FLAC files can be downloaded as a zipfile here.

The Lumineers‘ Wes and Jeremiah teamed up with Neyla Pekarek after relocating to Colorado at the beginning of the year, and the trio has been captivating Denver audiences ever since.  While still relatively unknown, every show they play brings new fans, as evidenced by the many positive comments I heard from folks while chatting at the UMS.  Tyler Despres joins the band on several songs here, but the affair should come as no surprise:  his appearances with the Lumineers are becoming a frequent occurrence.

The Lumineers
7.16.2010
Hi-Dive, Denver, CO

Source:  [Microtech Gefell M300’s > Lunatec V3] + [SBD > 1/4″] > Oade Mod Edirol R44 @ 24/48 > SDHC > Adobe Audition 3.0 > Mixdown > Resample to 16/44.1 > CDWave
Taped by:  Lance Stack

Setlist:
1. Elowese
2. Life in the City
3. Scotland
4. Sleep on the Floor
5. Flowers in Your Hair
6. Morning Song
7. Hey, Ho
8. Submarines
9. Stubborn Love
(Encore)
10. Gun Song

A zipfile of the mp3s is available here.
FLAC files can be downloaded as a zipfile here.

After a six-month break from performing, Dualistics returned to the Hi-Dive this month to celebrate their brand new Crimson EP.  Crimson is undeniably addictive, with lyrical hooks and guitar riffs that will have you singing along on the second play.  Don’t go in expecting this release to break new ground, or you’ll be disappointed.  But if you’re in the market for some great rock tunes, give the album a free listen and then purchase it from the band’s BC page.

What impressed me most at the show is how tight these guys are playing together, despite their infrequent performances.  Vocals have also improved substantially over the past year, no doubt a result of the various solo/side projects pursued by the band members.

Bassist Jimmy Stofer and drummer Nathan Barnes will be heavily involved with Rose Hill Drive this fall, so Dualistics shows will continue to be a rarity.  The next time they do appear on a bill, don’t pass on an opportunity to attend.

Dualistics
7.17.2010
Hi-Dive, Denver, CO

Source:  [Microtech Gefell M300’s > Lunatec V3] + [SBD > 1/4″] > Oade Mod Edirol R44 @ 24/48 > SDHC > Adobe Audition 3.0 > Mixdown > Resample to 16/44.1 > CDWave
Taped by:  Lance Stack

Setlist:
1. The Optimist
2. Sleight of Hand
3. Pure Sorcery
4. Sabbatical
5. Unique (Like Everyone Else)
6. Only Way To Stay (Fan Out)
7. End of the World
8. Taking the Time
9. Man-Made Army
10. Get It On
11. Last Call
(Encore)
12. Scentless Apprentice

A zipfile of the mp3s is available here.
FLAC files can be downloaded as a zipfile here.