It’s not easy fitting three bands into a 1,000 square foot, 1-bedroom row house. We found this out on a recent balmy night when BackForty Presents hosted The Western Front, The Wandering Bears and Spirits of the Red City at s00kr33m’s.
Spirits of the Red City (SOTRC) were the first band to show up. When I greeted them as they pulled up to s00kr33m’s I was amazed that they could actually fit 8 band members and all of their equipment in their van and trailer. They piled out of the car and milled on the shady flagstone for a bit, smoking cigs and decompressing after a longish stint in the van. Eventually instruments were set up in the back yard and a late evening practice session floated through open windows. The Western Front and The Wandering Bears showed up shortly after to set up, and we all had a big pasta dinner to fortify ourselves for the evening to come.
Friends began arriving around 7:30, and by 8:00 the apartment was just the right amount of full. It was time to start the show.
The Western Front is comprised of three bands members, David, Mitch and Drew. They usually play with a full electronic setup, but because of the small space they kindly pared it down to a small drum set, keyboard, electric bass and acoustic guitar. In between the songs the band would ask each other how they wanted to play the songs or if they thought a song would work with such a minimal rig. But, it didn’t matter. Their set was energetic and poppy like Orville Redenbacher, and it set a lovely tone for the night.
The Wandering Bears came on next, which meant Sarah and Sam joined David, Mitch and Drew. I was taken aback by the group’s energy and enthusiasm after being on tour for so long. You could tell they really enjoyed what they did. There was hand clamping, foot stamping, yelping and hollering in everyone of their songs, and Sarah and Sam intertwined it all with beautifully harmonized vocals.
The room was really starting to heat up when the end of their set marked intermission. Everyone headed to the backyard to cool off. Drinks were flowing and late comers were greeted with happy shouts.
Its hard to fully verbalize what happened next, when Spirits of the Red City came on to play. Maybe it was the heat, or the whiskey, or the plethora of instruments and musicianship packed into our small living room, but the big, communal sound of SOTRC instantly filled the high ceilings of our old row house with a certain kind of magic. The lead singer, Will Garrison, led the group through wailing, rambling, aching folk songs, peppered with haunting strings and joyous vocals. We all sat on transfixed.
By the end of the night, I felt like we had all lived through a whole lifetime together. We were sweaty drunk on the music and the magic and the new friends we had all made with each other. Even a visit from the local cop on the beat couldn’t thwart some late night sing a longs, and an impromptu performance by one of our favorite Denver acts these days, Pollination Population.
All in all, we want to thank all three bands and all of our friends who came out and reminded us how beautiful things can be. Looking forward to the next time around.
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