“Da ya still think I’m sexy? No seriousy, da ya?” Photos by Mark Osler.
Rod Stewart needs no introduction, but the Rod Stewart of 2009 is a far cry from the devil-may-care Faces frontman of the early ’70s. From bluesy rock to solo disco to adult contemporary covers and most everything in between, the Raspy One has seen it all throughout his career, and the throngs that showed up to hear him sing the Great America Songbook at Fiddler’s Green Amphitheatre on Thursday, with Australian pretty [...]

Black Francis wanted nothing less than perfection for his Wednesday night set at the Walnut Room — and the audience ate it up. Photo from BlackFrancis.net.
Black Francis — a.k.a. Frank Black, a.k.a. the leader of alt- and indie heroes the Pixies — is a storyteller. His ability to thread a yarn through rambling, surrealist lyrics is only exceeded by his talent in wrangling pure and simple rock that’s a worthy backdrop for them. Last Wednesday night, Black spent over two hours regaling a packed Walnut [...]

Vetiver’s Andy Cabic entranced the crowd at the Bluebird Theater on Tuesday. Photos by Lindsay McWilliams.
San Francisco’s Vetiver, an indie-folk act that’s been stirring up a lot of buzz lately with its live show, stopped by the Bluebird Theater on Tuesday to play songs from its recent Sub Pop full-length, among others. Lilting melodies and frequently propulsive — but never aggressive — rhythms adorn the multi-layered, usually acoustic-driven songs, easily winning over Reverb contributing photographer Lindsay McWilliams. Check out her photo essay of the evening [...]

John Doe, of legendary punk band X, and the Sadies took a trip back in time at the Lion’s Lair on Tuesday. Photo from the band’s MySpace profile.
From the first plea in their opening cover of Waylon Jennings’ “Stop the World and Let Me Off,” you could feel that last Tuesday night’s set from John Doe and the Sadies at the Lion’s Lair would be remarkable. Doe joined with the Canadian alt-country quintet that night for an evening filled with classic country covers and a [...]

Hot Rize performed as one dozens of folk, bluegrass, roots and Americana-oriented performers at the 37th annual Rockygrass Festival in Lyons last Friday-Sunday. Photos by Brian Carney.
There’s nothing quite like pulling up to the Planet Bluegrass Ranch in Lyons on a hot July day, making your way onto the grounds and stepping into the St. Vrain River for cooling wade while excellent musicians deliver the goods on the stage, filling the air with a brilliant musicianship, classic and new songs alike.

Phish at Red Rocks, July 30, 2009. Photos by John Leyba, The Denver Post

They look the same. Mike’s still got the five-string bass and the graying hair helmet. Trey still stares slack-jawed through his fire-red mop while chasing elusive jams. Fishman and Page look just as they did a decade ago, maybe minus some hair. But something about Phish is different this time around.
The band’s first set Thursday at Red Rocks in 13 years saw an older, wiser band, taking their time and [...]

We’ve edited down the more than 1,000 UMS photos submitted to us from our team of shooters at the 2009 Denver Post Underground Music Showcase. Many, like the one above shot by Evan Semon, haven’t been posted before. To see what we came up with, Click here
Also, look for a two-page spread of UMS photos in the Denver Post’s upcoming Sunday, Aug. 2 A&E section.
Also, to see all the videos we’ve posted from the UMS to date, http://www.denverpost.com/music/ci_12908918

Last Eyes was one of the many acts at last weekend’s excellent Titwrench Festival. Photos by Tina Hagerling.
Last weekend was a busy one in Denver. In addition to The UMS, which included 200-plus acts in 20 venues over four days, kids were throwing down at another Denver festival called Titwrench.
The organizers call it a “D.I.Y., all-ages, lady-centered experimental music and arts fest,” and we’re hearing great things about it already. Reverb’s Tina Hagerling stopped into Rhinoceropolis to catch some of the action.

The Wallflowers rocked the Denver Botanic Gardens last week. Photos by Lewis Cooper.

Jakob Dylan is known for many things. He’s the son of Bob Dylan. He often wears great, round-rimmed hats. And he fronts the soft-rock band the Wallflowers.

Extreme hasn’t lost a step, as the aging rock band proved at the Ogden Theatre last week. Photos by Tina Hagerling.
By David Gannon
I’m going to have some very disappointed friends. They are going to be kicking themselves in the asses of their acid-washed ’80s jeans for not accepting my invitation to see the Extreme/Ratt “East Meets West” show at the Ogden Theatre. That’s right. They missed a kick-ass show. Kinda.