Northwest Denver Folk Festival

Denver’s Chimney Choir is a collaboration of three seasoned and distinctive voices in Colorado music. Multi-instrumentalists Kevin Larkin (mandolin, harmonica, accordion, sampling), David Rynhart (Guitar, flute, piano) and Kris Drickey (banjo, guitar, percussion) combine dynamic vocal harmonies, epic arrangements and imaginative lyrics into their songwriting. An impromptu tour of the South in the fall of 2010 formed an instant musical synergy, leading Larkin to relocate to Denver soon after. The trio has been refining their sound in performances throughout the Southwest.

Ark Life's Jesse Elliott is well aware of the snags in the road. He's driven over all of the bumps and the holes that have worked themselves into formerly smooth surfaces. He's driven over them at great speeds, banging into their bellies with cringe-inducing knocks. He's aware of the jokers and the mimics. He's found the fakes - or they've found him. He's put himself in the den of temptations and he's been dazzled by the mundane. He's given himself over to the urges that come from some place that never thinks anything through and he's glad to have done so.

On a hiatus from These United States - one of the hardest working bands of recent times, Elliott has relocated to Denver, Colorado, and has cooked up a band to present stories that are more domestic in nature. They're stories that are indebted to years and years of foraging, or drifting around, of sleeping on floors, of missing out, of living it up, of feeling shitty and exhilarated all in the same day/same hour, of wasting time, of finding love, losing love and not recognizing it. They are stories that have come out of him after all of these years of exhausted eyes, all of the dancing on the blade of a knife (as he refers to it), plenty of rainy and wet days (one of them in wine country) and more than enough reasons to do it all over again and more than enough reasons to say to hell with it and stay in forever and for always.

Ark Life songs are what happens when you slap yourself a little bit, when you've come undone and then seen the makings of what might put the seams back in where they need to be. This recognition leads to something that many would recognize as renewal, but there's a recognition that it could lead back to some of those divots and another undoing. Elliott sings, "I gave you so much time to love me/Gonna have to leave you now," on the song, "Have To Leave You Now," thanking the one-to-be-ditched for the "crow's feet marching valleys to my brow," accepting the aged aggravation that's been caused. He continues, singing, "I can't be carrying on to the blue dawn repeating the same sad sounds," hinting that there's a chance to experience more than what he's been taking.

"Hello L-O-V-E" is the song here that ties it all together, that gives a glimpse of what's going to happen now. With three lovely lady voices (coming from Anna Morsett, Natalie Tate and Lindsay Giles -- along with drums from Ben DeSoto) singing soulful harmonies, we see that depreciation to quality of life is always subjective. It's always about what someone's willing to take or willing to accept. Here, once again, love is a culprit, a real twister, and it turns out that it's what's been desired all along, even when it's a damned mess.

The Haunted Windchimes sound draws from traditional folk and American roots music. The songs have a vintage quality, as if they might have been written yesterday or 75 years ago. Grounded in honeyed harmonies and spirited pickin’, it lies in a nowhere land between distinct styles: It’s not quite bluegrass or blues or country. Still, there are elements of all those in songs that paint pictures of empty train stations and nights of passing a jug of moonshine around. It’s the vocal harmonies that really set them apart, a three-headed juggernaut of Desirae Garcia (ukulele), Chela Lujan (banjo) and Inaiah Lujan (guitar). “When their voices blend, it is nothing short of beautiful,” writes Bill Reed of The Colorado Springs Gazette. The sound is often moody and melancholy, but it is always deeply affecting. That sound is embroidered by the instrumental mastery of Mike Clark (harmonica, guitar and mandolin) and the standup bass foundation of Sean Fanning.

On the group’s 2006 debut EP “Verse/Visa”, The Haunted Windchimes presented what Denver Post journalist, Eryc Eyl, called “a beautiful chamber pop sound.” However, with 2010’s “Honey Moonshine,” the band “perfected an old-timey hoedown sound, executed with passion and precision.” Last May, the band released “Live at the Western Jubilee,” a celebration of its career so far. Recorded in December 2010 at the Western Jubilee Warehouse, a legendary Colorado Springs venue, the record’s 13 tracks capture the five musicians in peak form in front of an appreciative audience.

Known locally as an exceptional singer-songwriter, Joe has been playing bass with Bad Weather California while working on his solo music.

From the Rocky Mountains of Colorado, Gora Gora Orkestar brings an eclectic mix of gypsy roma and american brass band music. Our sound ranges from traditional folk dances to powerful vocal ballads.

The tiny hamlet of Manitou Springs, Colorado sits just below the soaring heights of Pikes Peak. A place frequented by thousands of tourists each year, it is a mecca for flatlanders and southerners longing for the cool mountain air and the remarkable views. It is also a haven for gifted songwriters and musicians. Among the most capable of these writers is Conor Bourgal, who along with his twin brother, Ian, and an interchangeable ensemble of musicians, form a group called the Changing Colors.They are a band that sings of longing and beauty, hope and regret. Their latest album, Ghost of Red Mountain takes its entire theme from the legendary story of Manitou resident Emma Crawford. Sometime in the early 1900's Crawford’s coffin was washed down onto Main Street from it’s perch above town on Red Mountain. The story is the source of Manitou’s biggest festival – the internationally renowned Emma Crawford Coffin Races held each Halloween. Bourgal chose to look beyond the gothic story and to bring a hardscrabble pioneer woman’s life to light.

"Grant Sabin is unquestionably one of the hardest working musicians around, playing with abandon at large and small venues throughout Colorado and beyond. As a solo artist Grant has captivated audiences for years with his raw voice, intense stage presence, and one-man band approach to creating music with slide guitar, harmonica, and stomp box. As a band leader, Grant turns the volume up to 11. The Grant Sabin Band includes, Alex Koshak (Flumps, Sugar Sounds, Briffaut) on Drums, and Sam Erickson (We Are Not A Glum Lot, Briffaut) on 2nd Guitar. Grant Sabin's Musical delivery comes from the heart and has earned him the respect of fans and fellow musicians alike."

- Steve Harris (KRCC)

With each of Brian Molnar & the Naked Heart's last 3 albums peaking out over fixtures of their genre on radio play charts all around the country, it would not be surprising to have an overwhelming feeling of comfort and familiarity when experiencing their music for the first time. For nearly a decade Brian Molnar has been carrying his acoustic guitar and wrought melodies back and forth across the United States connecting audiences with a feeling of American tradition and unique thoughtfulness that has been too often diluted in recent memory. Now with a full supporting band behind him, sharing the stage with contemporaries such as Ralph Stanley, Chris Hillman, Bernie Worrell, Garth Hudson, and Neal Cassal, it seems that a genuine Americana resurgence is upon us, with each new Naked Hearts' release setting its tone.

Brian Molnar's newest release "Of the Fall" spent 4 weeks standing strong at #1 on the World Wide Roots 66 chart, and remains in the top 10 nearly 4 months after it’s release. The band's prior live record "Miss You" hit #7 on the Roots Music Report chart in NY, and #36 country-wide, while the band's previous studio work "Temperance & the Devil" peaked at #27 on AMA (Americana) chart, and #9 on the FAR radio chart in Europe and USA. With such a promising track record and constant live appearances by Molnar with and without the Naked Hearts, the sky is the limit, and makes Brian Molnar a name to remember in the coming years

"...they continue to push the boundaries of Americana in sound and spirit beyond what has become an ossification too frequent in the form."

-Chris Spectre, Midwest Record, on "Of the Fall"

“The Naked Hearts play Roots Country with conviction… the band demonstrates a thorough understanding of what it takes to make authentic music.” 

-Steven Stone Vintage Guitar Magazine on "Of the Fall" 

"Treading the midnight highway dividing line between country and the Ash Grove, he evokes a turning point just before everything changed and too much got lost."

-Mark S. Tucker, Fame, on "Of the Fall"

"Just when you have had your fill of artists who can obtain a great studio-produced sound, but lack luster onstage (or downright "suck, live"), or in a parallel universe deliver showmanship and power in concert whilst never being able to focus and produce a decent studio record, here is a band that thankfully can capture both."

-Torchy Blaine, WDVR FM, on "Miss You"

"Molnar and The Naked Hearts show enough talent to suggest they can, and will I am sure, go on from here —since the core of the music (ever tastefully produced) and Molnar’s story-telling vocal style is compelling."

-Maurice Hope, Americana UK, on "Temperance.."

Patrick Dethlefs

Only in his early 20s, Patrick Dethlefs is one of folk music's rising stars. in 2009, Patrick won the Best Teen Songwriter Award from the Swallow Hill Music association and has been gathering accolades ever since. In 2012 he released his full length album "Fall and Rise".

Martin Gilmore

There are many sides to Martin Gilmore. His bluegrass band Long Road Home is a mainstay in the Rocky Mountain region and has toured Nationally and internationally. The Bimarinal, brings rock and roll to stages along Colorado's front range, and Martin's solo projects are both moving and informative. As a teacher, Martin has given seminars and workshops at bluegrass festivals, public schools and colleges, as well as presentations for the National Park Service. He is amongst the faculty at Swallow Hill Music Association's music school and teaches privately as well. His self titled solo record was released in 2009. 

Martin and Patrick met at the Olde Town Pickn' Parlor in 2008.

Dr. Harlan's Amazing Bluegrass Tonic provides a mixture of classic, contemporary, and original bluegrass music that is specially formulated to cure all your ailments! In just a couple short years, the band has developed a strong following across Colorado with creative arrangements, sharp vocal harmonies, and solid original songwriting. When you need a quick pick-me-up, come try a taste of the good doctor's tonic!

Mickey Bakas and Emily Hobbs met living in the same apartment building on Capitol Hill, in Denver. Their building can be found on a block, known famously as "Poet's Row;" all of the buildings are named after authors. It only seemed natural to name their harmony-laden, simplistic acoustic indie-folk after where they met and started what has now become a successful project for the both of them.

Heavily influenced by an extremely wide array of musical styles, Poet's Row has carved a unique place for themselves in the Denver music scene.

 http://poetsrow.bandcamp.com/

Kansas City born singer-songwriter Al Trout has worn a number of different hats over the course of his colorful music career. He's been a rock-a-billy crooner, a jugband jazzbo, a bawdy blues busker, and a gothic western balladeer. On his current endeavor, he dumps his entire musical past into one pot, letting all the flavors mingle, and then serves it up lone-wolf-style as a bona fide one-man-band. Armed with a resonator guitar, a unique, foot-powered drum kit, and a sonorous baritone, Al Trout belts out his own authentic brand of mongrel Americana with vigor and aplomb.