A caravan of local acts is headed to Denver this weekend as part of a San Francisco-specific concert at Underground Music Showcase.
This epic show results from the dream of Joe Markert, lead singer of Cure For Gravity. After two years performing at UMS with snowballing success, the SF-based band imagined they could make this single-act effort into a full-blown celebration of the thriving and diverse Bay Area music scene. Pitching the Denver music festival as SXSW in its earlier days, Markert caught the ear of other local acts looking to get in on the ground floor of the growing fest.
Featuring over 400 artists, UMS is quickly becoming something of a West by Midwest and is the biggest independent fest in the Rocky Mountain area. With the help of Prize Fighter Record’s Fred Hausman, Cure For Gravity has collected an eclectic mix of talented Bay Area artists to crack into the festival with a Recording Academy and Balanced Breakfast-sponsored showcase. With chapters of both organizations in Denver and San Francisco, the Recording Academy and Balanced Breakfast are pleased to present this 5-hour showcase of talented and unique acts that show the diverse sounds of the Bay Area.
Featuring acts Beautiful Machines, Cure for Gravity, Unlikely Heroes, D. Edward, and Drea.M the sounds range Alternative Rock to R&B/Soul, to Hip-Hop/Punk, to Live Electronic and everything in between. You can catch their performances at the Skylark Lounge on July 31st from 12 PM – 5 PM followed by a Recording Academy mixer from 5 PM – 8 PM. Along with the climactic gig, the troupe will be making stops in Reno, Salt Lake City, Boulder, and finishing it up with a celebratory return show in San Francisco. Whether you’re in the San Francisco Bay Area or in our sister city of Denver, these musicians aren’t to be missed!
Details for the UMS Bay Area Music Showcase:
Date: Sunday, July 31st, 2016
Address: The Skylark Lounge 140 S. Broadway Denver, CO 80209
Admission: Free
Age Limit: 21+
Showcase: 12 PM – 5 PM
Recording Academy Mixer: 5 PM – 8 PM
Details for Artists:
Beautiful Machines is comprised of a diverse group of musicians. Founder, Conrad Schuman is an american songwriter, vocalist, & guitarist who experiments and infuses his pan-music study into his songwriting. Philosophical-leaning, he writes lyrics & music about waking up as a society, reclaiming our power as free & creative beings, & about transcending the current out-of-balance humanity to embrace a more coherent & harmonious future. Having toured Europe, Veil-Matti Matilla is a Finnish DIY drummer and programmer who designs and builds his own unique electronic drum kits & band visuals. Stef Ku is a Taiwan-American classically trained keyboardist, avant-garde soundscapist, & professional sound healer. Beautiful, intricate, technical & euphoric music, an amazing light show, & inspiring live energy makes beautiful Machines a band worth exploring deeply.
Cure For Gravity finds comfort in playing to a rare world and it’s listening, inhabitants. The trio of Joe Markert, Chris Gamper, & Dave Walcott delivers an entrancing amalgam of atmospheric synth/alt rock that is cinematic in nature. They use an eclectic blend of electronic and live elements to untether you from this world and transport you into the audio landscape of their own design. At times they invoke the Cars or Pink Floyd, but with a fast forward taste of more recent groups like Porcupine Tree, Elbow or Feist.
Unlikely Heroes are a Hip Hop/Punk Rock band from San Francisco, Ca. Fronted by Oakland artist, phenomENON, this eclectic group are synthesizing Hip-Hop and Punk with beats and melody that are fresh, exciting, and long waited for. Boasting with high energy, venue rocking jams, they also find balance with spacey, vibe-y anthems to create a well-rounded experience and depth in their art form. These Heroes truly cater to their “more than meets the eye” appeal. Aesthetically, they are a diverse group with a range of cultural and musical backgrounds. Sonically, they are insane Hip-Rockers that can cater to any crowd or venue without losing their Star Power in translation.
D. Edward is an award-winning Pop/Soul singer, songwriter, multi-instrumentalist. His music features catchy hooks and grooves with a familiar yet unique modern pop and retro soul sound. He has the ability to sound different on different songs yet keep his own style.
He won the 2016 Indie Music Channel Award for Best R&B Producer and was nominated for a 2015 Hollywood Music in Media Award, Oakland Indie Award and contributed to a Latin Grammy-nominated album “Adelante” by Lucky Diaz and the Family Jam Band for Best Children’s Album and he also won the 2014 Oaktown Indie Mayhem People’s Choice Award.
His music videos have been featured on Magic Johnson’s Aspire TV network, MTV.com, CMT.com and SonicCentric TV on Roku. He is currently featured in Shine on Hollywood Magazine and his video “Hold On” is featured on broadcast TV around the USA on the Indie Music Cafe .
Drea.M commands the heart to listen. With soulful grit, haunting vocals, and enchanting live performances (using live vocal looping to build mood and melody), this indie noir songstress entices the listener into a world of lush imagery and unveiled emotion. Reminiscent of Tori Amos, Fiona Apple, and Imogen Heap, her music ranges from multi-instrumental acoustic arrangements to the more recent incorporation of orchestral layers and big-sound beats. While her style is expanding, what continues to drive her music is an atmospheric and intricately textured sound, and a dark-edged honesty about what it means to be vulnerable, powerful, and profoundly alive.
