Starting the year on a high note

I'm finally catching up, now that February's almost over. So, despite losing our drummer last-minute, we carried on and had a fun and great show at the Mercury Cafe on December 10 and closed out 2022 with a bang. Not only that, but directly because of that show, we found a great new drummer! I think the day after, Zack messaged me after hearing about our opening from Manic Moon's drummer, Alex. To be honest, losing our (first) drummer left a...

Ending the year on a high note

As I mentioned in my previous post, which I published just an hour ago, Desert Atlas briefly played as a trio for the Lafayette Music Fest in October. A month later, we were invited to play at the venerable Mercury Cafe, a Denver institution, with Manic Moon and Chariots & Charioteers. The full indie spectrum! I was excited. It would be our first show in a Denver performance space as a full band—we couldn't have chosen a better venue....

Fall 2022 Recap

Ugh. Keeping a website up to date is hard work. Not really, but I haven't been doing it very well. But better late than never, so I'll try to put down for the record the stuff that happened in autumn of last year. First, though, one last thing from August: I played at the awesome Cannon Mine Coffee: October 8 was a busy day for Desert Atlas. That morning, we had the pleasure of playing a unique venue as part of the Lafayette Music Festival: The...

That time I played TEDxMileHigh

August seems so long ago, but it's only been a couple of months. Well, nearly three. Summer's over, the days are cooler, and I'm finally sharing my experience playing TEDxMileHigh: Reconnect. It was wonderful. Everyone I met was gracious and kind: the organizers and volunteers, performers and speakers, the attendees I met while sitting at my merch table and during the after party. It was a thrill to have my own dressing room at the Ellie...

Big news: 100 percent more Desert Atlas!

Desert Atlas played at Moe's Original Bar B Que in Englewood this past Friday, June 24. Some notable things about the show: 1000 Times played with well-deserved confidence beyond their years (they looked pretty young to this dude)The Stephen Lear Band ripped it up and brought SRV vibesDug the indie edge from Max's Mirror (and their Godzilla video background)Desert Atlas is now twice the size! Friday marked the debut show of drummer...

Enigma Bazaar is an incredible spot

Here's another show recap long after the fact. Ah, well. On Friday, May 27, I was fortunate enough to be part of a great (coincidentally all-Asian-led?) lineup of musicians at Enigma Bazaar on West 38th Avenue in Denver. It's described as a "mystical, immersive arts bar and performance venue, serving innovative, fresh, seasonal cocktails and a 100% from scratch Latin-inspired menu ... home to all kinds of artistic expressions from live music,...

Catching Up: Bobcat Club at the Skylark

I was really excited to learn earlier this year the the Skylark Lounge was reopening, and with Nathaniel Rateliff as part of the ownership group! I'd played there as a drummer in previous bands, and also enjoyed playing pool upstairs. And generally enjoyed the vintage decor. There's fewer billiard tables now, but the upstairs has been transformed into an amazing performance space -- the Bobcat Club. I had the pleasure May 6 of playing there...

Confession

I usually get a bit anxious when I perform. The day of a show, I'll wake up way too early (like 4 a.m.), feel sick and tired all day, ask why I keep doing this to myself, then recover just in time to get up on stage perform. Then, I love it. I have a great time up there. I feel even better afterward, just a bit euphoric if I feel like I played well. Anyway, I've been really terrible about updating the site. I recently played a couple of shows...

Another Mutiny …

show, I mean. This past Sunday, I had the absolute pleasure of listening to some great music and meeting some very lovely people: Fort Collins' Nathaniel Riley and Distance Walk, who on this evening were Barry Osborne on banjo, Niki Tredinnick on clarinet, and Olivia Shaw on fiddle. Some photos:

Show me the shows!

On August 7, I played an hourlong set at City Park Farmers Market in Denver. You might remember that the air quality was quite bad for several days there, which makes singing over a stretch of time quite rough. And I'm not a morning person to begin with Still, I had a great time! Even got some complimentary coffee and breakfast burritos out of the deal. View this post on Instagram A post shared by desert atlas (@desertatlasmusic) But I'm not...