Ah, the mile-high capital of Colorado. There’s some pretty magical music being made up in those clouds. There are so many artists in the Denver area we love, but here are five who’ve been flooring us.
1. The Still Tide
The project of Anna Morsett. The former Brooklyn-based, now Denver homed artist makes some mighty fine music, which you can get a sense of through her full band performance of “Grow Again”. When the song starts, it almost feels like it bloomed—subtle and effortless, then somehow suddenly wide open and vibrant.
2. LVDY
Kathleen Hooper and Aubrey Mable make up LVDY (pronounced “lady”), a power duo creating loose, feel-good folk music peppered with bright harmonies. “Dust” is a song they wrote inspired by Burning Man. The cyclical number keeps building until around the 3 minute mark, when the vocals really find their strength.
3. YaSi
The Denver-based, first generation American artist creates self-described existential bops that balance Western and Eastern influences, coming together in songs like “Pink Caddy”. The song is a sultry pop number that just cruises with a steady pulse, driven by YaSi’s incredible voice.
4. Kayla Marque
We really can’t decide what we love more, Kayla Marque’s earnest pop, or her commitment to bolstering communities on so many levels. There are some really cool versions of her track “Villain” out there, but we’re partial to this stripped down solo Sofar version.
5. Brianna Straut
We’ll leave you here with the remarkable sounds of Brianna Straut, who makes the kind of Americana rootsy songs that feel like digging your feet into fresh tilled dirt, carefree and connected to something much deeper. It feels like a lot to embody, but the artist just does it, especially in her Sofar performance of “Hallelujah Chords,” which moves like a freight train, strong and steady.
Photo credit: YaSi, photo by Nikki A. Rae
