Wednesday, November 26, 2008

Thanksgiving, ought eight

Diamonds,

For you, our friends, we give thanks this Thanksgiving. Truly, we would not be here without you. Together we are shaping up to be a brilliant and multi-faceted community.

And speaking of Diamonds, did you hear that Ivana Trump was briefly married to Neil Diamond? She then became Ivana Diamond. Which is pretty funny. But they got divorced shortly afterward because Ivana was having an affair with the golfer Jack Nicholas! After the messy divorce Ivana quickly married Jack. She then changed her name to Ivana Diamond Nicholas. Ba dum bum.

That may have been unnecessary. But this isn't. Hazel Miller, Denver's queen of the blues and first lady of soul, is having a Thanksgiving special at the D Note. We can't think of a better person to bring the spirit of the holiday to the D. If you have family visiting this will be a perfect time to show off your favorite pizza joint. $12

Saturday night we have Taiko-n-Tunes playing at 6pm. Free. Traditional Taiko drumming. Then at 8pm we have an old time rock and roll band called the UUrhythmics for your dancing pleasure. $5.

For the rest of the schedule click on the D

Power up,

D-stablishmentarians

Extra Credit: There are a few new folks on the d-mail list. Welcome. This is the place where we normally push poetry. But this week we will instead wildly push the boundaries of the definition of poetry and send you to watch a gorgeous animation called "I Met The Walrus", set to a rant by poet John Lennon. Click here.

Thursday, November 20, 2008

mid to late November, ought eight

D tocks,

Happy whatever day you say it is!

Tonight, Thursday Nov 20 we have and local heroes, Quillion at 8pm and Elana Rogers w/ Mark Maudlin (from Tequila Mockingbird). $3.

Friday night we have the return of FACE at 8pm. This show will fill up early, so come early, eat and then get your face sung off. $12. After FACE is 2:10 Special at 10:30pm, doing their own brand of Colorado rock and roll.

Saturday night we have the return of one of the best reggae bands anywhere, Lion Vibes. This band snuck right up on us over the last year. Killer hooks, very high energy, lots of fun. We would recommend you come dance to their music. $7.

During dinner hour on Saturday there is a belly dance performance by the Sultry Embers, the students of Phoenix, at 6-7:30 pm. $2 suggested donation.

And that right there is a whole lot of goodness.

Exeunt,

D lux,

Extra Credit: Tennyson is one of those classic poets who deserves a renaissance. His poems are a trip. Here's a couple of teaser stanzas from his epic poem The Lotos-Eaters...

The charmèd sunset linger'd low adown
In the red West: through mountain clefts the dale
Was seen far inland, and the yellow down
Border'd with palm, and many a winding vale
And meadow, set with slender galingale;
A land where all things always seem'd the same!
And round about the keel with faces pale,
Dark faces pale against that rosy flame,
The mild-eyed melancholy Lotos-eaters came.

Branches they bore of that enchanted stem,
Laden with flower and fruit, whereof they gave
To each, but whoso did receive of them
And taste, to him the gushing of the wave
Far far away did seem to mourn and rave
On alien shores; and if his fellow spake,
His voice was thin, as voices from the grave;
And deep-asleep he seem'd, yet all awake,
And music in his ears his beating heart did make.

Wednesday, November 12, 2008

early to mid November, ought eight

D verts,

Here's hoping you are enjoying the micro-cosmos of the current day you are living, not to mention the current sentence you are reading. So much depends upon your enjoyment.

A packed weekend coming up as usual, two benefits this weekend, an art opening and several good bands. The benefit this Thursday, November 13, is for the Colorado Horse Protection League. There will be a silent auction, full of horse regalia, and Crowboy, a very cool alt-country band. Starts at 6pm. $10 suggested donation.

The next benefit is Saturday night, the 4th annual benefit for Habitat with Humanities with The Duke Street Kings. Sponsored by 99.5 The Mountain and hosted by DJ Pete Mackay, this is always a super fun event with a killer auction. Word is that they will have a raffle for a scooter this year too. Starts at 5pm. Last year this event raised 10k, and we hope to do even better this year. $10 suggested donation. If you are a bbq fan you can pay an extra $10 donation for Brickyard BBQ between 5-8pm, first come first served.

The art opening is this Friday at 7pm for Max Kaufman and Austin Parkhill. Max's work is whimsical and fantastical, featuring strange musical instruments and odd beasts. Austin's work is in a whole other vein, hyper realism, random snapshots turned into art via a paintbrush. J.T. Nolan will play at 5:30pm and The Saurus, a great hip hoppy jazz duo will play at 7:30pm.

At 9pm on Friday we have another show by 3 The Hard Way. This time they bring in the conscientious hip hop of Braille from Portland Oregon. $5.

Also worth mentioning is a great songwriter named Nicole Erin Carey traveling through from South Philly who will play tonight, Wednesday, Nov. 12, at 7:30pm, opening up for the Clamdaddys jam. Check out the myspace at the link above. Great stuff. Wanna go, honey?

Love to you and yours,

D flower

Extra Credit: Our friend Albert DeSilver writes odd little narrative prose poems that stick in the gullet long after read. Here's but one.

DEER LAWN CHAIR

Off I am to stroll in the woods as often I am found to do. Today
it's quite wet, February storm just clearing, mist steaming gently
off the dense pines. Along the muddy trail I slog, gun in hand,
soon spotting a deer in the distance. I approach cautiously,
gun braced against my shoulder. the deer stays put. I get
even closer, within arm's length in fact, and the deer, frightened
beyond capacity, instead of sprinting off, folds in half like a lawn
chair. I put the gun aside and take a seat, resting my arms on
her thinly furred and stiffened legs. I lean back against her warm
white belly and relax into watching the mist watching me, and
after a good rest rise with it, folding up the lawn chair, prancing
home.

Early November, ought eight

D voters

Let us give over this opening paragraph to the story of a man coming to play music at the D Note this Saturday night, Ronny Elliott. According to one press release..."Elvis once offered to teach him karate, Chuck Berry had to have him in his band, Bo Diddley wanted to produce a record of his, and Jerry Lee Lewis called him a friend. Once Ronny even had to hold up Jimi Hendrix's Marshall stack while Jimi humped his guitar against it. But that doesn't begin to describe Ronny Elliott, or his forty plus year career in which he has released a dozen albums to both critical and fan acclaim. MOJO Magazine called him, "Craggy but literary country blues like Jerry Lee Lewis if he were a beat poet or Townes Van Zandt with a Ph.D." Intrigued? We were, and we're excited to meet Elliott and hear him sing his songs. Local artists Til Willis and Brent Loveday (of Reno Divorce) will be playing before and after Elliott. Check out the great poster for the show on Brent Loveday's sweet myspace page at the link above. Starts at 8pm. $7

This Thursday we have a couple of talented younger bands for you to check out at 8pm, Delphic Tone and Statewide Emergency. $5. Check out "Midnight Creeper" on Statewide's myspace. Ever, we are amazed at the talent bubbling up from Colorado's cauldron.

Friday night we have another great show, the quickly up and coming band Foma. Foma is a little bit country and a little bit rock and roll. Jen Pumo opens the show at 7:30PM with a down tempo electro sound. "Foma and Pumo", has a nice ring to it, like Uma and Oprah. Thanks to Damon Scott for bringing this show in. $7.

Next Tuesday Metropolitan Jazz Orchestra is back and they have Monarch and Eldorado HS bands with them.

Doing our small part,

D mote

extra credit: Walt Whitman is still the man. Here's a poignant snippet from part five of Leaves Of Grass.

And now gentlemen,
A word I give to remain in your memories and minds,
As base and finale too for all metaphysics.

(So to the students the old professor,
At the close of his crowded course.)

Having studied the new and antique, the Greek and Germanic systems,
Kant having studied and stated, Fichte and Schelling and Hegel,

Stated the lore of Plato, and Socrates greater than Plato,
And greater than Socrates sought and stated, Christ divine having studied long,
I see reminiscent to-day those Greek and Germanic systems,
See the philosophies all, Christian churches and tenets see,
Yet underneath Socrates clearly see, and underneath Christ the divine I see,
The dear love of man for his comrade, the attraction of friend to friend,
Of the well-married husband and wife, of children and parents,
Of city for city and land for land.