This second part of Concerted Effort's year in review features a list of Top 15 performances reviewed over the past year. This list works somewhat in conjunction with Part 1, although this is for bands that stood in concerts that didn't make that list. The premise of this blog is always to review concert experiences as a whole, including opening bands, so the first list had that notion in mind and noted strong complete concerts. The bands in this second list were strong performers, they just didn't happen to be a part of a show that was as strong from start to finish.


15. Afroman at Larimer Lounge - Aug. 22. This performance was a bit of a surprise for me, since it'd been years since I heard Afroman and definitely never saw him live. He ended up being quite the captivating performer, and the crowd absolutely loved him. Take his songs for what they're worth, but he owns it up on stage, especially when he busts out the double-neck guitar.


14. King Mob at Hi-Dive - Sep. 19. These local Denver guys came out as openers and I was really impressed with their music. It's a little off-kilter and experimental, but they do a great job at trying to create and perform a new and unique sound.


13. StaG at Larimer Lounge - Oct. 5. I didn't know what to expect from this local chill meets shoegaze meets  minimal band, but they really impressed me with their sound and live performance. These guys are also a little on the experimental side and quite mellow, but I still find myself listening to their EP often, as it's quite soothing.


12. A Mouthful of Thunder at Hi-Dive - Oct. 15. This was a local opening band shrouded in mystery before I got the chance to see them live, and their debut performance was something quite unexpected. Despite the foreboding name, these guys are lighter, catchier indie rock that just seemed very polished and well done.


11. lightlooms at Hi-Dive - Sep. 26. The type of piano-based indie music this local band performs is typically something I shy away from, but it was fused so well with a modern indie rock sound that I couldn't help but like it. They also had a strong sense of identity and a lot of polish despite being an essentially new band.


10. Big Tree at Lion's Lair - Oct. 27. These guys have an awesome retro-modern sound that reminds me of old and charming '60s sunshine pop. I'm a sucker for vocal harmonies, and this band can definitely sing and sing very well while delivering a very fun performance.


9. Euforquestra at Fox Theatre - Oct. 12. This local band demonstrated the impressive ability to meld a multitude of sounds from genres around the world into one, high-energy, dance inducing, very enjoyable live show. They've got a great combo of funk, jazz, rock, afrobeat and more.


8. A. Tom Collins at Walnut Room - Nov. 4. This local band has a unique combination of rock and jazz that's heard to explain but instantly understood when heard live. This concert as a whole narrowly missed the Top 15 list, as Pink Hawks and The Legendary River Drifters were also amazing, but I had to give a nod to this band.


7. Flashlights at Larimer Lounge - Aug. 25. This band is doing great things with electropop, and that makes them one of my local favorites. Their performance on this night nearly overshadowed the import that came into town and performed after them.


6. Beirut at Fillmore Auditorium - Sep. 28. I always liked the indie world-folk vibe this band had going on and had been wanting to see them live for a long time. They were not the least bit disappointing, exhibiting extreme skill in musicianship to faithfully perform their unique songs.


5. Cut Copy at Ogden Theater - Oct. 4. These guys know how to translate their electronic dance-pop sound into something to behold in a live performanceand I was amazed at how well they commanded the crowd. This show narrowly missed the Top 15, as Washed Out and especially Midnight Magic were also superb.


4. Gardens & Villa at Hi-Dive - Sep. 18. This was one heck of an indie rock band that performed their well-crafted songs exceptionally well. They recreated everything live, all the way down to the pan flute, making for a very impressive and memorable performance.


3. Lord Huron at Hi-Dive - Aug. 10. This indie folk group was extremely impressive and nearly stole the show from headliners Typhoon, although Typhoon was incredibly amazing as well. This show was also just outside of the Top 15.


2. Force Publique at Larimer Lounge - Aug. 26. This band closed out the Denver After Dark festival extremely well, playing to a passionate and packed-in crowd. The Denver After Dark festival was a great showcase of local talent, a show that could have made the Top 15 except it wasn't possible for me to actually see the whole thing since it was a multi-venue festival. Keep your eyes out both for this band and for the next Denver After Dark festival.


1. Trentemøller at Ogden Theater - Oct. 21. Anders Trentemøller started out as a DJ then moved onto production, and he crafts some of the most impressive electronic based music I've ever heard. The live experience just took it all to an unimaginable tier, where organic instrumentation came together to bridge the gap between electronic and live music.

If you haven't seen Part 1 of the Concerted Effort year end lists, be sure to check it out. Keep your eyes open for one final year end list installment!
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If last night was any indication of what immense funkiness will take place tonight on New Year's Eve, then funk lovers heading to Cervantes' Masterpiece Ballroom to ring in the new year are in for a treat. Friday night's portion of the two-night New Year's Eve weekend run of shows delivered the way it needed to, and I can only imagine that Saturday night's show will be just that much better thanks to an extra air of celebration. As for last night, the funk started early and went late into the night, really testing the dancing legs of the packed in crowd.

DJ Loadie Loaded

The night began with a DJ set from Denver local DJ Loadie Loaded. Armed with two decks, a mixer and a healthy supply of vintage and nu-funk, disco, jazz, and a little hip-hop and rock, he got the speakers blaring and the early crowd in the dancing mood. He exhibited the ability to steadily build intensity by utilizing wise song selection - not trying to do anything too intense right away but definitely setting his mix apart from just being background music. He kept the music going until the bands arrived and were ready to go - just as the dance floor became nice and crowded.

Dumpstaphunk

As the first show in this two-night run, the bands decided to switch it up a little bit. Although tonight Orgone will play first followed by Dumpstaphunk, the order was reversed Friday night. Dumpstaphunk took the stage first to kick off the live portion of the funk, and immediately ratcheted the party to the next level. New Orleans based funk stalwarts Dumpstaphunk featured Ivan Neville on organ/keyboard/vocals/guitar, Tony Hall on bass/guitar/vocals, Nick Daniels III on bass/vocals, Nikki Glaspie on drums/vocals, and Ian Neville on guitar. Together they brought a southern style New Orleans jazz infused brand of funk with modern sensibilities but a throwback influence from the '70s and '80s. It made for a genuine funk listening experience that instantly commanded the crowd into a dancing frenzy.

Dumpstaphunk

Dumpstaphunk played a commanding set of music featuring many of their funk originals from their album Everybody Want Sum. They showed no signs of fatigue despite having just flown in to town after performing a show in New York the night before, tearing immediately into the title track "Everybody Want Sum" to get the dancing started. From there it was slightly stretched out renditions of "Gasman Chronicles", "Deeper", "Liar", proving the band was having a great time as they added subtle extra instrumentalism that lengthened the songs and thus lengthened the dancing experience.

Dumpstaphunk

Of course, Dumpstaphunk had to include a live show favorite, "Put It In The Dumpsta". This time the song had extra meaning, as Ivan Neville explained everyone needed to get rid of all the bad from the previous to approach the new one clean. After a rendition of "My Freedom", Dumpstaphunk called some ladies up to the stage to help incite even more dancing when they performed "Standin' In Your Stuff". "Do Ya" and "Sheez Music" came next, followed by a cover of Graham Central Station's "Water". The set ended beautifully with the performance of "Meanwhile..." from Dumpstaphunk's Listen Hear album. Their set was quite the ride, and although it was just over an hour and a half, it was so much fun it didn't feel like nearly 1 o'clock in the morning when they left the stage.

Orgone

DJ Loadie Loaded went back on the decks to make sure people's dancing legs wouldn't tighten up between the set change as Orgone readied themselves to keep the funk flowing. Shortly after, it was time to take the party back into live gear, and this Los Angeles based funk band knew exactly how to do it. Orgone performed as an eight-piece band; Sergio Rios on guitar/vocals, Dan Hastie on keyboards/organ/vocals, Stewart Killen on percussion/vocals, Sam Halterman on drums, Ethan Phillips on bass, Darren Cardoza on trombone, Devin Williams on trumpet, and Nikki J. Crawford on vocals. They approach funk with a little more '60s and '70s influence while also infusing a lot of soul, afrobeat and a touch of rock 'n' roll into their sound.

Orgone

Orgone began with an instrumental funk tune, "Melting" to get things started. It was a good, slightly mysterious way to begin their set - the lights were dimmed down a bit and the song built up slowly before exploding into a dancey funk tune, snatching up any crowd attention that might have been lost during the set change interlude. They followed the opening song with a couple more instrumentals, "Cali Fever" and "Prison Break". Then Nikki J. Crawford took the microphone and thanks got much, much funkier and quite a bit more sexy as Orgone tore into a cover of Lyn Collin's "Rock Me Again".

Orgone

Nikki J. Crawford added more sultry vocal work to "Give It Up" and the breathtaking song "Who Knows Who". Orgone then continued to lay down more incredible funk with "Sophisticated Honky", "Serious" and some funky soul with "Reasons To Love You". The afrobeat infusion kicked into high gear when Orgone performed "Funky Nassau", getting the crowd to join in and sing along. Orgone showed off their instrumental prowess with their last couple songs - "Strike" and "Ain't No Use" had ridiculously awesome and intense instrumental runs balanced out with short vocal sections.

Orgone

Orgone finished their regular set at 2:15AM, and the crowd, unsure if Orgone would be allowed to play on despite it being past the time shows normally end, called for an encore anyway. Orgone was happy to oblige, in fact Sergio Rios came out on stage and hit the microphone, explaining the band was wiping the immense beads of sweat off of their brows and wanted to make sure Denver wanted to hear more music before they returned to the stage. The crowds response? Absolutely. So Orgone returned to the stage and blew the crowd away with a fifteen minute long encore rendition of Black Merda's "Cynthy-Ruth" - and my oh my was it incredible.

So what can you expect if you are going to check out tonight's New Year's Eve show? An absolute funk spectacular that will sap every last bit of energy out of you with incredible, high-quality and high-energy beautiful music. If funk is your thing you absolutely need to be at this show, as it will probably exceed what you'd expect out of a funk show. It will be a spectacularly fun way to bring in the new year! The doors open tonight at 8:00PM and tickets are $40 for this all ages show! Happy new year!

See more pictures from this show in the Facebook photo album. Like the Concerted Effort page to stay up to date!
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Although this blog only existed for half of this past year so far, it was a great year in music. At this point there have been countless amounts of 'best of' lists put out there, and now it's my turn to add mine to the mix. There is so much I want to talk about, but I'm narrowing it down to the top concert experience and band performances that I saw. I will also include a separate list that includes shows that I did see over the year but did not write about because either they were before I started this blog or for some other reason. I saw a ton of shows over the year, so narrowing them down was extremely tough, but without much further ado, here is the first part:

Top 15 Concert Experiences 2011 - I could barely narrow this list down to 15 and I still feel like I could have listed more, but this list is about the overall concert experience. These were the concerts that had it all - from opener to headliner the music was great, the artist stage presence was awesome, and the crowd energy was high.


15. Spindrift with Colfax Speed Queen, Max Pain & The Groovies and Dark Seas at Cervantes' Other Side - Nov. 11. The musicianship of these bands was superb, bringing great psychedelic rock and rock and roll. It wasn't the largest crowd, but it was a very passionate one.


14. TheHundred presents Damon Allen, option4, Mike Deez and Peter Black at Beauty Bar - Nov. 19. The first TheHundred party was absolutely amazing. It was house music at it's finest with a crowd energy so intense and with such good vibes I can still feel it today.


13. MSTRKRFT with Steffi Graf, 2DUBAII, and boyhollow at Ogden Theater - Sep. 10. My first trip to the Ogden Theater as a blogger was incredible. The crowd packed in early and was going all night for what ended up being an awesome dance fest.


12. Bag Raiders with ManCub and Chavez y Chavez at Larimer Lounge - Aug. 12. One of the craziest nights ever seen at the Larimer Lounge was for this show. The part DJ set/part live performance aspect of the show kept the dance floor packed all night.


11. Glowing House with You, Me Apollo, The Sunshine House and Sour Boy, Bitter Girl at Fox Theatre - Aug. 6. It wasn't the most packed I've ever seen the Fox Theatre, but the crowd that came was not at all afraid to have fun, and for good reason - the bands that performed this night were all absolutely incredible musicians and they all made me a believer in the indie folk genre.


10. DeVotchKa with Bonnie & The Beard at Aggie Theater - Oct. 25. I'll never forget the first time I saw a show at the Aggie Theater - the was a good crowd even for a Tuesday night and the music was amazing. It was totally worth braving the blizzard conditions to get back home.


9. Dale Earnhardt Jr. Jr. with Le Divorce and Eye & The Arrow at Hi-Dive - Sep. 6. I almost thought I missed my chance to see Dale Earnhardt Jr. Jr. but they came back with a bang for a second 2011 Denver show. To top everything off the were joined by exceptional local talent, including the live debut of Eye & The Arrow.


8. The Dendrites with Pink Hawks and Mono Verde at Marquis Theater - Sep. 16. Sometimes big bands are the way to go. All three of these bands had huge sounds to match their sizable band lineups, and the crowd responded accordingly to the awesome combination of reggae, afrobeat and ska that took place that night.


7. Phantogram with Reptar at Marquis Theater - Oct. 28. This show was so incredible it was no wonder it sold out. Athens, GA based Reptar got everything started and Phantogram picked up where they left off. The crowd went happily along with the whole crazy ride.


6. Le Divorce Presents: Come As You Are at Hi-Dive - Sep. 24. Tribute shows can go either way but this show boasting a slew of great local bands paying tribute on the anniversary of the release of Nirvana's Nevermind album definitely went the right way. Bands took a bunch of different approaches to cover Nirvana's songs, and the Hi-Dive was packed full of nostalgic fans.


5. Unknown Mortal Orchestra with Gauntlet Hair and School Knights at Larimer Lounge - Oct. 31. This show was an incredible way to spend Halloween. Unknown Mortal Orchestra took me by surprise earlier in the year and killed it in the headliner role for this show, joined with awesome local support including the amazing fake-blood covered performance of Gauntlet Hair.


4. Neon Indian with Com Truise and Purity Ring at Bluebird Theater - Oct. 10. The Neon Indian live show is something that needs to be seen to really understand the Neon Indian sound, and they were joined be a couple incredible futuristic minded music acts. Purity Ring was especially memorable.


3. The Marrow with Dave Devine and Mercuria & The Gem Stars at Hi-Dive - Aug. 23. This show was just another demonstration of just how strong local music can be. I came away from this experience amazed by what these local musicians were doing, and I was joined by a tight-knit crowd that seemed to feel the same way.


2. Charles Bradley & The Menahan Street Band with Bop Skizzum at Bluebird Theater - Sep. 13. There was such an amazing amount of soul in this show every time I think about it I can still feel it deep down in my bones. It was a night in which music and emotion truly became one - both the highs and lows. Definitely a one-of-a-kind sort of experience.


1. Chromeo with Mayer Hawthorne & The County and Sammy Bananas at Ogden Theater - Oct. 7 - This show had it all. It was an incredible dance party thanks to Sammy Bananas and Chromeo, but in between was the soul revival mastermind Mayer Hawthorne whose music would not at all be out of place in an earlier era. A feverish sold out crowd came together that night to make it an absolutely unforgettable experience. Definitely my highlight of the year.

Check back soon for a couple more lists. I'll talk about the top performances (band/artists) that didn't make this list because perhaps the entire show wasn't up to par. I'll discuss some shows I saw but didn't blog about and I'll talk about some shows that even now I still regret missing. Have a happy new year!

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It's been a good year but like all goods things they must come to an end, and we now stand before the final weekend of 2011. There are many different ways to celebrate the coming of the new year and bid farewell to to the old one with music events in Denver, and tonight I'll be checking out what's going on at Cervantes' Masterpiece Ballroom. I am a big fan of funk music, and over the past year, Cervantes' has kept me coming back by bringing in big names in the funk/funk revival scene, and this weekend they be closing out the year with some of the best funk out there right now. It'll be a two-day event, both tonight and New Year's Eve - so if you love funk you can check out either or both nights. Although I've seen these acts before and know it should be a good time, I'll be checking out tonight's show and giving a report for funk lovers still contemplating what to do on New Year's Eve tomorrow.


The headliner is Ivan Neville's Dumpstaphunk from New Orleans. As I mentioned before, Ivan Neville has music in his blood, being the son of R&B singer Aaron Neville and related to The Neville Brothers. That gave Ivan the benefit of being involved with music for much of his life, and he used those experiences to create a group of his own called Dumpstaphunk in 2003. Dumpstaphunk plays music with a '70s influence and southern swagger, making hard-hitting funk music that has a dose of New Orleans jazz. Their stage presence is so infectious you won't want to leave the dance floor. Check out "Meanwhile..."
Meanwhile... by Dumpstaphunk



Orgone will join the lineup, a phenomenal funk revival group from Los Angeles. Orgone started out as backing band for hip-hop musicians but became their own standalone band in 1999. They began mostly as an instrumental band and most of their released material features instrumental tracks. However, the band recruited singer Nikki J. Crawford and she ended becoming a permanent member of the band. For the live experience, the combination of Orgone's '60s & '70s inspired funk-meets-soul-meets-afrobeat instrumentals with  Nikki J. Crawford 's extremely powerful voice and presence make for an astounding funk music experience. There are much more vocals featured in the live show, and  Nikki J. Crawford 's voice is unforgettable. Check out "Who Knows Who".
Orgone Who Knows Who by Orgone

DJ Loadie Loaded is a local DJ that spins classic and nu funk. He's got a lot delicious funk in his crates wherever he goes, and he should do well to get everyone in the funky mood with an opening funk music set. He will also keep the party going during set changes, making for a non-stop music experience.

That party at Cervantes' Masterpiece Ballroom is a two-night, all ages affair. The doors open at 8:00PM and the music starts at 9:00PM on both Friday and Saturday night. Tickets are $25 day of show for Friday and $30 advance/$40 day of show for New Years Eve. Two night passes are also available tonight if you want to go to both shows and save.
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Another holiday weekend has come and gone and the year is about to come to a close. It's time to start solidifying plans to celebrate the oncoming of a brand new year. What better way to ring in the new year than with a music event? As usual, there is are many options to do so here in Denver, which makes it a bit difficult to choose just one. You could check out Gauntlet Hair at the Larimer Lounge if you are into indie rock. If you are into funk, there is Dumpstaphunk/Orgone at Cervantes' or Bop Skizzum at Moe's Original. If you are into electronic dance music (EDM) and want to dance into the new year, there are a host of options for that as well, which is why I'll be heading to City Hall.


There are a number of EDM based events for New Year's Eve, but most seem to have a connection to a certain sub-genre that pervasively took the EDM world by storm especially over the past year - dubstep. Now, if you are into dubstep, that's fine. Personally, I think the genre has become a bit over-saturated, so I was happy to see that Denver's own boyhollow was presenting a New Year's Eve non-dubstep party.

The night will be headlined with a DJ set from Reuben Wu, one of the members of the English electropop band Ladytron. He will be joined by Denver locals London Dungeon, Shannon von Kelly and of course boyhollow. Together they will be mixing indie, electro, '80s, rock, house and more, so although EDM will be prevalent it will not be strictly electronic dance music. It'll be the perfect party full of variety for those with a multitude of music tastes, and a great way to ring in the new year.

Tickets start at $20 and will be higher the night of the show, so get your tickets early and save! The show is 18+ and it begins at 9:00PM. You can purchase tickets online here.
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Last month Denver was introduced to an exciting new concept: a house music based party for the people by the people now ubiquitously known as TheHundred. The night was a rousing success, as people came in droves to see what the hype was about and dance the night away. But the real test was the sophomore effort - could the concept endure or would it just be a flash in the pan? Would people still be interested in taking a ride once the new car smell wore off? By the look of things last night, this town is ready to strap in for the long haul and go wherever TheHundred can take them, as the second installment of this ever-growing party passed the test with flying colors.

Roger Sampson

The night began a little earlier than last time, with more local support billed to get the dancing started. Discothreat was originally slated to kick off the evening, but ended up not able to make it, so option4 threw down a spontaneous opening set of smooth grooves to begin the night. He was followed by Roger Sampson, a Chicago transplant now based in Denver. Roger Sampson took the stage and began to fill the venue with silky deep house with a disco flair, getting the early crowd in the dancing mood as people began to filter in to the venue. His mid-tempo mix was a good introduction to what the night would bring.

Matt Ferry

Next up was Denver local Matt Ferry, who setup behind the decks with plenty of musical freshness in tow. He followed the previous act's lead with a fluid house music mix of his own, revealing Matt Ferry's propensity to find the latest and greatest tracks and stream them together into something seamless. His mostly instrumental house set conjured up the feeling of a discotheque as his song selection featured music that struck a balance between retro disco-funk and modern danceability.

Dylan Le Disko

Dylan Le Disko took the stage next, and as the dance floor began to pack he used his mix to turn up the intensity dial a couple of notches. Dylan Le Disko exhibited versatility behind the decks, as his style usually involves a combination of disco-like house mated with hard hitting electro, but to keep with the smooth house theme, Dylan Le Disko had to figure out how to achieve that same effect without using anything too gratuitous. By the sound of it and by the look of the crowd on the dance floor, I'd say he did a job well done thanks to his careful selection of nu-disco songs that took people right where they wanted to be.

option4

With the Beauty Bar dance floor now packed with a crowd dancing shoulder to shoulder and good vibes through the roof, option4 hit the decks next, latching onto the energy in the room and piping in much more like only this seasoned DJ could. True to his characteristic style, option4 began to string together a solid mix of groovy house, inciting madness on the dance floor. As he was laying down tracks, I couldn't help but feel like he was in my head - I'd be feeling one song and would think to myself what I'd like to hear next and like magic option4 would bring in that track next. Yet at the same time, he would drop some unexpected hotness that kept wide smiles on the faces of the crowd with some crazy disco-tised mashes and remixes. The temperature in room probably doubled by the time option4 was finished behind the decks, so one was left to wonder if people would still have anything for the dance floor.

MyKill

Once the headliner MyKill took the stage, any inkling of wonderment about the stamina of the crowd vanished - people were going to party until the very end and leave everything on the dance floor. San Francisco DJ/producer MyKill took the night to the next level with a mix of his originals and crafty selections of French style filter disco. It was the perfect progression to cap a night of good music, making the whole event a solid experience. From the very onset of his mix, MyKill brought the intensity in the room to its peak and never let go until the house lights came on and people had to be ushered out the door at closing time. The Bay Area has known about MyKill for quite some time, and now Denver had the chance to see why he is held in such high regard. If you are a fan of house music, MyKill is definitely worth checking out.

If you aren't clued into TheHundred just yet, don't sleep on it much longer. This party has a vibe unlike any other and it'll only continue to grow. The upcoming year has big things in store for TheHundred, so keep your eyes peeled!

See more pictures from this show in the Facebook photo album. Like the Concerted Effort page to stay up to date!
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I can't think of a better way to prepare for a weekend of parties than by attending a party, so last night I went to the Larimer Lounge to start things off right. The Larimer Lounge hosted a couple local acts and a national act that all share one thing in common - inciting people to dance. A sizable crowd made their way to the venue ready to dance, and the combined energy of the crowd and performers made the night a great starter party.

Ron Cole of Hollagramz

The party began with a DJ set from Hollagramz. Although Hollagramz usually performs as a duo, for this night Ron Cole was the sole representative from the group in charge of laying down a mix. Ron Cole took a spot on center stage and began pumping out a dance mix that reflected the Hollagramz style - a blend of heavy bass with 2-step/funky and tropical rhythms. His moody grooves were a good party starter, getting people in the mood for dancing as people arrived and began to fill the venue. As an opener should, he did well to gather people towards the dance floor by the end of his set.

ManCub

Next up was local noise/electro-pop duo ManCub. ManCub setup in their characteristic face-to-face manner, bringing an intimate quality to their set by putting their analog synth rig not up on the stage but right on the dance floor as Alex Anderson and James Wayne began to crank out their original songs. Their set began with a trio of their newer noise-pop meets chillwave songs that set the tone for the set and got the crowd going. Everything was going smoothly until the unthinkable happened - one of ManCub's tube amps fell from the stage onto the dancefloor during one of their songs. As disastrous as that should have been, ManCub did their best to continue on with their set, but after trying to perform "Made In Japan" and "Summer Rain" they had to end their set early.

ManCub

Prior to the mishap, things were going great - the crowd was on the dance floor and people were getting into their set. ManCub handled themselves as well as they could post mishap, still trying to keep things going. For the most part, those that didn't see what happened didn't even realize anything was wrong - it helps that ManCub's style of sound involves a lot of noise, so with the amp not working up to par things sounded different than usual but not necessarily off. But a couple songs later more things began to fail and there was no more going forward. I commend them for working through adversity - they managed to maintain the party atmosphere despite setbacks. Luckily for the crowd, there was still one more act so the show did continue to go on.

Cherub

Headliners Cherub came up on stage to close out the night with a set of their own, and they brought the party to its absolute peak. Cherub is the electro-pop duo of Jordan Kelly and Jason Huber from Tennessee. Both members play guitar and do vocals, accompanied by a computer and drum machine, with Jordan Kelly busting out the talkbox for some songs. Cherub's EP, Man of the Hour, is a collection of electro-pop songs with a strong retro funk influence, making for a modern dance set that also has a sort of laid back sexy groove to it, but their live set includes that funkiness plus a lot more.

Cherub

Cherub forgoes much of the laid back groove feel in their live set for something with a lot more energy and oomph. Cherub got the crowd to go completely nuts on the dance floor by blending their funky guitar and vocals with uptempo house/techno beats, a hybrid sound that is incredibly danceable while being fresh and unique. The two have impeccable stage presence as well, infectiously transferring their seemingly unending supply of energy to crowd on the dance floor. Their danced-up versions of their original songs were very crowd pleasing, but they also threw in some covers/remixes as well. Their version of Daft Punk's "Around The World" definitely stood out, complete with Jordan Kelly providing the talkbox autotune style vocals. By the end of the night, both the band and the crowd were a sweaty mess, and everyone had wide smiles. Check out this band's EP for some smooth grooves, but make sure you bring your dancing shoes to see these guys live, because they bring the intensity.

See more pictures from this show in the Facebook photo album. Like the Concerted Effort page to stay up to date!
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