Denver’s Underground Music Showcase on Wednesday announced the 100-plus national and local acts that will play its multi-stage festival, Aug. 27-29, along the South Broadway corridor in the Baker neighborhood.
The festival, which transformed into an online fundraiser last year due to the COVID-19 pandemic, returns in-person with headlining sets from national and local indie acts at a dozen venues. Visiting names such as Pinegrove, Remi Wolf, Allah-las, Shannon & the Clams and Neil Frances will join notable Colorado bands Wildermiss, DespAIR Jordan, The Still Tide, Los Mocochetes, bellhoss, iZCALLi, Heavy Diamond Ring and many more.
“After 20 years of Underground Music Showcase, we were thrilled to be able to carry-on our tradition virtually last year by raising $75,000 for independent musicians,” wrote Casey Berry, owner of the festival, in a press statement. “With that said, we couldn’t be happier to be in-person for 2021 to not only support live music and local bands, but to support more than a dozen independent bars and restaurants on Broadway!”
Co-founded by Denver Post arts critics John Moore and Ricardo Baca, The UMS has long been one of the biggest weekends of the year for businesses along Denver’s South Broadway corridor between Sixth and Alameda avenues. Many of them survived on PPP loans last year, although a couple of mainstays have closed or changed hands, such as 3 Kings Tavern and the Skylark Lounge (respectively; the latter was not sold because of the pandemic, Westword reported).
This year’s festival will take place later than its usual late-July weekend to give organizers more time to plan, according to the press statement.
“This extra time will lead to a safer and more impactful event for Denver, while still getting music lovers back to Broadway as soon as possible,” organizers wrote. Safety measures may include reduced indoor capacity and limited ticket sales to ensure proper distancing.
Tickets went on sale in May and cost $60 for a weekend pass, and $55 for weekend passes in a 4-pack (or $220 total). Visit undergroundmusicshowcase.com for details.
Click the poster below to zoom in on the full roster.
