Andy Guerrero haunts every nook of Denver’s music scene.
Whether blanketing the city with band posters as a marketing contractor for one of the major concert promoters or talking up his two band projects, Guerrero remains the consummate cheerleader for Colorado’s homegrown sound. We caught up to the singer and guitar player to find out more.
Q: Bop Skizzum and the Flobots: two bands, two sounds, two gonzo spellings?
A: The name Flobots came from the old-school, like (in a robotic voice) ‘Flobots, masters of the universe’ … sort of a takeoff of the GoBots.
With Bop Skizzum, I came up with that name when I started the band five or six years ago. I was looking for something that would stick out, that wouldn’t peg us to any one genre, and that wasn’t copywritten by another band. We’re primarily a funk band, but we didn’t want to be called the Funk-ateers or something like that because we wanted to be able to play rock or whatever we felt like. (The name) is kind of based on Bill Cosby-talk: ‘Skizzum, flizzum, pudding pop. … “‘
Q: How scattered is a musician in more than one band?
A: A lot of guys in town play in their indie bands and then have their side projects. For me, Bop Skizzum is the band I’ve been in the longest, and then I bring an element of funkiness to the Flobots. Skizzum is more rock and funk, but I still love hip-hop. And the kind of hip-hop the Flobots are doing is so different, I just really wanted to have my hand in it. Especially since the Flobots are inspired by the (black-power California rap band) The Coup, and want to be just as politically active.
(Flobots lyricist) Jonny 5 has this whole voter-education thing going on, and he really tries to get people together to talk about political issues. The goal of both bands is really to create a sense of community.
Q: In the Bop Skizzum song “No More,” you sing: “All he really wanted was to live the dream and find a scene … cause he don’t feel it no more.” Is that you?
A: The song is not really about me. It’s about the type of guy who is in a band, doing a day job, and dreaming of giving it all up to go to L.A. There’s this idea that you have to go to L.A. to make it (in music).
But there is a really great scene here in Denver, and we’re getting more national attention every day. You don’t necessarily have to go to one of the coasts to make it big. If you work hard, put on a (great) live show and promote yourself really well, you can make it.
Bop Skizzum and the Flobots team up for a holiday show Dec. 16 at the Bluebird Theater.
