Ringling Bros. and Barnum & Bailey does one thing better than anyone, and that’s putting on a good old- fashioned American circus spectacle.
Besieged by competition from the market-crushing Cirque du Soleil and scrutiny from animal-rights activists, the company has been forced to rethink its shows in recent years. Its “gold” show, “An Upside-Down World,” compresses three rings into one and uses hosts Liliana Escobar and Jon Weiss (“Amazing Race 4”) to guide the audience through the proceedings.
The show promises death-defying action and animal stunts without Cirque’s lengthy musical interludes or pseudo-ballet. Flying dogs? Asian elephants? Pre-show audience and animal interaction? You got it.
Tickets for the Sept. 13-16 stint at the Budweiser Events Center in Loveland are on sale at 10 a.m. Saturday. ($14-$40, )
Ben Harper & the Innocent Criminals play a particularly modern acoustic soul-pop, taking bits of folk and rock and synthesizing them into breezy, sleepy-eyed jams. The ineffably Californian Harper, formerly a cult act, now commands the attention of college kids everywhere. Tickets for Harper’s Sept. 1 show at Boulder’s Macky Auditorium are on sale at 10 a.m. Saturday. ($39.75- $49.75, Ticketmaster)
Me’Shell NdegéOcello takes her time between albums, carefully crafting songs in whatever genre (jazz, soul, rock) the bassist happens to be interested in at the time. Get insight into the nine-time Grammy nominee’s creative process when Boulder’s nationally broadcast etown radio show tapes her at the Boulder Theater on Aug. 4. ($20, )
Rilo Kiley got a visibility boost when lead singer Jenny Lewis toured her solo album with the Watson Twins last year, playing significantly larger venues than her countrypolitan main gig. Lewis’ graceful soprano ought to fare just as well with Rilo Kiley when the act plays the Ogden Theatre on Sept. 11. Tickets on sale now. ($20, Ticketmaster)
Apples in Stereo makes its second Denver appearance this year at the Bluebird Theater on Aug. 31, riding high on the success of its latest disc, “New Magnetic Wonder.” We hope these ex-local indie-popsters get the mix they deserve this time around, instead of the subpar soundboard at the April concert. Tickets are on sale now. ($15, Ticketmaster)
Pinback plays Denver on a regular basis for a reason: The San Diego group has cultivated fervent fans here, plucking them from the indie and frat rock scenes. The mathematically precise group, led by Rob Crow and Zach Smith, will play the Gothic Theatre on Oct. 19, a little over a month after its new disc “Autumn of the Seraphs,” drops. Tickets are on sale now. ($16, Ticketmaster)
