POP MUSIC
The Fray brainstorming in studio
Fans of Denver-based rock act the Fray can relax. The band is back in the studio to start collecting and writing for its third record, frontman Isaac Slade said.
“The hardest part is being OK with that process, with the beginnings of it all being so rough,” Slade said about the early days of putting songs together from notes and recordings. “Today, we’re in a studio we rented in Thornton, and the songs are so rough that I have to keep reminding myself that we can rearrange all that later.”
Slade said that many of the songs on the band’s eponymous follow-up to the multiplatinum “How to Save a Life” came from the same brainstorming sessions as the first record.
“They came from the same creative space,” Slade said. “Now it’s the Wild West, and it’s time to bring a lot of fresh blood to the writing process.”
The Fray is up for two Grammys on Jan. 31. Ricardo Baca
DANCE
Ballet Nouveau growing
In a time when most arts organizations are sitting still — or significantly shrinking — Ballet Nouveau Colorado is joining a select few dance companies in expanding its footprint.
The company will take advantage of the empty space directly west of its current location. The 3,500-square-foot acquisition adds two new studios (for a total of five), an education office and an expanded costume department to the existing 8,500-square-foot facility at 3001 Industrial Lane in Broomfield.
“The expansion obviously affects the whole organization, but it’s driven by the school,” said communications manager Eleni Grove. “Even though these are hard economic times, kids’ activities are important to everybody and that is certainly not declining.”
Despite a growing base of nearly 300 students, the school still needs to raise $45,000 between now and August — the proposed opening for the addition and the kickoff of Ballet Nouveau’s 2010-2011 season.
“We have a very generous landlord, but fundraising activities are starting already,” Grove said.
Denver’s Kim Robards Dance and Boulder’s Frequent Flyers Productions have also recently announced new or expanded spaces. John Wenzel
POP MUSIC
Tedder’s Colorado move
Denver-based musician-producer-songwriter Ryan Tedder launched last week. The website is proof of Tedder’s intention to create a songwriting/production hub in Denver.
“I do have an active record label through Interscope Records, Patriot Records,” Tedder, the frontman for OneRepublic, said from Cologne, Germany, last week. “And I’m excited about finding new talent, but aside from OneRepublic, my main focus now is finding and developing new songwriters and producers through Patriot Games Publishing, which has been up and running for about nine months.
“I have four writers signed now, two of whom are from Colorado. And so far my writers have gotten songs placed with Kelly Clarkson, Natasha Bedingfield, OneRepublic, Miley Cyrus and others.”
The site has pictures of Tedder with some of the artists he’s worked with — Clarkson, Leona Lewis and Adam Lambert included. Tedder, nominated for two big Grammys on Jan. 31, was also happy to note that OneRepublic’s “All the Right Moves” single went Gold last week. Tedder and his band will play twice at the Winter Olympics, including a “Today” show performance. Ricardo Baca
ART
Russell’s untimely departure
The Denver Art Museum’s retrospective look at iconic Western artist Charles M. Russell would seem like the dream exhibition to have on view for the run of the National Western Stock Show, which concludes this weekend.
Instead, the offering ended Jan. 10 on the first weekend of the livestock extravaganza, causing both Western art enthusiasts and stock show fans to scratch their heads. Did the museum have its head in the clouds?
Kristy Bassuener, a spokeswoman for the museum, said nothing could be further from the truth. Beginning about four years ago, the museum has worked with stock show leaders expressly to find ways to make the museum more a part of that annual experience.
“We have really been making an effort to make sure that the stock show visitors who come to Denver understand that we have some fantastic Western art experiences at the museum,” Bassuener said.
In the case of the Russell retrospective, the museum made a point of timing the three-month run of the exhibition so that it at least minimally overlapped with the stock show.
Keeping it on view longer wasn’t possible, because it was scheduled to travel to the Gilcrease Museum in Tulsa and Museum of Fine Arts in Houston, each with their timing requirements. In addition, the selections are on loan only for one year, putting a limit on the tour’s duration. Kyle MacMillan
Brushing up on Comfort Dental Amphitheatre snark
When The Denver Post broke the news that Fiddler’s Green Amphitheatre in Greenwood Village had been renamed Comfort Dental Amphitheatre last week, our readers had a good time commenting on the story.
Seems Comfort Dental is already getting attention for its sponsorship of the 18,000-seat Denver Tech Center venue, some of it welcome.
Here are 10 comments — from Facebook and Twitter, too — at random. 1. Does this mean going to shows there will be even more painful?
2. It just rolls off the tongue. I think I’d rather have a root canal.
3. Will they be adding braces to the stage and veneers to the proscenium?
4. Brings all new meaning to “Comfortably Numb.”
5. The great part, I hear, is that there will now be a nitrous concession at all concerts.
6. Thank God they beat out that proctology collective.
7. It might take me a while to sink my teeth into that.
8. Comfort Dental makes perfect sense. It’s like pulling teeth to get me to go there.
9. I’m thinkin’ cup holders replaced with floss holders.
10. Nothing says good music like a trip to the dentist. On the bright side, at least the name fits the venue now.
Ricardo Baca and John Moore
