One of Denver’s longest-running — and most successful — club nights is , and the venerable residency will turn 10 next month with a big bash that will feature Baio of (a.k.a. bassist Chris Baio) on the 1s and 2s.
Lipgloss knows how to properly celebrate its anniversary, and this party could be the biggest yet. Baio will join residents boyhollow and option4 at La Rumba on June 24, and tickets will be $7 in advance and $8 on the day of show.
Reverb spoke to boyhollow, a.k.a. Michael Trundle, about his baby turning 10, Lipgloss’ modest beginnings and the evolution it has experienced over the recent years.
Q: 10th anniversary, man. Does it feel heavy?
A: Nah. It feels awesome. I’m really blessed to be doing something I love so much. I feel even more blessed to be doing something that has brought so much to others, though. I realize it’s only a dance party, but Lipgloss has been more than just a great time for a lot of people. It has been responsible for uncountable new friendships, and I know of at least 5 marriages that got their start at Lipgloss. That makes me really happy. I love doing Lipgloss and have loved it for the last 10 years. I don’t know that it could ever feel heavy to me. It feels like I wish everyone’s job felt for them.
Q: Tell me about the very first Lipgloss.
A: The first Lipgloss took place at 60 S. Broadway on Monday, June 25th, 2001. 60 S. was where 3 Kings Tavern is now located, and our first night was about 2 1/2 years before the Hi-Dive opened. We were originally a once-a-month Monday night party. 60 S. was a tiny, dark dive bar with a small dance-floor and a normally gay clientele. Tyler Jacobson, Tim Cook and I basically threw a party for our friends. We played our favorite music — mostly brit-pop and indie-rock — and I think about 50 people showed up, mainly just our friends. We pretty much danced, played pool and tried to figure out how the hell the DJ equipment worked. It was a lot of fun because we didn’t really think of it as anything that would last more than a few months so there wasn’t any stress about anything. We just got wasted and partied our asses off.
I kind of miss those days; though to be fair we still pretty much get wasted and party our asses off.
Q: Lipgloss has changed a lot in the last few years. Can you talk about some of the changes — in personnel and music — the night has experienced in the last couple years.
A: I’ve always tried to keep Lipgloss relevant to the crowd we tend to attract — mainly what people like to disparagingly refer to as “hipsters” now, though back when we started, people called them mods, punks, goths, etc. We’ve also always tried to keep Lipgloss different from parties you might find in LoDo or at clubs like the Church, Beta or Bar Standard. That was a lot easier 10 years ago when the hipster/indie scene was almost entirely disconnected from the mainstream/Top 40 scene. Then about 7 or 8 years ago bands like Franz Ferdinand, the Killers and the White Stripes started bridging the gap between the two, and we found ourselves with guests who didn’t quite “fit” what our original crowd was: People who were a little more “normal,” for lack of a better word. And that was O.K., because we’ve always tried to keep from having a “secret handshake” mentality. If you’re friendly and like to have fun with us, we’re happy to have you.
Over the last few years Lipgloss has been going through another similar change, though this time it’s the music our crowd listens to that is changing rather than the kinds of people listening to our music. Part of remaining relevant — and successful — is keeping the consistently “going out” 21-25 year-old crowd coming in, and much of the music this crowd is loving is electronic in nature rather than based on guitar rock. We still play a fair amount of the old stuff at Lipgloss, but the infusion of electronica into the indie scene as well as the infusion of indie into the Top 40 scene has really changed the vibe of the night. We still stay away from crap like Kesha, Bruno Mars and Beyonce, but artists like La Roux and Phoenix — both arguably Top 40 — make frequent appearances. The indie rock, brit-pop and ’80s which used to make up the bulk of Lipgloss music is still there but is now mixed in with a lot of electro and some dubstep. There’s a part of me that misses the old days, but the energy brought to the dance-floor by the electronica makes for a far more intense partying and dancing experience.
The change in what our crowd listens to is a significant part of why Tyler Jacobson chose to retire from Lipgloss in August of 2009. Tyler has very specific tastes in music and just wasn’t digging the newer music it took to make the dance-floor work anymore. When he left I decided rather than trying to replace “Tyler” and his styles of music to try and bring in people who were more in touch with and actively liking this newer music. I started off with DJ Soup, moved onto Chase Dobson, and when Chase got a job that required traveling moved onto option4, a.k.a. Brennen Bryarly. Both Soup and Chase were great fits for the night, but at the risk of upsetting either I have to say that Brennen has been the best fit I’ve found yet. Brennen has an infectious energy and truly loves the music and DJing in and of itself. He also has a lot of ambition and is constantly forcing me to push myself and Lipgloss into new and exciting places. We’re almost one decade down. I’m excited to see where we’ll be and what kind of changes there are in a few more years!
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Ricardo Baca is the founder and co-editor of , the co-founder of The UMS and an award-winning critic and journalist at The Denver Post.
