#COMUSIC TOP 20 AUGUST + Q3 + 2023

Photo courtesy of Clear Vistas Photography

SEPTEMBER 01, 2023 – I missed. Back in June I predicted that the new releases from Kiltro, Leftover Salmon and Nathaniel Rateliff & the Night Sweats would make the Q3 TOP 5 .. 2 made it – Leftover Salmon did not, landing at #7 for the quarter and #9 for the year-so-far (DEC-AUG). I didn’t anticipate a new release from Gregory Alan Isakov, which not surprisingly blew up the airwaves.

There were no big changes in the yearly (DEC-AUG) TOP 20, with the Burroughs making the biggest leap from #18 last month to #8 for the year. The Burroughs also debuted (D) in the monthly TOP 20 for AUGUST at #3 – pushing their totals up for the year.

ABOUT THE CHARTS

Every Sunday I survey over a dozen community/public and college stations. Stations surveyed: KAFM (Grand Junction), KBUT (Crested Butte), KDNK (Carbondale), KDUR (Durango), KFFR (Winter Park), KJAC (Greeley) aka 105.5 The Colorado Sound, KOTO (Telluride), KRFC (Fort Collins), KSJD (Cortez), KSUT (Ignacio), KRZA (Alamosa), KVNF (Paonia), KVOQ (Denver) aka Indie 102.3.

The monthly survey period is from the first week ending with a Sunday, through the last week ending with a Saturday.  Yearly spins are pulled and calculated from December through the next November.

The annual new release year begins in November, although there are some released in October that make the cut. I track all titles for a full calendar year from the official date of release.

Titles are linked to its respective YouTube page. Don’t forget to visit Chris K’s Colorado Playlist Channel for the largest collection of Colorado music, going back over a decade.

Your donation will VERY HONESTLY HELP to keep this going. Please. Donate below or via Venmo at chrisk-2.

Spin data pulled from the Colorado Playlist, 105.5 The Colorado Sound, Indie 102.3, 88.9 KRFC  and ten other stations that use playlist generator Spinitron, offering search functions for artists to track airplay around the country.

(D) Debuted in CHART
(R) Re-entered CHART
LP = album (5 or more songs)
EP = extended play (3-5 songs)
SP = single play (1-2 songs)
(*) = Colorado expats, as long as they were born and/or raised here, or got their career started here or there is some other reason to include them. 
(**) = serviced to media in Colorado by Rocky Mountain Music Network, LLC

Q3 (June-August)

(D) 1. KILTRO – Underbelly LP (Apr-23)
(D) 2. GREGORY ALAN ISAKOV – Appaloosa Bones LP (Jun-23)
(1) 3. *THE WOOD BROTHERS – Heart Is the Hero LP (Apr-23)
(2) 4. DANIEL RODRIGUEZ – Vast Nothing LP (Mar-23)**
(D) 5. NATHANIEL RATELIFF & THE NIGHT SWEATS –  Buy My Round/What If I SP (May-23)

TOP 20 JULY 30-AUG 26 2023

(2) 1. GREGORY ALAN ISAKOV – Appaloosa Bones LP (Jun-23)
(1) 2. KILTRO – Underbelly LP (Apr-23)
(8) 3. DRAGONDEER – New Dawn Get Down SP (Jun-23)**
(D) 3. THE BURROUGHS – Honey Imastar LP (Jun-23)
(D) 4. JESUS CHRIST TAXI DRIVER – Lick My Soul LP (Mar-23)
(3) 5. *THE WOOD BROTHERS – Heart Is the Hero LP (Apr-23)
(D) 6. CALAMITY – Chiromancy LP (Jul-23)
(D) 7. TELLER – Make Me Hate U SP (May-23)
(D) 8. THE NOVA KICKS – Metallic Hips/Records SP (Aug-23)
(4) 9. DANIEL RODRIGUEZ – Vast Nothing LP (Mar-23)**
(11) 10. *BILL FRISELL – Four LP (Nov-22)
(D) 11. ALYSIA KRAFT – Electric Blooms SP (Jun-23)
(5) 12. NATHANIEL RATELIFF & THE NIGHT SWEATS –  Buy My Round/What If I SP (May-23)
(D) 13. FREE DRACULA – Oh, Cupid SP (Jul-23)
(D) 13. STONE JACKALS – Chemical Canopy EP (Nov-22)
(7) 14. LEFTOVER SALMON – Grass Roots LP (May-23)
(D) 14. sashiBOOM – Work In Progress SP (Dec-22)
(9) 15. 2MX2 – Arriba y Abajo SP (Jun-23)
(D) 15. BELLHOSS – Better Now SP (Jul-23)
(D) 15. BLEAK MYSTIQUE – Less Of You SP (Jul-23)
(D) 15. BLEAK MYSTIQUE – Only ‘Cause I Wanted To SP (Feb-23)

TOP 20 DEC-AUG 2023

(1) 1. *THE WOOD BROTHERS – Heart Is the Hero LP (Apr-23)
(2) 2. KILTRO – Underbelly LP (Apr-23)
(5) 3. GREGORY ALAN ISAKOV – Appaloosa Bones LP (Jun-23)
(3) 4. DANIEL RODRIGUEZ – Vast Nothing LP (Mar-23)**
(4) 5. EUFORQUESTRA – While We Still Got Time LP (Jun-22)**
(6) 6. ALYSIA KRAFT – First Light LP (Jun-22)
(7) 7.  VOLORES – Ages LP (Mar-23)
(18) 8. THE BURROUGHS – Honey Imastar LP (Jun-23)
(10) 9. LEFTOVER SALMON – Grass Roots LP (May-23)
(9) 10. MUSKETEER GRIPWEED – Long Past Time LP (Sep-22)
(8) 11. JULIAN FULCO PERRON – In My Garden LP (Nov-22)
(17) 12. *BILL FRISELL – Four LP (Nov-22)
(15) 12. NATHANIEL RATELIFF & the NIGHT SWEATS – Buy My Round/What If I SP (May-23)
(11) 13. TRAVIS MCNAMARA – Moon Calendar LP (Mar-23)
(12) 14. *VINCE HERMAN – Enjoy the Ride LP (Nov-22)
(14) 15. DEVA YODER – Be Well LP (Feb-23)
(13) 16. ELEKTRIC ANIMALS – Channels EP (May-22)
(20) 17. SUGAR NOVA – Halogen LP (May-23)
(20) 18. STILLHOUSE JUNKIES – Small Towns LP (Sep-22)
(19) 19. BRIANA HARRIS – When We’re Found LP (Sep-22)

CP S17 EP32 2023

Gore Range & the Milky Way – Rocky Mountain Nat’l Park – courtesy of Clear Vistas Photography

MONDAY AUG 28, 2023 – What a weekend for new music in my in-box! If you missed it, check out the review I did for the new release by Bryce Menchaca. I also gave the upcoming new album from Jenny Shawhan a listen – country sweetness and a direct opening show with Big Head Todd & the Monsters in November at Washington’s Fort Collins.

When was the last time you stopped by gave a listen to Colorado 2023 on Spotify? New adds this past week from: Birds of Play, Bonnie & Taylor Sims, Broken Record, Bryce Menchaca, Eddie Roberts/The Luck Strokes, Izcalli, Giant Walking Robots, Lewis Turner, The Motet, and Wildermiss.

MONDAY MORNING MUSIC MEETINS (MMMM)

www.starrsguitars.com

The Monday Morning Music Meeting (MMMM) is a way for you to let me know what you think of new music emerging from around the state. Results enter into which cuts stay in rotation, and which cuts make the final “best of” list.

Jill Sobule – Too Cool To Fall In Love – Things Here Are Different (1990)
Dianne Reeves – You’re Driving Me Crazy – Good Night, and Good Luck Soundtrack (2005)
(N) Gregory Alan Isakov – Before the Sun – Appaloosa Bones (2023)

New Family Dog – 6 Feet Under – Halo (2022)
David William’s Trickster Carousel – Freak – Snake Oil (2021)
Angela Heart – Red (2023)
The Still Tide – Change of Address – Between Skies (2019)
Earth Wind & Fire – That’s the Way of the World – That’s The Way Of The World (1975)
Julian Fulco Perron – All the Lights (2023)
Inside the Mind – Feel You’ve Gone Away (2022)
Big Head Todd and The Monsters – Spanish Highway – All The Love You Need (2007)
LVDY – Begin Again – The Woods (2022)
Steve Denny Trio – Standard Steve – Life in New York (2020)

Dan Fogelberg – Part Of The Plan – Souvenirs (1974)
Poco – You Better Think Twice – Poco (1970)
(D) Darling – You Me More – You Me More EP (2023)

Elektric Animals – Come Clean – Channels EP (2022)
Reno Divorce – Hopeless and Dopeless (2021)
White Rose Motor Oil – Trouble Or Nothing – The Gift Of Poison (2023)
Leftover Salmon – Places – Something Higher (2018)
Porlolo – I Don’t Wanna Lose – Porlolo (2018)
Andy Sydow – Keep on Drivin’ – Little Crown EP (2023)
(D) Little Trips – Too Hot to Hold (2023)

Claire Heywood – Letter Day (2020)
Euforquestra – Arizona to Georgia – While We Still Got Time (2022)
Gabriel Mervine – Sunlight – Say Somethin’ (2021)

THIS WEEK ON YOUTUBE

#CO MUSIC TOP 5 WEEK AUG 20-26 2023

Spin data pulled from the Colorado Playlist, 105.5 The Colorado Sound, Indie 102.3, 88.9 KRFC  and ten other stations that use playlist generator Spinitron, offering search functions for artists and agents to track airplay.

(D) Debuted in TOP 5
(R) Re-entered TOP 5
LP = album (5 or more songs)
EP = extended play (3-5 songs)
SP = single play (1-2 songs)
* = Colorado expats, as long as they were born and/or raised here, or got their career started here or there is some other reason to include them.
** = serviced to Colorado media by Rocky Mountain Music Network, LLC.

(1) 1. GREGORY ALAN ISAKOV – Appaloosa Bones LP May-23
(2) 2. KILTRO – Underbelly LP Apr-23
(5) 3. THE BURROUGHS – Honey Imastar LP Jun-23
(R) 3. *THE WOOD BROTHERS – Heart Is the Hero LP (Apr-23)
(D) 4. BIRDS OF PLAY – Birdsongs of the American West LP (Aug-23)

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Bryce Menchaca – Salt or SALT? Or Both? A Review

It takes a LOT to compel me to sit down and hammer out a review. “Salt,” the new EP from Denver by way of Texas singer-songwriter Bryce Menchaca did just that.

It’s Saturday morning. I’m busy following up on emails and reading my morning news and newsfeeds. I put on Spotify’s Release Radar, which for me will be 99% Colorado based music. Bryce Menchaca‘s “Flower Painted Black” starts playing. I know his name. I’ve listened to earlier releases. His voice immediately draws me into his world.

Last February, I was given access to an as yet unfinished version of “Cleaning Up,” the first single and video that came out in May. As I’ve been since first hearing about Bryce, I was impressed. The song fuses classic pop sensibilities and nuances from the do-wop and early rock and roll eras to modern indie folk pop and neo-country-soul.

The CU DENVER Music & Entertainment Industry Studies (MEIS) student comes to Denver by way of San Antonio, Texas, where his seventh generation roots extend to the founding of his home state. Over the past couple of years he’s put out a few singles that have showcased his considerably smooth voice and emerging skills as a songwriter and arranger.

His songwriting prowess is undoubtedly due to studying Commercial Songwriting as part of his college curriculum, something he says “doesn’t necessarily represent my own experiences or perspectives, it strengthens me as a songwriter.  …it forces me into a position of empathy which enhances my own songwriting.” It’s abundantly clear to me that he deserves an A for what is one of the best of 2023.

“Salt” settles in with the second cut, “Flower Painted Black,” the single that showed up in my Release Radar. Bryce’s style drops subtle hints of the acoustic pop songwriting and harmonies of Lennon & McCartney and other purveyors of the style in the sixties, along with some very nicely played acoustic guitar. The Beatles are an obvious though beautifully and thoughtfully subdued influence throughout the EP.

In it, Bryce wonders fully: “Maybe it’s me, maybe I’m to blame. Hypocrisy the cork of champagne, holding onto every little thing.“

Two hours later the final cut, “Ghost,” resonates one last time through my headphones, where I went from my studio monitors after three listens. Bryce sees himself in the image of a ghost “living inside my home, and he’s going broke.” The ghost informs him of the things he hasn’t been able to pray for or realize.

Bryce Menchaca’s voice throughout resonates emotionally, not with anguish but with near resignation. His expressiveness is subtle and clear. He is, undeniably, going through something in his life – either personally or as an outside looking in songwriter, that position of empathy.

“Salt” as a title brings two things into play. Online, SALT stands for Single and Loving It.” Salt is also a mineral, one that stings when applied to wounds, such as those embodied in the songs on this nicely paced five song, nineteen minute release – and one that can make an unpleasant situation even worse by amplifying one’s failures and faults. I’ll leave the final meaning up to you to discern.