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“Music is feelings put into motion and it has so much power in our lives,” said Kaitlyn Lundeby, junior at University of Northern Colorado and Fort Collins musician. Music, whether it is blaring through a pair of worn out skull candies, reverberating off of the walls at a Macklemore concert, serenely flowing out of a classical recital at a concert hall, or being belted through the lips of a young Justin Beiber fan, moves people. “You can be angry, elated, frustrated, in love, melancholy, and just plain happy, and there is some sort of music that you can play, sing, or listen to, that relates to what you’re feeling,” said Lundeby.
The town of Fort Collins, primarily the Old Town District, is stock full of venues for local musicians to perform at and for local music lovers to jam at. The Aggie Theatre, located at 204 South College Avenue, opened in 1996 and has been graced by bands and artists such as Big Head Todd and the Monsters, Macklemore, The Fray, Paper Bird, and so many more. (http://www.aggietheatre.com). “Pretty big artists go [to the Aggie] and no matter where you are in the building, it feels like an intimate experience,” said Keenan O’Reilly, junior at Fossil Ridge High School and music/concert enthusiast. Hodi’s Halfnote, previously known as The Starlight and the Mountain Tap and located at 167 North College Avenue, officially opened in 2007 and hosts a wider range of local and funk musicians such as The Echo Chamber, Arcanium, Fierce Bad Rabbit, and Stud mushroom. This venue allows a great deal of local musicians to have an opportunity to perform at a venue with good sound quality and a lot of space. (http://www.hodishalfnote.com). Avogadro’s Number is a restaurant/ music venue located at 605 South Mason Street that holds shows in the back, dimly lighted room during the colder months and outside in an almost pirate scene during the summer and warmer times. A wide variety of bands play at this venue, but it is known for holding shows for primarily bluegrass bands and rising artists. “[Avogadro’s Number] is sweet because it’s a restaurant and music venue that has a sweet vibe. I love the atmosphere,” said O’Reilly.
Only a small taste of the Fort Collins music scene is given through viewing these three venues, but they still represent what the music scene is about; the experience. And the opportunity to have an intimate, exhilarating, ear-pounding, heart-throbbing, fist-pumping, experience is offered again and again due to the wide range of opportunities for musicians and music lovers in Fort Collins. In an interview with O’Reilly, he explained why he loves concerts, “[They are] a chance to see people I listen to in my day to day life in person. I get an insight into their mind; see how they act. Songs mean so much more because of the connection at the concert.” When thousands of seats and people separate the listener from the performer, it can be hard to make that connection. But, at intimate local venues, a chance to even know the performer personally is given. O’Reilly had an opportunity to attend a camp for a Christian youth organization called Younglife where he got to “hangout” with Jonah Werner, one of his favorite musicians who he’d seen locally at Everyday Joe’s Coffeehouse in Fort Collins. “He’s an acoustic performer who loops beats and does something awesome with his voice. He came to my camp, and I got to hacky sack and play Frisbee with him. He’s hilarious.” O’Reilly isn’t the only one who feels this way. Meg Larson, senior at Rocky Mountain High School and music enthusiast, said, “I love the small setting [of the local venues] because it is more personal and you have a good chance of meeting the artist.”
The local music scene is not only beneficial for the head-bangers and fans; the bands and artists also speak to their love for the ability to share the gift of music with people because of Fort Collins’ support for music. Local youth musician Jared Janzen, a sophomore at Rocky Mountain High School, performs as a solo artist but also with his band Blue Taboo. He has played gigs at Avogadro’s Number, a local record store called The Bizarre Bazaar, and the Poudre Trail to name a few and he has loved every minute of it. The opportunities in Fort Collins are the reason he has branched out and been able to play at venues in Denver, Santa Fe, and even across the pond in France. “In France, I arrived there and met the people I was staying with who couldn’t speak any English. We couldn’t communicate. So, I picked up my guitar and started to play and we instantly bonded.”
Ken Monks, a talented guitarist for the local band Mama Lenny and The Remedy, previously lived in Pennsylvania and played many shows there but admits to loving the music scene of Fort Collins with its wide range of opportunities. “We played a wedding last year where the bride and her father were slow-dancing to “Tell Me What You Need” (a gorgeous ballad written by one of Mama Lenny’s guitarists, Ben). Then there was the Zombie Prom where my skittish math-nerd self was desperate to be airlifted out of the Aggie full of hundreds of screaming drooling people splattered in fake blood.” Monks believes in the power of music and its “skillful, beautiful, unspoken communication” and loves that Fort Collins encourages it to be spread. “[When I play music] I’m just trying to make music that’s fun and groovy and beautiful… I figure if that’s there at the essence then all the other things will fall in line.” The local music community that has sprouted out of the collaborations, local recording studios, and the scene in Old Town Fort Collins, gives musicians an opportunity to share their gifts and love for music. Monks said, “As a whole the music community is a very giving place. People are almost always willing to give tips and tricks and advice to anyone who’s interested. Some of what you know is stuff you discover yourself by just playing around, but a ton of it is stuff you learn from others who were kind enough to share. Thank God that first caveman who figured out how to make fire grunted to all the other cavemen about it before he died, right?”
Music: a sound that immediately can change the mood of someone’s day, an act that can bring someone so much joy and give them the confidence to share it with other people as a performer, a note on a piano for a second grade student immersing themselves in it for the first time, a smile on a face with the radio blasting in the car while cruising down the highway, a tear on a cheek from the touching lyrics that pull at the heartstrings. Music evidently shapes lives of those playing it and listening to it. The music scene in Fort Collins supports the life shaping and fist-pumping with its wide range of venues and music enthusiasts.
