Cloud Cult, Monolith Pre-Party

A double dip of Cloud Cult for my team, although I was an old lady who only made it to one of two back-to-back shows in the Rocky Mountain Empire.

Every time I see this band, I stand in amazement at the quality of their stage show and wonder why they don't have more fans. To college students I say "these guys blow Jack Johnson away! Try some Cloud Cult!"

Opener "Transistor Radio" set the stage for their quiet side, followed by a blistering "Intro" and "Tornado Lessons" and a hint of the rock to come. They played the song I most wanted to hear last night, "Pretty Voice" and it delivered, although I was left wanting "Please Remain Calm".

Ghost themes ruled the night, with some great tracks from their latest album Feel Good Ghosts including my favorites "No One Said it Would Be Easy" and "Journey of the Featherless" as well as crowd fave "Everybody Here is a Cloud". They also dug back to the Aurora Borealis album with "Alone at a Party in a Ghost Town".

The set closed with "Take Your Medicine" and a three song encore of "Mr. Tambourine Man" (shades of the live at kexp cd), "Happy Hippo" (in a sweetly described rebellion against Baca's protestations from the May performances), and "Love You All".






"Pork Pie" and "More Cowbell" delivering the art and the rock.


"Mr. Tambourine Man"

Cloud Cult - last night, tonight!

My friends who saw the show at the Aggie Theater in Ft. Collins last night report that Craig Minowa and company put on another excellent performance. Tonight, they bring it to the Bluebird - see you there!

Monolith treats for the Laramigos

Wyoming and Northern Colorado residents benefit from the Monolith influx of musicians this week.

First, Cloud Cult makes a Fort Collins appearance at the Aggie Theatre on Thursday September 11th. I'm so tempted to attend, because they put one of the best live shows around, but it seems a bit excessive as we'll be seeing them the next night at the Bluebird. If you've not seen Cloud Cult before this show is $8 (!) and so close to the Equality State that you can't go wrong.

On Saturday the 13th The Giraffes make their way through Laramie en route to their Sunday Red Rocks date. I'm new to this band but getting a national act at a bar like JJ's is totally worth checking out in my mind.

Cloud Cult Larimer Lounge 5/18/08

Craig Minowa and company provide one of the best live shows around. Their show Saturday was just as beautiful as the one a year ago at the Larimer Lounge that made me fall in love with them.

I can't say it better than Ricardo Baca, read his account!

Cloud Cult @ Larimer Lounge 5-10-07

This concert review not quite a month late, oops.

I went into the Cloud Cult show not knowing what to expect and only somewhat familiar with the band's sound. The opening band did not bode well, a terrible mishmash of styles and no real presence.

That all went by the wayside when Cloud Cult took the stage with (I think) 7 band members, two of whom started painting on large canvasses during the music. A full sound and tight band, the strings sounded fantastic as did Craig Minowa's voice. I loved that CC made the Larimer Lounge seem big... I've never seen a band own that stage so well, what with the paintings and the smoke and the lasers and tons of instrumentation.

The crowd knew most of the songs but also consumed rather too much Miller High Life before the show, so their enthusiasm turned into asshole-ishness at times.

The band closed with my fave and everyone else's, Take Your Medicine [thx to mokb]. A fantastic performance, worth catching during Monolith for sure.

My photo of one of the stage paintings, this one by Scott West, it was auctioned off to benefit the earth or similar, did not come home with me: