© 2024
NPR for Northern Colorado
Play Live Radio
Next Up:
0:00
0:00
0:00 0:00
Available On Air Stations

It's On, Colorado Music Party Plants Their Flag At SXSW

Stacy Nick
/
KUNC
Instrumentalist Maxwell Hughes tried out his vocals at the Colorado Music Party as one of the event's opening acts at South By Southwest.

While the opening day of the Colorado Music Party – an unofficial South By Southwest showcase – was focused on some obviously talented folks, some hidden talents were unveiled as well. Day one was about stepping outside your comfort zone, new material, fun and letting the music party's flag fly.

"I've been an instrumentalist for years and years and have recently started breaking into just writing songs with lyrics and trying to have as much fun as possible with that," said Colorado musician and former Lumineers member Maxwell Hughes . "I think that was always the biggest discouraging part for me with singing was self-criticism about the lyrics."

Hughes said having more fun with songwriting and lyrics has been, well, instrumental to his development of new material and that his fans are taking to this new effort.

While he often is compared to finger-pick artists such as Tommy Emmanuel, Tuesday he channeled Jimmy Page with a rendition of "Stairway to Heaven" when he whipped the guitar behind his back and finger-picked the song behind his head.

Wearing one of his own shirts emblazoned with his name across his chest – something usually unheard of – Hughes said the move ensures that people won't forget him.

"It's got my brand on it… If I show up and shake hands with somebody – it's like a large name tag."

According to another act at the showcase, Eldren – whose sound mixes high-tech and low-tech, merging synthesizers with violins, trombones and trumpets – having fun is the best way to stand out amongst the crowd.

"They have fun when we have fun," said vocalist and guitarist Nasir Malik.

They certainly had a lot of fun, mixing things up with a variety of styles from funk to dance and some high-tech toys as well.

sxsw-comusicparty_eldren-wife-of-the-party_web.mp3
Live from the Colorado Music Party: Eldren, 'Wife of the Party' (explicit language warning)

"We use a lot of weird things to make the sounds that we want to make," Malik said. "That might be toys, that might be really old gear… It's a big part of our sound. Science is a big part of our sound."

Editor's Note: Reporter Stacy Nick is in Austin, TX reporting from the 2015 South By Southwest festival and the Colorado Music Party. You can follow Stacy Nick on Twitter for updates: @StacyNick

Stacy was KUNC's arts and culture reporter from 2015 to 2021.
Related Content