Spork: 2013 UMS Wrap Ups, pt. 1

Friday, July 26, 2013

2013 UMS Wrap Ups, pt. 1

"They offered, we said OK." -Mudhoney

Natasha's take on the UMS.

I am still recovering from a great long weekend at the UMS. This year I tried to focus more on the people that make up this festival than what bands I would see. I thought if I just let the current pull me, I would see more random moments. I had a plan to go alone to cover more ground; as I walked by a couple one of the nights, the woman was seething to her man "Oh, it's all about where YOU want to go and what YOU want to see". Ugh, at that moment I felt so glad I did not make a plan with someone to go to the UMS together. For the first half, I really just spent time people watching and just soaking it all in.

Dirty Femmes

By late Sunday I had eyes and ears filled with joy. Running into old friends is usually an after thought, but this year I was very aware that the UMS is a unique time to catch up with friends, musicians, promoters, photographers and all of the other amazing people that make my life in Denver so rich. I saw spontaneous dance circles, people hanging out on their decks and watching the main stage from their back yards, old folks grooving to new music, and lots of kids running around. It really felt like everyone in Denver was there. One of my favorite stories from the UMS is when a neighbor of the festival hung a banner on their deck inviting Mudhoney over for a drink, and Mudhoney accepted! Twist had a pop-up record store at Fancy Tiger, and that was a total pleasure to work with them. We sold local and national vinyl, and I loved seeing people wander around the festival with records in Twist tote bags.

Fancy Roger at Fancy Tiger

There were so many great moments of music but Bleached was my favorite of the national acts; Munly and the Lupercalians was my favorite of the local acts, and Dirty Femmes was great mix of both with Jen Korte and Gordon Gano of the Violent Femmes. My favorite break away from the festival moment was watching the sunset on the roof top of Irish Rover on Sunday night. I ran into a great group of friends and met some regular customers who reminded me of some old school Twist and Shout moments with the pranks from Longmont Potion Castle. It was hot, but the venues provided shade and comfort. I spent most of my time at the 3 Kings Tavern but I also ventured into new (to me) venues like Blue Ice and Gozo. Thanks to the bands, the venues, the UMS volunteers and mostly the music fans of Denver for being such a great community!

Ian Cooke

Natja's take on the UMS.

The Whirlwind of UMS kept the city up late, PBR flowing like water and all of our favorite local bartenders safely in their apartments for another couple months. It is, after all, Denver's best block party (that's bigger than a block).

Per-usual all of our local favorites and even a few not so locals were out in droves. Knowing I'd have limited time I wanted to see as many people as possible. My adventure started at noonish with a cup of coffee and Esme' Patterson...probably one of the best ways to start a Sunday I can think of, and ended with a sake dinner with some sushi on the side. All and all UMS 2013 seemed to be a great success and parachutes full of fun.

Great music, great people, great bartenders, what else could you ask for?

Thanks to the organizers, the musicians, the sound guys, Fancy Tiger, the crazy Denver fans who have the energy to sustain a truly unique and awesome experience, Twist & Shout appreciates it and so do I.