In a recent brief interview, Jay Bianchi talked about The Grateful Dead, Pablo Picasso, Don Quixote, the real estate market, his family, and Denver's penchant for '60s hippie nostalgia. His quick and friendly demeanor reveals an underlying excitement about his business ventures and hobby-turned-profession. Bianchi's dream of owning a coffee shop fashioned in Grateful Dead memorabilia has evolved into a booming regional enterprise. With two successful music businesses underway and a third in the works, Bianchi has created the region's largest tie-dyed network for fans of "jam bands," intimate live show opportunities, and the continuation of life according to the late Jerry Garcia. But it's not all pot and microbrews, long-hair and patchouli oil.

Bianchi and his brothers Philip and Aric-Dante opened Quixote's True Blue Café in 1996, offering a unique musical setting for local and national improv-based bands. Sancho's Broken Arrow opened last year across the street from the Fillmore Auditorium in Denver's Capitol Hill. At Sancho's, patrons can hang out and enjoy the groovy ambience, play pool, and listen to a kick-ass jukebox. In the fall Bianchi unveils his newest project, Dulcinea's Federal Theater at 3830 Federal Blvd., a renovated 650-capacity venue devoted to bands friendly to the jam band circuit.

Not only are Bianchi's three businesses great additions to the music scene and entertainment economy for Denver, they prove that music can be a reason and an avenue for opportunity. Bianchi sees Denver as poised on the cusp of a huge musical market modeling the flourish of artistic expression in the San Francisco Bay Area during the '60s. "We are primed to relive what our generation believes the '60s to have been like," Bianchi said. "This is great music that can transcend all audiences and is pretty accepting of all people. My brothers and I want to [create this new venue and] push the scene a bit further."

Since Quixote's seats about 100 people, Bianchi brings in great bands that are new to the scene or are touring to build an audience. "We've had so many great bands come through our place," Bianchi said. Recent visits include Banyan, Tony Furtado Band, United Dope Front, and Robert Walter's 20th Congress. "We are investing in bands and working with them in the beginning of their careers and then we have to say goodbye to them as they outgrow our capacity." Bianchi's problem solving led him to the idea for a larger venue. "A lot of bands want to come back and play Quixote's but they definitely have to start getting more people in and a bigger audience. Our relationship with a lot of bands is a good relationship, and we'd like to keep that going by offering another, bigger venue for them to play."

A seasoned reader might recognize a familiarity between the names of the venues-- Quixote, Sancho, Dulcinea. As Bianchi explains, the businesses unite his love for the music with his close ties to his family, especially his late father. "My father's favorite book was Don Quixote by Miguel de Cervantes. My father had a lot of influence on me. My brothers and I, our businesses, are dedicated partly to my father." In Bianchi's eyes, Don Quixote, the literary character, and his father have much in common, as did the late Jerry Garcia. "The fictional figure Don Quixote found the magical elements in everyday life. He was a man dedicated to the spirit of imagination and adventure that was inherent in the long strange trip that so many of us have and continue to take," Bianchi explained. The song "True Blue" by the Grateful Dead deals with the death of a person who had a profound effect on people's lives and their community. Quixote's True Blue Café may be looking for a new site this summer, but the vibe and logic behind it will remain intact.

Sancho Panza was Quixote's side-kick, the one who had all the lessons to learn. Sancho's Broken Arrow bar has secured a great location on Colfax at Clarkson, and while being draped in Grateful Deadness, Bianchi sees a lot of different people mingling and relaxing inside, perhaps learning and growing. As plans get underway for Dulcinea's theater, Bianchi wants the inside to look like the world does from the bottom, or ground, on up to the sky. There will be paintings by artist Stanley Mouse, and a huge "tree of life" that Bianchi says will "reach into the upper limits of the sky. It will be Quixote's on a larger scale. Dulcinea was this old hag that Quixote saw as a beautiful creature. She was his sweetheart, and that's what he was fighting for."

And it all comes full circle, doesn't it? The success of Bianchi's businesses seem to hover around the combined elements of the strength he draws from his family and beliefs, the literal, musical and physical ideals of adventure and exploration, a booming music scene centered around Garcia's influence, and a great live music market in Denver. "We certainly can't complain," Bianchi said, "and we love what we do. What a life!" Fare thee well.

--Judy B.

Find more info at www.quixotes.com

photo by Sean Hartgrove

BEAT DIET

If you have a taste for electronic music, Denver has club nights to fill your plate almost every night of the week. This past month has brought the grand opening for quite a few new club nights, and this past year has seen the openings of a couple brand new clubs.

The recently renovated Casino Cabaret, with its white walls and hardwood dance floor, might look a little like a high school gym, but attach the country's sec-ond largest disco ball to the ceiling (the largest being at Twilo in New York), and you have one of Denver's busiest clubs. Recently Pure has welcomed such international talent as Micro, George Acosta, and Sandra Collins. Pure plays host to Carbo-nation Sundays. It recently added Pure Madness Thursdays (MAD Productions), and one-off style events from promoters such as Triad Dragons, and looks like it's going nowhere but up. Future shows at Pure Madness will include top DJs such as DJ Craze, Frankie Bones, Kimball Collins, and Anne Savage. The club itself is clean, with big bean bag chairs, tables, and soft couches all around. Sharing the ceiling with the massive disco ball are big white balloons, and an upper balcony with more tables surrounding the dance floor. The sound is loud and clear, with two big walls of speakers on either side of the stage. Be sure to go check it out-- it is for sure one of Denver's premier nightclubs. Pure is located at 26th and Welton.

May 1 marked the end of an era. DJ Nutmeg performed for his last time at Deeper, the Snake Pit's weekly Sunday night event. Nutmeg, a beloved local DJ, moved to Detroit May 2. He was a resident of Outta' Our Heads Productions, and was a very talented house DJ. He will be greatly missed by fans and peers, as will his soulful yet eclectic mixing style. The future of Deeper Sundays has yet to be decided, but it is rumored the Spank collective will be taking it over.

Tracks 2000 Sundays has also made a change. It has re-opened its doors to the 16-and-older crowd, and started an all new club night. Rumors still fly about the fate of this Denver night life landmark, the most recent being that it will be moving to a bigger, better, newer location. Be sure to check out the original venue while you still have a chance. With resident DJs like EvenflO, Cain, and more, and a $6 cover charge, Krisco Disco Sundays promises to be one of the favorite club nights of this summer.

In light of all of the recent efforts of law enforcement to shut the rave scene down, promoters have taken it to the clubs. In an effort to keep the music alive, groups like Synesthesia Productions have taken over club venues once a week. House of Syn Wednesdays began May 2. House of Syn will feature weekly headlining talent like monthly resident DJ Moda, Jodi from Way Out West, and Pete "the shaker" Bones. It is located at the newly remodeled club Roxy, just a few doors down from Pure on Welton St.

April 27 was a night to remember when Denver got to experience its first Foam party. Reminiscent of the famous Ibiza nightclubs, the crew at Yellow 69 productions filled the Root Underground with slippery, sudsy soap foam. The line-up included some of Denver's favorite local DJs including Brandon Plank, and Jasper, who was making his first appearance since his near-fatal car accident in January. Ravers in attendance played games like Red Rover, and dunked each other in the foam. The night went off very smoothly, and Yellow 69 productions have said that it has plans to do more in the future.

--Erin Marsh

ORANGE PEEL

Music is a supernatural force for sure, but what motivation does a generation raised on music television have to leave the comfort of their La-Z-Boys to patronize live music (or even pre-recorded music mixed by a live person) unless the event promoter can deliver eye candy as well? 2001: Sea Odyssey, an underwater theme party produced by 12 Inc., and Way Out West, a western theme party presented by The Gothic Afterhours, both delivered the goods in April.

Sea Odyssey's blue astroturf runway was decorated with pipe cleaners, X-mas lights, balloons, chicken wire, and multi-colored mesh to provide gravitational support for designs from Aaron Chang and Scaredy Cat that included sailor suits, grass skirts, Hawaiian shirts, and funkturism, as well as swimwear constructed from clamshells, bubblewrap, astroturf, blacklight-sensitive body-paint, and the emperor's new clothes. Casa Del Soul's Wyatt Earp, Sense, and Ryan Jaqua, and the hip hop funk of United Dope Front contributed the soundtrack for an event that also featured video projections, fire, face painting, an oxygen bar, go-go dancers, hennah, and a ferris wheel.

Way Out West at the Gothic Theatre pulled out all the big guns for its western theme party includ-ing Jody, Little Mike, and a fashion extravaganza in honor of world famous designer Anna Zap called Zappatista by House of Frog. Wanted posters of Frog's choreographer Nature set the stage for cap gun pistol-dueling punk rock cowgirls in a variety of leopard, zebra, and but-terfly prints. A strobelight frenzy punctuated the climax in which Nature was subjected to the flesh-frying wrath of the electric chair.

For more information on 12 Inc., visit it in cyberspace at www. 12events. com. House of Frog Designs can be purchased from dv8 studios in Denver or Housed (1144 Pearl St.) in Boulder. Got cyberspace?-- www. madmonkeyink. com.

--orange peel moses

CD Review

EL FIEND: EL FIEND

Back in the day, when I was in high school, there was a rock band of friends and acquaintances who managed to scrape enough money together to record an album. That band was called the Nocturnal Ceremony Band, and its album was called Coffee By The Creek. It wasn't especially good, but it wasn't too bad either, considering all the musicians were in high school, after all. EL Fiend's debut recording reminds me a lot of Nocturnal Ceremony Band: a noble attempt held back by ... something. The problem is, EL Fiend can't make the excuse it's just high school kids.

Blame most of this one on the recording. The sound, from beginning to end, sounds like it was recorded in a garage with bad acoustics. Every note and lyric is predictable from bar to bar, and while some of that is the band's problem for writing predictable songs, a good recording engineer can liven things up with a button pushed and a level adjusted here and there.

EL Fiend's sound is dated. No way around it. When I was listening to this, I pictured the band that wins the battle of the bands competition at the end of your typical wacky high school comedy in the '80s. The opener, "One Glance," could run over the final credits of a Corey Haim movie. Daniel Garcia's guitar playing is technically impressive, but his solos still rely too much on Steve Vai, and his melodic lines drip with cheese.

Molly Woodbridge's vocals bring back a scent of Belinda Carlisle, while her lyrics sound like they came from the reject pile at Edie Brickell's house. There are a few bright moments of overlapping harmonies, but most of the singing-with-yourself attempts aren't in tune, and the one on "Neighbors" isn't even in tempo. Woodbridge has a problem keeping with the rhythm throughout the album, in fact ... most notably on "New Day," a song that races ahead with rambling lyrics like a misfired Heart experiment.

If there's a bright spot on this album, it's "Believe EL Fiend," which is absolutely ruined by bad recording to the point that it has a certain camp value-- it sounds like something Cabaret Diosa would record as a joke. What helps this song stand out, however, is the introductory bass line by Mike Romero. It inspired me to listen more closely to the bass lines in every song, and notice that Romero is the one member in this band who brings creativity to the table. The rest of the players plod along solidly, but they seem to just play whatever comes to mind initially, which is why the songs are so predictable.

I think EL Fiend has promise, and made a bad record due more to financial reality than anything else. The Blues Traveler guitar intro on "Mountain Romp" and a few other moments of cohesion prove there's enough talent here to pull off something much better than this demo. D+ --Chris J. Magyar

CD Review

THE INDULGERS: TAN & BLACK

In post-Riverdance America, there are two kinds of Irish music: the kind that sucks in a New Age way, and the kind that kicks your arse. The newest album from Fado house band The Indulgers kind of vacillates between, just like the title suggests. The opening track, "The Legend of Tan & Black," is a spoken-word minute of mystic renaissance Irish ditty featuring a whistle line that can only be described as, for lack of a better term, gay. Then the roof falls down and we segue into a rocking tune called "Easy Come, Easy Go."

The lyrics of "Easy Come, Easy Go" are hauntingly familiar. See if you can spot this: "Slow down, way too fast/Take your time, make the moment last." Hmmm. The lyrics waver just like the music, running from cheesy Irish folklore (" Book of Ages") to extremely familiar American pop music sentiment (" It's Your Life"). But The Indulgers have never pretended to represent James Joyce-- they represent the house band that shakes the hay-thatched roof of the proverbial Irish pub on a rainy spring evening. Think of the below-decks party in Titanic, or the obligatory celebratory whole-town's-invited scene in any Irish comedy ever to cross the Atlantic.

Songs like "Tir Na nÓg" are Irish hoe-downs, pure and simple, and how you feel about them will depend entirely upon your upbringing. Judging it for what it is, Tan & Black is a rollicking fun time from start to finish, with only one major misstep: a cover of "What A Wonderful World"-- Damien McCarron is no Louis Armstrong. Though they might not convey the traditional panache of The Chieftains, fiddler Renee Fine, percussionist Patrick Murphy Jr., and piper/ whistler/ everything else Mike Nile create a solid Irish core that keeps The Indulgers from sounding too much like The (ugh) Corrs.

One thing's for sure: this band was made to be heard live after a few pints of Guinness. Songs like "Saturday Night" scream 'live band' so loudly, you just have to crank the volume and wonder what you're doing listening to this at home instead of in person. Still, what strikes me every time I listen to an album of Irish music is that it's really just country music with all the pickup truck sucked out of it. B --Chris J. Magyar

CD Review

VANDAL: SCANDILUX

Why would anyone want an album like this? I mean, it's good, extremely good, but what use could one possibly have for six remixes of the same song? I could understand if it were on vinyl, because then there's a huge DJ market out there looking for different flavors of the same hit to mix into the rotation week after week ... but on CD? Oh well. It exists, so let's leave it at that and listen to it anyway.

The song itself, by Vandal, opens the CD, and it's a fun little party track with a good hook: "The rhythm will take your soul," she says, without a trace of evil in her voice. E. B. E. 's mix follows, and it's probably the most dance floor friendly, with an unrelenting beat covered by all the scratches and modulations one would expect to hear in the midst of a club set.

The third remix is the only dud, by DropCulture, in that it's a lame attempt to throw the tune through the Fatboy Slim grinder. The Fatboy's the only one who can get away with the vocal trip trick, so it's best if all the pretenders just stop pretending on that one.

JoZas throws down a sweet little funk version of the song. The beats are all over the place, so it's not the most danceable version, but it's probably the most chill sit-in-your-recliner-and-listen version. My favorite is the DJ Vitamin D remix, which has the most energy and changes up the bass line for a nice twist of variety.

Vandal closes it off with his own "Subass" mix. So the question is still out there, after hearing what amounts to the same song six times: why would anyone want an album like this? B+ --Chris J. Magyar

CD Review

BLUE NOTE: ONE LABEL UNDER A GROOVE

GO-GO * ART * MOVIES * MUSIC * BOOKS * STYLE * THEATER * DINING * BARS * YEARBOOK * ABOUT GO-GO * * BACK ISSUES * MUSIC SAMPLER * MEDIA REVIEWS * REVIEW INDEX *