**Please note: Due to weather conditions, tonight’s B-Side is moving from the MCA Denver rooftop to the Holiday Theater at 2644 W 32nd Ave. Thank you for your understanding and we can’t wait to party with you at the last B-Side of the summer!**

Ghost Tapes and Dandu bring their extraordinary talents for the final B-Side performance stage on Friday, August 25.  This season's lineup gave us some soul-grooving sounds in all of the tasty genres of music. If you missed B-Side this season (oh darn!), you have one more opportunity to come join us!. But first, get to know this week’s B-Side bands:

Ghost Tapes

Ghost Tapes is modern soul music. Inspired by the elements of 70's funk and soul, 90's hip-hop and late 90's neo soul, Ghost Tapes delivers enchanting, cerebral, and poetic original material in captivating performances filled with verve and intention.

Hi Ghost Tapes! How are things? 

I once read that things are only the qualia of the consciousness experience. If that’s true, can we really know how things are? - Will

Who is Ghost Tapes?  How did the band/ or persona come together? 

Ghost Tapes was initially an art music project that Nick and I desired to explore after working together in other bands for many years. We created a few tunes that we then shopped around to potential bandmates. The stories of how we came to finalize the lineup are those of chance and kismet, and for that we are very grateful. - Will

How long have you been performing in Denver? What is your favorite thing about the Denver music scene?

First performing in Denver with the placeholder name Cat Video Recall, we played our first gig at the tail end of 2014, officially playing our first show as Ghost Tapes in spring of 2015 if memory serves. My favorite thing about the scene here is the broad sense of community we feel with other artists who create exciting, experimental, ambitious music. Dandu, for example, is a band that encapsulates that spirit – of being honest to themselves, listening to their muse, and encouraging others on that same path of self-discovery through sound. I like to both attend and host events that bring that kind of artist together in the same space to collaborate, network, and motivate each other. - Will

Almost a decade as Ghost Tapes. My favorite thing is how friendly and supportive the music scene is.  We've made a lot of great friends in our years of performing in Denver. - Nick

Where do you find inspiration for your music? 

All around the world! We love to explore different musical movements worldwide, past and present. Lately I've been into 70's Turkish psychedelia/rock and various South American movements as well. Choro and Forro from Brazil, and Chicha from Peru would be some examples. - Nick

Besides other music, inspiration strikes in odd places. Occasionally a melody or groove from within a dream will stick in my mind after waking, and I’ll jump out of bed to go record whatever I can remember. I’m also fond of listening to the sounds of my environment – urban noise like the screeching of the light rail tracks or the whir of an elevator ascending. There’s this big cluster of trees near my house that clatter together on windy days and the sound is so percussive and enchanting. - Will

Who are some artists/creators that are influential to your musical practice?

Exploring the works of György Ligeti provided me with a great sense of liberation in regards to the boundaries of writing music. It’s often hard to decouple the sense of worth from the creative process, so anything or anyone that reminds me to create from a place of curiosity and adventurousness, rather than an expectation of payment, I would count as an influence. - Will

Corner 3 (the Milk Bar jam boys), Ramakhandra, King Gizzard & the Lizard Wizard, Los Mirlos, Dandu, +Ultra, etc. - Nick

Music can be an immersive experience. How would you describe your sound as a texture, a scent, or a taste? 

Texturally: like a burlap sack overfilled with jelly. Gooey and slightly abrasive. Olfactory-wise: ozone with occasional notes of roses, dirt, and botanical gin. - Will

What should we expect from your performance?

Juxtapositions, a little improvisation, dynamic energy shifts, definitely some twisted, nigh-demented facial expressions. - Will

What are you excited about for this year? 

I built a stage in my backyard to host some concerts and such. Just booked our first acts, that’s pretty exciting. Also Ghost Tapes has a new secret project for our next album we’ll be starting to work on soon. - Wil

Dandu 

Dandu’s music is hard to categorize, with ever-expanding influences that range from jazz to metal, electronica to classical, and beyond. The trio’s sound is fueled by complex, well thought out arrangements that leave room for moments of true spontaneity. The mission of the music is to take you on a journey through shifting scenes, evoke a range of emotion, and keep you endlessly surprised by what comes next. The sound of this democratic outfit is made up of the deep pocket and melodic style of bassist Sean Dandurand, the masterfully polyrhythmic and endlessly modulating grooves of drummer Dylan Johnson, and the vast textures and swirling soundscapes of synthesist/keyboardist Ben Weirich. Dandu has played across the USA at iconic venues like Webster Hall, Chautauqua Auditorium, Paradise Rock Club, Meow Wolf (Denver), and many more. The trio has shared the stage with Jacob Collier, Thundercat, Louis Cole, John Scofield, John Medeski, Victor Wooten, Dennis Chambers, Tera Melos, and many more. Listen here!

See you next season!