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Music community gearing up for exciting winter season in Golden

With bands coming to town almost every week, there are a myriad of local bands also playing shows, and DJs to take in.
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Local musician Pablo Euphoria

Keri Sculland

Special to The Golden Star

It may be quiet this time of year, while the town awaits the arrival of employees and tourists for the winter season, but there is still a lot to do for music lovers.

With bands coming to town almost every week, there are a myriad of local bands also playing shows, and DJs to take in.

Local music enthusiast and frontman of his band, Pablo Euphoria says the music scene in Golden is growing exponentially. In the six years he has lived here, the amount of shows and musicians in town has flourished, and it’s not going to stop any time soon.

“The music scene right now is more alive than ever before,” said Matt Downie, drummer and manager for local band Easy Ruckus.

Five years ago, there weren’t nearly as many shows in Golden, Downie said.

“Just in the last two to three years, they’re bringing us a steady music scene,” Downie said, adding that the Rockwater Grill and Bar is the place to go for live shows, and Golden Delicious Productions has helped bring talent from all over to Golden.

Weekly jam nights at The Golden Taps and open mic at the Wolf’s Den continue to gather support of locals who go out to see quality music. The Taps and The Riverhouse also bring in bands from out of town and local acts.

“The music scene has really bloomed. There’s tons and tons of musicians in this town,” Euphoria said. “What’s really beautiful to see is when they all get together.”

Euphoria has been organizing jam nights at the Taps and the Rockwater, as well as working on his project called The Slinkies with drummer Caleb Patterson and sound engineer Yannick “Electric Jesus” Robitaille. He describes the band as gypsy jazz circus folk, without that much structure.

Easy Ruckus is another local act with Downie on percussion, frontman Landon Bushell, guitarist Cam New, bassist Jeremy Green and vocalist/synth player Vanessa Nøstbakken.

Coming soon, every Sunday night, Downie is hosting House and Bass Sundays at the Rockwater with his and his brother’s project Friend of the Night and another local DJ Happy Medium.

“There’s a lot of DJs in the Kootenays right now,” Downie said, adding that they play a huge role bringing festivals to each town.

Just two weeks ago, Halloween weekend was jam packed with music and DJs, a lot of whom were local. Sickest House- Chapter 1 brought DJs out to the Go Organic Sports Ranch on October 30, with all-night entertainment provided by 12 different DJs, such as Trip Advisor, Your Friend, Woofax, Shiny Things, Friend of the Night, and many more. The event was organized by a few dedicated volunteers, and is expected to take place again next fall.

Halloween featured a sold-out show at the Rockwater featuring The Funk Hunters. Last week, Easy Ruckus played an acoustic set at Jita’s Cafe, which brought out great attendance.

The end of November is expected to ramp up with even more excitement. A handful of shows are planned in the coming weeks, just as seasonal newcomers and returning snow seekers arrive.

Easy Ruckus and Pablo Euphoria are playing at The Taps on November 26. Golden Delicious is bringing the show to the pub, and Downie and Euphoria are hoping newcomers and long term residents alike will attend the free show.

“The point of this show, the date says it all,” Downie said. “It’s the weekend most of the seasonal workers are arriving. [Euphoria] and I are people they can reach out to if they want to get involved.”

Three days later, the Rockwater and Golden Delicious present Krafty Kuts with MC Dynamite.

If anyone in Golden wants to get involved with the music scene, or is a musician looking to play, they can attend one of the open mic or jam nights with a few polished songs.

“That’s the big thing. You have to water the plant,” Euphoria said.

There will be many more shows coming this season and next. To find out more about what is coming up, check in to these popular bars, restaurants and pubs on Facebook.