Icelantic Winter on the Rocks – featuring Half Color, Big Grams and ADVENTURE CLUB

Icelantic Winter on the Rocks – featuring Half Color, Big Grams and ADVENTURE CLUB

By: Rebecca LaPole

Photos By: Soren McCarty

January 29, 2016 – Denver, Colo.

On a beautiful Friday evening at the end of January, Red Rocks put on its 5^th Annual Winter on the Rocks concert, a testimony to all that is Colorado. We came to worship the beats in the snow, or in this case, the balmy 40 degree temperatures, at the best outdoor venue in our state. You never know what you're going to get when you purchase tickets to an outdoor concert, in the winter, and with the impending doom or another huge snow storm, we praised the clear skies and the rising moon behind the brightly lit stage while bouncing to booming beats.

Half Color, the brainchild of Michel Menert and Paul Basic, opened the show with some local love and plenty of Broncos fans fueled the air full of pride that we once again made it to the Super Bowl.

DJ Matt Cassidy kept us entertained in the middle of the venue, between the openers and the headliner, with heavy beats and smooth transitions. A winter-time fashion show from Icelantic, skis homemade in Colorado, also took place on stage between sets featuring lovely ladies and gentlemen with snow boots and gloves and no shirts.

Big Grams, Phantogram+Big Boi of Outkast, took the middle position playing some remixed hits like “Miss Jackson” and “The Way You Move.”

Although Adventure Club is from Canada, and doesn't seem to be all that well-known to a lot of folks I've talked to, I am an avid fan and will continue to be so after they put on a bass-heavy, beautifully choreographed laser and digital graphics visual and audio feast, complete with Leighton jumping on the decks and Christian throwing up his hands triumphantly. The vibe in the crowd was nothing but love and everyone danced the night away, which sadly ended at 11:30 PM. Guess the rumors were true about Red Rocks turning down the decibels and ending EDM shows early. Bummer!! That was the only bad thing about their performance. Winter on the Rocks could have just had Adventure Club rocking the house for a solid three hours, and there would be no complaints. With little tidbits of their well-known songs like “Gold” and “Crash” mixed in to new and crazy drops, the crowd ate it up and left wanting more.

After seeing other big name EDM artists on the Rocks like Pretty Lights and Bassnectar, I've decided to religiously follow Adventure Club wherever they go. I never get bored, not even for a second, at an Adventure Club show. I've seen them at the Aggie in Fort Collins and Red Rocks twice and I'm waiting for them to come back to Colorado already. Their drops are unpredictable and amazing, their stage presence is unmatched and their commitment to melting faces every show is unparalleled.

Thank you, Adventure Club, for braving the “cold” and making this a most memorable night.