Re:Visit - Cervantes' Crowd Got De-Funk Down at This Weeks Re:Search Wednesday
Summer at Cervantes’ Masterpiece is turning out to be one of the hottest spots to hang out in Denver. As Re:Search Wednesdays seem to have gotten even more popular. Demand for a bigger space continues to become a necessity. For the second week in a row the nights gig was moved from The Other Side to Cervantes Masterpiece Ballroom. The ballroom is an ideal spot to encapsulate the energy of the artists, their music and the crowd that packs the space.
An electric July was capped off this past Wednesday with a dynamic night headlined by Calgary’s own Defunk. No doubt, we got “the funk” down. Support was on point with Memba’s clubby cuts and LYFTD’s cosmic close.
Lightning filled skies preempted the night. Jordan Polovina gave us a taste of fusion, showcasing his cello and freestyle talents among a four-female-force of deep wubs, sensual saxophone and sultry serenades from Colorado’s own Sassfactory. The set allowed those early enough to catch it the chance to shed their worries and weight of the day, with contemplative lyrics about moonlight love and long drives.
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The stage was set perfectly for Brooklyn’s own Memba to jolt Cervantes into pure party mode. The duo looked right at home in their Denver debut, getting the crowd hyphy with more than just heavy trap vibes laid under modern hip hop (though there was plenty of that). Genre fusion has rarely sounded so seamless or felt so damn good. A personal favorite they dropped was a filthy rework of Flume’s MUD, a version that truly earns the track name. They mixed in a Big Wild track, who is a fellow member of the foreign family collective, as well as their brand new single Inevitable, a synth-heavy meditation on death. Sounds like quite the party, right? Memba made an impression with their assorted sounds and creamy transitions, surely securing a slew of new fans.
Hardly a breath of space and Defunk struck Cervantes with his signature thunderous fuzz. He took full advantage of a crowd primed to move. The hip hop influence stayed but was now bolstered by hard-hitting future funk. Make no mistake, this Calgary native knows how to bump. And bump we did. The ballroom was filled with banging heads and wiggling hips, start to finish. For years now, Defunk has been consistently filling his discography with serious bangers, and has more in his arsenal than ever. Bass-faces and smiles abound during tracks like Breathless, a seriously funked up Get Involved (feat. Chali 2na) remix, and of course his own brand new single, Waiting. The array of vocals on Defunk tracks always seem to elevate his unique bass offerings to what I can only describe as soul grime. You have to see it to believe it.
For those that could still stand after Defunk, LYFTD kept things buzzing and sent the late crowd straight to the cosmos. Their intergalactic vibes perfectly topped off the night with a little more sway, and a whole lot of fun. There’s no surprise that the Denver based duo keeps rising in the scene, already having headlined the Bluebird and Cervantes themselves in the past year. If you’re parched for a slick guitar solo or some choppy scratchy goodness, these are your guys. They slowed it down and got sensual with it too; a worthy end to a radical RE:Search. Be sure to catch their upcoming free show supporting Tnertle at Levitt Pavilion next month.
It’s never too late to start planning for next week's RE:Search and it is always a good idea to get your tickets early. This upcoming show is going to be nothing less than a monumental coopetition of artists. Headlining is a DJ group known as UltraSLOTH, a triple threat composed of Duffrey, BioLuMigen and kLL sMTH, for a back to back to back set! Opening up for those guys will be 5AM, who will hopefully bless us with tracks from his brand new EP. Looking was just released on all platforms July 30, in collaboration with Pluto Era. If all those names didn’t have you marking next week's RE:Search on your calendar already, Thought Process will be there to end out the night with a late night set; throwing a sweet icing on top of this cake.
Thought Process is no stranger to playing at both the Ballroom and The Other Side, as well as past RE:Search shows. We spoke with him about his upcoming set, why he loves Cervantes venues and his own recent track release. He wanted to give a particular shoutout to Euphonic Conceptions, partners with the Cervantes crew, for putting these shows on and continuing to bring him back! Here’s what else he had to say:
SV: How has your festival season been this year, along with shows at venues similar to Cervantes?
Thought Process: This festival season has been such a doozy, I can honestly say I definitely wasn’t expecting this summer to be so packed. I left feeling extremely grateful after these last few weeks. Every festival has been so unique and fun; getting out, traveling and meeting so many new people through art has been one of the greatest pleasures of my life. Would not have been able to do it without my awesome team at The Gradient Perspective. I’m also so excited to play at Cervantes next week, RE:Search Wednesdays is one of my favorite events to play.
SV: You just released a new single, tell me about the making of that track and how the response has been so far.
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Thought Process: Looking was an interesting release for me, it was definitely a step in a heavier direction, which was really fun. That tune specifically came from very strange experiments in sound design and stepping outside of my normal comfort zone to try something new.
SV: Do you know the guys in UltraSLOTH or have you played with them before?
Thought Process: I’m particularly excited for this show, I’ve never played with UltraSLOTH before but I have played with kLL sMTH quite a few times. Duffrey is a homie and I’m a huge fan of BioluMigens music and super excited to meet and kick it with him. Also, 5AM is a great friend and inspiration so this show is just going to be a huge homie fest.
