Indie 102.3 Sessions

Jennifer Jane Niceley began playing music as a kid living on a farm in eastern Tennessee. She moved to Nashville to kick-start her career, but the singer-songwriter now calls Colorado home. The songs on Niceley’s latest album, “Angels, Demons, Red-Tail Hawks,” reflect the country music influences of her home state with elements of folk and Americana. Jennifer Jane Niceley visited the CPR Performance Studio to play some music from her new LP. She also spoke with Alisha Sweeney about making the move to Colorado, playing a Tom Petty tribute show at Denver’s Hi-Dive and the personal themes behind the lyrics of “Angels, Demons, Red-Tail Hawks.”

Fort Collins singer-songwriter Corey Wright began releasing music as weareforests last year. He released his debut album, “Part, Parcel,” in July and the “Liturgy” EP just a few months later. His music features atmospheric vocal harmonies backed by acoustic folk instruments in the vein of Bon Iver and Iron & Wine. Wright visited the CPR Performance Studio last month for a weareforests solo set. He spoke with Bruce Mitchell about touring the Pacific Coast on a train, his forthcoming holiday album and how he views songs as conversations.

Dee and Erika Rhodes make music as The APX. The Atlanta-based artists add electronic instruments to a classic funk sound on their debut EP “Electrik Funk.” Their music has won praise from like-minded acts Chromeo and Empire Of The Sun and the married duo is a live favorite in its hometown. The APX stopped by the CPR Performance Studio after a Denver gig. Dee and Erika Rhodes played four songs and spoke with Bruce Mitchell about their busy touring schedule and their love for dance and new wave music from the 1980s.

The CPR Performance Studio got a full dose of holiday spirit when Kyle’s Xmas Supergroup visited earlier this month. Led by Kyle Gray of Rubedo, the band includes members of Colorado acts déCollage, Dandu and Ancient Elk as well as a puppet named P. Miller. Kyle’s Xmas Supergroup played three original holiday tunes during its session. Gray also spoke with Alisha Sweeney about his recent move to Santa Fe, N.M., his love for holiday specials from The Muppets and Pee-wee Herman and the new album from Rubedo.

Sour Boy, Bitter Girl has been active since 2005, and the band shows no signs of slowing down. The folk-rock quartet– which formed in Fort Collins and is now based in Denver — released two records this year: the “Witchy Women” EP and full-length album “The Palm Reader And The Palm Writer.” Sour Boy, Bitter Girl made its first appearance in the CPR Performance Studio last month to play four songs from “The Palm Reader And The Palm Writer.” Frontman Benjamin Buttice also spoke with Alisha Sweeney about making the move to Denver, the mystical themes behind their new music and plans for 2018.

Curta is the alias of Denver MC Jake Danna who performs and records with producer 4Digit. The duo creates an unconventional take on hip-hop by adding elements from industrial, noise and electronic music. Their latest release is the “Click Bait” EP which features a guest verse from Chicago rapper Serengeti. Curta stopped by the CPR Performance Studio last month for a performance and interview. The two musicians played four songs and spoke with Jeremy Petersen about the origins of their collaboration, their love for spoken word performances and where they fit in the Denver music scene.

Megan Fong has been active in Denver’s music scene for nearly a decade. She previously fronted Bonnie & The Beard and now makes music with her band Florea. Last month the quartet released its self-titled debut album, which continues in the blues-rock vein of Fong’s previous work. Florea stopped into the CPR Performance Studio before its album release show to play four songs. Fong also spoke with Alisha Sweeney about starting Florea after Bonnie & The Beard’s dissolution, signing with Americana label Roll The Jax and the band’s upcoming tour.

Singer and guitarist Jay Mars started the psychedelic rock band King Eddie while living in Detroit. He’s since moved to Denver and teamed up with members of Colorado bands like The Still Tide and dé​Collage. This month the quintet released its second album, “Holographic Universe.” King Eddie stopped into the CPR Performance Studio before the release show for the new LP. Mars and his band played four songs and spoke with Alisha Sweeney about getting acquainted with the Colorado music scene, putting on shows with virtual reality headsets and working with the Denver art collective Moon Magnet Music.