Graveyard Shift

Ottmar Liebert and Luna Negra lifted spirits to a whole new level last night at the Crown Hill Cemetery Pavilion of Reflection (Wheat Ridge, Colorado). This benefit concert event raised more than $16,000 for the Collier Hospice Center!

So, what exactly does a concert in a cemetery look like? This beautiful new pavilion provided an intimate concert setting with surprisingly good acoustics, and the semi-outdoor feel took advantage of a beautiful Colorado summer evening!


And the music completely rocked! This incarnation of the Luna Negra band showcases the incredible talents of all the players… but I think the key ingredient that brings it together is that these guys seem to be having so much fun! It’s just a great chemistry to both see and hear, and that becomes contagious for the audience.

Speaking of incredible talents… we were treated to a live performance of “Northbound”, which will be on Jon Gagan’s upcoming album “Transit 2”. I’m just happy “Transit 2” is going to be released soon (this September) because I can hardly wait!

And what about that Stephen Duros guy we’ve all been hearing about? Well, his guitar and keyboard work brings a whole new depth to this band. In particular I think his guitar rhythms free up Ottmar to really go deeper with his improvised parts… and Ottmar takes advantage by making many of his classics sing like you’ve never heard them before! Ottmar was also free to make some quick transitions between flamenco and electric guitars, so suddenly you get all these new layers happening within each song… it’s like that witnessing the birth of something new and unexpected… you can’t help but smile!

Stephen’s unique guitar styling was featured in a performance of “Thira”, from his soon to be released album… which I’m incredibly excited for also (another September release)!

And you can’t help but get carried away by Dave Bryant’s energetic hand drumming! (He was clearly having way too much fun!) He brought the house down several times during the show, but a particular highlight for me was the depth he brought to the ever popular “Snake Charmer”.

After the show there was an opportunity to mingle with the band… how cool to spend some time with these guys and hear some of their perspectives and stories from their travels! Thanks Ottmar and Luna Negra for a “Gold Ticket” evening!

WHAT, NO PERFORMANCE PHOTOS?!?! Sorry folks… just prior to the start of the performance an announcement was made that photography during the show would be strictly prohibited. So I took that as an invitation to just sit back and get lost in the music. I hope you all get a chance to catch this tour and get lost in the music too!