The aptly name Monolith Festival has officially announced the lineup for this year's two-day multi-stage festival. Sadly, since I did not attend last year's inaugural event, I'm in a poor position to compare the two. I can say that I will be equally disappointed if I miss this indie rock fest again.

It all goes down on Saturday and Sunday, September 13 and 14. Denver's own Devotcka headlines on Saturday. Tickets go on sale this Friday at 10am, so get in line people!

The complete lineup (so far) is as follows:

Saturday, September 13
Devotchka
Silversun Pickups
Neko Case
Vampire Weekend
Mickey Avalon
Del tha Funky Homosapien
Cut Copy
The Fratellis
Superdrag
The Kills
Holy Fuck
White Denim
The Night Marchers
A Place to Bury Strangers
The Photo Atlas
The Hood Internet
John Vanderslice
Darker My Love
Cameron McGill and What Army
Blitzen Trapper
The Presets
Pop Levi
Pwrfl Power
The Morning Benders
Boyhollow

Sunday, September 14
Justice
TV on the Radio
Band of Horses
Sharon Jones and the Dap Kings
CSS
The Avett Brothers
Tokyo Police Club
Dan Le Sac vs. Scroobius Pip
Akron/Family
The Bronx
Tilly and the Wall
The Heavy
The Cribs
The Ting Tings
Airborne Toxic Event
Bright Channel
Chester French
Grampall Jookabox
The Rosewood Thieves
Hearts of Palm
The Giraffes
The Elms

Well folks, the long anticipated (by me, anyway) RuckusRoots premier event has come and gone. Aside from the biodegradable ticker tape parade thrown in my honor and President Bush arriving in Boulder, reading my flyers and dropping to his knees to beg our forgiveness as a nation, nothing really major happened.  

Let me just say, in all seriousness, this has been a whirlwind experience, and it is far from over. It is my hope, actually, that it is never over and that I can live in this whirlwind forever, as long as there are issues I believe the youth should become aware of, and hopefully, outraged by. I guess I should invest in a substantial windbreaker. I hear Patagonia makes one out of recycled materials.  

A whirlwind, indeed.

Sunday April 20th EarthDay Show at the Fox theater with GSP and Pretty Lights! Other DJs and MCs from across the country will make appearances as well, including Lynx, SoulEye, Savoy and more! (See poster)

10% of ticket sales ($1.50 from each ticket) goes to RuckusRoots.

RuckusRoots is part of the "art as resistance" movement – a grassroots effort to engage young people in democracy and the environment. We will provide a nexus for young people to connect, learn, act and, hopefully, draw new inspiration from the experience.

The goal of RuckusRoots is twofold: To inspire young people to get involved in the American political system by providing a place for them to learn about issues and register to vote, and… To encourage them to vote in environmentally friendly ways once they're registered.

Learn more at www.ruckusroots.org and www.myspace.com/ruckusroots

Fox website show info

Christine Spehar also wrote a piece that showcased Green Spirit Productions earlier in the year.  

Denver joins the ranks of 8 cities in celebrating Earth Day with the Green Apple Festival - a free gathering featuring music and speakers to raise environmental awareness. Denver's celebration kicks off at 12 noon on April 20th at City Park. Music acts to include The Neville Brothers, The Benevento/Russo Duo, Rose Hill Drive, and The Heydey. The event promises to "combine environmental addresses by prominent speakers and educational displays with music and entertainment, on the theme of environmental awareness." It might not quite match the star power of New York, D.C., etc. but it should make for a fine Sunday afternoon.

The festival is not limited to just Sunday though. Events will be happening at venues across Denver and Boulder.  Check out the Green Apple Festival link below for more info.  Christine Spehar, a frequent contributor to Cairn, will be promoting Ruckus Roots at the Earth Day event in Boulder at the Fox on Sunday. So no matter where you live, get out there and show your support for Mother Earth! For more information on all these goings on as well as Earth Day check out the links below:

Green Apple Festival

Earth Day

Ruckus Roots

1. To inspire young people to get involved in the American political system by providing a place for them to learn about issues and register to vote, and…

2. To encourage them to vote in environmentally friendly ways once they're registered.

Spring is in the air, and as people all over Colorado prepare to bid an epic ski season a fond farewell, Vodka 14 has just the thing to start spring off right: a new batch of organic seasonal cocktail recipes. These refreshing new cocktail recipes all feature a palette of light, fresh fruit flavors to compliment the warming weather and, of course, they’re all mixed with pure Rocky Mountain organic Vodka 14. Conspicuously absent from these recipes are artificial flavors and sweeteners that overwhelm the delicate flavors that make for excellent spring cocktails. Vodka 14 blends seamlessly with natural flavors thanks to its remarkable purity. The USDA-Certified Organic vodka is free from chemical residues of any kind and is craft distilled in the Rocky Mountains using an advanced continuous column distillation system, yielding a taste so smooth that it will compliment even the subtlest flavors.

Fix yourself a perfect seasonal cocktail and raise a glass to the coming of spring!

Caipiroska 14

An organic twist on the Brazilian classic. Muddle half an organic lime with one teaspoon of carbinado sugar, bar sugar (superfine granulated sugar) or organic sweetener. Place in an 8 ounce tumbler. Add crushed ice, 3 ounces Vodka 14, lots of whole fresh mint sprigs and a little water. Stir.

Lemon Drop Martini 14

A refined take on the classic shot: Pour 3 ounces of Vodka 14 into a shaker with ice. Strain into a chilled martini glass. Add 2 ounces of French sparkling organic lemonade, pink or clear. Add a squeeze of fresh, tart lemon juice. Garnish with a whole crosswise slice of lemon.

Fuzzy Peach Martini 14

Shake 2 and 1/2 ounces Vodka 14 on ice. Strain into a large martini glass. Add 2 ounces organic peach nectar (or 1 ounce peach schnapps). Stir in 1/2 ounce heavy cream and a dash of organic, fair trade vanilla extract. Garnish with a fresh, fuzzy western slope peach slice and a sprig of fresh mint.

Enjoy!!

It seems that the Colorado has full on music festival fever now. Maybe it was the success of last year's Monolith Festival, but we can now get all hot and sweaty and the inaugural Mile High Music Festival. The two day event will take place the weekend of July 19 at the bright and shiny Dick's Sporting Goods Park with headliners Dave Matthews, Tom Petty, and John Mayer. Tickets go on sale March 29th at 10am.

The festival will have five stages, food from area restaurants, and an "artists village." You'll even recognize a few of the acts from last year's Monolith as well (we're looking at you Spoon). Overall, it seems an effort was made to have a reasonable mix of artists (local included) and genres. You be the judge:

Saturday 7/19
Tom Petty and the Heartbreakers
O.A.R.
Michael Franti and Spearhead
Steve Winwood
Spoon
moe.
Citizen Cope
Andrew Bird
Josh Ritter
State Radio
JJ Grey & Mofro
Bob Schneider
Brett Dennen
Newton Faulkner
Meese
Born In The Flood
Railbenders

Sunday 7/20
Dave Matthews Band
John Mayer
The Black Crowes
Rodrigo y Gabriela
Flogging Molly
Colbie Caillat
OneRepublic
The Roots
Leftover Salmon
Martin Sexton
Flobots
Ingrid Michaelson
Grace Potter and the Nocturnals
Tea Leaf Green
Rose Hill Drive
The New Mastersounds
Serena Ryder
The Photo Atlas

The Colorado premiere of the award-winning documentary "Blindsight" will be in Denver on March 13th, 2008 at 7PM at the Mayan Theatre (110 Broadway). The film has won Audience Awards for Best Film at many major film festivals worldwide and was nominated for Best Documentary Film in Britain.

Attendees will have a chance to meet Erik Weihenmayer and Sabriye Tenberken, founder of Braille without Borders, as well as many of the students who participate in Global Explorers Leading the Way programs for blind and sighted students. Proceeds from the event will support Global Explorers and Braille without Borders. Global Explorers is a Colorado-based non-profit and was featured in Issue 3 of Cairn Magazine.

Set against the breathtaking backdrop of the Himalayas, "Blindsight" follows the gripping adventure of six Tibetan teenagers who set out to climb the 23,000-foot Lhakpa Ri on the north side of Mount Everest. A dangerous journey soon becomes a seemingly impossible challenge made all the more remarkable by the fact that the teenagers are blind. The resulting three-week journey is beyond anything any of them could have predicted.

Tickets to the movie are $25. If you would like to attend a VIP Reception prior to the film with Erik, Sabriye and other cast members and the film producers, the cost is $100. The VIP Reception begins at 5 PM at the Hornet (76 Broadway) and includes food and drinks.

You can purchase tickets online at www.globalexplorers.org/events/ or by calling Global Explorers at 877-627-1425 or emailing This e-mail address is being protected from spam bots, you need JavaScript enabled to view it with the Subject line of "Blindsight".

Get out and support this great cause!