Rock & Rails 2021 lineup announced

A combination of familiar favorites and new sounds will be making their way to the Whistle Stop Park gazebo this summer when Niwot’s popular weekly summer concert series Rock & Rails returns to the stage on Thursday, June 3. From blues-inspired rock, to Afro-style reggae, the 2021 lineup has a little bit of something for all music fans and even a few surprises along the way, according to longtime talent manager Satir DeMarco.

“I wanted to create a combination of ‘comfort food’, to honor the folks that have always gotten us through,” she said of this year's performers, who include longtime Rock & Rails favorites Hazel Miller and Face. “But I’m also excited about our new acts. They’re a way to invite people to come and experience new music.”

The 2021 season opens with Mojo Mama, one of the bands firmly in the familiar favorites category. Founded by Longmont musicians Jessica and Paul Rogalski in 2002, the “blues and funk” influenced group has been a staple of festivals and concerts throughout Colorado, and was recently a semi-finalist in the International Blues Challenge in Memphis, Tenn.

Week two (June 10) brings the first new act to the stage, with Boulder-based “genre-bending indie rockers” Augustus. Following them on June 17 is local favorite Crick Wooder, bringing a touch of the Grateful Dead to Niwot.

“It’s not exactly a tribute,” DiMarco said, describing them instead as “inspired” by the eclectic rock band. “I saw a lot of people dancing to them in Longmont. They’re very danceable.”

Closing out June on the 24th is Los Chico Malos with some Musica Cubaña.

“They’re excellent,” Di Marco said. “It’s very high quality salsa, cha-cha, all kinds of Latin music.”

Opening acts for the opening month are the duo Pacheco & Bower (June 3), The Niwot Community Semi-Marching Free Grange Band (June 10), Ian & Wrenn (June 24), and Jenn Cleary (June 24).

July opens on the 1st with One on One, along with blues-guitarist Alan Knight and Company. Another new act, Selasee and the Fafa Family, makes its Rock & Rails debut on July 8, but the name of the singer-songwriter ahead of them may ring a bell to longtime Colorado music fans.

“Wendy Woo, who's normally in her own band, she's doing an acoustic thing, and will be opening,” DiMarco said.

The last three weeks of July will see a heaping serving of ‘comfort food’ with Chris Daniels and the Kings (July 15),Face(July 22), and The Long Run(July 29). Also appearing are Tim & Jenny, Strangebyrdsand local guitarist Dean Himes.

The series wraps up in August with a Niwot-centric lineup, featuring appearances by several current and former local residents. On Aug. 5 is Nick Dunbar & Friends, followed by headliner The Bluez House. On August 12, Girls on Topwill be returning to Rock & Rails, with Legitimate by Friday, featuring former residents Mike Anderson and Michael Warren, opening.

Niwot High alums Mark Trippensee, Lawrence Jenkins and Mike Holubec, who still lives in Niwot, will be back with Last Men on Earthon Aug. 19, and opening for them is the Blues Train Jazz Quartet, featuring Keith Waters, a CU Music School professor, and co-owner of Inkberry Books. Legendary soul-singer Hazel Miller will be headlining the season-finale on Aug. 26, with opening act Nalani,another former local who now performs regularly in Nashville.

With turmoil in the local music industry due to the pandemic closures in 2020, DeMarco feels fortunate that she was able to book a complete lineup without much hassle, though it wasn’t as straightforward as before. She also acknowledged that there are still some uncertainties about turnout, crowd size, and whether the next few months could hold more surprises. But she is certain that, if all goes as planned, the 2021 edition of Rock & Rails will serve as a great way for friends, neighbors, and music lovers to reconnect.

“What makes Niwot and Rock & Rails so unique is not that the music is so unique, but the community of people that come,” she said. “A lot of those bands say, ‘Oh my God, our favorite gig of the summer is Niwot.’ What we offer, it's like a deep sense of community and appreciation.”

The 2021 Rock & Rails concert series runs 13 weeks on Thursday nights from June 3 through August 26 at Whistlestop Park in Niwot. The opening act takes the stage at 5 p.m., followed by the headliner at 6:30 p.m. Admission is free, but donations to the Tip Jars are highly encouraged.