FACE draws huge crowd at Rock & Rails

Rock & Rails drew a large crowd on Aug.15 to see the opening act, Charted Territory, followed by the headliner, FACE Vocal Band.

"FACE always draws a large crowd, including many fans from out of town," said Biff Warren, co-manager of Rock & Rails. "Many came early to set up chairs near the stage, and were treated to music from Charted Territory, the opening band, which included Mike Pierce and Katie Warren, who performed earlier this summer at Rock & Rails with the Niwot Community Semi-Marching Free Grange Band."

Charted Territory, originally known as All About the Brass, formed in 2015, and includes Katie Warren, a Niwot High School graduate on baritone horn, keyboards and vocals. Evonne Pierce on lead vocals got the crowd dancing. Charted Territory's setlist included a wide variety of well-known tunes, including "You Make Me Smile" by Chicago, "You and Me and the Bottle Makes Three" by Big Bad Voodoo Daddy, "Don't Fear the Reaper" by Blue Oyster Cult, "Radar Love" by Golden Earring, "You May Be Right" by Billy Joel, "Uptown Funk" by Bruno Mars, and "Shut Up and Dance" by Walk the Moon.

FACE is an all vocal rock band that also has connections to Niwot and the Boulder County area. They have performed at fundraisers for local schools, such as Niwot High School and other St. Vrain Valley School District events. They have also toured internationally and headlined in other countries. Tenor Stephen Ross, a former Skyline High School music teacher, told the crowd that Face had been coming to Niwot for "about 20 years" as one of the original bands to perform at the summer concert series. Mark Megibow, another veteran member of the group, was once again amazing with his beatbox performance.

Some of their performances during Rock & Rails were popular mashups including a "Jessie's Girl" and "Stacy's Mom" mashup, a Taylor Swift mashup, while closing with their version of "Boondocks" as a nod to the importance of home.

The tip jar donations from the concert went to the Jared Music Foundation, which offers scholarships to music students for lessons and instruments, and the volunteer appreciation fund for the many volunteers who put on the summer concert series. The concert raised a total of $2,300 to benefit students who might not have had the opportunity to learn music without financial assistance, as well as an end of season party for event volunteers, including students who volunteer as Gargoyles.

"The Gargoyles were super on top of everything," said Gargoyle supervisor Scott Barto. Barto said the Gargoyles volunteer their time to "help make sure we stayed zero-waste regardless of the increased crowds FACE always attracts."