2014 has already seen a number of noteworthy Colorado bands call it a day, including Princess Music and Thee Dang Dangs. The month of December adds three more to that list.
You Me & Apollo
On Dec. 1, Fort Collins group You Me & Apollo announced they would break up following a farewell show at Hodi's Half Note on Dec. 20. The news followed a highly notable year for the Americana band in which they released the album "Sweet Honey," played the main stage at SnowBall Music Festival in April and won a national award for the song "I Don't Want to Be Loved."
"Bands are made to break up," You Me & Apollo drummer Tyler Kellogg told OpenAir's Alisha Sweeney. "We all had different ideas of how we wanted to run all aspects of [the band's] business." Listen to the full interview with Kellogg above.
Flashbulb Fires
On the morning of Dec. 8, Flashbulb Fires announced via Facebook and Twitter that the band was no more:
Today is the end of an era for us. It is with great disappointment and sadness that we have decided to end... http://t.co/lIWnbJOwSZ
Characterized by hazy pop melodies backed by instruments like organ and glockenspiel, Flashbulb Fires released their debut album "Glory" in 2009, followed by "GASCONADER" in 2012. Their 2013 standout single "Unseen Things" was written for a William H. Macy film.
"Mike, Chris and I have been writing and touring for eight years," said former lead singer Patrick McGuire. "We played to a sold out Red Rocks, got a publishing deal and wrote music for a major movie, opened for bands we respected -- some of them huge -- and became somewhat of a staple locally and even regionally, but I think we always wanted way more than that."
McGuire also attributed the split to the ups and downs of life in a touring band. On one night of the band's final tour a venue in Oakland forgot to advertise the band's show; the next date they opened for Minus the Bear to an audience of 500.
"We all have different definitions of 'making it' but after eight years you get tired. Tired of racking up credit card debt to go on the road and play shows that are literally worthless to your band.
"On the other hand I feel like our band was extremely loved and cherished by a small group of people."
McGuire also intends to keep writing and performing electro-pop as Jeremy Flood and acoustic material under the potential moniker Straight White Teeth.
The band's Daytrotter session debuted the same day as the breakup announcement.
Watch a video of Flashbulb Fires performing at UMS 2013 below:
A Band in Pictures
Dec. 2 brought similar news from Denver indie rock group A Band in Pictures (formerly Abandon Pictures) after a nearly four-year run. A post on the band's Facebook page reads:
We regret to inform you at as of now, A Band In Pictures has reached its end...
We will all be staying active in the music scene. This is undoubtedly sad, but we would like to look at it as an opportunity to meet new people and expand our horizons.
The band released their Kickstarter-funded debut "Who Killed the Dinosaurs?" in 2014, and had also performed at Snowball and the 2014 Underground Music Showcase.
Listen to our studio session with A Band in Pictures from earlier this year.
