september, 2023
12sep4:00 pm7:00 pmKeith Hicks
Event Details
Event Details
Keith Hicks @ Renaissance Downtown City Center
There was an electric feeling that ran through my veins, a grungy mess of sound blaring from my amplifier. I knew we had to be killing it, standing in that church rec center in front of all my high school peers at the time. The cymbals sizzling, bass drum pounding, bass guitar rattling your guts. Pure teenage angst, bouncing off the walls, an echoing dance of frequencies. I tried to remember to breath as my fingers in high strung discord slid wildly along the fretboard. It was my first live solo, and it was if just for moment the world had seemed to stop. I wanted the moment to last forever, though merely a brief passing of time. In hindsight, we probably weren’t all I thought we were cracked up to be, but my first guitar solo as a teenager in that church rec center was enough to keep me hooked for life.
From early piano lessons, too passing through a variety of school band instruments, music seemed to find a way in one way or another into my life. I can remember the sounds of Fleetwood Mac and Cat Stevens coming through the stereo as kid. As my teenage years hit, music was a way to escape. A way to seem cool and distance myself from all the bullies in school. There was something so freeing about strumming a few power chords until my ear rang at jam sessions after school
Eventually my escape became a fascination more intense and artists from the likes of Roy Buchanan, to Pink Floyd, Branford Marsalis, Miles Davis, Trane and Mahivishnu began to infiltrate the tape deck. After leaving home in Charlotte, NC, and heading off to Appalachian State, a new world of tunes found their way into my heart, from the Flecktones, to Acoustic Syndicate, and Leo Kottke. Diving deep into jazz and theory classes, while playing in jam bands, my tastes evolved, and while I knew I loved jazz, I truly found joy in blending a variety of music, and melding styles from the likes of jazz, funk, blues, americana, rock, soul, and bluegrass.
In the twenty plus year that I’ve performed professionally, I’ve had the good fortune and honor of being able to share the stage with a variety of top notch performers. My family has made their home outside of Denver, CO, and you can usually find me performing in venues from coffee shops to concert halls. While I frequent a variety of different types of venues, my intention remains true to be a genuine as possible in what I do and never forget that you never can tell who is listening. These days you’ll find me performing an eclectic mix of covers and originals as a solo artist, or on a stage with one of the bands or artists that I’m happy to share the stage with.
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Time
(Tuesday) 4:00 pm - 7:00 pm
