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City Scenes: Northern Colorado's Music Community Rallies For Mental Health

When coronavirus restrictions went into place in Colorado, the isolation impacted not just the music community, but the mental health of the community at large. March was Mental Health Awareness Month, and to spotlight the needs and resources available, The Colorado Sound teamed up with the Bohemian Foundation and SummitStone Health Partners to present "Home But Not Alone," an online concert for a cause, featuring four Colorado bands. Here are some highlights.

Whippoorwill, "Home But Not Alone"

The members of Whippoorwill volunteered to write a song during the 90-minute show, drawn from lines suggested by viewers on the theme of getting by during quarantine. One of the suggested lines was "I take my dog for six walks a day." The band decided to have some fun with that line and wrote the song based on the dog's point of view. The result was a playful metaphor of all the things both humans and animals are going through. The beauty of this performance is its sincerity. There were no rehearsals, overdubs or Auto-Tuning.

Slow Caves, "Walk In The Park"

The focus of the evening was to spotlight mental health issues and draw attention to SummitStone Health Partners, a local non-profit that provides resources to anyone struggling with mental health issues. Slow Caves performed two new songs that focused on the theme of the evening, mental health. The usual three-piece outfit played as a duo for the evening as brothers Jakob and Oliver Mueller handled the performance with David Dugan socially distancing from home. "Walk In The Park" has a dream-like quality that takes you to a wonderful place and draws upon your favorite memories, which is something we could all benefit from during these challenging times.

Brent Cowles, "Bad Goodbye"

Brent Cowles is an NPR Slingshot artist who is always supportive. When asked to be a part of the Home But Not Alone, he jumped at the opportunity. This is a stripped-down version of his song "Bad Goodbye." You can feel the isolation as Cowles performs the song with nothing but his guitar. The song shares the message so many of us feel during this pandemic: It's OK to let go, it's OK to reinvent yourself and it's OK to say goodbye.

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I’ve been with The Colorado Sound from the very beginning, helping to shape the music, image and overall presentation of what I consider the finest radio station in the country. As a certifiable music fanatic, it is pure joy to come to the station and share this passion with a staff of likeminded radio professionals and display our knowledge and love of music with you every day.