My all time favorite venue has to be Rock Island. I feel that place was my introduction to live music making me feel alive. It was a venue in Denver that closed down in early 2006, and it broke my heart. I had made so many memories there, and every other venue in Denver paled in comparison to it.
The shows that were being booked at Rock Island largely got moved to the Marquis. If Rock Island was like my dad, the Marquis was like my step dad. I was glad he was around, but wished my dad was still here. Through time I have been to tons of shows here and have made tons of memories. I have a certain affinity for it now, even if they were super weak during the post plandemic and didn’t let me come into shows because I didn’t bow to the god of Denver (most everything and everyone was like that, big surprise that the world is a disappointment).
As I sit in between sets of a show I am attending I thought I’d make a list of the most memorable concerts I’ve been to here. So much discovery (Merchandise, White Lung, Turnstile, Young Guv). The time my dear friend Stephen came with me to see Title Fight, the time my wife took me to see Culture Abuse for my birthday, the time my friend Dillon and I watched some girl start drama with Tera Melos and they roasted her, the time they opened up and let us in without vax cards and I brought a bunch of students to a show, the time I took my 4 year old daughter to see Copeland.
I came to see a show tonight to feel alive again on the advice of a friend. I can pinpoint some of the biggest heartbreaks of my life and look back at the shows here as great encouragement.
Forever grateful!!!
- Throwdown/Zao/Evergreen Terrace/Mayleen & the Sons of Disaster (2006)
- Fall of Troy/Foxy Shazam/Tera Melos (2008)
- Ceremony/White Lung (2012)
- Iceage/Merchandise/Wet Hair (2013)
- Title Fight/Merchandise/Power Trip (2015)
- Parquet Courts (2015)
- Copeland (2016)
- Turnstile/Touche Amore/Culture Abuse (2018)
- Culture Abuse/Tony Molina/Young Guv (2019)
- Silent Planet/Dying Wish/Fox Lake (2021)
- Drain/Drug Church/MSpaint (2023)
- Drug Church/Soul Blind (2024)
- Spy/Destiny Bond (2025)
thebearplane 
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