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Arts and Entertainment

The Legend Music Scene

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An exploration of some of Legend’s bands including Homeland and Undissassembled.

By Josh Ilano

“Let there be sound.” There was sound. “Let there be light.” There was light. “Let there be drums.” There was drums. “Let there be guitar.” There was guitar. “Oh, let there be rock!”

“Let There Be Rock” by AC/DC

Music is the lifeblood of Legend. Whether it be the rhythmic b-a-n-a-n-a-s chanted at football games, the orchestra brushing sweet melodies at our concerts, or our vivacious home-grown bands. 

Every high school has their cover band, but it takes true artistry to make something great. It has never been easier to play around with Garageband presets on an iPhone, look up a Youtube tutorial, and begin a musical pilgrimage. This democratization of sound has ushered in an era of music like no other. We’re seeing Frank Ocean influence Ska and glockenspiels appear in Midwestern Emo. Colorado (especially the Denver-Metro area) has always been blessed with bold independent bands like Khemmis or The Sickly Hecks and venues like The Bluebird or The Gothic. A sentiment that has explicitly permeated into Legend, which has fostered a tribe of exceptional voices in the DIY-music-space, spearheaded by the bands Homeland and Undissassembled. 

Homeland is a math-rock band started by Brendan Herrod (class of 2020) on bass, Benji Bennick (class of 2020) on lead guitar, current senior Evan Brinkerhoff on rhythm and vocals, and Noah Sondrol on drums.

In recent memory, Homeland flexes their music theory skills in their latest single, “Better Off” (available on Spotify & Apple Music) with a 6/4 time signature and unpredictable baseline. “Better Off” is a valiant debut— an upbeat breakup song in the same vein as Haiti’s Kaiyote with a tinge of Joy Again. Brinkerhoff’s buttery timbre lifts the song to an almost ethereal state, intersected by Benji Benick’s soaring guitar solos. Homeland has a tone, style, and presence that is simply unparalleled. 

Here’s what frontman Evan Brinkerhoff had to say on the DIY-music scene: “Parker has an unusual amount of really good musicians. It has WAY more mediocre musicians, but the chunk that are actually really good that all come from Parker is honestly astonishing. So it’s important to highlight these standout talents and promote the art they make” 

Parker has an unusual amount of really good musicians. It has WAY more mediocre musicians, but the chunk that are actually really good that all come from Parker is honestly astonishing. So it’s important to highlight these standout talents and promote the art they make

Evan Brinkerhoff (12)

Music and the arts lend themselves to students who may fall through the cracks. To the students who aren’t coming here to dissect rats or do long division. So, as Parkernites it’s our responsibility to support these kids and their endeavors. 

On the other side of the spectrum, Undissassembled (commonly shortened to the moniker Undies), is a punk band with just as much moxie as volume. Undies feels like taking time back to the 2007 culture of trading cassettes and myspace band pages. They’ve created a chilling zeitgeist with their bombastic sound, exemplified in their showmanship. Drummer Eddie Eaton (12) describes their sound as “Pure, energetic Punk Rock.” However, most importantly, they are genuine. Punk is not an aesthetic, it’s a statement; and Undies remind me what music, specifically live music, is supposed to be–fun.

Undissassembled performing at Railbender Skate Park on September 11th, 2021

The DIY and independent music scene is a force to be reckoned with. Gen Z has been enveloped into the rapid “whiz-bang-pop” lacquer of the current music industry. Our generation is so obsessed with the “now-now-now” that we seldom apply ourselves. So as a Zoomer, it is refreshing to see bands like Undissassembled and Homeland tearing down the status quo in Parker and redefining local music. Rhythm guitarist for The Ghoulies and Legend English teacher, Mr. Yergert, put it perfectly:  “Building a scene is really important to keep music going. The music is not really the scene, the people are, and if no one is going to shows, it all dies. There are no national acts without local acts.”

Here’s a curated playlist of Denver-Metro Bands you should check out:

Arts and Entertainment, Millie Walkenhorst, Opinion

Kacey Musgraves Reveals More Than Ever on ‘star-crossed’

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Kacey Musgraves’ newest album is a must listen.

By Millie Walkenhorst

Kacey Musgraves grasped the attention of the public when her 2018 album, Golden Hour launched into success, winning album of the year at the Grammys. In her long-awaited follow up, Kacey, dancing the line between pop and country, dives deeper into what is more often the reality of love: heartbreak. Literally, “setting the scene,” as Musgraves explains herself, Kacey chose to release “star-crossed” and “justified” as singles, preparing her listeners for a new era of her near-decade long career. Following the timeline of her marriage and recent divorce, Kacey begins the album with songs like “good wife,” and “cherry blossom,” which detail her budding romance and desires to be successful in her marriage. She then moves into feelings of marital frustration, anger, sadness, and then finally moving on, in the Spanish-influenced finale, “gracias a la vida,” originally written by Violeta Parra, a Chilean composer. 

Musgraves shows incredible growth from her naive look on love in Golden Hour with star-crossed, where her rose-colored glasses are removed. She opens up, revealing more about her personal life than she has in any album before, and it certainly pays off in her phenomenal lyricism. With lyrics like, “two lovers ripped right at the seams, they woke up from the perfect dream,” and “I won’t cry when the cold wind blows, gonna let it shine,” she takes listeners through an emotional journey that covers everything from growing up to dating after divorce. The album features a girl-power anthem called “breadwinner,” and then presents a stark contrast on the song “camera roll,” which details looking back on positive times of a relationship through photos, when you know the positive memories you associate with those photos aren’t what was reality. 

Breaking hearts, she pens, ”What a trip, the way you can flip, through all the good parts of it, I shouldn’t have done it.” She connects her past album, Golden Hour, to the present, with lyrics like, “There’s one, where we look so in love, before we lost all the sun, and I made you take it.” She frequently refers to her past album, as, “the sun,” on par with its title. Kacey also created a short movie based on her lyrics and story, to truly immerse the audience in the narrative she is telling. Her ability to captivate an audience, given the stark contrast between Golden Hour and star-crossed, exemplifies her incredible lyrical talents, as well as her undeniable vocal talent. Whether you are experiencing heartbreak or not, star-crossed is the perfect album to bring the feeling to life.