This past Sunday at the 1st Bank Center in Broomfield, channel 93.3’s annual Not So Silent Night festivities went down and properly rocked the walls off of the sold-out stadium. The gig is best known for bringing some of the most popular acts played on the station and is one of the leading authorities in local music selection with their Hometown for the Holidays contest ran each year – which is kicked off by the Not So Silent Night Event.

With our persistent groveling and counter-statements of false promises, the fine people over at AEG finally invited us to the event so that we could let our readers know what we learned while we were there. In no particular order, here’s a few of those we deemed the most important.

There were soooo many white people? Far be it from us to stand on any platform and try to form social commentary on the state of segregation in the world, but damn, we were surprised to see so many similar faces. Music should and can be used as a unifying experience for all and it was just surprising to see the lack of variety in the people. If promoters really wanted to stand out ahead of the game, they should throw together odd genres to create a unique experience for the ticket buyers. But – we get it – formats and such.

Bastille won the night! When a crowd falls off their rockers before a band even starts, it’s safe to say that it may have been one of the major reasons the show was sold out. There wasn’t any response close to what Bastille had when they were announced, and the subsequent rocking and raging were just added proof that the band has found a home here in Colorado. Bastille could easily be labeled just a cheap Coldplay knock-off, given their drum lines and sexy accents, but the way they control the crowd we wouldn’t dare say it and mean it.

2014: Will it be the year of the drum? Speaking of the drum lines, can someone tell us that the folk revolution is over!? Pleaaase!? We’ve been on a mandolin bender lately, and the saturation is felt hard on long drives home trying to listen to the radio. Fortunately the lineup wasn’t even close to the soft-struck monotony that music has gotten itself into, and brought back the power music has to enact energy from the crowd. We can tell someone over there at the Area 93 camp was trying to make up for a shotty Big Gig 2013 experience.

New Politics frontman David Boyd is a physically fit badass. The man spent more time twisting, turning and flipping than he did singing – and that’s just fine with us. We knew the band has been rising fast in the industry with their brilliantly energetic single “Harlem,” but we had no idea of the frenetic capabilities of these three guys from Copenhagen. Boyd started his experience in the arts as a break-dancer in his hometown, and the wild show he produces emulates the enticing style. Brilliant performers!

Thanks for the video Nerf!

Hometown for the Holidays Top 10 (just kidding, it’s now 11): Every year almost a dozen local bands get the opportunity to be played on the radio – during respectable hours no less – and compete for the title as best local act in Colorado. The winners will hold a spot at next year’s Not So Silent Night and will win a bunch of prizes along with gaining the street cred so many pine for in the scene. This year’s top 11 are:

Almost Maine
Feralux
Claymore Disco
Eldren
The Flumps
LSD Bags
Pandas and People
Photo Atlas
Reno Divorce
Skyfox
Wiredogs

Listen to them all HERE and be sure to vote for your favorite!

Grouplove’s guitarist loves Kurt Cobain. It may just be our own personal bias towards one of the most over-rated peckerheads in music, but we just couldn’t get over how much guitarist Andrew Wessen of Grouplove was channeling the late Kurt Cobain. The hair, the mannerisms and that mustard colored cardigan were far too distracting. But to be fair, Grouplove’s vibe is very much a fusion of 90s era grunge and contemporary indie synth rock, so the whole thing could have been a ploy. Still a solid come through for the band though, regardless of our finicky and outdated mind-set.

Concerts are usually just a reason to not wear clothes. We checked, we really did – and the calendars all said December 1st on them. Where then, pray tell, did all of these people come from that had no clothes on? Guys, gals – it was all the same. Not to mention the fiery Chinook winds outside the windows damn near ripping the roof off, but really, kids, wear clothes out in public. We’re now mad at all your parents for making us sound like crotchety old fucks with nothing better to do with our time. Even though it’s true, we still don’t like it.

*Just an FYI, we weren't lucky enough to stay late and catch Young The Giant’s set – but knew damn well that it would be posted all over the social webs. And posted it was! Turns out, it was a “pretty neat way to end the evening,” according to anonymous socialites, but most were in agreeance that Bastille took the cake, ate it, and made everyone hungry for more. We smell a magazine feature in the coming year, which may or may not have a title that rhymes with Rastille.