By Pete Stidman More than once I’ve heard someone question aloud why this band or that band is this or that section in the store, and sometimes I even agree with them and move things around. Overall though, genre is a very subjective thing. Every record store owner in the country is faced with the... Continue Reading →
Don’t Be Dumb and play it safe
By Ethan Goddard Every once in a while, we get lucky and see an artist pull off the impossible – meeting the expectations of a highly anticipated release. After eight years of stop-and-go promotion A$AP Rocky’s Don’t Be Dumb is out and while I’m not disappointed, it’s also not a jaw dropper. I was skeptical... Continue Reading →
I listened to 500 Albums in one year and I regret it
By Oscar Gallup (guest contributor) Back on New Year's Day 2025, I resolved to listen to 300 LPs that I'd never heard by the end of the year. As it goes, most of my other resolutions were abandoned, but I was determined to see this one through. One year and many many albums later, I... Continue Reading →
My neighbors have a band: Duane’s baker’s dozen(s) part 2
Best of Denver local music 2025 By Duane Davis, Supreme Arbiter of Taste If you want to understand Denver in 2025, don’t bother looking at real estate prices or whatever fresh civic disaster is unfolding up and down Colfax. Listen to the bands. This city is a pressure cooker disguised as a postcard, and the... Continue Reading →
Five of my highly anticipated albums in early 2026
By Ethan Goddard Every January, music fans speculate about who might be putting out new music over the course of the year. And while some are built over false hope (I’m talking to you Frank Ocean fans… let it go), some artists promote their forthcoming projects months, even years, before they release. So instead of... Continue Reading →
Wax Trax Best of ’25
By Wax Trax Staff 2025 is officially over. To celebrate making it to the next quarter-century (all our cigarettes and beer haven’t killed us yet), some staff compiled their list of the year’s best music and music experiences. Read their picks below for their takes on 2025’s best album, single, reissued vinyl, album art, show,... Continue Reading →
Liminal space between Christmas and New Year’s Hi-Fi buy guide
By Jess Peterson Got some records for Christmas, but nothing to play them on? Maybe a bit of green from granny and grandpa? Has your post-holiday indulgence restriction not kicked in yet? Want some playful hi-fi equipment for yourself because you’re pushing an age you’re uncomfortable with and all everyone gave you this Christmas was... Continue Reading →
Duane’s baker’s dozen(s): A field guide to what didn’t suck in 2025
By Duane Davis, Supreme Arbiter of Taste As is usual, 2025 has been a busy year for music makers. Luminate, the entertainment industry’s official counter of Everything All the Time, estimates that well over 100,000 new tracks are uploaded to streaming services every single day. That’s not a scene, that’s a flood. A biblical one.... Continue Reading →
Spinnin’ around the Christmas tree
Some holiday staples recommended by our staff for your stockings By Wax Trax staff There’s only one thing that can salvage our souls under the layers of Christmas consumerism this time of year, and it’s our deep love for a quality holiday tune. So whether you’re looking for a soundtrack for your yuletide eves, or... Continue Reading →
Welcome to the slaughterhouse: GWAR at the Gothic, 1991
Intro and outro by Duane Davis [Editor’s note: GWAR stopped by the shop a few weeks ago to reign terror (and murder) on our employees…check out the video to see the horror with your own eyes.] When I took these photos of GWAR at the Gothic Theater in 1991, I was not a fan of... Continue Reading →