
JOHN COMMON and BLINDING FLASHES of LIGHT
at The Basement
John Common has followed a career route that sounds familiar to devotees of Americana. The singer and songwriter led a cowpunk band in Florida before taking on a corporate gig he abandoned to wander through the country doing odd jobs and making lo-fi recordings on his own. Landing in Denver, he fronted an alt-country group called Rainville that received plenty of local notice. Common's latest project uses a loose Denver collection of musicians called Blinding Flashes of Light, who add cello, accordion and organ to their new full-length release Beautiful Empty. His grainy voice combines with the sweetness of second vocalist Jess DeNicola's controlled soprano, and the result is a thoughtful and carefully textured alt-folk record that examines the terrors of adulthood and busted relationships. Common makes maturity sound like a condition that thrives on the distance between us all — and that may be the point.
— Edd Hurt | Editors' Pick | Nashville Scene
ARCHIVE
RED ROCKS
John Common and Blinding Flashes of Light at Red Rocks.
FINALLY GETTING REAL
Live performance by John Common and Jess DeNicola.