Denver’s Underground Music Showcase bows out “in its current form” after 25 years

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Denver’s indie lifeblood is pulsing to its final beat this July. After a legendary twenty-five‑year run, the Underground Music Showcase—fondly known as UMS—is bowing out “in its current form”, with July 25–27 marking what organisers are calling a grand and necessary “blowout”. Since its scrappy DIY debut in 2001, born from the passion of Denver Post journalists Ricardo Baca and John Moore, UMS has grown from a handful of $5 shows into a sprawling celebration of local and touring talent—four outdoor stages, twelve venues, and over two-hundred bands this year alone. It’s the stage that propelled acts like DeVotchKa, Flobots, and Nathaniel Rateliff—but evolving realities have reshaped the landscape dramatically.

UMS co‑manager Jami Duffy, who now steps in alongside Casey Berry under the Youth on Record umbrella, described the festival’s gamble with rising costs. From security, climate‑resilient infrastructure, and fentanyl safety measures to higher artist wages, accessibility standards, and mental‑health services, the bar has soared. Even sold‑out crowds don’t close the financial gap anymore.

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But this finale isn’t an ending—it’s an inflection point. Duffy emphasises that skipping this year would have robbed the community of a proper farewell. Instead, UMS is seizing this moment to spark dialogue during its Get Loud Music Summit—inviting artists, fans, venues, and funders to envision what comes next.

Denver’s city budget woes—$250 million shortfall at one point—mirror the statewide and national strains on arts funding and public safety support. Still, Duffy remains hopeful. She challenges the community to build a coalition: venues, philanthropists, government, and fans alike. Maybe UMS morphs into something new—fragmented guerrilla gigs, tighter showcases, or a renewed DIY spark. She believes creativity thrives when the stakes are highest.

This year, the festival will carry extra emotional weight. Legacy acts and rising voices will take the stage amid a vigilant audience aware they’re part of history in motion. As Duffy urges, “breathe in those moments…you can hug a little longer…play your asses off”.

UMS may be ending, but its essence—the underground, the unexpected, the electric—lives on in Denver’s tenacious music scene.

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Three years ago, the Financial Times released a twenty-minute documentary detailing the risks festival organisers face. In the United Kingdom, there were approximately six hundred festivals in 2019. As of 2023, there are fewer than five hundred. If you ever thought about being a festival organiser, I would recommend watching the video above. It could help you decide if it is worth it.