Steven Denmark

Steven Denmark and his band put on a great show. Their stage presence and chemistry are natural and smooth. Denmark plays with Aaron Aparicio on bass, Steven Lucas on lead guitar, and Heston Sabala on drums. Denmark and his band played at the White Eagle Saloon in Portland. Kevin Lee Florence warmed up the stage with a great opening set. When Denmark took the stage, he gave a brief introduction and jumped into his music. Denmark's live sound oozes with country twang and high energy from everyone on stage. Dressed in Wranglers and boots to match the sound Denmark ran through a set with his sticky smooth vocals, reminiscent of the vocal style of classic country artists like Johnny Cash, Waylon Jennings, and Hank Williams SR. Denmark shared a few stories in-between songs, but mostly let the music speak for itself. With this line-up Denmark tours the west coast frequently; playing throughout their home state of California, up through Oregon, Washington, and Idaho. Denmark will be traveling out to Texas this summer to play a run of solo shows.

Denmark's interest in music peaked when he first saw the Tom Hanks film "That Thing That You Do!". As a child, he thought The Wonders and their record label existed off the big screen and hoped to one day be signed to Playtone Records. Denmark's childhood was spent on a secluded ranch, when his uncle gifted him a guitar it sparked that interest he found in the characters Hanks wrote. Playing guitar was the first thing in Denmark's life that he didn't have to put his all into. Since discovering his talent in music it has encompassed his life goals. 

For Denmark, music is about making sure the emotion an artist pours into the music. The emotional connection of which pulls on the heartstrings of listeners relies on the delivery rather than the genre. With that in mind, he has focused on bringing an open mind to making country music. Country musicians and fans tend to be purist. Denmark aims to fight that. He looks to lift up other artists and encourage taking inspiration from the twangy classic sound country fans are familiar with while bringing in elements from all genres. 

Denmark and his band will be recording an album in July; the album will be titled "Trash Country" which will feature a country punk sound. To afford the making of this album, Denmark has decided to make the album available only through non-fungible tokens (NFTs). This will be as inaccessible to listeners as it sounds; 50 downloads of each song will be available for purchase on a specific NFT site. Denmark's recording date is set, but he and his band have yet to announce a release date for "Trash Country".