Colorado is quickly becoming known nationally for its homegrown musical talent. Join Longmont’s own Bonnie & Taylor Sims for an intimate evening of original music from emerging, up-and-coming and established singer-songwriters from across the Front Range and beyond, including Clay Rose of the Gasoline Lollipops, Fruta Brutal, and Emma Rose.

Tickets

$18 General Admission / $15 Students & Seniors / $12 Museum Members

About the Musicians

Clay Rose has written and released nine all-original albums to date. His ability to tell stories that seamlessly cross genres – from folk, to punk, to klezmer, to country – has won him an array of awards. These include: Best Music Video at the Mile High Horror Film Festival 2012, for “Don’t Be Afraid; It’s Only Death” by The Widow’s Bane, Gasoline Lollipops’ Best Country Band Award by Westword Magazine 2015 and 2018, as well as Colorado Daily’s Best Local Band award for 2015, 2016, and 2017.

Clay Rose was born to a draft-dodging pot farmer on the lam, and a country songwriter. What did these two have in common? They both did business with Willie Nelson. Clay’s mother, Donna Farar, wrote “Last Thing I Needed” which was recorded by Willie on his 1982, Always On My Mind. Clay’s father provided Willie with medicine throughout the 70’s until the law sent him skipping to Colorado from Arkansas on a midnight train. When Donna’s song hit number 1 on the Billboard charts, she moved to Tennessee to be closer to Nashville, and Clay began his disjointed childhood, straddled between the Rocky Mountains, and the backwoods of Tennessee.

Fruta Brutal emerged as the result of Martín Better Longo’s search for a musical identity as an Ecuadorian who immigrated to the U.S. at a young age. Martín spent his college years in the bustling music scene of New Orleans and traveled extensively throughout South America, where he was exposed to music that would inspire his indie Latin rock pop repertoire as well as the artistic name, Fruta Brutal. As a tribute to musical movements that emerge in response to times of authoritarian oppression, the name Fruta Brutal calls to mind cultural fruits that ripen under brutal conditions, emblematic of the resiliency of the Brazilian Tropicália and Argentinian rock movements.

Since returning to Colorado, Martín continues to record original compositions in English, Spanish, and Spanglish, which celebrate cultural diversity and showcase his support for fellow immigrants. Martín is currently working remotely with New Orleans-based producers and instrumentalists, while performing with a Colorado-based quartet. In response to the disorientation and stagnation brought on by the pandemic, Fruta Brutal’s latest single, “If We Never Touch the Ground,” summons the image of a matador as a symbol for choosing to boldly face fear and adversity in pursuit of one’s dreams.

Emma Rose is a bass player/songwriter currently residing on the Front Range. With roots in folk and bluegrass, and with branches in modern soul music, Emma writes songs with feelings of both. And she plays the upright bass in bluegrass outfits.

Thursday Nights at the Museum

The Longmont Museum is open on Thursday evenings until 9:00pm. In addition to visiting our new exhibit, Washi Transformed: New Expressions in Japanese Paper, you could take an Art & Sip class or attend a film, performance, or talk. You can view upcoming programs at Thursday Night at the Museum.