Local band YOPE is a band on the rise and the move. Since forming over a year ago, they’ve been hitting it hard, playing local venues, digging into obscure tunes to cover and collectively writing new material that will appear on an album set to drop later this year.
They are also one of the many bands performing next weekend at the iAM Music Festival, happening May 1 to 4 on multiple stages around Second Avenue in downtown Durango. The YOPE set is at 5:45 p.m. May 3 on the Main Stage, located in the parking lot just north of 2nd Avenue Sports.
If you go
WHAT: iAM MUSIC Festival with multiple bands.
WHEN: May 1-4.
WHERE: Multiple stages off East Second Avenue.
TICKETS: Different pass packages available, from late night only to single days.
MORE INFORMATION: Visit www.iammusicfest.us.
Also performing are March Fourth, Daniel Rodriguez, Elder Grown, Desiderata, Galavant and many more.
It was an open mic night that got YOPE rolling. Early on, a few members came and went, but when the core four of guitar players Connor Jans and Tyler Kelley, bass player Henry Boos and drummer Patrick Groom came together, they knew they had found their solid lineup.
“When the four of us started we hit the ground running, the ball started rolling, songs started being created,” Groom said. “We knew this was the four. We knew its going to be a long time that we’re playing together.”
A conversation with the band reveals a true, egoless collective, a group of equals taking a diplomatic approach to just about everything, including songwriting. When you’ve got an all-or-none approach, everyone has a stake in the game; if one person comes up with a riff for a song, it won’t be long before the rest of the band chimes in to complete it.
“Songs can really come out of anywhere, so you know I come in with just a riff, and then we just jam on that for a little while until we figure something out. Tyler’s great at coming up with ideas, and Henry will come in with ‘here’s my part, what do you guys want to do?’ That’s what’s fun about doing it all as a group,” Jans said. “I don’t think we’ve had one song where someone says, ‘Here’s the song, this is what it is.’ It’s more like, ‘Here’s the start, now lets all make it a YOPE song.”
A first listen will take you down the jam road, however, YOPE throws a lot of sound on the table. There’s a funk vibe, but funk can easily transition into power chords and a metal sound with psychedelic leanings. Ask the band who they like, and you’ll get a list of influences – anyone from Hiatus Kaiyote to Black Sabbath, Mastadon to Prince.
“As far as genre goes, I’m still having a hard time pinpointing it, we hit pretty much every base,” Kelley said. “We’ve got some soul stuff, some funky reggae stuff, and some really heavy metal-type things.”
Push the genres aside, and call YOPE a rock band made up of musicians dedicated to mastering their craft, a band that can switch gears at the drop of a hat – the common denominator being their sound is something that’s upbeat and capable of packing a dance floor.
“I like to think that we have a nice element of music that music lovers and musicians can appreciate, because each of us does have a certain degree of technical ability. But then we’re super fun to dance to as well; even if you don’t really understand what’s going on musically, maybe you can feel it,” Jans said. “That’s what brings music together, that’s why we love playing it and why we love having an audience.”
After iAM MUSIC Festival, YOPE will headline a hometown show, playing with Dana Ariel on June 13 at Animas City Theatre.
Bryant Liggett is a freelance writer and KDUR station manager. Reach him at liggett_b@fortlewis.edu.
