The /O Sessions Bring Together The Very Best In Colorado Music and Creativity
Welcome to /O Sessions, a new partnership with The Colorado Sound, NPR Music’s Live Sessions, and /O in Arvada. The /O Sessions (pronounced “Slash O”) is a celebration of our music scene, bringing together musicians and creatives in a special collaborative environment that is uniquely Colorado.
Born in the fall of 2018 in their backyard barn studio under the vision of co-producers Eric Dawson Tate and Ben Wysocki and with filmmaker Kelly Magelky, /0 Sessions spotlight Colorado music at its finest.
This video release is the culmination of the four events that spanned the end of 2018 and into 2019. For this project, the team at /O has released one song from each artist.
We are absolutely thrilled with the collaborative nature of this project, and are excited to work to continue to bring you the finest in Colorado music and creativity there is.
Learn much more about /0 Sessions, and please consider contributing to its Tip Jar to support these creatives during this challenging time for our industry.
We are proud to feature these artists in gorgeous videos all created at the recording studios at /0.
Erika Ryann
Erika Ryann sings “Bluest Brown Eyes” with Hunter Burnette and Holly Lovell on vocals, Mike Lang on keys, Jason Legler on bass, Josh Skelton on pedal steel, Ben Wysocki on drums, and Eric Dawson Tate on guitar.
Erika Ryann has performed with Colorado bands such as High Plains Honky, U.S. Tygers, The Hi-Dive Blues Band, and Ryann and Lee, who were nominated for Denver’s best country band by Westword in 2018. She also contributes to the twang of Casey James Prestwood and the Burning Angels, as well as performing at Esme Patterson’s famous “Prince Tribute” at the Oriental Theater.
Hunter Burnette
Hunter Burnette sings “If I Told Her” with Erika Ryann and Holly Lovell on vocals, Mike Lang on keys, Jason Legler on bass, Josh Skelton on pedal steel, Ben Wysocki on drums, and Eric Dawson Tate on guitar.
Hunter Burnette is a Denver-based singer/songwriter who released his first EP, The Good Life, in 2018. Colorado Hall of Fame inductee Chris Daniels called him “One of the most exciting Americana/Country/Roots songwriters and performers to come out of the West in the past few years.” Burnette released a Self-Titled EP in October 2019, produced by Ben Wysocki and Eric Tate.
Holly Lovell
Holly Lovell sings “I Love You” with Hunter Burnette and Erika Ryann on vocals, Mike Lang on keys, Jason Legler on bass, Josh Skelton on pedal steel, Ben Wysocki on drums, and Eric Dawson Tate on guitar.
Denver-based singer-songwriter Holly Lovell crafts songs that capture aching intimacy and vulnerability through perceptive storytelling. Using a mix of both acoustic and electric guitar, she has been influenced by artists such as Patty Griffin, Brandi Carlile, and Bruce Springsteen.
“The goal at its most basic level, for me, is to write songs that are lyrically honest, poetic and transparent. Something that tells a story and connects me to the listener,” says Lovell.
Lovell has opened for acts including The Fray, Phillip Phillips, and Katie Herzig, and has performed at festivals such as the Cayamo Music Cruise and the Underground Music Showcase.
Julie Davis
Julie Davis sings “Remember Me” with Joel Van Horne guitar, Mike Lang on keys,, Rihanna Fairchild on violin, and Ben Wysocki on drums.
Julie Davis is a singer, songwriter, upright bass player and installation artist who has contributed music to artists and outfits like Nathaniel Rateliff, Gregory Alan Isakov, Porlolo and the Colorado Symphony Orchestra, plus many more. She has played Red Rocks Amphitheater, Chautauqua Amphitheater, the Ogden Theater, the Bluebird Theater, Boulder Theater, London’s Hammersmith Apollo and many others.
As a member of Nathaniel Rateliff’s band for eight years, she toured extensively throughout the United States and Europe supporting bands such as John Prine, Bon Iver, Mumford & Sons, The Tallest Man on Earth, Dawes, Dr. Dog, The Low Anthem, Delta Spirit, Ra Ra Riot, Laura Marling, The Fray, and The Lumineers.
Anna Morsett (The Still Tide)
Anna Morsett from The Still Tide sings “Better Than I’ve Been” with Joel Van Horne on vocals/guitar, Julie Davis on vocals/bass, Mike Lang on keys, Jason Legler on bass, Rihanna Fairchild on violin, Ben Wysocki on drums, and Eric Dawson Tate on guitar.
The Still Tide are led by Denver’s Morsett, and the band released their Between Skies EP in 2020. Originally from Olympia, WA, Morsett has travelled the globe as a guitar tech for artists such as Kaki King, Tallest Man On Earth and Devil Makes Three and has opened for Cat Power, Nathaniel Rateliff and The Night Sweats, Charlie Cunningham, and Margaret Glaspy.
Joel Van Horne (Covenhoven)
Joel Van Horne from Covenhoven sings “Where to Begin” with Julie Davis on vocals/bass, Mike Lang on keys, Jason Legler on bass, and Eric Dawson Tate on guitar.
Joel Van Horne, aka Covenhoven, released his album A Kind of Revelation in 2018, one of the finest Colorado releases that year.
Hailing from Colorado, Joel has shared the stage with José González, Gregory Alan Isakov, Blind Pilot, Lord Huron, and many more.
Brianna Straut
Brianna Straut sings “Salt in My Wound” with Joe Sampsons on guitar, Ben Gallagher on keys, Jon Branch on bass, Ben Waligoske on pedal steel, Ben Wysocki on drums, and Eric Dawson Tate on guitar.
Brianna won the Americana/Roots category for the 2019 Denver Westword Music Awards and has for opened for artists such as Lillie Mae, Son Volt, and Israel Nash. She’s been compared to Lori McKenna by 303 Magazine in which they write, “[T]here is something about a girl and a guitar that can tug at those heartstrings. Straut pulls from her personal experiences to really give her songs a deep sense of emotion that listeners can empathize with regardless of their own personal experiences.”
Joe Sampson
Joe Sampson sings “Save Me” with Brianna Strout on vocals/guitar, Ben Gallagher on keys, Jon Branch on bass, Ben Waligoske on pedal steel, Ben Wysocki on drums, and Eric Dawson Tate on guitar.
Joe Sampson has been living, writing, and performing in Colorado since 2000, releasing four records, most recently in 2020’s Launder the Mined. Joe was awarded Westword’s Best Songwriter award in 2008. The Denver Post has written about Sampson’s music and initiative: ‘I don’t know your favorite songwriter’s favorite songwriter is, but I bet it’s Joe Sampson.”
Anthony Ruptak
Anthony Ruptak sings “Don’t Let the Bastards Win” with Courtney Hartman and Patrick Dethlefs on vocals/guitar, Ben Waligoske on pedal steel, Mike Lang on keys, Daniel Stephenson on bass, Ben Wysocki on drums, and Eric Dawson Tate on guitar.
Emerging from the banks of the North Fork at the South Platte River, Ruptak is a multi-instrumentalist who has brought a pop sensibility to the Denver scene for 15 years, curating weekly gatherings of fellow musicians for years, advocating for positivity through song.
Courtney Hartman
Courtney Hartman sings “Reservoir” with Patrick Dethlefs and Anthony Ruptak on vocals/guitar, Ben Waligoske on pedal steel, Mike Lang on keys, Daniel Stephenson on bass, Ben Wysocki on drums, and Eric Dawson Tate on guitar.
With her most recent release, Ready Reckoner, Courtney Hartman is another in our Colorado scene who sees music as a bridge to better things. “If you listen to any of these songs and step away feeling lifted or carried to a different place, that is a real and true honor,” she says.
The Loveland-based artist enjoyed a seven-year career with the Grammy-nominated band Delta Mae. Hartman also released a collaboration album with Robert Ellis on 2017’s Dear John and another with Taylor Ashton on 2018’s Been on Your Side.
Patrick Dethlefs
Patrick Dethlefs sings “Remembering” with Courtney Hartman and Anthony Ruptak on vocals/guitar, Ben Waligoske on pedal steel, Mike Lang on keys, Daniel Stephenson on bass, Drew Mazurek on trumpet, Ben Wysocki on drums, and Eric Dawson Tate on guitar.
Patrick Dethlefs’ songwriting reminds us of the music of Townes Van Zandt, innocent of his own haunting melodies and lyricism. In 2017, he released “Beauty in the Unknown,” which Westword called a “shimmering, atmospheric offering,” and followed it in 2018 with the single “Remembering.”
