The A.V. Club party guide to New Year’s Eve
Don’t be a shut-in this New Year’s Eve, at least not this year. According to those wacky Mayans (as interpreted by Roland Emmerich), you only have a few of these left before imminent, catastrophic destruction and the self-serving wickedness of a failing species swallows all of us whole. So, pick a party, pucker up, and have a happy new year!
The hotel party
If you have the bucks and the swagger for it, you may want to dress to impress at a glitzy, downtown hotel party. The Sheraton Hotel is hosting its second annual New Year’s Eve Ball; tickets range from $30 for general admission and shoot up to $60 for VIP entry, plus there are slight discounts for couples. (NYE parties really have a way of hammering in the depressing void of singledom, don’t they?) If you’re the black-tie and ball gowns type, dig a little deeper into your pockets for the White Rose Gala at the Ritz-Carlton. Hosted by local promotions bigwig Kevin Larson, entry to the event ranges from $135 for tickets to $155 for the VIP package. The hefty price includes an open bar and loads of live entertainment (music-box ballerinas, a pianist, DJs, and “10-foot-tall characters greeting guests,” according to the website) spread throughout several ballrooms.
The punk rock party
Looking for something a bit cheaper and way angrier? Ring in the new year by blowing out your ears: Denver's Sons Of Disobedience plays Old Curtis Street New Year's Eve; their late-'70s-styled punk rock and Dead Boys-inspired transgressions will surely keep your fists pumping for the rest of the winter. Also Denver’s Forth Yeer, which started off a decade ago as a snot-nosed punk band and has since evolved into no-bullshit cock-rock, will be at 3 Kings Tavern with fellow old-school punkers King Rat, Frontside Five, and Pawn Ticket Trio.
The punk rock in spirit party
For the other end of the rock spectrum (like way other end) Boulder’s Paper Bird appears at the Hi-Dive along with D.C.’s These United States, offering up a much more harmonic and folksy—though still lively and riotous—New Year’s Eve.
The dance party
It’s not really a party without a little bump and grind, and just about every nightclub in the city from LoDo to SoBo will be offering up at least one Top 40/mash-up DJ trying to woo you onto the dance floor. But your best bet for a New Year’s to remember (and to horrifically/embarrassingly relive the next day at a hangover brunch) would be the short stretch of clubs just south of Colfax on Broadway, the neighborhood also irritatingly known as SoCo. RJD2 headlines City Hall with Daedelus and Heavyweight Dub Champion, and the lineup is pretty much a hip-hop revivalist’s dream. Also worth your two-step while: Pictureplane will be at the Meadowlark, jamming its sweet electronic tunes on what promises to be this year’s sweatiest New Year’s Eve dance floor, with local party people Natural Selection, Josephine And The Mouse People, and Hollagramz.
The plant-a-tree party
Local street-wear label DVLP is looking to do some good this New Year’s Eve, and has partnered up with Omerica Organic, makers of eco-friendly jewelry, to host Balance at the DVLP headquarters (2501 Champa St., Unit D). The green-minded blowout includes an art show and silent auction, catered eats, rotating DJs, and an open bar. Tickets are modestly priced at $20 for general entry and $35 for VIP access; plus every dollar raised goes to plantabillion.org, an ongoing worldwide effort to—yup—plant more trees.
The neverending party
There’s nothing like partying until you puke—and then picking up again after wiping off your face—and this New Year’s is a good time to test out your merrymaking stamina. For those who scoff at just one night of festivities, a few (mostly jam) bands are offering two- and three-night stands to keep you up and occupied all weekend long: Theatrical glam-rockers Triple Cobra play Dec. 31 and Jan. 1 at the Walnut Room; Pepper brings its laid-back reggae-rock to the Fox Theatre in Boulder Dec. 30-31; the electronic-heavy Sound Tribe Sector 9 headlines also those dates at the Wells Fargo Theatre; Colorado’s favorite gospel-rock/psychobilly/alt-country punkers Slim Cessna’s Auto Club will be around those same nights as well at the Bluebird Theater; the always-epic bluegrass-bred Yonder Mountain String Band takes on three shows this year, Tuesday, Dec. 29, at the Boulder Theater and then Wednesday and Thursday at the Fillmore Auditorium; jammers Hot Buttered Rum also make a three-night marathon run at Cervantes’ Masterpiece Ballroom starting Dec. 29. Whew—that’s a whole lot of party for one weekend. Good thing New Year’s only comes once a year.
