Horizon 
Magazine

Provided photography and chatted with Grand Junction drag queen Kandrii Zavalla. Worked alongside photographer Jae Jolley. Featured in the Spring 2020 issue. Read the article.

I traveled to Ashcroft, a few miles outside of Aspen, to capture the desolation of a ghost town. Photos provided inspired the content of the story written by Casey Smith. Digital issue here. 

Visited the local art gallery Uncanny Valley to take photos for an article focusing on the artist collection and the importance of uncensored art. Accompanied article written by Hector Salas. Digital issue here. 

Article originally published in the Fall 2019 issue, focusing on the local music scene in Grand Junction. 

The Grand Valleys diverse music scene allows the community to find a local artist with a unique and distinct sound any weekend of the year. From seasoned artists to up-and-coming student musicians in a variety of genres--punk, fold, metal, rap--the Grand Valley's got it all. 

Jeff Steele, drummer of Union of None, a local high-energy '80s/'90s cover band, calls the local music in Grand Junction "the soul of the community." As music labels become larger and fewer, local music feels more down-to earth. 

"We have an amazing music scene in this town; [students] need to see it," Steele said. "With a local band, you get raw talent from people that you work with and see every day." He advocates for people to pay attention to the music at their front door.

Steele is also the publisher of Grand Valley Live magazine, a monthly publication that highlights local musical artists, stories within the music community, local beer reviews and upcoming shows. 

The community of musicians in the Grand Valley is unparalleled, from the country/rock-influenced band Southside Highway, to the loud, punk-shredding of the NC-17s.

The original duo of Wave 11, a funky hip-hop reggae band, sat down with Horizon Magazine at Kiln Coffee Bar. Zach Couron, a Colorado Mesa University alumnus, and Charles Walker chatted about music and greeted friends when they came in the door with huge hugs and a few laughs. 

Wave 11 recently added a new member, a drummer. Walker wanted to focus on his vocals. He discussed his favorite track on their debut album, "Wisdom and Strength."

"'Sippin' is my favorite [track]. I get to do the beat pad; I get to rap," Walker said. The addition of Derek Suiter, also known as D-Wreck, has added another level to their sound. 

"I just get into a really weird state of mind where I close my eyes, and my fingers just do weird things on the guitar, and I open my eyes and everybody's just like, 'whoa'," Couron said when discussing one of his favorite covers to play, "Hotel California" by The Eagles.

I love music. I don't know what I would do without it. I'd just be a hobo on the street -- just chilling here on Main Street. I don't don't know what I'd do without music. I'd be a really weird person," Walker said. According to Walker and Couron, they're just two dudes who met while working at an Applebee's who make music. 

They've palyed at weddings, Mesa Theater and a plethora of other events.

"I think from the beginning, any goals that we might have had we've absolutely blown through. It blows my mind," Couron said. "We're just a bunch of dudes who make weird sounds and somehow we've made it this far."

Morgan Crouse, lead vocalist for Southside Highway (at the time this was published, she has since gone solo), is a mass communication major at Colorado Mesa University. She began playing seriously with the band in March 2019. The members originally came together and played for fun before getting the opportunity to open at Warehouse25sixty-five. They played off of one rehearsal and never looked back. 

Southside Highway is composed of Crouse, Randy Brown on rhythm guitar and vocals, Jared Shaw on lead guitar, Morgan "Mo" Nelson on the drums and Steve Johnson on the bass. Johnson and Nelson are also in a band in Rifle called LeverAction. 

It's difficult to nail down the sound of Southside Highway. "The best description we've been able to come up with would be like kind of a souther, rock, Texas-country kind of sound; it's not the country music you hear on the radio today," Crouse said. This "old country and rock marriage" is the lifeblood of the band; it doesn't sound like anything else. 

"There's no shortage of local music to get to ... It's everything from bluegrass to punk and hardcore metal. So, it doesn't matter what's in your rotation, we can find something that can fit it," Steele said. If there's something locals are looking for, they can look no further than their own community. "Virtually every month there's at least one band releasing either singles or full EPs or albums."

Steele spoke highly of local bands trying to go national. "Zolopht is amazing, and right now they're doing some shows. They just opened for UB40 ... They're working on saving up or making enough money to go to Chicago and record an album out there." 

The next time you walk by a group of people in town playing music with the raw talent that Steele describes, stop and listen for a while.