Get funky with The Motet at Skyfest

They’re back. Or at least they will be when Skyfest is rescheduled.

After months of planning, Skyfest at Fort Lewis College has been postponed in anticipation of a snow storm to hit Southwest Colorado.

Organizers will announce a new schedule at a later date.

The Motet were set to headline the 15th annual Skyfest that was originally slated for Saturday at Fort Lewis College.

Funk, of course, is what the band eventually will bring to Whalen Gymnasium. Their brand of the feel-good genre has been well-received across the country after their self-titled album released last February.

“I think the basic premise is that it’s (funk) for the people. There’s a lot of art that is meant to go within; people listen to the lyrics, glean some kind of meaning. This is less for the mind; it’s for the body,” said Jans Ingber, vocalist for The Motet.

The band’s opening gig for Umphrey’s McGee last summer went so well that they’ve earned a co-headlining show with Lettuce, a veteran funk band from Boston, this June.

“Things have been going well for the ’ole Motet,” Ingber said. “Especially when we’ve been setting along for something for so long and then to really have the band buy in and put their creative toward making it happen, and then actually seeing it happen feels good.”

The Motet is playing with The Voodoo Glow Skulls, The Wild 100’s, Liver Down the River and Consensual Sax. Tickets for FLC students are free in advance or $1 at the door. Tickets for community members are $15 and can be purchased at the door or at Southwest Sound. Doors open at 4:30 p.m., and the music starts at 5 p.m. For more information, visit bit.ly/1A4ZNdd.

Slamgrass sounds

This band isn’t traveling far for this show.

Local slamgrass, funk group Liver Down the River, mostly made up of Fort Lewis College students, will be one of the opening bands at Skyfest.

The band formed about two years ago, and it has been reaching new levels of success in the last few months. They currently are recording an EP, with five original songs, at Akashic Recording Studio in Boulder, where String Cheese Incident has recorded.

Banjo and keyboard player Tyler Rice joined Liver last September and is ecstatic about being in the band. He says they’ve pulled in large crowds recently at Durango Brewing Co. and Balcony Backstage, and he is excited for what the future holds.

“Our sound is unique to our own, and we do not imitate any other kind of band,” Rice said.

Rice, from Georgia, honed his banjo skills on the road in 2011 when he busked in 36 states, and that was when he really started to take his instrument seriously, he said.

“I covered 40,000 miles in one year, and that (busking) was my main source of income, aside from a few odd jobs,” he said.

Liver Down the River is playing with The Motet, The Voodoo Glow Skulls, The Wild 100’s, Liver Down the River and Consensual Sax. FLC students can attend free in advance or for $1 at the door. Tickets for FLC students are free in advance or $1 at the door. Tickets for community members are $15 and can be purchased at the door or at Southwest Sound. Doors will open at 4:30 p.m., and the music will start at 5 p.m. For more information, visit bit.ly/1A4ZNdd.

East Coast reggae

Spiritual Rez is keeping their spirits up after their brand-new van’s transmission malfunctioned Friday the 13th.

The Boston-based reggae band went to California to start their tour, and shortly after leaving Humboldt County, their van broke down. They were forced to cancel their shows in San Diego and Phoenix while their vehicle was getting fixed.

But Ian Miller, from a rural part of the Big Island in Hawaii, says it’s nothing that a little music can’t fix.

They skipped to Albuquerque and will bring their energetic live show Friday to Durango.

“The Balcony seems like a really cool venue to be hosting us. We’ll definitely have a lot of fun,” he said.

Miller went to high school with the band’s bassist, Jesse Shaternick, and the two left their warm, laid-back island lives for Boston to attend the Berklee College of Music in 2002. They had intentions of finding other people to start a band. And they did. Their last album, “Apocalypse Whenever,” was released Feb. 15, 2014, and includes positive, dancy vibes.

“We’re going to knock people’s socks off,” Miller said.

The show will start at 10 p.m., and the cover is $5. For more information, call 764-4083.

Sky Ute goes country

Before country singer-songwriter James Otto entered the Navy, he had his share of financial problems after moving to Seattle at age 19, he says.

He came out of the Navy more disciplined, with more determination and a new perspective on the world. Having served at the tail end of the Gulf War, he never went to combat, but he did travel to several different countries, and he said his experience allowed him to live anywhere.

“It wasn’t a big deal to move to Nashville, whereas prior to that, moving across the country was pretty daunting, so (the military) was a great thing for me to do,” Otto said.

In Nashville, he found his calling and now makes a living writing songs for various country artists such as Zac Brown and Trace Adkins.

He also writes his own songs. His tune “Just Got Started Lovin’ You” was a hit in 2008 and was nominated for a Grammy.

“I want everybody to have a good time. And I want everbody to get up out of their seats and dance,” Otto said of his show coming up Saturday at the Sky Ute Casino Resort.

Aaron Tippin, Sammy Kershaw and Darryl Worley also will perform.

Tickets are $25-40. The doors will open at 7 p.m., and the show will start at 8 p.m. For more information, visit www.skyutecasino.com.

mhayden@durangoherald.com

An earlier version of this story was published before the snowstorm that started Thursday night forced organizers of Skyfest to reschedule the event.