- El Chapultepec's resurrection for our final showcase was a feat born from the ashes of neglect.

The venue gutted by previous tenant stood as a skeletal reminder of its former self.

Yet through the collaborative efforts of the 87 Foundation and PBS 12, a Phoenix emerge.

The combined forces not only breathe life back into the Hollywood space but also illuminated its historical significance creating a poignant stage for our farewell to a Denver legend.

The last performance echoed with the resonance of legends, appointed finale to an error that defined the pulse of this remarkable city.

It was an incredible honor and opportunity to be able to have some of the final shows at this legendary venue.

This episode features The Mananas.

♪ (Music playing) ♪ - Welcome to Sound on 29th you all.

[Applause] - We are here at the old El Chapultepec playing for the hypest studio audience in the United States of America, thank you all so much for being here.

[Applause] So in a venue that represents Denver's past, it's very appropriate that we honor our future by having The Mananas play as a shout out to our tomorrows, see what I did there?

The Mananas I think almost anything that I will say is actually insufficient for like actually what they are.

Hyperbole falls short of anything that you are talking about this band.

They are extraordinarily important to the scene.

I love how they make family and music positive and not toxic, and the extend that love to everybody else when they are singing.

The city needs them, the city loves them and let's celebrate them.

Welcome The Mananas.

♪ (Music playing) ♪ - I want to kind of get into you as musicians.

I think a lot of times we get asked who are our influencers and things like that.

But I am more curious about like who, what, when, where was your musical artistic awakening.

What kind of brought it about?

- My parents were always big into music.

So I always wanted to be a rock star since I was a kid.

But not until I moved to Denver and started going to actual venues and seeing bands that I really love did I think it was possible, and that's when I was like okay I really want to do this.

- Which bands, can you name any of them?

- Yeah, I saw the Walters at High Dive, that changed my life.

Twin Peaks at the Bluebird.

Those were like bands I was really into in Germany where I moved from, so just getting to see them in such an intimate setting was so crazy.

- So what about moving to Denver flipped the switch for you?

That allowed you to see like this is what I should be doing?

- I think just how there were way more shows around town, the small town the small town in Germany where I grew up, did not have many shows and so coming here and getting to see that, so close was yeah.

A huge inspiration.

- That's amazing.

- How about for you, Danny?

- For me, it was probably living in Mississippi that's when I started making music, just out of boredom really.

And I had two best friends, and we had that in common.

We like heavy metal and we thought we were so cool.

So we literally got together every weekend and played music and I probably did that for three years straight where every single week we would have a sleepover and we were learning songs and teaching each other music and that was super special.

- Who were you playing?

- We were playing like Metallica covers, you know the Green Day covers, classic.

Preteen stuff.

But we always loved the Beatles, even back then.

I was influenced by a lot of Mexican rock bands of the 90s.

- I think what really awoke everything from music was going to Ecuador.

It was like my first big move learning a new language, And also entering a scene more or less that was a lot more active, and yeah just seeing the culture of life they have less access to instruments, and venues, to resources in general.

But they are doing the most with it.

They study for like six months to buy a piece of gear and they master it.

The bars are really high as musicians and stuff, so I saw that and was like I want to be a part of this and I think that's when I took it more seriously.

♪ (Music playing) ♪ - How are we doing?

- Thank you so much for being here.

♪ (Music playing) ♪ - We sort of had different awakenings or things such as having reassured me that I want to keep doing this.

I think it's always watching women perform live, when I watch [indiscernible] the Ecuadorian artist, I saw her playing a big stage in Ecuador and I was like okay, I feel like I could do that, you know?

Seeing a woman from Ecuador, Latinas, being also very restricted in terms of not having as many opportunities as men especially in South America.

And still being able to be a headliner.

So being able to play on the mainstage, that was a huge deal for me even if it was in a small country, such as Ecuador.

So seeing her I think really moved something in me, I was like okay, this does not feel impossible anymore.

Because it felt like at one point my family was not very supportive of me making music, and yeah, I think that's the moment where I feel like I realized okay, I want to do this and I feel like I can.

♪ (Music playing) ♪ - Thank you so much.

- How did moving to Denver affect any of that?

- Oh.

In such a crazy way because for me, I started to explore other parts of my music, and not be caught up in what I was already making.

So I started writing English.

I joined the Mananas of course which is very different from what I do in my own projects, but moving out also made me realize that I can find people outside of my own country or outside of South America that will also feel identified with me.

As a woman who plays in 2 bands, and is like a multi-instrumentalist and also immigrant, that's very special for me.

So yeah, also Denver has a really cool scene.

- I think Denver is home now for us, and we are just bringing the Latino love to it.

So we are treating it like our home, our family.

And we are representing it we are singing in Spanish, with having these events, we are bringing everyone that we admire in.

♪ (Music playing) ♪ - So next question I want to ask you all about, not so much like who inspired you, but who actually influenced your sound, which musicians and which bands did you look to for inspiration in your instrument?

And actually Martin I would like to start with you.

- Yes I actually started playing guitar through my Jewish congregation.

And kind of through that, it was early teens for my bar mitzvah, and was listening a lot to Jimi Hendrix, [indiscernible] but I think what a big awakening was for me musically was starting to listen to Latin American artists, mostly rockers from Argentina.

And also some Brazilian artists like [indiscernible], those are my biggest inspirations.

And I feel like that's what I'm trying to contribute to The Mananas is kind of this Latin American side that I've had exposure to, also as an Ecuadorian but someone who has traveled through South America a lot.

So that's part of that I would say.

- Wow, we should all say like all together the Beatles.

The Beatles.

One, two, three.

- The Beatles.

- Yeah but we are obsessed with the Beatles for sure.

We respect them, I think we've all had separate phases where we just have grown to love them, but yeah.

- Yes a lot of like doo-wop was inspirational to songwriting, Frankie Valli and the four seasons was as well.

Just that structure, of how they went about writing those songs, those catchy like old songs.

They are still an inspiration.

- Thank you all so much as been amazing talking to you and yes we are so honored that you are sharing your time with us.

So thank you.

- Thank you.

- Cheers.

♪ (Music playing) ♪ [Applause] ♪ (Music playing) ♪ - If you enjoyed watching Sounds on 29th, we hope you'll support PBS 12 to help bring you more fun, grassroots local music programming, visit PBS.12/programsupport and donate todayl.