Get Hip!

With its latest album, Out On A Limb, Denver-based rock-n-soul outfit The Hip Snacks are taking the leap into the national spotlight, a realm the group has quickly been pushing towards through powerful live performances and a keen musicianship guided by guitar prowess and towering vocals.

“The more shows I’ve done, the more comfortable I’ve been, and it’s just so much fun now,” says lead singer Kara Durante. “Especially with this new album coming out, we’re just so excited about these songs. It’s just been such a cool journey so far.”

Captured by Steve Avedis at Colorado Sounds Studios, the whirlwind 10-song LP is the follow-up album to The Hip Snacks 2024 debut release, What Lies Ahead (also recorded by Avedis).

“This time around with Steve, we had a bit more room to explore some ideas,” Durante says. “And just feeling more confident [in the studio].”

The Hip Snacks journey started thousands of miles away from Colorado in Maryland, where Durante was living with her husband/bandmate, Ben Suarez, who was already a known musician in touring acts. Eventually, Durante started to get the itch to perhaps jump up behind the microphone and see where music could take her — this voice within one of sheer power and force.

The inception of The Hip Snacks takes place in 2022. Durante and Suarez left the East Coast and relocated to Colorado, and all with hopes of not only creating a new life in Denver, but also launching a group, too. The duo looked at the city as a vivacious, endless landscape of music and connectivity.

“We came out here to start a new band,” Suarez says. “We were here to meet new people and we were lucky enough to meet those people soon after.”

Hitting the ground running in the Mile-High City, Durante and Suarez started going to local open mic nights and a slew of weekly gatherings at various venues. And it was interacting with these artistic circles where they crossed paths with guitarist Felipe Cantuaria and drummer Dylan French.

“Two months later, we asked them to join [our] band,” Suarez chuckles. “It was all pretty crazy and super serendipitous.”

Soon after, the musicians were hired to play a church gig, only to encounter guitarist Ricky Feria, with keyboardist Adam Schini coming into the fold through another community jam. From there, the sextet was formed, with its first show taking place on May 29, 2023.

“We’re entering our third year as a band, and [being in Denver] keeps you on your toes,” Suarez says. “There’s so much talent, so much musicianship here. It’s also a fun environment to keep you pushing ahead. It’s such a welcoming scene here. There’s so much going on, and everyone is so inclusive.”

That inclusive, intricate nature of the Denver live music scene lent itself to the fast trajectory of The Hip Snacks — its intent and its sound. Soaking in all they could from attending performances and jumping onstage with anyone who wanted to play, this musical spectrum emerged within the ensemble, one that encompasses the essence of soul, rock, pop, jam, and even hip-hop influences.

With all these different avenues of tone and approach seamlessly coming together in the melodic landscape of The Hip Snacks, it circles back to the initial meeting of Durante and Suarez at the All Good Music Festival in 2011. As longtime festival goers, their inspiration for music comes from an appreciation for a variety of acts presented onstage, live and in the moment: Lake Street Dive to Lettuce, Tedeschi Trucks Band to Lotus, and beyond.

“[Our sound] is definitely not trying to get stuck in any one genre,” Suarez says. “I’m definitely influenced heavily by southern soul music and grew up listening to a ton of hip-hop. So, the melting pot [of this band] is natural and organic based on six different personalities coming together.”

When one lets Out On A Limb unfold in real time, you’ll see exactly what Suarez and his bandmates are radiating, which is this deep, genuine sense of various sonic textures, each complemented by the soaring vocal range of Durante — the singer positioned at the core of the instrumentation swirling around her, ultimately inspiring the subtle tones that set the group apart.

“I’ve been singing my whole life, singing in church choirs and school choirs,” Durante reflects. “I was always singing with other people and going to concerts all the time, watching these badass ladies up onstage singing their hearts out, rocking out. I remember being like, ‘I want to do that.’”

That path for Durante came to fruition in the country of Panama one fateful evening several years ago. One of Suarez’s former bands was playing an intimate show for a group of their friends there, with Durante finding herself in front of the microphone, her voice stunning those in attendance.

“I don’t know what it was that made me so petrified to [sing live], but it just took a really long time to come out of my shell,” Durante reminisces. “Eventually, I started rehearsing with Ben’s old band and took the leap to sing at the Panama show, and [I’ve] never looked back.”

With the album’s titled an ode to Durante’s leap of faith, Out On A Limb is chock-full of fiery guitar solos and soothing keyboard nuances, coupled with a roaring drums-n-bass combination, the culmination of which vividly heard and felt on tracks like “Footsteps,” “When You’re Around” and “Counting On You.” In terms of Feria and Schini, the record also features key melodies from each, ultimately elevating the sound into fresh, vibrant heights.

“They’re always counting on you, no time for busking around,” Durante’s voice and bravado echoes out into the ether during “Counting On You,” penned by Schini. “Surrounding all that you do, in watching out for yourself.”

In truth, the Out On A Limb stands on its own in its uniqueness and capacity, this passionate offering from a determined band looking to break national.

“We’ve always been interested in bands that could get people to really get lost in the escape [of music] and be captivating,” Suarez notes. “And we want to make sure we’re always steering towards something that gets you to move.”