Music & Culture

Rainy Eyes: Denver to Winter Park

Winter Park, Colorado · Rendezvous Event Center · July 9, 2026 · High-Note Thursdays

Following a band from the city into the mountains — the weather, the waiting, the movement, and the feeling of briefly becoming part of the tour.

A few months after meeting Rainy Eyes at New Orleans Jazz Fest, I joined the band for part of their West Coast tour—following them from Denver into the mountains of Winter Park. We stayed together in a cabin, recovered between shows at the Grand Park Community Recreation Center’s lap pool and sauna, and settled into the strange intimacy of life on the road.

The weather initially seemed determined to work against us. Rain swept across the Rendezvous Event Center and briefly cleared the crowd. Then, only minutes before the performance, people returned, claimed the complimentary amphitheater chairs, and began dancing.

Kevin, the band’s sound engineer, recorded the complete set while I documented the performance with still photography and my new DJI Osmo Pocket 3. The footage and live audio will eventually become live recordings and synchronized YouTube videos—but these photographs hold the part between the songs: the weather, the waiting, the movement, and the feeling of briefly becoming part of the tour.

Read the full first-person story in the journal: Rainy Eyes: Denver to Winter Park →

Rainy Eyes performs as a full band on the Winter Park stage beneath the Play Winter Park sign during High-Note Thursdays, live music photography by Tara Lenehan

A Rainy Eyes guitarist plays a solo on electric guitar in front of the Play Winter Park backdrop, Winter Park concert photographer Tara Lenehan

Rainy Eyes' vocalist sings at the microphone under stage lights at the Rendezvous Event Center in Winter Park, Colorado

A Rainy Eyes guitarist performs under colored stage lighting during the Winter Park set, live music photography in Colorado

The bassist of Rainy Eyes plays on the open-air stage as the daytime crowd gathers behind, tour documentary photography by Tara Lenehan

A Rainy Eyes musician looks down in concentration while playing on stage, Winter Park concert photography

The band's golden retriever tour dog rests on the concrete plaza at the Rendezvous Event Center between shows

A band member cradles the tour dog in the shade of the amphitheater before the Winter Park performance, behind-the-scenes tour documentary photography

A guitar rests against touring gear before the Rainy Eyes set, behind-the-scenes music photography by Tara Lenehan

A Rainy Eyes vinyl record displayed on an easel at the merchandise table in Winter Park

Two band members set out records and merchandise on the table before the show, tour documentary photography

Overhead view of a Rainy Eyes member in a black hat signing photo prints at the merch table after the set

Close overhead view of a band member signing an autograph on merchandise in Winter Park

A hand signs a printed photograph with a marker at the Rainy Eyes merch table, a detail from a Winter Park concert

Two Rainy Eyes members sign a poster at the merchandise table after High-Note Thursdays in Winter Park

The vocalist and a bandmate hand over merchandise and tote bags at the merch table in Winter Park

Group portrait of the four members of Rainy Eyes beside a mountain creek in Winter Park, Colorado

The members of Rainy Eyes gather for a riverside band portrait among the rocks of a Winter Park creek

Three members of Rainy Eyes stand in a rocky creek bed surrounded by evergreens near Winter Park

The band moves through a shallow mountain creek during a riverside portrait session in Winter Park

A Rainy Eyes musician in a corduroy jacket throws double peace signs while standing in a creek, a Colorado band portrait

Portrait of a Rainy Eyes musician standing among the pines near Winter Park, Colorado

Three band members talk together in the forest between performances, behind-the-scenes tour documentary photography

Portrait of a member of the Rainy Eyes touring crew in a cap and tinted sunglasses among the trees near Winter Park

The vocalist of Rainy Eyes stands beside a mountain creek in a black hat and long coat, a Winter Park portrait

Full-length riverside portrait of the Rainy Eyes vocalist beside a Winter Park creek

The Rainy Eyes vocalist poses on the rocks of a mountain creek near the Rendezvous Event Center

The vocalist of Rainy Eyes in a hat and sunglasses during a candid portrait in Winter Park

Black and white portrait of the Rainy Eyes vocalist in a hat and sunglasses, live music photography by Tara Lenehan

Pink dusk clouds break over the curved wooden roof of the Rendezvous Event Center amphitheater after the rain

Sunset colors the sky above the curved wooden roofline of the Rendezvous Event Center in Winter Park, Colorado

Black and white portrait of the Rainy Eyes vocalist during the Winter Park tour stop

Field Story July 23, 2026

Rainy Eyes: Denver to Winter Park

A first-person photo essay on joining the band from Denver into the mountains — the cabin, the rain, the returning crowd, and photographing a full live set.

Read: Rainy Eyes: Denver to Winter Park →