Boulder's 3OH!3 is on fire.

Last summer, the hip-hop/electronic duo opened the University of Colorado's New Student Welcome Concert for Blackalicious -- now the act's sold out all of its upcoming Colorado shows.

Yep, this weekend's Fox Theatre and Thursday's Fort Collins show are all sold out. You can't even buy tickets for 3OH!3's Halloween party at the Gothic Theatre in Englewood.

It's no wonder.

The local act's tongue-in-cheek shows, spastic stage moves and hilarious tunes such as "Holler 'Til You Pass Out" have created a big national buzz.

3OH!3 is made up of former CU students Nathaniel Motte and Sean Foreman, and the pair are having one hell of a musical ride. This year, 3OH!3 opened shows for Snoop Dogg and headed out on the road with the Warped Tour.

The Boulder boys' work paid off, and the local act was signed to Atlantic Records subsidiary Photo Finish Records.

Now, the rest of the country's catching the 3OH!3 vibe.

"We've always tried to make our music fun and inclusive," Motte said. "We try to combine a weird medley of different sounds -- we wanted to be set apart from other hip-hop acts. We add humor, a lot of electronic styles of production and a lot of rock stuff. We're the bastard child of all our influences.

"In the end, it's a heavy sound that's fun."

Motte says 3OH3! focused on basic beats and simpler music in the first incarnation of the act. Now, the group aims for a bigger and broader sound and it uses more melodic elements in the mix.

"Our lyrics have also evolved -- I think we found our niche," Motte said. "Now our music is heavy, sassy and fun. That's really helped. I am amazed how rapidly things have come together for us. We started headlining the Fox a few months after we got together.

"We had great support from the local music scene."

Ringers go off in Denver

If you can't get into Thursday's Barack Obama rally at Invesco Field, you might be looking for another event to check out. The Ringers may not be running for office, but the up-and-coming L.A. band could use your support in the local market.

The hard-rocking Ringers are already making a name for themselves on the West Coast. The L.A. act's served as house-band for the city's infamous Viper Room, and frontman Joe Hursley has appeared in the film "Accepted" along with actor Jonah Hill ("Superbad").

"We started the band in L.A., 'cause this is where the entertainment industry is," Hursley said. "We may write all the songs on acoustic guitar, but this is a pretty hard-core rock band. This is the type of music that builds and gets you going. Our live shows are 'pretty dangerous,' too.

"We like to have some kind of shock value at our shows, so you never know what will happen."

Catch L.A.'s Ringers Thursday at the Bluebird Theater."

What's up with

Public Enemy?

You'd think we were trying to solve "The Da Vinci Code."

The big Boulder mystery this week is whether Public Enemy be coming to town. At press time, promoter says the duo's Boulder and Denver concerts -- set during the DNC next week -- are still being "negotiated." Stay tuned.