For a town of 2,000 regular folks in Colorado’s northwest mountain desert, Rangely is famous for its nerabuy Carrot Men, the rock art pictograph some think are space aliens or vegetable gods. But now city fathers are bragging about an empty old water tank on the outskirts of town.

Stay with me a minute. Musicians and singers show up there to make music with beautiful acoustics, and so does the media to hear it. “CBS Sunday Morning” said the sounds inside the massive drum are as “complicated as a gothic cathedral, where a single sound can reverberate for up to a minute.”

The Tank, formally known as the International Center for Sonic Arts, is a music venue now, with a whole big following.

According to The New Yorker magazine, music critic Alex Ross showed up on this back road  toUtah to be impressed by the sound from what amounts to a gigantic rust bucket. He wrote:

Rangely is dominated by the oil business: Chevron operates a major crude-oil field in the vicinity. The Tank has stood in town for decades, although no one is quite sure where it came from. On its side are the words “Rio Grande,” which signify the Denver and Rio Grande Western Railroad, but that line never reached Rangely. The best guess is that the Tank once stood in a railroad town somewhere to the south, providing water for steam locomotives. In the nineteen-sixties, an electric-power association purchased the structure and moved it to Rangely, planning to use it to store water to fight fires. Once it arrived, however, concerns arose that the hillside underneath it might collapse under the weight of so much water. So it stood unused, its ownership passing from one person to another.

The story, like almost anything in The New Yorker, is worth a read. Check it out here.

Rangely Town Manager Peter Brixius issued a statement Monday boasting of the The New Yorker’s attention. The city called it “invaluable exposure to the town and at least one of its many offerings.”

“We are immensely proud of The Tank, and of the musical and acoustic experience it offers for residents and visitors alike, whether they are professional musicians or just people looking for a unique and enjoyable experience,” Brixius said.

“We are also obviously thrilled that a reporter from such a well-known and renowned magazine as “The New Yorker” would show an interest in it,” Brixius continued. “The article will help shed an international light on our little corner of Colorado, and hopefully spur interest in people to see what else we have to offer.”

Brixius didn’t mention the Carrot Men among the local attractions and events – aw, come on – but instead cited “world-class hang-gliding competition” and Dinosaur National Monument. To be fair, the Carrot Men are 12 miles south of town in Moon Canyon.