Last Friday Criteria’s new album Years dropped via 15 Passenger Records. It’s a banger. BrooklynVegan was the first outlet to sort of review the album, saying: “The more polished sound suits them well, and helps elevate their chunky post-hardcore/alt-rock to a level where Criteria sound like even more of a force than they did during their initial run. The songwriting is inspired, the songs rip, and it just feels great to have this band back.”
Digital Leather last week shared yet another song off its forthcoming album, Because You’re a Winner, called “V.” Check it below:
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And the always prolific Dereck Higgins dropped a new track in Soundcloud called “Scoobs.” He says he’s “causally working” toward a new album. And pssst…. InDreama also is in the studio.
Looking at the calendar it’s going to be slim pickens show-wise for the month of January. Still, there are a few shows on my radar:
— Criteria has been added to that Cursive/Cloud Nothings show Jan. 15 at Winchester Bar and Grill. The only surprise here is that Criteria wasn’t on the original show line-up, as the band will be hitting the road the following day on tour with Cursive.
— Indie singer/songwriter Your Smith has a gig at The Slowdown Jan. 19. I dug her last album — very dance-y, very fun.
— Cold War Kids are coming to The Waiting Room Jan. 23 (*yawn*).
— Lawrence, Kansas, legacy indie act The Anniversary play The Waiting Room Jan. 29. Band member Adrianne Verhoeven is no stranger to Omaha, as she’s performed as as a member of bands Art in Manila and Flowers Forever.
— And InDreama closes out the month with a show at Reverb Lounge. What has Nik Fackler and Co. been up to lately? Find out.
There are more smaller shows dotted in between those, which I’ll keep you apprised of as they come near. I’m to the point now where I’m happy if there are at least two solid touring indie shows coming through town per month. Anything more than that is frosting on the cake these days.
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Remember that Digital Leather song “Compass” I mentioned was a stand-out at the last two DL live shows? Well, a recording of the song was released via Bandcamp last week as the first single off the band’s upcoming album. Dig it:
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The last single from everyone’s favorite Omaha-based Latin-language punk band, Las Cruxes, made it onto NPR program World Cafe‘s list of the Best Latin Music for 2019. Check out the track, “1303 Mente Enferma,” on their playlist included in the article.
From the article “... it was great to hear bands like Las Cruxes, Davila 666, Mueran Humanos, Choked Up, Le Butcherettes and Mi Puga Mi Pishgo rocking out with punk, Brit-influenced rock en español and even dark wave sounds.” Lsten along here.
And look for a new Las Cruxes recordings (hopefully) by the end of the month.
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Lazy-i Best of 2019
Today is the last day to enter to win a copy of the Lazy-i Best of 2019 Comp CD!
The collection includes my favorite indie tunes I’ve come across throughout last year as part of my tireless work as a music critic for Lazy-i. Among those represented: DIIV, Hand Habits, Uh Oh, Sharon Van Etten, Orville Peck, Simon Joyner, Prettiest Eyes, Purple Mountains and lots more.
To enter, send me an email with your mailing address to tim.mcmahan@gmail.com. Hurry, contest deadline is TONIGHT, Jan. 6, at midnight.
Or listen on Spotify. Simply click this link or search “Lazy-i” in Spotify and you’ll find the 2019 playlist along with a few from past years, too!
Thanksgiving night at O’Leaver’s is becoming a new holiday tradition for the drunks and disenfranchised as well as the rest of us, and why not? Most places are closed on Thanksgiving. Instead. O’Leaver’s used the holiday for a boozed-up rock show.
First up at around 10:30 was the return of Solid Goldberg. Dave Goldberg has revamped his one-man project with more eye-popping gadgets and an enormous amount of sound-creating hardware — pedals, cables and wires surrounded both in front of and behind the shower-curtain scrim used to bounce lighting effects. Fire hazard? I watched the floor for smoke.
Despite the hardware and tech, the core of Goldberg’s performance are his songs, which have never been groovier. Goldberg’s beat programming and synth-work have upped his sound to an electro-dance party that sizzles beneath his keyboard melodies and vocals. The style is punk/blues rock a la classic Jon Spencer but with Goldberg’s trademark keyboard style like listening to a kaleidoscope on acid.
And while it’s hard not to get caught up in the performance — the lights, the gadgets, Goldberg himself — there is funk to be had. Goldberg has one of the better punk rock voices I’ve heard around these parts — rife with the swagger of a rock evangelist, it’s been that way as long as I’ve known him.
I asked after the set when he’s going to record any of the songs. He said he thought they finally turned a corner, which I hope means he’ll be in a studio soon.
Digital Leather at O’Leaver’s, Nov. 26, 2019.
Digital Leather followed after at around 11. Every DL show seems to have a line-up change and this one was no exception. While Jeff Lambelet took his throne behind the drum kit and I believe Omahan Blake Kostszewa of FiFI NoNo was on one synth, across the stage was a new face who I was told was playing her first show with DL. No idea who she was, though the person next to me said there were Sioux City roots.
It was a similar set as the one played in September at The Sydney. Once again, the highlights were “Puff” off Headache Heaven, “B12” from the Mere Mortals project, and a kick=ass closer called “Compass” that’s yet to be recorded (but needs to be).
Frontman Shawn Foree brutalized a four-string bass with heavy fuzz tone — a welcome shift in style though few people are more ingenious behind a synth keyboard. If there’s a complaint it’s that the set could have been longer. Certainly the audience, which crowded the stage, wanted more…
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Los Angeles psych-rock band Allah-Las headlines tonight at Slowdown Jr. The band has a sweet ’60s Cali-garage sound reminiscent of acts like Arthur Lee and Love. Their latest album, LAHS, was released this past October on Mexican Summer Records. They’re joined tonight by LA duo Mapache and Tim Hill. $18, 8 p.m.
Fabulous O’Leaver’s is starting a new tradition tonight by hosting one of the hottest Tryptophan-fueled rock shows of the year.
Solid Goldberg is a project that features Omaha legend Dave Goldberg, who takes the one-man-band experience to a whole ‘nuther level. Goldberg, who’s past projects include Sucettes, Rusty Lord, Box Elders, The Terminals, The Carsinogents, Street Urchins and Full Blown, to name a few, creates an audio/visual head trip that must be seen to be believed.
He’s followed by Digital Leather, a project helmed by an Omaha doom-vision electronic music svengali. Beyond what I’ve reported in the past, I know virtually nothing about Shawn Foree other than he’s the only post-wave singer/songwriter actively trying something new in a tired genre dominated by tribute acts and unwanted reunion tours.
Over the past 15 years or so, Digital Leather’s musical style has constantly shifted between electronic No Wave, garage rock/psychedelic and static-powered synth-punk. Prolific, Foree records a record (or two) every year, released on labels like FDH, No Coast, Volar, Goner, Fat Possum and Stencil Trash.
You get both acts for just $7. The fun starts at 10 p.m. Expect your typical O’Leaver’s crowd, which is another way of saying expect the unexpected. And that’s something to give thanks for…
No doubt if I had kids I would be aware of just how excited they are on Halloween’s Eve. After all, I was a kid once and I loved Halloween. But what do you do if your kids are getting a little out of hand before — or after — Halloween (because all that sugar, right?)?
Well, your favorite studio project, Flight School, has the remedy. Today Ian Aeillo (Nebraska’s answer to Alan Parsons) released a doozy of a cover of Bobby Pickett’s holiday classic, “Monster Mash.” The 7-plus minute Ambien-fueled anthem features Luke Pettipoole and Sarah Bohling on vocals, and is sure to draw down the energy level of anyone who experiences it. I promise you’ll never hear this song quite the same way again, and there’s no question I prefer Ian’s version over the original. Check it below:
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You might remember Rose Thomas Bannister by her old name, Ember Schrag, the moniker she used when she lived in Nebraska. These days she calls Brooklyn home, and now Bannister has a new album in the can called The Little Wren, which she hopes to release on vinyl. So… Kickstarter. Bannister already hit her $3,000 goal, but the campaign continues for a another day or so. I’ve always considered Kickstarter to be sort of presale event. Check it out here.
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On the other hand, Shawn Foree has a ways to go until he reaches his $2,000 Go Fund Me goal for his next record, which he thinks is “the strongest album I’ve done.” It’s the follow-up to Feeet, the limited-vinyl album released this past January by German label Stencil Trash Records and the 8-track tape re-release of 2007’s Blow Machine. What does Shawn have up his sleeve this time? The quicker you donate, the quicker we’ll find out.
It’s been so long since Digital Leather played locally I thought frontman Shawn Foree moved back to Arizona. The project came out with a limited edition vinyl compilation on the Stencil Trash insignia in January called Feeet, as well as a limited 8-track tape (you read that right) version of 2007’s Blow Machine (FDH Records). But still no local appearances.
Then last Friday night Foree and his current Digital Leather line-up took the stage at The Sydney for a half-hour set. DL has had numerous iterations over the years, swinging between ‘80s electronic synth-driven No Wave to full-on guitar punk, with Foree either behind a keyboard rack or slinging an electric guitar. This time he stood out front with an electric bass backed by two synth players — a pal from Arizona named Jason and Omahan Blake Kostszewa of FiFI NoNo — while veteran stickman Jeff Lambelet took his usual place behind the drum kit.
Bringing the bass out front proved to be a bold move as the band ran through a set that included standout track “Puff” off the new record (but originally released on 2018’s Headache Heaven) and a re-imagined version of “B12” (originally released as part of Foree’s Mere Mortals project and later covered (with lyrics rewritten) by The Faint as “Damage Control”).
Foree put down his bass and returned behind the synths for the set closer, singing lyrics read from a sheet of notebook paper. I figured it was maybe an obscure cover, but he said afterward it was a new song called “Compass” — red hot and the evening’s highlight. Here’s hoping the song gets a proper release, along with whatever else the prolific Mr. Foree has been working on.
Clarence Tilton at the Parkwood Lane Bluegrass Festival, Sept. 7, 2019.
Saturday night I walked around the block to the Parkwood Lane Bluegrass Festival to catch a performance by Clarence Tilton. This is actually the annual block party held on Parkwood Lane just west of Memorial Park — picture lots of neighbors standing in the street eating covered-dish gourmet while kids speed around on mini BMX bikes, big-screen TVs showing whatever game is on ESPN. And at the end of the street, a small stage under a tent where the bands played.
I keep comparing Clarence Tilton to ’90s-era indie power-pop acts and I’ve got to admit, it’s kind of a stretch, especially when you see them perform live. I mean, don’t get me wrong, they could be a fantastic power-pop act, especially with their backgrounds, but the fact is these guys are playing countrified Americana music, and the twang is unmistakable on stage, where they resemble The Statler Brothers more than The dBs, and that’s not a bad thing.
Overheard from the neighborhood crowd: “These guys are the real deal.” And they are. I don’t know why they haven’t been discovered on a national level, they’re certainly as good or better than anything I’ve heard on the country Sirius stations. The Weber Brothers are among the best axe men around, and then you’ve got three different (very good) vocalists. I guess maybe their lack of national notoriety has to do with the fact that the band members have other careers — and lives — that prevent them from touring outside our little burg. That means Clarence Tilton will likely remain Omaha’s — and Parkwood Lane’s — best kept secret.
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Tonight at Slowdown Jr. it’s Philly band Mannequin Pussy. Though they’re on Epitaph Records, they don’t sound like a run-of-the-mill Epitaph band. With their shoe-gaze shimmer, I’d more likely mistake them for someone on 4AD. Their latest, Patience, is shoe-gaze leaning on heavy metal. Opening is Sacramento band Destroy Boys (Uncool Records) and UK producer/musician Ellis. $15, 8 p.m.
Yet another music fest is happening tonight — the second annual Shadow Ridge Music Festival at Shadow Ridge Country Club, located way out on 189th and Pacific St. The headliner is ’80s indie fossils Violent Femmes, with Soul Asylum, Omaha’s own Matthew Sweet and Lincoln legacy act The Millions, all for just $55. Ticket proceeds will benefit Elkhorn Athletic Association’s Future Outdoor Youth Sports Complex. Free parking at Elkhorn South High School with shuttle service. The Millions kick it off at 4 p.m. More info here.
Glancing at the calendar, it’s the first Friday of the month, which means Benson First Friday. If you’re in the neighborhood tonight, drop by The Little Gallery, 5901 Maple St. (the east bay in the bottom of the Masonic Lodge Building), and check out the opening for the late Robert Klein Engler. All artist proceeds will benefit the stained glass windows at St. Mary Magdalene Church in downtown Omaha. We’re there from 6 to 9 p.m.
Afterward, head over to The Sydney in Benson for the return of Digital Leather. The project, headed by Shawn Foree, released a full-length earlier this year on Stencil Trash Records, called Feeet, which is a comp of mainly tape-only released songs written and recorded between 2008 and 2018. Great stuff (as per usual). Joining them tonight is Tucson electronic act Mute Swan. $5, 10 p.m.
Also tonight, Lincoln indie prog act Universe Contest headlines at fabulous O’Leaver’s. Fellow Lincolnites Sweats and Iowa City’s Zuul also are on the card. $5, 10 p.m.
Tomorrow night it’s back to The Sydney for a rip-roarin’ set by Wagon Blasters (Speed! Nebraska Records). Gary Dean and the band will own the center slot, Vago is the headliner and Bull Nettles kicks it off at 9 p.m. $6.
And that’s all I got. If I missed your show, put it in the comments section. Have a great weekend.
Comments Off on Shadow Ridge Music Fest (Violent Femmes, Soul Asylum, Matthew Sweet), Digital Leather, Universe Contest, BFF tonight; Wagon Blasters Saturday…
Digital Leather, Feeet, dropped this weekend on Stencil Trash Records. Looks like the album title added an additional “E” since when this art first appeared last summer.
The new Digital Leather album Feeet dropped over the weekend. Yeah, I know, seems like Shawn Foree drops a new collection of music every six months. This one is different. Released on boutique German label Stencil Trash Records the packaging is truly unique. “This limited run 180 gram black vinyl includes a 16-page handwritten lyric booklet, sticker and small hinge glued on the rounded cover, and black deluxe innersleeves with rounded corners.“
The album is limited to 333 copies, and according to the Bandcamp page only six copies remain.
But forget about the packaging for a sec. This is probably the best collection of Digital Leather songs since 2015’s All Faded. “Feeet is an eclectic compilation of mainly tape-only released songs written and recorded between 2008 and 2018,” says the Bandcamp page.
Foree provided almost all the tracks for this electronic-driven album, though human drum sounds were provided by Jeff Lambelet, Sean Ruse and Gregory Elsasser. The album was mastered by Daniel Husayn at North London Bomb Factory.
I’m figuring out a way to group new music announcements into a single weekly blog post. This may or may not work. Stand by…
David Nance, Peaced and Slightly Pulverized, slated for release on Trouble in Mind Oct. 5.
Last week David Nance announced that his latest full-length, Peaced and Slightly Pulverized, is coming out on Chicago’s Trouble in Mind Records Oct. 5. It’s credited to the “David Nance Group” and features Nance alongside his recent “hot-shit live band” of fellow Omaha musicians; guitarist Jim Schroeder, bassist Tom May, and drummer Kevin Donahue.
The 7-song LP was mastered by Mikey Young of Total Control and Eddy Current Suppression Ring (no word as to who produced and recorded it). Nance dropped the first single via SoundCloud, “Poison,” and it’s pretty awesome.
Nance is my pick for the next Omaha act to grab some national traction (You could argue he already has). He launches a tour of the Eastern U.S. Sept. 8 in St. Louis that includes a performance at the legendary Gonerfest in Memphis Sept. 29. and Detroit’s Third Man Nov. 8.
The tour rolls home to Omaha Oct. 12, but you can catch Nance sooner — he’s playing the Maha Music Festival this Saturday.
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Digital Leather, Feet, is slated for release sometime this fall on Stencil Trash Records.
Digital Leather posted in Facebook Aug. 2 that the project (headed by Shawn Foree) has a new limited vinyl-only release coming out on German label Stencil Trash Records. No drop date, but we know it’s called Feet, and there’s a track listing.
The possible track listing for the forthcoming Digital Leather album, Feet.
The 12-song LP apparently has been sent to the plant “to be released in about three months” according to the Stencil Trash Facebook page. The label creates elaborate packaging for its releases. Accordingly, “The cover will be printed inside-out on 350g/m² paper. The circle as a glossy sticker and the little hinge as a ‘real’ hinge will be glued on the cover. Limited to 333 copies on 180g black vinyl and dedicated to Peter Eichhorn/P.Trash Records.”
Stencil Trash doesn’t take pre-orders, so…
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SAVAK, Beg Your Pardon, is slated for release on Ernest Jennings Nov. 9.
World-famous Omaha ex-pat now Brooklynite Mike Jaworski’s latest project, SAVAK, announced that their third album, Beg Your Pardon, will drop Nov. 9 on Ernest Jennings Recordings.
“The band recorded and produced Beg Your Pardon themselves in their Gowanus practice space and then handed off the songs to Mikey Young (Royal Headache, Kelley Stoltz), Geoff Sanoff (Nada Surf, Luna), Ed Ackerman (The Jayhawks, John Wesley Harding) and Matthew Barnhart (Superchunk, METZ) to mix.”
Check out the first single, “Dead Dick,” below. The band will tour the U.S. and Europe in the fall.
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Young Jesus, The Whole Thing is Just There comes out on Saddle Creek Oct. 12.
Finally, one of Saddle Creek Records new-era artists, Young Jesus, today dropped the first single, “Deterritory,” from their forthcoming album, The Whole This Is Just There. The record drops Oct. 12 and pre-orders are now being taken for limited edition yellow vinyl.
The band announced a massive U.S. tour that runs throughout the fall, but alas, is a NOmaha joint.
Another red hot weekend (at least weather-wise), and the last one before the Maha Music festival. Here’s what’s on my radar:
Tonight at Slowdown Jr. Closeness — the post-rock project by Todd and Orenda Fink — headlines. Joining them is Digital Leather (with a new album on the horizon?) and Oklahoma City electronic act Net.
“It’s four people playing music that was written on a computer and making it more human,” Net’s Tommy McKenzie told The Oklahoman. “(We) become syncopated like a machine. Everyone adds to an idea and expands it.”
Kraftwerk is thrown around as an influencer; I’m reminded of early Devo. $7, 9 p.m. See you there.
Also tonight, Bokr Tov plays at the Benson B-Side (next door to the Benson Theatre). Dylan Goodman opens at 10 p.m. $5.
Tomorrow night (Saturday) it’s Petfest at the Pet Shop Gallery. The music runs from 2 p.m. to midnight. Performances by:
-Universe Contest
-Mike Schlesinger
-Those Far Out Arrows
-Hussies
-Sam Martin
-Black Johnny Quest w/Kethro
-Effluvium
-Ben Eisenberger
-Sean Pratt and the Sweats
-Bed Rest
-Artichoke Hearts
-Fifi NoNo (final performance?)
-3gypt
-Harvey Pekar (Cleveland, OH)
-The Meaninglessnesses (Magnetic Fields tribute band)
Late night Performances by:
-Kethro
-Cult Play
There’s no price listed but I doubt it’s free.
That’s all I got. If I missed your show, put it in the comments section. Have a great weekend.
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