I knew little about Dr. Dog before last night’s show at The Waiting Room. I had listened to one or two of their songs on Lala and just wasn’t feeling it. Still, their publicist put me on the list — and I got my column in early — so how could I resist? I’d like to tell you that I was pleasantly surprised, but DD sounded pretty much how I expected — a cross between Gomez and Nada Surf, a little too mainstream for my tastes. The band sports two lead singers — the bass player who has an in-your-face Roger Daltrey style, and a guitarist/keyboardist with a high, slightly nasal tone who sounded like a cross between Doug Martsch and Neil Young. It was the nasal guy who I dug the most; his subtle approach effectively sanded down the edges of the band’s over-the-top rawk that more often than not, suffered from trying too hard. Try telling that to the 180 screaming fans on hand, however, who soaked in every minute of it.

Another reason I went last night was because Teresa wanted a Dr. Dog T-shirt — not because she likes the band, but because she’s dog crazy. Unfortunately, there weren’t any dogs on Dr. Dog’s shirts, and they cost $20. I’ll buy just about any band’s T-shirt if it has a halfway interesting design and costs $10. For $20, it has to have either been a life-changing show or an AA shirt with a jaw-dropping design. Or have a dog on it.

I’ve got a lot of T-shirts.

* * *

Here’s the latest and greatest from intern Brendan Greene-Walsh:

Department of Eagles, In Ear Park (4AD) — The story of how Department of Eagles came to be is as interest as its music. In what could have been a dreaded situation, Fred Nicolaus and Daniel Rossen were assigned as roommates their freshman year of college without first meeting. As luck would have it, their friendship flourished. They began writing together, combining their different influences and ideas. Even though separated while Rossen was on tour, they continued to record and email ideas to each other. It was this cross-country collaboration that helped create the backbone of this album, which comes out next month. The recording is as eclectic and scattered as the methodology that went into writing it. While most songs on the album are down tempo and subdued — like “Phantom Other” and the title track — others take the same restrained song structure and couple it with uplifting and whimsical instrumentation, such as on the fourth track, “Teenagers.” This feat is achieved thanks to an eclectic selection of backing instruments — guitar, upright bass, piano, synthesizers, oboe and handclaps. The band keeps an even keel throughout the album, but manages to ensure that the songs don’t become repetitive and boring. Rating: Yes. — Brendan Greene-Walsh

Tim’s take: More often than not, DOE sounds like pre-synthpop, pre-Outback Steakhouse Of Montreal — i.e., earnest. echoing chamber pop . But whereas pre-bloomin’ onion Of Montreal tended to wander and bore, DOE’s ethereal quality is infused with enough hooks to make you stand and listen and wonder. It’s dream pop that isn’t interested in putting you to sleep. Rating: Yes.

* * *

Team Love recording artist and Conor Oberst’s biggest vocal influence Dave Dondero returns to Omaha tonight at The Waiting Room. Dondero’s sets either mesmerize or stultify, depending on his mood and yours. Opening is singer-songwriter and guitar wizard Lincoln Dickison. Definitely worth the $8. 9 p.m.

–Got comments? Post ’em here.—

Well, The Filter Kings have to be pleased with the turn-out Friday night for their CD release show. I didn’t get an official count, but my eyeball estimate would be at least 200. The crowd was about half that when the Wagon Blasters went on at around 9:30, probably because of debate.

I didn’t realize that both Thornton brothers were in the Wagon Blasters — Bob and Bill playing bass and guitar. As such, it was sort of like a Frontier Trust reunion. We were even treated to a couple classic FT songs, including all-time favorite, “Swimming Hole.” Even the new stuff had that slightly country-fied (fried?) twang that FT was known for, more so than the faster, harder, guitar-burning stuff that makes The Monroes so special. The common denominator: Gary Dean Davis, who sports the same hollerin’ auctioneer vocals regardless of whoever’s playing guitar.

Next, Black Squirrels did their usual laid-back set of homemade bluegrass — always pleasant. Then it was the Filter Kings’ turn. The band seemed properly amped for the show, much more revved up than the last time I saw them just a few weeks earlier. The overall vibe felt chaotic and rough-hewn. Out of the box they had trouble with the stage sound — frontman Lee Meyerpeter frantically pointed at his microphone and guitar, then pointed skyward. Feedback ensued, and was a problem throughout the set. Still, the band sounded on-point playing songs off the new album along with a cover or two, including a gut-punch tribute to Jerry Reed via a scorching version of “East Bound and Down,” which we all remember from Smokey and the Bandit. Guest vocalists came and went all night, including Kat from Cloven Path and Kat from Black Squirrels. The crowd did its share of hootin’ and hollerin’, and for one night, The Waiting Room was transformed into a Midwestern version of Gilly’s.

* * *

Tonight at the Waiting Room, the red-hot Dr. Dog (currently at No. 6 on the CMJ Triple A top-20) plays with openers Delta Spirit and Hacienda. $12, 9 p.m.

Meanwhile, down at Slowdown Jr. it’s Birdmonster and local heroes Fortnight (Jenn Bernard of Park Ave.). $8, 9 p.m.

–Got comments? Post ’em here.—

We’ve got another logjam of quality shows tonight. Choose wisely.

I’ll be at the Filter Kings CD release show at The Waiting Room, with openers Black Squirrels and Wagon Blasters. I saw the Kings a few weeks ago and it was a rather milquetoast event. I’m told by Gerald Lee himself that the Filter Kings will be at their edgy, boozy, watch-out-for-flying-chairs best tonight. Get there early to see what kind of trouble Gary Dean Davis is up to these days. $8, 9 p.m.

The FK show has fierce competition at Slowdown Jr. from Brimstone Howl, who will be celebrating the release of their new disc, We Came in Peace, on Alive Records. Opening is The Stay Awake and Father of the Year. The show starts shortly after Slowdown’s Obama/McCain debate party. $7, 9 p.m.

Also tonight at brand-new music venue The Attic at 33rd and Harney, it’s Yuppies, The Cave Kids, Lipstick Homicide and Lincoln legends Domestica. $6, 9 p.m.

And at PS Collective it’s the hard stuff by way of Paria and Fromanhole, with The Zach Heath Band and DJ Plan 9. $6, 9 p.m.

There’s not so many choices tomorrow night. The only show on the list is the final reunion of Lincoln band Mr. 1986 at Slowdown Jr. Opening is Eagle*Seagull and Darren Keen. $7, 9 p.m.

–Got comments? Post ’em here.—

Just posted, a feature/interview with Lee Meyerpeter of the Filter Kings (read it here). Actually, Lee says he goes by “Gerald Lee” these days, even though for all those years in Cactus Nerve Thang and Bad Luck Charm he was simply “Lee.” I’m guessing the name shift is a tribute to his late father, Gerald Lee, Sr. The story covers the origins of the Filter Kings and their new album, Finer Things, which will be available at a CD release show tomorrow night at The Waiting Room.

I’m not a country music fan, but just like any god-fearing red-blooded American, I like Johnny Cash and Hank Williams and some of the “old country” bands that were around in the ’50s, ’60s and ’70s, before C&W got slicked down and commercialized. I can say unconditionally that I love this new Filter Kings record. Meyerpeter and his band have made an album of rocking country music about booze and broken hearts that stands tall next to anything played on country radio. There’s meaning behind every song, whether it’s the story of Meyerpeter’s parents’ divorce (“Passion Lingers”) or Lee Jr.’s love of Rumplemints (“100 Proof Man”). It’s one of the top-five locally produced records this year, and has potential to take off if the band can get it into music programmers’ hands at so-called “Outlaw Country” radio stations, and if the band can get out and tour. Anyway, read my account of the band, then go to The Waiting Room tomorrow night. Opening is Black Squirrels (who have become the band of choice for opening slots at CD release shows) and The Wagon Blasters — a new project that reunites The Monroes’ Gary Dean Davis with Bill Thornton, both former members of Frontier Trust. Monroes’ drummer Jesse Render also is along for this break-neck hayrack ride.

* * *

Tomorrow night’s show is the Wagon Blaster’s Omaha debut. Their first gig ever was last week at Lincoln Calling, which had its most successful year ever. LC organizer Jeremy Buckley said he was pleased with the attendance numbers. “We had attendance of close to 2,300 overall, with 10 shows having attendance of more than 100,” he said of the 5-day event. “Band payout was in the neighborhood of $8,500, and sound guys made $1,300 last weekend. I wish I could do the math and see what kind of money the crowds generated for downtown Lincoln, because if everyone spent $20 on top of the cost of their ticket on food and beer and such, that’s 40K. Big numbers.”

Indeed. Buckley said he intended to “slow down” after this year’s festival, “but it was the first year that I genuinely felt that a lot of non-regulars supported shows at all of the venues involved,” he said. “It was a very community-oriented event, and I think rather than tone it down next year I’ll just figure out how to involve a group of people (to be) in charge of different aspects of the weekend.” Here’s to Lincoln Calling ’09.

* * *

In other news, while glancing at the Saddle Creek Records tour schedules on their website the other day, I noticed that there’s an Azure Ray concert scheduled for The Troubadour in Los Angeles on Nov. 30. The duo of Maria Taylor and Orenda Fink had played together for 13 years prior to their split in 2005. Now three years later, they’re back together again, at least for one night. Saddle Creek Records label exec Robb Nansel said the concert is a “one-off for now,” but added, “hopefully it leads to more stuff.” While I’ve enjoyed Maria’s and Orenda’s solo and band projects, none of them reached the level of their Azure Ray output. Could this be the beginning of a long-term thing? Only time will tell. Hey Robb, when are we going to get that reunion on Slowdown’s stage?

* * *

Tonight at The Barley St. it’s Thunder Power with Midwest Dilemma (there is no way that their full ensemble will fit on Barley St.’s tiny “stage”) along with Bad Folk and Spiders for Luv. 9 p.m., $4.

–Got comments? Post ’em here.—

A friend of mine read the following column and said, “That’s a nice story, but what happened on your panel? Who was there? What’d you talk about?” Well, I didn’t bother recapping the dialog between myself and the authors because it was only interesting at the moment — or as they say, you had to be there. It was mostly back and forth about how music kind of influenced the panelists. Carleen Brice’s novel probably had the most direct link to music, having written Nina Simone into the story line. But all the writers said they don’t really draw directly from music when they write, and like me, can’t write while there’s music playing in the background, especially music with lyrics. It’s too distracting bordering on impossible. Even when I’m reviewing an album, I might have the record playing when I get started, but eventually I grab the remote and turn it off. Charles Bock uses music to mentally set a tone before he writes. So the underlying theme was, yes, music influenced the authors’ creative process, but really, how could it not? I’ve never met a creative person that isn’t inspired in some way by music or art.

The most interesting part of the panel was hearing Dana Rasso discuss her love for The Minutemen and the film We Jam Econo, and hearing Bock complain about Pitchfork and other online music review sites. Part of his comments are below. I had a great time, and from what I can tell, so did the 30 or so people in the gallery.

Column 191: Book Learned
Confessions of a Lit Fest moderator

The (downtown Omaha) Lit Fest was last weekend at the Bemis Center. It was an opportunity for local writers and people who like writers (readers?) to meet and discuss the art of writing with people who do it for a living.

This year I was asked by Lit Fest organizer, novelist Timothy Schaffert, to moderate a panel discussion about music and writing. “Taking Notes: Music and Writing,” the panel was titled. “Reader music critic Tim McMahan discusses the role of music in writing fiction, criticism, and screenplays.”

The panel included three professional writers. Novelist Carleen Brice, author of “Orange Mint and Honey,” is an Omaha native living in Denver who featured the spirit of Nina Simone in her novel, acting as sort of a guardian angel/guiding light to the main character. Charles Bock, author of “Beautiful Children,” lives in New York, though he was raised in Las Vegas, where his novel takes place. His music connection involved a promotional website with a rock soundtrack that serenades readers as they browse. Finally there was D.E. (Dana) Rasso, the guy behind defunct music blog #1 Hit Song (numberonehitsong.com), or so I thought. The final scheduled panelist was Omaha’s own Nik Fackler, writer/director of the film Lovely Still and frontman for the band The Family Radio. Unfortunately for us (but fortunately for him), Nik’s film was chosen for screening at the Toronto Film Festival, which meant he had to be in Toronto.

Then there was me. I’ve never moderated anything before let alone a panel. While I’ve been known to read books — usually two or three at a time — I have a disability that prevents me from finishing them. If you go into my home office you’ll find hundreds of books with deposit slips, matchbooks, Metro cards, concert tickets, torn bits of toilet paper, anything that can be used as a bookmark, sticking out of them. My problem stems from forcing myself to fruitlessly read the Foundation Trilogy in high school. I promised afterward to never subject myself to finishing a boring novel again. And as for good books, I can’t bear the thought of finishing one knowing that there was nothing left to enjoy. Better to stop a few chapters before the end and keep something for later. As a result, I had to wait for the movie to find out what happened to Frodo and Miles Roby (“Empire Falls”) and James Leer (“Wonder Boys”) and Rob Fleming (“High Fidelity”).

Well, Dana turned out not to be a guy, but a cute, smart, funny lady with an intense love of The Minutemen. Carleen was pleasant and interesting. Charles Bock, on the other hand, was intense and serious, the portrait of a young East Coast novelist with something to say. I found out later that he’s sort of a celebrity in New York. “People recognize him on the street,” Dana told me afterward. It was Bock who also had the most on his mind during the panel.

“Online music criticism in general is just ass. It’s insular and it’s smarmy and everyone has an opinion on something,” he said. “It’s going to make it really difficult to the point of impossible for anything to be heard genuinely or experienced in a genuine way because there’s already a short-handed answer.”

Bock went on to say that an album is meant to be taken at face value. “If you’re bright you can hear overtones of this and that and come up with something,” he said, “but to have a smarmy little fuck tell you in 200 words whatever. And then Entertainment Weekly gives you a grade. Like really? Thumbs up?”

Bock was hitting a little too close to home, especially considering that The Reader just relaunched CD reviews. Each with a 200-word limit. And a 5-star rating.

Afterward, Bock said he was headed back to his hotel room, to write, because “that’s what I do.” I intend to seek out his book and enjoy it, at least up ’til the ending. Hopefully he’s already sold the movie rights so I can find out what happens.

Carleen disappeared to another panel, while Dana and her friend, New York publicist Lauren Cerand, were curious to find out about Omaha outside of The Old Market. So we hopped inside my Mini Cooper, dropped the top, and I gave them a whirlwind tour through midtown, Benson, the faceless West Omaha suburbs, past landmarks like Boy’s Town, the Gold’s Gym that used to be the Kmart where I worked my way through college, and Von Maur, the scene of last year’s tragic shooting and a fine place to buy shoes.

It was the second time in less than a month that I showed a New Yorker around Omaha, and just like the first time, Dana and Lauren seemed genuinely thrilled. Or maybe it was just the fact that, as New Yorkers, they hadn’t ridden in a car in months. I hope they flew back to New York having made a few new fans at Lit Fest, and thinking that Omaha would be as good a place as any to end their next novel.

***

Tomorrow: The Filter Kings

–Got comments? Post ’em here.—

Team Love recording artist The Felice Brothers are bringing their down-low saloon-friendly jams to The Waiting Room tonight with AA Bondy. $10, 9 p.m. Do it.

–Got comments? Post ’em here.—

The best news about Saturday night’s concert: The Anchor Inn. Where has this place been all my life? Why aren’t there more (non-redneck) rock shows hosted here?

I admit to having been a little tenuous about driving down there after a long day, and almost didn’t. Where exactly was this place? Would we have to park in a field? Would I have to wait in long lines to 1) get in, 2) buy a beer, 3) take a leak? Do I really have the patience to withstand such an enormous hassle? And what about all the bikers that The Anchor Inn is famous for?

I decided not to sissy-out and Googled the place on my iPhone. It wasn’t too tricky to find — get on Abbott Drive and follow the trail of tail lights headed to the concert. At the end of a long, uneven paved road was the marina-like bar/restaurant and a team of yellow-shirted security guys who directed me to a parking spot only a few yards from the entrance. Despite the concert having started two hours earlier (I missed Son, Ambulance and Matt Focht) there was a long line to get in. Ah, but a plethora of security guys checking IDs shortened the wait. Too bad they couldn’t do anything about the swarm of Obama people asking if we were registered voters (The whole event felt like an Obama rally from the moment we arrived).

After about 10 minutes, we were in. Walking around the restaurant revealed the huge permanent outdoor stage, large enough to handle almost any performer. Just beyond the restaurant’s patio were dozens of picnic tables that led down to an open space in front of the stage. Getting a beer from the outdoor bar took only a couple minutes (no lines, but that might be because a can of Bud Light cost $4). In back was a tent that sold McKenna’s Barbecue, while a row of portajohns sat tucked away left of the stage area. Despite a crowd of 2,000, it never felt crowded. The owner said the venue has handled crowds exceeding 6,000, thanks to a huge field south of the stage that leads down to the river. Add to all that the fact that it was the best sound I’ve ever heard at an outdoor event and this place has the makings of an outdoor music Nirvana. I was blown away. So was One Percent, who said they’re considering hosting more shows there next year. The Anchor Inn certainly has my vote.

Which brings us to the musical portion of the review. While Conor was the headliner, Jenny Lewis and her band was just as much of a draw. Looking like a band of hippies (everyone on stage wore hippie hats, the bass player wore a pseudo American flag vest that looked right out of Easy Rider), her six-piece outfit sounded like the second-coming of the Allman Bros complete with boogie-woogie country rock vibe. The sometimes flaccid songs off her new album, Acid Tongue, roared to life in living, psychedelic color. Lewis, who has one of the best voices in indie music today, belted out one song after another, backed vocally in duets by Jonathan Rice (who sang the Elvis Costello part on “Carpetbaggers” and also shared in the unfortunate cover of “Love Hurts” “dedicated to Barack and Hillary”). Lewis appeared to be having a much better time at this show than the last Rilo Kiley concert down at Slowdown. Something tells me that this band and this music could take over everything in her career.

I had the same feeling about Conor Oberst and the Mystic Valley Band. The six-piece came on at around 11:30 dressed in matching dark-blue satin jackets with their band logo embroidered on the back. Oberst went through two guitars during the first song, a testimony to the equipment problems the band was having — they had to use Lewis’ gear as theirs didn’t show up until minutes before the concert. No matter, the band sounded great ripping through a set of country rock songs that had new life when performed live with this crew. Like Lewis, Oberst looked like he was having the time of his life. He was much more animated than at the usually staid Bright Eyes shows where he’s playing in front of a stringed quartet or brass section. Here it was simple, all-out country rock, loose and fun, eager and relaxed. I left wondering how Oberst could possibly go back to the indie straight-jacket that is Bright Eyes. The answer: He won’t, at least not anytime soon. As I said before, Mystic Valley will continue through the end of the year, and then Oberst will focus on his M. Ward/Jim James collaboration, a band that will likely be as free-wheelin’ as this one was.

But after seeing this show, the thought of Bright Eyes never coming back at all crept into my mind. Oberst is ever moving forward. He’s always looking at the next project, the next opportunity, rarely looking into his rear view mirror at what he’s accomplished. Certainly he’ll continue to work with folks from Bright Eyes — Nate Walcott is a member of the Mystic Valley Band, and Oberst and Mike Mogis will always be joined through ARC and other projects. So could Bright Eyes become this year’s Desaparecidos? Every time I asked Oberst in interviews if Desa was happening again, he’d say, yes of course, it’s just a matter of scheduling. Until the last time I asked, when he said Desa represented a time in his life that has long passed. The same could be said of Bright Eyes and that project’s catalog of forlorn classics perfectly designed to make the little girls cry. Looking around the crowd at Saturday night’s show, there wasn’t a tear to be seen…

* * *

Tonight at Slowdown Jr., those ever-lovin’ muppets known as Talkin’ Mountain with Love Like Fire, Robert Adam and DJ Kobrakyle. $6, 9 p.m.

–Got comments? Post ’em here.—

It’s Day Two of Lincoln Calling’s 5-day music bonanza. Tonight’s schedule:

Duffy’s: Jodie Loves Hinckley, Machete Archive, Black Hundreds, Techlepathy. 9 p.m., $5, 21+

State Theater: Forty Twenty, The Killigans, Triggertown. 9 p.m., $5, 18+

12th St. Pub: Dan Jenkins (Ideal Cleaners), Nick Westra, Pat Bradley, Matt Martinosky. 6 p.m., $3, 21+

Box Awesome: Academy of Rock showcase — Damnit Dolls, The Story Killers, Learning to Fall. 6 p.m., $5, all ages. Late show: Revival of the DJ. 9 p.m., free 21+, $3 18+

Knickerbocker’s: Pomeroy, Sarah VanderHaar, Golden. 9:30 p.m., $10, 18+

The Zoo: Lucas Kellison and the Assembled Soul, Mo Izreal, 9 p.m., $5, 21+

Full sched and details are at lincolncalling.com.

Also tonight, Paper Owls are hosting a CD release party at The Waiting Room with Shiver Shiver and Midwest Dilemma. The $8 cover gets you a copy of their full length, Myths, recorded at ARC Studios by Ian Aeillo. Starts at 9.

A last-minute show has been put together tonight at O’Leaver’s featuring Jake Bellows (Neva Dinova), Nicole LeClerc and Reagan Roeder. $2, 9:30 p.m.

Meanwhile, down the street at The Barley St. Tavern, Darren Keen (a.k.a. The Show Is the Rainbow) takes the stage with Stolen Kisses and Heligoats. No idea if there’s a cover. Things get rolling around 9 p.m.

Finally, here’s a review of the new Jenny Lewis CD, Acid Tongue, that was supposed to run in this week’s issue of The Reader along with three local CD reviews. They all got pushed back to next week, so hear’s a sneak peek, just in time for Lewis’ opening slot for Conor Oberst Saturday night at The Anchor Inn.

Jenny Lewis, Acid Tongue (Warner Bros) — Her debut, Rabbit Fur Coat, was a lark that ended up being one of the best albums of ’06 — far better than any current Rilo Kiley output. This one isn’t so much a sophomore slump as a flat spot on the shopping-cart wheel of life she so accurately captures in her music. We get Lewis’ usual femme fatales — the used-up should-have-known-better vamps confessing their indiscretions with downcast eyes and a wry, secret smile. The slow songs are the best; the rest sound like experiments in genre appreciation (or nostalgia). Trailer park neighbors include a twangy Elvis Costello sounding like a gawkish Tom Petty. Overall, more evidence that Lewis is this generation’s Nancy Sinatra wearing boots not of shiny, shiny leather but of the silver-toed variety. Rating: Yes (Reader rating: Three stars)

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The hot ticket tonight is once again Lincoln Calling. In fact, tonight is the hottest night of the festival’s five days and definitely worth the hour-long commute to the star city. The standout shows are at Box Awesome and Duffy’s. The two-story BA extravaganza might be the best one-venue one-night line-up this year. And of course the Speed! Nebraska showcase at Duffy’s is an absolute can’t-miss spectacle. Figure out a clever way to split yourself in two so you don’t have to miss a minute of anything. Here’s the Friday night LC schedule:

Box Awesome
(Upstairs): Columbia vs. Challenger, Baby Walrus, Bear Country FTL Drive.
(Basement), UUVVWWZ, Capgun Coup, Honeybee, Conchance. 9 p.m., $8, 18+

Duffy’s: Speed Nebraska Fall Demolition Derby — Domestica, The Mezcal Brothers, The Third Men, Wagon Blasters. 9 p.m., $5, 21+

Zoo Bar: Son of 76 and the Watchmen, Matt Cox, Tijuana Gigolos. 9 p.m., $5, 21+

State Theater: Academy of Rock Showcase, Straight Outta Junior High, Exit 48, Dodging Bullets, Emergency Entrance. 6 p.m., $5, all ages

Knickerbocker’s: The Allendales, Ed Gray, Cameron McGill and What Army, The Whipkey Three. 9:30 p.m., $5, 18+

12th St. Pub: Darren Keen, Heligoats, MWMBLES, Orion Walsh. 6 p.m., $3, 21+

Saturday night

Duffy’s: Boss Martians, Tenth Horse, Volunteers, Little Brazil. 9 p.m., $5, 21+

Zoo Bar: Tatsuya Nakatani, Volcano Insurance, The Mighty Vitamins. 9 p.m., $5, 21+

Knick’s: The Show is the Rainbow, Pharmacy Spirits, Boo and Boo Too. 9:30 p.m., $5, 18+

Box Awesome: The B Foundation, Andrews Ave., Vibenhai. 9 p.m., $5, 18+

Sunday

Duffy’s: Matt Focht (Head of Femur), Son Ambulance. 6 p.m., $5, 19+

Box Awesome: Pattern is Movement, Marianas w/special guests. 9 p.m., $7, 18+

Meanwhile, back here in Omaha, there are plenty of good shows going on if you don’t feel like making that drive.

Tonight at The Waiting Room it’s the yee-haw sound of Forty Twenty and The Mercurys. 9 p.m. $7.

Saturday night is, of course, Conor Oberst and the Mystic Valley Band at The Anchor Inn with Son, Ambulance, Matt Focht and Jenny Lewis. Tix are $20 and the show starts at 8 p.m.

Also Saturday night, The Song Remains the Same plays at The Waiting Room with The Ground Tyrants. $7, 9 p.m.

And yours truly will be hosting a panel discussion at noon Saturday down at the Bemis Center as part of the (downtown) Omaha Lit Fest. As described on the Lit Fest site:

Taking Notes: Music and Writing — Reader music critic Tim McMahan discusses the role of music in writing fiction, criticism, and screenplays. With novelists Charles Bock (Beautiful Children, which included an accompanying alt music mix) and Carleen Brice (Orange Mint and Honey, in which Nina Simone plays a role), filmmaker Nik Fackler (director of music videos and the locally shot film, Lovely, Still), and D.E. Rasso (music writer for #1 Hit Song and the defunct Brooklyn dirty-mag for women, Sweet Action).

I’m told Nik probably won’t be there on account of The Toronto Film Festival, where Lovely Still was screened.

Yes, this whole Lit Fest thing is absolutely free, but the organizers are looking for donations, so give up some cash if you go (or even if you don’t).

–Got comments? Post ’em here.—

Here it is, my annual column where I laud one person’s heroic efforts while commenting on the gloomy state of local radio. These columns usually result in readers writing in to say, “If you don’t like it, buy an iPod” or something equally as mundane. I’m not naive. Actually, maybe I am. I know radio will never change, but I can’t help dreamin’. In the end, did Omaha’s lack of a radio station that plays quality local music really have a negative impact on the scene? Did the lack of a real college radio station matter to the fate of Saddle Creek? Probably not; or maybe it did in ways we’ll ever know.

By the way, whatever happened to KIND?

Column 190: Daylight Savings Time
New Day Rising rises a little earlier.

There continues to be one dim, lonely light burning in the dark, lifeless chasm of local radio. And now that light just got a little bit closer, a little bit brighter.

A couple weeks ago, local FM “alternative” rock station 89.7 The River moved one if its few valued assets — the 2-hour indie-music program New Day Rising — from 11 p.m. to 9 p.m. on Sunday nights, making it slightly more within reach to all of us who have to work in the morning.

Since its inception in December 2004 (yes, it really has been almost four years) New Day Rising (named after a Husker Du song) has been the sole source of College Music Journal-style programming on the Omaha FM dial, a fact that goes beyond irony to imbecility, considering that our city has been recognized in the national and international press as one of the most vital music scenes in the country. Omaha radio’s non-support of our lauded local talent is nothing less than embarrassing.

But I digress.

New Day Rising host, producer and originator, Dave Leibowitz, said the show’s shift to an earlier time slot came as a result of gaining more listeners. “It’s an award for being successful,” he said a few hours before last Sunday night’s show. “I believe the ratings were up. Also over the years (a percentage) of the bands that started out on New Day Rising found a place in the station’s regular rotation.”

He pointed to bands like Silversun Pickups and MIA that somehow found themselves nestled between The River’s seemingly endless supply of cookie-monster neu-metal goon rock, one assumes to the consternation of the station’s mullet-haired listeners.

A typical episode combines just-released indie rock with older underground standards and a sprinkling of local offerings. Last Sunday’s show included tracks by such indie stalwarts as Jenny Lewis, Neko Case, Conor Oberst and The Shins as well as not-so-familiar acts like The Action Design, The Spinto Band and The Black and White Years, along with a track by local geniuses Little Brazil. Every episode is capped with a classic track from Sonic Youth. “They epitomize what I think the indie or alternative world is supposed to be about,” Leibowitz said. “They’re this generation’s Velvet Underground.”

Leibowitz creates his playlist by scanning what’s hot on the CMJ and FMQB (Friday Morning Quarterback, another industry magazine) charts, then adds new music received from record labels, promoters and bands. It’s all filtered by his personal music taste. “I won’t play something that I don’t like,” he said. “That wouldn’t benefit anyone. I try to make (the show) as well-rounded as possible, but I can’t be all things to all people. Our goal was never to ‘out-indie’ anyone; it was to play music that you can’t hear anywhere else on the radio.”

In a way, New Day Rising is Leibowitz’s personal weekly two-hour mix tape, lovingly created just for his listeners. That level of creative control recalls the good ol’ days when disc jockeys programmed their own shows, before the advent of Darth Vadar-like corporate entities whose goal is to please the greatest common denominator with the most flavorless, colorless and least offensive product.

Actually, with iPods and the Internet, isn’t radio in general becoming a thing of the past? Leibowitz doesn’t think so. “Just like there’s no substitute for discovering new music at a live performance, there’s also no substitute for hearing something for the first time on your radio,” he said. “It really is the easiest way to access music until you can get the Internet in your car or wherever you’re standing. You can get radio anywhere.”

Add to that the medium’s characteristic uncertainty. The web provides an endless sense of choice, the presumption that users can find whatever they want. Perfectly compartmentalized, their favorite music is always only a click away. Radio — for better or worse — takes away that choice. Listeners are forced to sit back and let someone else drive for awhile. Their destination is a mystery, except for the fact that, in New Day Rising’s case, the territory will be distinctively “indie,” whatever that means.

“Saying if something is indie or not isn’t very easy,” Leibowitz said. “You know something is metal by the guitar. Metal may have a million different dimensions, but there’s that one thing that defines it. Nothing defines indie that way. You may think you know what it is, and then along comes a band like The Faint who doesn’t fit the mold. It’s a difficult thing to classify, but people who understand indie know what it is.”

Back when New Day Rising first rose, “indie” was a dirty word that Leibowitz’s original co-host forbade me to use when describing their radio show. “That’s one thing that’s changed over the past four years — we’ve taken indie back,” Leibowitz said. “It used to be that the ‘I-word’ was something that people avoided; now it’s a badge of honor.”

A badge whose recipient, it seems, will forever be relegated to two late hours on a Sunday night. Well, it’s better than nothing.

I blew it by not mentioning all the online New Day Rising resources, such as the website (http://www.newdayrisingshow.com) and the myspace page (http://www.myspace.com/newdayrisingomaha). Go there and find out more, or just tune in on Sunday night. You won’t regret it.

Tonight is the opening night of the area’s best local music festival — Lincoln Calling. The main attraction this evening is at The Rococo Theater: Eagle*Seagull with Neva Dinova (coming off a scorching set opening for Okkervil River last Saturday night at Slowdown) and Manny Coon. Show starts at 7 p.m. and tix are $10. See the full LC schedule here. More on the festival as the week progresses.

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