First, within an hour after posting yesterday’s blog entry, Lincoln music expert and man-about-town Jeremy Buckley posted a comment on my webboard with all the details about O+S (here). Judging by the number of profile views on their myspace page, I’m the last to know about Orenda’s new project. Lord only knows why Saddle Creek is keeping them on the down low — there’s no mention of O+S on the Creek site, despite the fact that the album hits the streets in March.

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Tim Kasher talks about getting older in a new interview at the Youngstown Vindicator (here). From the article: “Why do people have to act so old,” said Kasher, laughing while calling from Santa Monica, Calif. “The problem is we all get older, but generally for Americans — and not myself — going out to see shows becomes something younger people do, which it doesn’t have to be that way. So I think it means more to us when 30-year-olds are into [our music]. Not to dismiss teenagers: When you write and play this umbrella genre of rock ’n’ roll, that’s who listens to it, teenagers.
“We were teenagers, and now we’re in our 30s. And it’s not like we’re playing some antiquated music that we don’t believe anymore. We’re still doing the same things that we believed in then. So I guess it means more to us when there are 30-year-olds who actually have been with us the whole time. I don’t think there are many of them, frankly.”

I remember when I was a teenager listening to albums with my headphones and thinking how much I’d miss music when I got older because there was this thought that “old people” don’t listen to music, that rock was for teen-agers only. Certainly my dad didn’t listen to rock music. The same backward thinking applies to rock shows — when are you too old to go see a band (other than a dinosaur act at the Qwest Center)? Is it when your friends quit going to shows? Or when you have kids and reprioritize your life so that music no longer plays a role? Well, my old friends don’t go to shows anymore, so I made new friends. I can’t speak to the issue of getting married and having a family. I can say that a lot of people I know put music away when their children arrived and use their family life as an excuse for not going out any more (or doing anything creative, for that matter). So be it. Chances are even if they didn’t have kids they would have quit going to shows anyway. Rare is the person who can continue to “get into” new music (and not just what they grew up with) after they reach their 30s. That’s just the way it is.

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Which is a good segue into letting you know that today is the last day you can enter to win a copy of the Lazy-i Best of 2008 CD Sampler! I started putting together samplers 12 years ago as a way of sharing new music with friends and family who either don’t have the time or the resources to hear new music. And now you can become part of that “inner circle.” Just send me an e-mail (to tim@lazy-i.com) with your name and mailing address and you’ll be entered into a drawing for a free copy. Tracks include songs by Silver Jews, David Byrne/Brian Eno, Conor Oberst, Jenny Lewis, UUVVWWZ, Deerhunter, M83, Taking Mountain, Neva Dinova, Dan McCarthy, Tilly and the Wall and more. Full track listing is here. Enter today. Deadline is tomorrow, and I’ll be announcing the winners on Monday.

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There’s a very special show tonight at Slowdown Jr. — the last-ever performance by Sleep Said the Monster. I got an email from Karl Houfek of SStM a couple weeks ago saying the band may return in a different incarnation at some point, but that Chris Rivera (drummer) is moving to Miami soon and “we’re either going to pack it in as a band or get a fresh start with a new name.” Houfek is pretty busy these days as a member of both Brad Hoshaw and the Seven Deadlies and It’s True. Helping send off SStM in style will be Deleted Scenes and Noah’s Ark Was a Spaceship. $7, 9 p.m.
Also going on tonight, The Filter Kings play at The Waiting Room (headliner Joe Buck Yourself cancelled). With Weezil Skweezins Or Whatever. $5, 9 p.m.

Over at The Saddle Creek Bar it’s John Klemmensen (Landing on the Moon) with Jes Winter and Black on High. $5, 9 p.m.

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Tomorrow night at Slowdown Jr. it’s the victorious return of Box Elders after a successful East Coast tour. Also on the bill is Girls of Gravitron, Yuppies and The Contrails. $7, 9 p.m.

It’s another night of punk at the Saddle Creek Bar Saturday night with The Upsets, Jealous Lovers and Cordial Spew. $5, 9 p.m.

OEA winner for best cover/tribute band The Song Remains the Same plays at The Waiting Room Saturday night with Tenclub, a Pearl Jam tribute band. $7, 9 p.m.

Finally, Sunday night is M83 at Slowdown with Fine Fine Automobiles (Landon Hedges). Tickets are still available for $15.

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One final non-music-related note: The closing of the Cinema Center yesterday garnered a lot of coverage in the local press that included dollops of nostalgia and reminiscing, and that’s fine. Missing from the coverage, however, was the fact that Cinema Center had one of the largest (if not thee largest) movie theater auditorium in Omaha, designed to old-school specs that made going to a movie feel like going to an event. Cinema Center’s huge No. 1 aud could fit well over 600 patrons and was only rivaled by the long, lost Indian Hills for sheer size. There’s nothing like seeing a movie in a sold-out theater that enormous. These days, the average theater auditorium capacity is miniscule in comparison, thanks to the advent of stadium seating. Sure, we’re more comfortable, but it just ain’t the same.

–Got comments? Post ’em here.—

According to a press release from Nettwerk Music Group received this past Monday, Maria Taylor’s third solo album, LadyLuck, will be released April 7 on Nettwerk. “Teaming up with producer friends Andy LeMaster (Bright Eyes, Azure Ray and a host of Saddle Creek label mates), Mike Mogis and Lukas Burton and featuring collaborations with Michael Stipe, Nate Walcott of Bright Eyes and Mckenzie Smith of Midlake, LadyLuck showcases Taylor’s ability to pull at your heart strings while proving she’s not a woman down on her luck,” said the release. Two tracks from the album will be available on iTunes Jan. 13, and listeners can get a sneak peak right now at myspace.com/mariataylor.

I’m told Nettwerk has handled Taylor’s management for years. A Canadian company, Nettwerk has released music by Great Lake Swimmers, HEM, Guster, Sarah McLachlan, Skinny Puppy, Ladytron, Josh Rouse, and Single Gun Theory, among others. (Interestingly, Nettwerk has a history of fighting the RIAA, and has even offered to pay legal fees to defendants being sued for downloading. According to Wiki: “Nettwerk is one of the first major music companies to abolish DRM, releasing songs in the unrestricted MP3 format, as well as the lossless FLAC and Apple Lossless formats.”)

It’s a shame to see any act leave Saddle Creek, but this shouldn’t be a big surprise to the label, considering her past relationship with Nettwerk. In all honesty, I figured Orenda Fink/Art in Manila would be the first to jump ship. Is this a body-blow to Saddle Creek? Well, anytime you lose a performer of Taylor’s caliber, it’s gotta hurt.

Meanwhile, Creek continues to secretly market (now there’s an oxymoron for you) a project called O+S. Creek’s December e-mail update listed a full-length from O+S as a future release. I asked Creek who/what O+S is, and was told “More info to come” from Creek exec Jason Kulbel. Meanwhile, Saddle Creek twittered the following message to its followers this morning: “can’t wait for you to hear the new O+S album! you’re going to love it!” The plot thickens…

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The weekend starts early tonight at The Waiting Room as XL recording artist Tapes ‘N Tapes performs with Wild Light and our very own Little Brazil. $12, 9 p.m.

And speaking of shows, last night I bought my ticket to the Jan. 24 Cursive show at Slowdown. For Just $5. If you want to go you better get your ticket toot-sweet. The Friday, Jan. 23, show has already sold out.

–Got comments? Post ’em here.—

Here’s part 2:

Column 205: Visions of ’09 (Pt. 2)
The lightning round.

Someone came up to me at the bar after reading Part 1 (which appeared in last week’s issue of The Reader) and painstakingly tried to explain why my first installment of “Visions of ’09” was pure balderdash, how my prediction that terrestrial radio would perish in the flames of Wi-Fi/3G/WiMax-enabled Internet radio was impossible because not only would it require that the RIAA and record labels agree to let SJs (which stands for Stream Jockeys, the modern-day DJs who program internet radio and podcasts) play “their” music unhindered, but that ASCAP and BMI and every other music mafia organization would have to acquiesce as well, not to mention bands like Metallica, which have been fighting to get every spare ruble out of its trailer-park-loving fans’ pockets since back in the Napster days and blah-blah-blah-blah-blah…

At which point I had to explain, again, that although these predictions can be uncannily accurate (check the scorecard for the ’08 predictions), they are written for ENTERTAINMENT purposes; that I don’t actually have a crystal ball or reverse Wayback Machine or closet of magic fortune cookies filled with riddles that reveal the future. It’s all for fun, see. And maybe if I know something that you don’t know and happen to slip that into the mix along with the obvious crazy stuff, well so be it. Sometimes visions are guesses, sometimes they’re warnings, sometimes they’re hopes, but once in a while they’re dead right.

So last week was the more cerebral predictions; this week is the lightning round. Hold on, here we go:

— Saddle Creek watched as two of its three crown jewels flew the coop in ’08 – The Faint and Conor Oberst (though Bright Eyes probably will release something on Creek again, some day). To add to their woes, one of Tim Kasher’s bands – either Cursive or The Good Life – will release an album somewhere other than Saddle Creek. But don’t worry. The label will pull out a secret project this year that will not only blow your mind but also outsell every one of its past releases.

— The economy will continue to take its toll on Omaha’s music venues as another well-known club will switch hands (and yes, someone will eventually buy Mick’s, but not this year). Meanwhile, an already-established venue will become red hot by hosting the ultimate celebrity open-mike night. PS: A West Omaha club will catch traction among the indie crowd.

— Just as Marc Leibowitz and Jim Johnson began to book shows in the shadow of the Ranch Bowl’s Matt Markel, another young entrepreneur will launch a promotion company to compete with One Percent Productions, booking underground, fringe and indie acts that have eluded the Omaha market. Initially the new “company” will focus on venues not locked down by Marc and Jim, but eventually it will nose its way into downtown and Benson clubs.

— Bands we’ll be talking about this time next year: Box Elders, Pavement, Brad Hoshaw and the Seven Deadlies, Cursive, U2, Titus Andronicus, Spoon, The Show Is the Rainbow, Replacements, Outlaw Con Bandana, Liz Phair, Talking Mountain, Alessi’s Ark, Jake Bellows, Little Brazil, Denver Dalley, Yeah Yeah Yeahs, Fullblown.

— Bands we won’t be talking about this time next year: Girl Talk, Okkervil River, The Faint, Bright Eyes, My Morning Jacket, Nickelback, Britney, Kanye, Animal Collective, Nine Inch Nails, Radiohead, Of Montreal, Metallica, British divas.

— Conor Oberst will break the hearts of thousands of his female fans.

— One of the city’s three renowned downtown record stores – Drastic Plastic, The Antiquarium or Homer’s Old Market – will close its doors. Meanwhile, huge national retailers like Best Buy, Wal-Mart and Target will continue to reduce shelf space for CDs as they quietly get out of the music business.

— One of Omaha’s under-the-radar record labels – Slumber Party, Slo-Fi, It Are Good, I’m Drinking This, Boom Chick, Speed! Nebraska or a new label TBA – will gain national attention when one of its bands breaks on a national level.

— Due to the death of one of its members, we will say goodbye to one of the few remaining all-time classic rock acts that originated in the ’60s and is (was) still performing today. The loss will be recognized as the passing of an era.

— ARC Studios will host an arena-level superstar to record his/her next album.

— Yet another 2-hour radio show will launch on one of city’s stations that will feature locally produced music along with top-flight indie bands.

— In an effort to attract new blood to the OEA’s music category, one of this year’s OEA showcases will be held at Slowdown.

— A new online music news source will launch this year that will complement existing online blogs and webboards, but will actively compete with printed outlets for precious advertising revenue. The new website/blog/social media site will offer podcasts, videos, mp3 downloads, live streams and a Twitter feed, and will have a staff large enough to rival the local alt weeklies.

— In an effort to bring more (younger) culture to the White House, President Obama will announce a one-day concert that will feature some of the hottest indie and hip-hop acts performing alongside the biggest names in rock and jazz. The event will become a cultural touchstone along the lines of Woodstock or the Monterey Pop Festival.

— Instead of appearing on one of the usual late-night talk shows, a local band will break into television by scoring a commercial that will make one of its songs as notorious as Feist’s Apple commercial or Of Montreal’s Outback Steakhouse ads.

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Sounds like the Box Elders annihilated Market Hotel in NYC last Saturday night, according to this item at brooklynvegan.com. “Box Elders left a lasting impression and had the whole, sold-out, Brooklyn room going crazy,” says the reviewer. Check out the snaps from the show. Apparently Matador’s Gerard Cosloy was in the house. We already know that he’s a fan. Will Omaha’s favorite garage-punk trio become labelmates with Times New Viking? Stay tuned.

–Got comments? Post ’em here.—

Slowdown is back to normal after a rather messy weekend. Bar owner Jason Kulbel confirmed that things got a little out of hand at last Friday night’s Girl Talk show. Some geniuses decided it would be fun to shove rolls of toilet paper into the toilets and back up the plumbing. Slowdown personnel and plumbers worked on the problem overnight and figured they had it all fixed the following day. They didn’t find out until after show time Saturday that they still had a problem, and had to cancel after it started. Needless to say, the beer was flowing again on Sunday. Good thing, too, because Slowdown will be finishing this week strong with Deleted Scenes, Noah’s Ark Was a Spaceship and the last-ever show by Sleep Said the Monster on Friday, Box Elders on Saturday and M83 on Sunday (I’m surprised it hasn’t sold out yet).

I missed Girl Talk mainly because it had been marketed as a “dance party.” And while I love dance music, everyone is better off if I just kept my dancing to myself. GT’s mash-ups are a lot of fun, though they border on novelty (kind of like Dickie Goodman’s “Mr Jaws,” but without the narrative — fun the first few times through, but then the joke gets old). I spent Saturday night hanging out at The Saddle Creek Bar, where I heard a dirty set of punkish rock by The Fu*ken Snakes, and what can be described as “ear-piercing experimental noise collage with a static beat” by headliner El Diablos Blancos. Show draw: Maybe 30, not including the performers. I had fun…

–Got comments? Post ’em here.—

Ah, the OEA’s…

A few weeks ago, maybe it was months ago, someone involved in the Omaha Entertainment and Arts Awards (OEA’s) asked me what they could do to attract the younger indie bands to the organization’s events — specifically their showcases, etc. This guy was referring to the Hotel Frank/Slumber Party Records bands as well as the usual Creek/Team Love bands. I told him I didn’t know. That there may be a perception that the OEA’s are an “establishment” organization focused on conservative, establishment entertainment. In other words, those bands may think the OEA’s aren’t “cool,” or for that matter, that awards and competition among bands is kind of stupid.

But after last night’s show, I think they may be staying away because they think the OEA’s are for old people. The average age of the folks on stage last night was probably around 50. Emcee Dave Webber, with his “case of crab” jokes and running updates on the Florida/Oklahoma game, certainly gave the show a “sitting at home with grandpa” charm. Then there was this seemingly endless parade of honorees in their 60s (or older), carefully being led on stage to accept their awards, telling stories of days long gone by. Afterward, Webber would come back to the podium and say something like, “Isn’t she wonderful? We worked together in the late early ’60s.” Even the crowd seemed older. Most of the people seated near us in the balcony were late-middle-aged or older, except for two young girls seated to my left who screamed every time Emphatic’s name was mentioned. They left looking rather dejected after the last category inwhich they were nominated.

The whole evening was a contrast to the first two years, where everyone seemed to be having a good time and you never knew what was going to happen on stage. Clearly there was an effort to throttle back on unscripted revelry. The most noticeable and distracting format change was how half of the award winners were announced but were hustled back stage to receive their awards. On the other hand, some winners were allowed to come on stage. It was confusing for everyone involved, including the audience. The unfortunate outcome — whether it was planned or by circumstance — was that the majority of those accepting awards on stage were old people.

My primary gripe about the OEA’s, however, was that Indie music — which Omaha and Nebraska is known for NATIONALLY — wasn’t represented throughout the evening — except of course for winning awards. How does that happen? How do you put together an awards show that’s supposed to honor the area’s best and brightest musicians and not have a single indie artist perform?

In fact, show organizers somehow managed to have only two of the music category winners perform during the show — Kris Lager playing music completely out of his genre, and a gospel choir. I’m told that two of the winning bands had been asked to perform — but that they were told that they could only bring half of their members. To their credit, the bands refused.

Indie wasn’t the only music genre left in the dust. There was no hip-hop, metal, punk, i.e., music that appeals to a younger audience.

Why was an entire portion of the music community ignored by this event? Any music critic from outside this state will take one look at the show’s coverage and wonder what happened to all the cool indie bands that Omaha is known for. It is, frankly, kind of strange. The most important bands from this scene — the Saddle Creek acts, Slumber Party/Hotel Frank bands, the Goldberg/garage band scene, the punk scene — the bands that record and tour nationally — continue to be conspicuously absent. If the OEAs do not — or can not — get these musicians involved, then it’s time to reconsider the value of the event. It simply doesn’t represent Omaha.

Or maybe I’m just taking this way too seriously. Fact is, any recognition is better than no recognition, right? Here’s the run-down of winners:

Best Country/Bluegrass/Folk/Roots/Americana: Black Squirrels

Best Adult Alternative/Singer Songwriter: Brad Hoshaw and Seven Deadlies

Best Blues: Kris Lager Band

Best DJ/Electronic: Brent Crampton

Best Cover Band: The Song Remains the Same

Best Jazz/Standards: Luigi, Inc.

Best Ethnic: Rhythm Collective

Best Gospel: Salem Baptist Church Voices of Victory

Best R&B/Funk/Soul: Son of 76 & The Watchmen

Best Rock: Little Brazil

Best Hard Rock/Punk/Metal: Bloodcow

Best Indie: The Faint

Best Hip-Hop: Jamazz

Album of the Year: Midwest Dilemma, Timelines & Tragedies

Best New Artist: Civicminded

Artist of the Year: The Faint

Surprises? Considering who was nominated, not really. Maybe that Oberst didn’t win anything, but then again, the Academy voters may be suffering from Conor fatigue, especially since he didn’t show up for the OEA’s last year and it was assumed that he wouldn’t be there last night. Little Brazil was surprised that they won, considering they didn’t release an album last year. Civicminded was a bit surprised, too, since they’ve been around for five years. I knew that Midwest Dilemma would win either Album of the Year or Artist of the Year. I figured Oberst would take Album of the Year because, like I said yesterday, his solo debut is on a lot of national critics’ top-10 lists (including mine).

Oh well. Onto Year Four…

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Briefly, what’s going on this weekend:

Tonight at Slowdown it’s the long-soldout Girl Talk concert with Hollywood Holt and Grand Buffet. The Waiting Room has Sarah Benck and the Robbers, Skypiper and Tim Wildsmith, $7, 9 p.m.

Almost forgot the show I’ll probably be at tonight: Kyle Harvey at The Barley St. Tavern with Andrew Ancono of Noah’s Ark Was a Spaceship, and Headphones. 9 p.m., $? (It’ll be cheap, don’t worry).

–Got comments? Post ’em here.—

Here’s what you’ve been waiting for: Part 1 of my 2-part “Music Visions of 2009” article, the uncannily accurate round-up of my premonitions for this year. Part 1 includes a recap of my predictions from last year (and what actually happened) and includes the first half of my predictions for ’09 — a more, shall we say, cerebral list of visions of the future. This is it, folks, the year it all goes down. Take a look. Part 2 — the usual list of which bands will do what with who and when — will appear next week in Lazy-i (and will be added to the bottom of the article).

After you’re done looking into my crystal ball, enter to win a copy of the coveted Lazy-i Best of 2008 Compilation CD! All you have to do is e-mail me (tim@lazy-i.com) with your name and mailing address and you’ll be entered into the drawing. Tracks include songs by M83, Deerhunter, UUVVWWZ, Brad Hoshaw, Jenny Lewis, Titus Andronicus, Conor Oberst, Vampire Weekend, Tilly and the Wall, and more. Details and track listing are right here. Enter today! Deadline’s January 17.

–Got comments? Post ’em here.—

These Arms Are Snakes Announce First US Tour in Support of New Album “Tail Swallower & Dove!”
Glasvegas In Stores Today, Kick Off US Tour
The Boxer Rebellion Set To Digitally Release Sophomore Album “Union” on January 11, 2009
LOW VS DIAMOND NEWS: TOUR WITH NIKOLAI FRAITURE OF THE STROKES & MORE
N.A.S.A. To Tour North America This February ‘The Spirit of Apollo’ To Be Released 2/17 On Anti-
Jones Street Station Announce January Tour & Ben Kweller Northeast Theater Dates In February
Harlem Shakes To Release Debut LP “Technicolor Health” Out March 24th On Gigantic Music
SWAN LAKE to release “Enemy Mine” on Jagjaguwar this March
The Antlers Self-Release New Full Length, Hospice, March 3rd
ANDREW BIRD: NOBLE BEAST NPR EXCLUSIVE FIRST LISTEN STREAMING NOW
Witch ( J Mascis ) and Earthless Set Dates For Winter Tour
Antony & the Johnsons Announce “The Crying Light” Presale w/ Instant Digital Download + Bonus Track!
NCIS: THE OFFICIAL TV SOUNDTRACK SET FOR FEBRUARY 10 RELEASE

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Tomorrow, the long-awaited Part 1 of Visions of 2009 (Predictions for the coming year in music). See you there!

–Got comments? Post ’em here.—

Brad Hoshaw was in his usual fine form and The Whipkey Three cranked it up a few notches on Friday night in front of a hundred or so people at The Waiting Room. Hoshaw performed an acoustic set that included a few new songs (or at least ones that I haven’t heard before). He said he’s putting the finishing touches on his Seven Deadlies record — Omaha waits with baited breath. Whipkey and Co. played for more than an hour (90 minutes?). The set included a handful of new songs, most of them heavier than the usual TW3 fodder. In fact, one song started with a reggae beat before evolving into something that sounded like it was off Zeppelin’s later records.

I planned on seeing Reagan and The Rayguns Saturday night at Slowdown Jr., but stayed home in fear of icy roads. Poor me. I’ll get another chance Jan. 19 when Reagan and the boys play at O’Leaver’s.

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Interesting story in the Sunday Omaha World-Herald about the economy’s impact on local clubs (here). Nice reporting. My only quibble was that the Mick’s portion of the story didn’t mention that the bar has been for sale for a long, long time, well before the economy took a bath. In fact, maybe the oddest thing about Mick’s recent sale is that he was able to find a buyer at what could be the worst time in history to invest in a new bar (or any new business, for that matter). The discussion about Slowdown now willing to take any band that they think can fill the venue (and not just indie bands) is old news. TWR always has had that business philosophy. Maybe the most interesting part of the story were comments from David Rezak, a Syracuse University professor, who said that small clubs were in a better position than large venues (like the Qwest Center) to thrive during economic downturns, thanks in part because their shows have lower ticket prices. Missing were comments from venue owners other than the Slowdown and TWR guys, but isn’t that always the case?

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In some rather unfortunate news, The Barley St. Tavern reportedly was held up at gunpoint Friday night. No one was hurt, but that makes two Benson bars held up in the past two weeks. It may be time for the Benson Business Association to put some money in a hat and hire off-duty cops to patrol the streets at night.

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Tonight at PS Collective, it’s Talking Mountain with Oui Bandits, Netherfriends and White Elephant Gift Exchange. 9 p.m., $5. It’s arguably the best (if not the only) show of the week, until Friday’s Girl Talk show. Go!

–Got comments? Post ’em here.—