If you’re looking for Column 272, it was a rehash of a couple blog entries from last week, intro-ed by this comment:

My apologies for the brevity of this week’s installment. The Reader moved back its deadlines three days due to a printer scheduling issue that has something to do with the production of 11 issues of Neighborhood News — the shopper that arrives in your mailbox periodically. The Reader produces Neighborhood News along with El Perico and the Spanish Language phonebook and a handful of other secret projects that only publisher John Heaston knows about. You didn’t know this? That’s because like every other newspaper, The Reader does a lousy job of reporting on itself. But it’s opportunities like Neighborhood News and the Spanish language publications that keep this weekly afloat during tough economic times and an era when Omaha’s news stands are crowded with four competing “alternative weeklies”: The Reader, The City Weekly, Shout! Weekly and Go! (The Omaha World-Herald‘s stab at a weekly, but it doesn’t count because it lacks horoscopes, “News of the Weird” and ads for 1-900 porn services).

Bands and venues have little to complain about when it comes to media coverage, now that there are four weeklies tripping over each other to report on the music scene. My column deadline is pulled back again this week, to tomorrow… anyone got any column ideas?

Anyway…

According to this Spinner.com article, Conor Oberst has joined Sound Strike, a boycott of the state of Arizona by a handful of artists including Kanye West, Sonic Youth, Massive Attack, Michael Moore and Rage Against the Machines’ Zack de La Rocha. The boycott “aims to fight the Arizona law — named SB1070 — which requires a person’s immigration status to be determined if he or she is thought to be undocumented.” It’s a crazy, angry law that hopefully will get repealed or overturned by the courts. The folks at The Phoenix New Times have pulled together a benefit comp CD called Line in the Sand that features a track by, among others, Andrew Jackson Jihad. Proceeds go to human rights and humanitarian organizations Puente and No More Deaths. Find out more about the comp here.

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Thunder Power is celebrating the release of its first-ever vinyl outing tonight at The Waiting Room. The album is a 10-inch split EP with Toledo band The 1959 Hat. Co. (who they met on tour) called Hearts Intersect, released by Slumber Party Records. It’s the first in a series of collaborative splits being released by the label. Thunder Power’s three songs are tight, simple, indie rock tracks that would fit in with the lighter side of Belle & Sebastian. The first track, “Heartifact,” already has received a shout-out from Under the Radar (here). The split marks the fourth EP by Thunder Power, who are in the process of writing an entirely new set of songs for a forthcoming LP (their first). Also on the bill is The Mynabirds (currently riding a wave of publicity with the release of their Saddle Creek debut) and Fort Worth band The Burning Hotels. $7, 9 p.m.

Also tonight, Travelling Mercies and Ragged Company are playing with Kris Lager at The Barley Street Tavern. $5, 9 p.m. I feel a drunk coming on with this one…

Also tonight at The Brothers Lounge (who seems to be doing a lot of shows lately), it’s the amazing Vampire Hands with Daughters of the Sun and Perry H. Matthews. $5, 9 p.m.