Wye Oak

Column 316: Wye Oak, Why Not?

The duo’s sound is larger than the two of them…

by Tim McMahan, Lazy-i.com

The South by Southwest Music Conference was just two weeks ago, but it already seems like ancient history. For a lot of bands, SXSW not only is a career goal, it’s a chance to get discovered by both a larger audience and maybe a record label executive or some other music industry shlub who could change their lives.

But Jenn Wasner, half of the Baltimore duo Wye Oak, said that if you’re going to Austin looking for some sort of miracle to happen, you’re going for the wrong reasons. Wasner, who plays guitar and sings alongside band mate Andy Stack, drummer and bass player (yes, you read that right), had just left Austin when I spoke with her last week, calling in from the road as they headed to San Diego for a gig  at The Casbah on a tour that brings them to Slowdown Jr. Sunday night.

“It’s obviously a good opportunity to have a lot of good people and bands and labels and journalists all in the same place at the same time, one-stop shopping,” Wasner said of SXSW, “but it’s not as big a deal as people make it out to be. It’s a small piece of the puzzle in terms of what we have to do to stay in a band, to keep touring and stay active. You definitely should already have had your big break before you play there.”

Wye Oak, Civilian (2011, Merge Records)

Wye Oak’s big break came in 2008 when out of the blue Merge Records’ label executive Mac McCaughan asked the band for a copy of one of their recordings, and followed that by asking if Merge could release it. Wasner said that three years later she’s still “completely astonished” by the deal. “It just fell into our laps,” she said. But we all know that it takes more than luck to make it in the music biz. It also takes great songs.

Wye Oak’s music is built upon a bedrock of classic ’90s indie influences, from Madder Rose to Spinanes to Yo La Tengo to Built to Spill. There’s an untamed beauty to songs like the strange, frontier love ballad, “Civilian,” the title track off the band’s just released album where Wasner starts off quietly crooning, “I am nothing without pretend / I know my faults / Can’t live with them,” before it explodes into a monster of feedback and noise that a modern Neil Young could adore.

So big is their sound, in fact, that you would swear that there’s more to Wye Oak than just the two of them. Wasner said the two-piece architecture was supposed to be just “a temporary thing,” but that now “it’s become a big part of who we are and how I write and arrange songs,” she said. “It’s become a limitation that’s made us better. We would be a different band if we added someone else. I don’t think either of us has tapped the potential of what we can do.”

They certainly don’t sound like the other “guitar and drums” two-piece acts that we’ve all come to know and love (White Stripes and Black Keys come to mind). The trick is in Stack’s ability to deftly multi-task.

“Andy has this set-up where he plays the bass line on keyboards and also plays drums,” Wasner said, “and I play guitar, so it’s a basic three-piece right there. We do have some loops and samples that we recently started using, but it’s been a really valuable thing to distill our songs down to their basic components.”

Being able to pull off such a huge sound with just two people requires a close relationship. Which brought us to the question that I couldn’t find an answer to online or in any of their bio materials: Are they “a couple” in real life? What exactly is the state of their relationship?

“We get along very well,” Wasner said. “We were a couple for five years and we’re not anymore. We’re very close and comfortable with one another.” So, just best friends and band mates? “Yes, and it’s much better that way,” she said. “I’ve done it both ways.”

Wasner, who turns 25 in April, said Wye Oak’s growth has been gradual over its four-year history. “I notice that people are coming to shows now, and that’s really nice,” she said. “It’s been slow and steady and the result of years and years of hard work on our behalf. I feel like we’re at a point now where I’d rather focus on my main job, which is being a good band, writing songs and playing them well and not necessarily focus on too much beyond that.”

Including trying to make more out of SXSW than what it is. Wasner said in the past she hadn’t looked forward to the conference, “but to be honest, this year I had a really excellent experience and I’m not sure why that is,” she said. “You have to go into it with the right expectations, and I know to expect very little for it in terms of actually seeing music. But this year I ended up being able to see shows, see friends and go swimming.”

What more could you ask for?

Wye Oak plays with Callers this Sunday, April 3, at Slowdown Jr. $8, 9 p.m.

* * *

An update on that Kite Pilot info that I posted a couple days ago. Turns out that Kite Pilot won’t be playing at The Barley Street Tavern April 16. Instead, the band will be playing at the Stir lounge at Harrah’s Casino in Council Bluffs April 23 with Thunder Power (according to this thread on the ol’ Lazy-i webboard).

* * *

Tonight it’s the return of Old 97’s to Slowdown. The band’s latest album, The Grande Theatre, Vol. 1, came out on New West late last year. Opening is Dallas twangsters The O’s. $20, 9 p.m.

* * *

Read Tim McMahan’s blog daily at Lazy-i.com — an online music magazine that includes feature interviews, reviews and news. The focus is on the national indie music scene with a special emphasis on the best original bands in the Omaha area. Copyright © 2011 Tim McMahan. All rights reserved.

Landing on the Moon at The Waiting Room, March 29, 2011

by Tim McMahan, Lazy-i.com

Landing on the Moon unveiled its new line-up last night, with their former guitarist, Matt Carroll. standing right there in the smallish audience of 50 or so at The Waiting Room. Obviously the split with the band was amicable. That said, and no offense to Matt, but the band’s reduction to a four-piece has improved it in a number of ways. The overall sound is broader, more expansive, almost panoramic compared to the five-piece set up. Taking out that extra guitar has made all the other instruments stand out — it’s uncluttered. John Klemmensen’s lead guitar does just fine by itself, thanks both to his style and the dollops of gorgeous, echoing delay.

With this new line-up, LotM seems to have shifted away from nostalgic balladeering to something closer to frontier rock — for whatever reason I was reminded of Derek and the Dominos as they ran through their old material (except, of course, for “California,” which remains their biggest crowd pleaser). Just as interesting as what they played was what they left off the set list: “She Wants,” “Hold Back,” “Letter” were no where to be found. Add to that their two new songs and you get the feeling that the band sees this new line-up as a reboot of sorts, a starting over or a reinvention, which every band should probably undergo every two or three years.

They closed out their set doing something I can’t remember them ever doing before — they played a couple covers, and both were completely out of left field. Klemmensen switched to bass, Eric Harris switched to guitar and Megan Morgan stepped out from behind the microphone for a loose, fun, sexy rendition of The Buzzcock’s “Why Can’t I Touch It?”  Everyone resumed their usual positions for the finale, an epic version of Roxy Music twanger “If There Is Something,” that took me about three minutes to recognize (with some help from a certain notorious scenester).

Playing right before LotM was Bazooka Shootout, a slacker/indie five-piece that reminded me of every band from Lawrence, Kansas circa 1994. In fact, another person also mentioned that the frontman sounded like Danny Pound, the former leader of Vitreous Humor. There’s something playfully slovenly about their approach that makes everything sound slightly loaded, even though they weren’t. Unfortunately their performance was marred by problems with the bass drum mic that rattled with static throughout their set.

* * *

Mike Fratt, the guy who runs Homer’s, says that last week was the sixth week in a row that music industry total sales were better than the same time last year, and that week seven is a lock with the release of new music by Britney and Radiohead. Is this the beginning of a full-blown recovery? Fratt discusses it in some detail in his column in the past week’s issue of Shout! Weekly, which is also online at his blog, right here and is definitely worth checking out.

* * *

Tomorrow: Wye Oak.

* * *

Read Tim McMahan’s blog daily at Lazy-i.com — an online music magazine that includes feature interviews, reviews and news. The focus is on the national indie music scene with a special emphasis on the best original bands in the Omaha area. Copyright © 2011 Tim McMahan. All rights reserved.

by Tim McMahan, Lazy-i.com

I have no photos from Saturday night’s O’Leaver’s show because I couldn’t get close enough to the band to take pictures. It was an old school crush mob of gigantic proportions, and I was lucky to find a place to stand out of the way back by the “soundboard.” The main attraction was New Lungs, a new band that features Danny Maxwell of Little Brazil on guitar and vocals backed by returning drummer Corey Broman and the ubiquitous Craig Fort on bass. The trio blazed through SST-style ’90s punk rock anchored by Maxwell’s earnest, earthy howl — he can now count himself among the top Omaha frontmen, all he needs is a pair of leather pants.

Someone compared them to Polvo, and I nodded. Another mentioned faster/angrier Dinosaur Jr., and I nodded again, but none of those comparisons really fit. There were moments that reminded me of Archers of Loaf, Minutemen and classic Mission of Burma, but I could never convince myself that that’s what DMax and Co. were after. There’s a unique purity about their dark rock that defies comparisons. This was only their second show, and they only had five or six songs (though they were longer jams than your standard punk rock tune). Imagine the places they’ll go if they decide to stick together…

I chatted with one of the many local celebrities in the crowd throughout most of headliner Poison Control Center’s set and was rewarded both with deep knowledge and righteous tuneage. Whenever I looked toward the dirt-spot “stage,” the only thing visible was the guitarist/vocalist’s feet, which he’d kicked in the air from his position lying on the floor — in other words, it was your typical PCC show. The band has a new album coming out June 7 on Afternoon Records called Stranger Ballet that could push them to a new level. Let’s hope it doesn’t make them too big for O’Leavers.

* * *

During our PCC discussion, the local celeb passed along some interesting news, which I ran home and verified as well as I could. If you look at the April 16 entry of The Barley Street Tavern music calendar you’ll see that the bands listed are The Beat Seekers, Blue Bird, Traveling Mercies and… Kite Pilot. That’s right, apparently Kite Pilot is back, including Austin Britton. The band’s 5-song EP was one of the best local releases of 2004. I don’t know the particulars, but I have a feeling this could be a crowded show — I mean, who doesn’t want to hear “Tree Caught the Kite” again?

* * *

Amazon today announced that it’s launching its new “Cloud Drive” music service, which allows users to upload their music to a “cloud server,” which they’ll be able to access from any web-connected computer or Android phone. This is similar to what Lala.com used to offer, though Lala’s service was much more streamlined than Amazon’s clunky browse-to-upload process. Nonetheless, Cloud Drive facilitates access to your music library from anywhere including a smart phone. Can the iTunes’ version of the cloud music service be far behind? Those of you wondering about the significance of this development, re-read the Lazy-i 2011 Predictions Column. In summary, this could be the first step to something that could change everything.

* * *

It’s a busy night for a Tuesday show-wise. At The Waiting Room, Landing on the Moon unveils its new line-up minus guitarist Matt Carroll (Honey & Darling). Expect to hear some surprising new tunes. Also on the showbill is Bazooka Shootout, Birds & Batteries and No I’m The Pilot. 9 p.m., $7.

Meanwhile, down at Slowdown Jr., Capgun Coup headlines a show with Cleeman, Platte River Rain and Nicole LeClerc. Cleeman is the out-of-town act and features Copenhagen-based singer-songwriter Gunnar Cleeman and a band that includes legendary Omaha bass player Dereck Higgins (InDreama, Digital Sex). $8, 9 p.m.

* * *

Read Tim McMahan’s blog daily at Lazy-i.com — an online music magazine that includes feature interviews, reviews and news. The focus is on the national indie music scene with a special emphasis on the best original bands in the Omaha area. Copyright © 2011 Tim McMahan. All rights reserved.

by Tim McMahan, Lazy-i.com

A couple things to pass along before the weekend…

Mike Fratt, who runs Homer’s, says Bright Eyes’ The People’s Key moved 3,311 units last week, enough to put the album at No. 148 on the Billboard charts. Sales to date for The People’s Key total 66,454 units.

Interestingly, Fratt says last week was the fifth week in a row that total industry records sales exceeded the same week in ’10. Year-to-date sales are down 6 percent compared to last year. Check out Mike’s column in Shout! Weekly for more perspective on these numbers.

* * *

Now let’s take a look at the weekend.

Tonight at The Barley Street Tavern The Whipkey Three headlines a show that includes Better Days and  a new line-up for At Land, Doug Kabourek of Fizzle Like a Flood fame’s new band, which now includes guitarist Matt Rutledge, along with good ol’ Travis Sing. $5, 9 p.m.

Also tonight The Envy Corp headlines a show at The Waiting Room with Thunder Power, My Pal Dragon and Lonely Estates. $8, 9 p.m.

Lots happening Saturday night:

First at O’Leaver’s, it’s the return of Poison Control Center with New Lungs (DMax from Little Brazil/Corey Broman/Craig Fort) and Brass Bed. $5, 9:30.

Meanwhile, down at Slowdown Jr., Setting Suns headlines with Millions of Boys (Sara from Honey & Darling), The Plurals and Mint Wad Willy. $8, 9 p.m.

Over at The Waiting Room, Satchel Grande does a victory lap after returning from South By Southwest. Joining them will be John Klemmensen & The Party. $7, 9 p.m.

And if you’re in Lincoln, don’t forget Lincoln Exposed tonight and tomorrow:

Lincoln Exposed Day 2 – Friday, March 25

Lincoln Exposed Day 3 – Saturday, March 26

That’s all I got…

* * *

Read Tim McMahan’s blog daily at Lazy-i.com — an online music magazine that includes feature interviews, reviews and news. The focus is on the national indie music scene with a special emphasis on the best original bands in the Omaha area. Copyright © 2011 Tim McMahan. All rights reserved.

It's True's Adam Hawkins

Column 315: Adam Hawkins’ Encore

It’s True emerges from the ashes with an important EP.

by Tim McMahan, Lazy-i.com

When local indie band It’s True’s announced that it was breaking up at a performance last June, I was more than a bit surprised.

After playing South by Southwest the March prior, the band had released its debut full length to much local adoration. They went on to play a number of shows in California that were, by all indication, a big success. Rumors abound that the band had caught the eye of a few big-name star makers. The world was about to take notice of what many of us thought was Omaha’s next big thing.

And then during a show that was more like a drunken Irish wake, It’s True frontman Adam Hawkins announced with a bourbon drawl, “This is our third-to-last show,” and that the band was hanging it up after its performance at the MAHA Music Festival that July.

The reasons for the break-up are hinted throughout the band’s fantastic, soon-to-be-released EP, Another Afterlife. There’s the opener “Don’t You Know You’re Never Alone,” with the line  “Looking at all these people looking back at me it seems they’re seeing more than I would want them to see.” Or the opening phrase to “Stand Still,” which goes “He breaks another vow and sells his guitar / He says ‘I’m never gonna be a star.’” Or maybe the most definitive line of all, from track three: “I don’t want to be the one who let’s you down.”

“I got tired of all day, every day, all anyone would talk about was the band,” Hawkins explained from his home in Grimes, Iowa, a small town just outside of Des Moines. “The strategizing and worrying about decisions about where we should play next, those were the only conversations we had; and it was all that anyone would want to talk about whenever I ran into anyone outside the band. It felt mentally limiting. Everything that I was doing at that point was not feeling right or natural. It wasn’t anything personal, it wasn’t any big dramatic event, I just needed a little space to breath.”

Hawkins said the breakup didn’t catch the band by surprise. “I think that maybe they didn’t think it would actually happen,” he said, “but I don’t think they were surprised at all. Everyone knew I wasn’t happy.”

But if the band knew it was coming, the fans didn’t. “I had a couple people tell me that they were really pissed at me,” Hawkins said. “People thought I was really throwing something away and making a big mistake, not understanding the situation. A number of people cried at the last few shows, they came up to me teary eyed. It was strange to hear how much it meant to people.”

But despite those reactions, Hawkins said nothing was going to sway his decision. “(Their reactions) felt good, like we were really doing something,” he said, “but I knew I needed time to air out.”

If fact, he’d already made his decision by the time of that brief California tour. “We all knew that was our last hurrah,” Hawkins said, adding that he had nothing to come home to after the tour. “I’d been slacking off at my job, and they fired me, rightfully so,” he said. “And so I came back with no job and no money and decided I was going to get out of there.”

Hawkins’ parents own a combination art gallery, frame shop and flower shop located in an old stone church in Des Moines. “I knew mom was looking for some help in the kitchen and asked if she’d be interested in me coming back and staying a month or two,” he said.

The plan was for Hawkins and his girlfriend, Katey Sleeveless, to save some money before going back on the road, but things didn’t work out that way. His kitchen replacement fell through, and his mother “made strong hints that it would be helpful if we hung around, so we signed a six-month lease on an apartment.”

And then Hawkins and Katey found out that they were going to be parents.

“It hit me in a lot of different ways,” he said. “Everything is totally different now. It’s definitely the No. 1 important thing for me — finding ways to provide happiness for my family.”

It's True, Another Afterlife (2011, Slo-Fi)

But while all that was happening, Hawkins never stopped writing songs. “Music was always there,” he said. “I wrote songs no matter what, and had a little collection that I wanted to record and not worry if they were good.” His first call was to It’s True bass player Kyle Harvey. By October Hawkins was recording most of the parts at the home studio of Jeremy Garrett, The Waiting Room’s sound engineer. The rest of It’s True filled in the holes, except for drummer Matt Arbeiter, who had moved to New York.

The 8-song EP is an evolution for Hawkins. It’s more straight-forward and tuneful, and in many ways more personal than the band’s debut full length. “It’s all about the last year or so,” Hawkins said of the album. “It’s kind of all about starting over, different things beginning and different things ending.”

But the EP and its release shows at The Waiting Room April 1 and the Bourbon Theater in Lincoln April 2 aren’t so much a new beginning for It’s True as a reunion (even Arbeiter is coming back from NYC for the shows). Hawkins has his sights set on only one thing after the final encore.

“First of all, I’m going to have a baby,” he said about his future. “That will take precedent for awhile. After that, I don’t know. Katey and I are both musicians. We’ll find a way to do that, and not in a background sort of way. We’ll find ways to make it an integral part of our lives.”

* * *

Want a sneak peak of Another Afterlife? Check out the interview with Adam Hawkins at Worlds of Wayne (it’s right here), which includes a sampling of the songs off the EP.

* * *

Saturn Moth, a new-ish four piece fronted by Collin Matz, headlines a show tonight at The Waiting Room that also includes the amazing Dim Light, Cymbal Rush and Knife, Fight, Justice. $5, 9 p.m.

Tonight also is the start of the three-day Lincoln Exposed festival. You’re looking at three nights of Lincoln bands playing at The Zoo Bar, The Bourbon Theater and Duffy’s. Tix are $7 a night or $15 for all three nights. The best place to see the line-up and schedules is at Omahype, at these three links:

Lincoln Exposed Day 1 – Thursday, March 24

Lincoln Exposed Day 2 – Friday, March 25

Lincoln Exposed Day 3 – Saturday, March 26

* * *

Read Tim McMahan’s blog daily at Lazy-i.com — an online music magazine that includes feature interviews, reviews and news. The focus is on the national indie music scene with a special emphasis on the best original bands in the Omaha area. Copyright © 2011 Tim McMahan. All rights reserved.

by Tim McMahan, Lazy-i.com

It's True, Another Afterlife (2011, Slo-Fi Records)

Tomorrow I’m posting an interview with It’s True’s Adam Hawkins as my weekly column. If you’re out and about, you can read it in this week’s issue of The Reader, which drops today. The interview attempts to answer questions about It’s True’s breakup after last year’s MAHA Music Festival, as well as talk about the band’s rebirth and new EP, Another Afterlife.

It’s rare that I gush about an album that’s yet to be released (the CD release show is April 1 at The Waiting Room), but I simply can’t help myself with this one. Another Afterlife is hands down one of the best collections of songs I’ve heard from a local band in a long time, and sits among the best nationally released CDs I’ve heard this year.

Consider it an evolution in songwriting and style. When It’s True’s debut CD was released back in ’09 — there there, now… / i think it’s best… (if i leave) — I thought it was a nice little 4-track bedroom recording of solo acoustic folk songs, sweet and unpretentious. Then came last year’s more formal self-titled release that was basically a re-imagining of the songs on the debut with a full band. Hawkins and Co. took simple ideas and made them sonically huge, at times a little too huge and ponderous for my taste, yet it was unquestionably an impressive step forward that a lot of us thought would be a launching pad to bigger things. We all know what happened next.

Now on this slight, 29-minute EP, Hawkins takes the best ideas from his first two efforts and hones them to perfection. At times I’m reminded of intimate, early Simon & Garfunkel. Other times (especially on the more instrumental tracks) I think of the best of Badly Drawn Boy. But overall, Another Afterlife is a refinement of Hawkins’ own songwriting voice, and what a voice it is. Both lyrically and musically, he’s cleared away the clutter and brought his songs down to core ideas that are consistently moving and entertaining. I love this record.

Kyle Harvey, who owns and operates Slo-Fi Records (which is releasing the EP), could have his hands full with this one if he and the band can get it heard by the right people. But something tells me that’s not going to happen, especially with the monumental task that’s about to confront Mr. Hawkins in the very near future, but more on that tomorrow…

* * *

Read Tim McMahan’s blog daily at Lazy-i.com — an online music magazine that includes feature interviews, reviews and news. The focus is on the national indie music scene with a special emphasis on the best original bands in the Omaha area. Copyright © 2011 Tim McMahan. All rights reserved.

by Tim McMahan, Lazy-i.com

Tough choice tonight. At The Waiting Room it’s The Dodos. Their new album, No Color, was released on Frenchkiss last Wednesday and includes a cameo by none other than Neko Case. Pitchfork gave the album a massive 7.6 (here). Opening is Philly low-fi duo Reading Rainbow (on the mighty HoZac label!). $12, 9 p.m.

Meanwhile, downtown at Slowdown Jr., it’s Now Now (formerly known as Now Now Every Children or NNEC) who release stuff on No Sleep Records. The epitome of what you think a female-fronted indie band would/should sound like, they’ve been a regular staple on Dave Leibowitz’s New Day Rising broadcast. Opening is Chicago blur-rockers Santah. $8, 9 p.m.

* * *

Read Tim McMahan’s blog daily at Lazy-i.com — an online music magazine that includes feature interviews, reviews and news. The focus is on the national indie music scene with a special emphasis on the best original bands in the Omaha area. Copyright © 2011 Tim McMahan. All rights reserved.

Saudi Arabia at O'Leaver's March 19, 2011.

by Tim McMahan, Lazy-i.com

I caught a couple bands at O’Leaver’s Saturday night. Saudi Arabia, the band formerly known as The Dinks, ripped through a set of caustically acidic punk rock that was fast and furious and bordered on metal (but not really). As kinetic and abrasive as an 8-ball of crank, the SA boys aren’t afraid to bust out a melody or two from deep within the chaos. These guys need to play more often. They were followed by Toilet: The Movie (Twenty Dollar Love under an assumed name), who played party-time cock rock reminiscent of Rye Coalition but with a more-intense punk sneer. Brutal fun.

* * *

I continue to get news in my e-mail box about this year’s South by Southwest music festival, which ended Saturday. Whether it’s stories of jaded old punk rockers punching women in the face during a show or a camera crane falling into a crowd at Stubb’s, there’s an overall sense from some media that SXSW has jumped the shark. Even NPR is getting in on the action, with a report this morning that asked if it was all worth it.

It’s as if people are just now starting to figure out that SXSW isn’t so much about discovering new bands as it is a week-long music industry party where you can see today’s hottest (and already signed) indie acts all in one place (if you can get through the lines). The ongoing decay of the music industry has made SXSW that much more important to established labels, who are desperate to generate buzz about their acts’ latest releases. Those same labels have little time to conduct A&R explorations for new bands to sign. Yeah, it’s a shame and definitely takes away from the original spirit of SXSW, but it doesn’t make it any less fun for those who are looking for a music retreat from whatever wintry hell they came from. And yes, SXSW doesn’t hold much opportunity for unsigned bands to be “discovered,” but it hasn’t since the ’90s. That said, there’s always a couple hero stories that come out of the festival each year (Saddle Creek, for example, has used SXSW in the recent past to discover new talent). Here’s hoping all this negative press will keep people away next year, when I plan to return to Austin.

Even though I didn’t attend, lots of other Omaha music writers did. Here’s where you can find their SXSW run-downs:

— Kevin Coffey of the Omaha World Herald via his Rock Candy blog.

— Andrew Norman of Hearnebraska.org via The Scoop blog.

— Jeremy Buckley of Hearnebraska.org via In the Loop blog.

— Chris Aponick of The Reader via The Backbeat blog.

* * *

Read Tim McMahan’s blog daily at Lazy-i.com — an online music magazine that includes feature interviews, reviews and news. The focus is on the national indie music scene with a special emphasis on the best original bands in the Omaha area. Copyright © 2011 Tim McMahan. All rights reserved.

The 49'r building is demolished, March 18, 2011.

by Tim McMahan, Lazy-i.com

The above image was the view from my car window as I was driving south on 49th street toward Dodge on my way home for lunch. We all knew it was coming. By the time you read this, the building that once housed The 49’r will be completely destroyed, making way for an unneeded CVS Pharmacy. Standing on the outside of the fences were a number of people taking photos, including some media with video cameras trying to document the end of an era. So long, 49’r…

* * *

The problem with South by Southwest, of course, is that it’s not much fun unless you’re there. Pulling in 2,000 bands for this week’s festivities has resulted in a drought of touring-band shows, which continues over the weekend. Luckily, some of our local talent decided to stick around Omaha this year rather than make the rather expensive trip to Austin. And it just so happens most of that talent will be at O’Leaver’s — Omaha’s low-rent version of Emo’s.

Tonight at O’Leaver’s Brad Hoshaw plays a solo set opening for Traveling Mercies and The River Monks. $5, 9:30 p.m.

Tomorrow night at O’Leaver’s it’s Bloodcow (a band that could single-handedly blow up SXSW), Saudi Arabia, and a band who’s name only Chuck Berry could possibly love, Toilet: The Movie. $5, 9:30 p.m.

Also tomorrow night (Saturday), Ketchup & Mustard Gas headline a show at The Barley Street Tavern with The Wheelers, Powerful Science and Down with the Ship. $5, 9 p.m.

Also going on Saturday night, Sarah Benck is opening a show at The Waiting Room with Rock Paper Dynamite, Brothers Tandem and headliner Edge of Arbor. $5, 9 p.m.

* * *

Read Tim McMahan’s blog daily at Lazy-i.com — an online music magazine that includes feature interviews, reviews and news. The focus is on the national indie music scene with a special emphasis on the best original bands in the Omaha area. Copyright © 2011 Tim McMahan. All rights reserved.

Column 314: Red Sky Mining

Who will play at Omaha’s largest music festival?

by Tim McMahan, Lazy-i.com

Speculation is always a dangerous proposition. It can be construed as rumor mongering, which to be honest, I’ve never shied away from (as long as there was some substance to the rumors, of course). But when it comes to Omaha’s first annual Red Sky Music Festival, speculation is all we have, for now.

The event, slated to take place July 19-24 at the brand-spanking new Ameritrade Park, has been shrouded in secrecy. Speculation is beginning to bubble up on who will play the event, which is being organized by the star chamber known as the Metropolitan Entertainment & Convention Authority, or MECA (or Mecca, as I like to refer to them) and national promotion giant Live Nation. MECA already should have announced the festival’s line-up weeks ago, but here we are, still staring at our watches, tapping our feet.

I have no contacts at MECA. In fact, the Red Sky Festival couldn’t be more outside my wheelhouse as I’m not interested in the brightly colored homogenized pop cheese consumed by The Great Wad, which is bound to be a staple for this event. That said, among the programming rumors for Red Sky is this idea that each day of the festival will focus on one central genre. One day/night would be dedicated exclusively to country music, another would be dedicated to pop, another for dinosaur acts, and one would be dedicated to “alternative rock.” How exactly MECA and Live Nation define “alternative rock,” I do not know, though I suspect they will lean more toward how commercial radio defines it, which means goon-rock outfits heard on 89.7 The River. It’s unlikely to mean the style of indie bands that you and I know and love.

And then there’s the rumor that Red Sky will offer three tiers of musical acts: Huge main stage national bands would play inside the stadium; a second tier of bands that consist mostly of “casino acts” (REO Speedwagon, BOC, that sort thing) would play stages set up outside the stadium, and a third level of club acts and local bands would play on small stages in the parking lots. Perhaps you’ll be able to buy tickets for each individual level, or for one huge price, an all-access laminate for all three. If they follow that model, we could see quality indie bands booked for those second-tier stages.

Anyway, it’s all speculation. And what makes this column all the more risky is that Red Sky could announce its entire line-up the day this goes to press. So at the risk of looking like an ass (again) here are some of the names that I’ve heard kicked around that could be among the 50-odd bands performing at Red Sky:

U2 — This would be quite a coup for the festival’s inaugural year, but looking at U2’s current tour schedule, the band already is slated to play in New Jersey on July 20 and then Minneapolis on July 23. Yeah, that does leave July 21 and 22 open, but U2’s stage is rather massive and takes days to set up, move and tear down. It doesn’t seem likely that they’d be able to sneak in an Omaha date, unless… as a favor to Susie Buffett (who reportedly is a close friend of Bono’s), U2 flew into Omaha and left its massive stage in Minnesota. Maybe, maybe…

Journey — This sounds more like a second-tier stage event, especially considering that Journey no longer is the band most of us know after Steve Perry hung up his microphone years ago. Journey will be touring with Foreigner and Night Ranger in mid July.

Black Eyed Peas — The only other BEP gig scheduled even close to the Red Sky date is the Wireless Festival at Hyde Park in London July 1. I can’t think of a more banal, unoriginal act, but somebody loves them (judging by the Superbowl).

Jamie Johnson — A couple people have mentioned this cowboy. I had to look him up in Wikipedia, which says the “American country artist” had a top-10 hit called “In Color” and has co-written material with Trace Adkins and George Strait, among others. He’s listed as a supporting act for Kid Rock’s 2011 Born Free Tour, which brings us to…

Kid Rock — He’s just the kind of white-trash superstar that your typical Husker-lovin’, pick-up drivin’, Larry-the-Cable-Guy quotin’ stooge would love to see. And he has July 19-21 wide open on his tour schedule.

311 — You can pretty much pencil this one in as a done deal. And if this is what MECA considers “alternative,” well, the MAHA Music Festival folks have nothing to worry about.

Jimmy Buffett — Back when Red Sky was first announced, MECA’s Roger Dixon was quoted by KETV Channel 7 saying Buffett “is probably the No. 1 requested artist to have.” I can’t think of a more vile act other than, well, Kid Rock. Unfortunately for Dixon, Buffett got lost in Margaritaville and fell off the stage at Hordern Pavilion in Sydney, Australia, back in January, suffering a head injury. He returns to the road in April, but already has gigs booked for July 19, 21 and 23.

Sublime with Rome — Not sure why this one has so much buzz. Sublime is indeed back on the road with a new line-up after the death of frontman Brad Nowell in ’96. Now fronted by Rome Ramirez, the band was forced to change its name due to legal pressure from the Nowell family, who owns the Sublime moniker.

Bright Eyes — Many thought they were a shoe-in for Red Sky before Bright Eyes announced its June 4 date at Westfair Amphitheater. Now it seems like a long shot, though stranger things have happened, especially when MECA-sized money is involved.

So what’s the real Red Sky line-up? Keep an eye on redskyfestival.com — a website domain owned by MECA — for the announcement. It should come any day now…

* * *

I was pounding my thick, Celtic head trying to figure out who is the most “Irish”-sounding band in Omaha, and then I realized (duh) it’s The Filter Kings. The only band more “Irish” sounding is probably Bloodcow. And then I looked at tonight’s schedule at The Waiting Room and, lo and behold, both bands are slated to preside over the bar’s St. Patrick’s Day activities along with those fine Irishmen The Whipkey Three and The Beat Seekers. You get it all for just $7. Starts at 9.

If you’re in Lincoln, you’d be remiss in missing The Killigans on St. Patrick’s Day, they’re playing at Knickerbockers at 9 p.m.

And then there’s Lady Gaga at the Qwest….

* * *

Read Tim McMahan’s blog daily at Lazy-i.com — an online music magazine that includes feature interviews, reviews and news. The focus is on the national indie music scene with a special emphasis on the best original bands in the Omaha area. Copyright © 2011 Tim McMahan. All rights reserved.