by Tim McMahan, Lazy-i.com

So is this the most boring week ever? There have been very few shows to speak of, and virtually no national shows scheduled. I took a look back at the last week of March 2011 just to see if this is an annual trend and discovered that we were: enjoying the return of It’s True, Lincoln Exposed was happening, a new band called New Lungs was debuting at O’Leaver’s, Landing on the Moon was playing at the Waiting Room and Old ’97s were playing at The Slowdown. Not a bad way to close out a March, and a helluva lot better that what we’ve been seeing here lately.

Ah, but despite yet another night of no shows, things are looking up for the weekend. And based on Stir Cove’s twitter feed, we’ll be hearing about this year’s Stir lineup this evening at 6:40 p.m. We already know that The Shins are playing at Harrah’s May 31 with The Antlers *yawn*. And the nightmarish “Last Summer On Earth Tour” takes over the Stir Cove Aug. 9, featuring soccer mom bands Barenaked Ladies, Blues Traveler, Big Head Todd & the Monsters and Cracker. Ugh. I’ve got a sad, sick feeling that the Shins date may be the highlight of Stir schedule. Let’s hope not.

Think about how challenging it is to book a mid-level or higher indie band in Omaha these days, especially in the summer. There’s practically a different huge festival going on every week/weekend somewhere in the U.S., including our own MAHA Festival and Red Sky (though RS’s focus seems to be in the pop/country/legacy/shit realm rather than indie, so far). The casinos, who used to be more concerned about booking Vegas-style schlock, are now turning their attention to indie in a big way, with Black Keys last year and now The Shins and who knows who else. It would seem to put more pressure on our very own 1% Productions, who can already boast booking upcoming festival-worthy shows featuring Death Cab and Low (April 11, Music Hall), Heartless Bastards (May 27, TWR), St. Vincent (May 14, Slowdown), Best Coast (May 29, Slowdown), Son Volt (May 24, TWR), Deer Tick (May 20, TWR) and Sleigh Bells (April 14, Slowdown), among others. I’ll be surprised if Stir announces a date with any indie band of that caliber…

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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 © 2012 Tim McMahan. All rights reserved.