by Tim McMahan, Lazy-i.com

Thanks to all who came out for my “non-DJ” DJ night at House of Loom on Friday. As expected, there was virtually no one there at 5 p.m. when it began, but things livened up as the evening rolled on, and a total of about 20 people eventually showed up. It was actually quite rowdy at around 7 p.m., and I ended up “spinning” for an extra 45 minutes beyond the 8 p.m. cutoff.

It was a trip meeting a couple people who read the column and website regularly and wanted to “see what I looked like.” I hope I didn’t disappoint them too much. It also was nice seeing a number of music-scene collegues who dropped by for a few drinks and a few songs.

If you haven’t been to House of Loom, you really need to give it a try if only for the ambience. I can’t think of a better place to grab a drink right after work, and for those into the DJ/ dance culture, House of Loom is among Omaha’s best dance clubs. Check it out. Thanks again to Loom, Brent and Ethan for being such gracious hosts.

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Speaking of checking things out, as Cursive continues its ongoing national tour, they’re (currently) bringing Conduits along for the ride. And as interesting as it is to read how people dig Kasher and Co’s live rendition of I Am Gemini, we’re starting to see the first reactions to Conduits from a “foreign market.”

Among them, this piece from the Carnegie Mellon student newspaper The Tartan:

“Conduits, an indie rock sextet based out of Omaha, Neb., was the first opening band. Despite releasing their debut album on March 20, they performed a cohesive set that mixed the straightforward arrangements of pop rock with the sonic textures of shoegaze and psychedelic rock. The crowd was small for Conduits’ set, but it was clear that the pulsating bass lines and beautiful guitar ­— imagine rippling water as a sound instead of a vision — captivated these dedicated fans completely.”

The review concluded with: “While a majority of the audience had come for Cursive, it was difficult not to leave as a fan of all three groups.” Read the whole thing here.

Then there’s this from the University of Buffalo student newspaper The Spectrum:

“Opening for Cursive was five-piece outfit Conduits, from Cursive’s hometown of Omaha, Neb., and the bands even shared member Patrick Newbery, who played synth and keys for both bands. Conduits immediately asserted their place in Mohawk’s tightly packed venue, with the audience crowding in front of them, as if they were headlining.

“Conduits’ music consisted of a mix of slow rock combined with rhythmically dynamic maracas and tom-toms rising to importance during their set, juxtaposing the lead into the flowing synthesized music.”

So far, so good. It’ll be interesting to read what the New York media says when Cursive and Conduits play back-to-back sold-out shows at The Bowery Ballroom tomorrow and Wednesday.

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Tonight at The Waiting Room it’s Barsuk band Yellow Ostrich with Rough Trade artist Howler. $10, 9 p.m. Both bands are rising to that middle-echelon of touring indie bands. Check out a couple of their tracks below:

Yellow Ostrich, “Marathon Runner”

[soundcloud url=”http://api.soundcloud.com/tracks/37520957″ iframe=”true” /]

Howler, “Back to the Grave”

[soundcloud url=”http://api.soundcloud.com/tracks/33940837″ iframe=”true” /]

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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.