Mannequin Pussy plays at Middle Haüs Saturday night.

by Tim McMahan, Lazy-i.com

It should be another busy foot-traffic weekend in Benson as the Omaha Entertainment and Arts Awards (OEAA) showcases are happening throughout Maple St. tonight and Saturday night. Wristbands, which are $10 for one night or $15 for the whole weekend, get you into all participating venues: The Waiting Room, The Sydney, Barley Street Tavern, Burke’s Pub, PS Collective and 402 Collective.

I’m not familiar with most of the bands involved this year. One notable exception is The Big Deep, who plays at 10:45 Saturday night at The Waiting Room in what will be their last waltz before an “extended hiatus.”

“Basically, we’re calling a break and don’t have any plans right now to play again,” said Big Deep bassist Jared Bakewell. “There’s some burn out from creating our last album and a few people want to focus on other projects, both personal and musical, for a while.”

“Other projects” include drummer Trenton Albers work with The Sub-Vectors and a new unnamed project from Bakewell that includes Cody Rathman and Nate Fowler. Better catch them Saturday night because you may never get another chance.

The full OEAA showcase schedule is available at http://oea-awards.com/.

Also tonight, Lincoln dance-rock outfit Life Is Cool headlines at fabulous O’Leaver’s with The Doneofits (EP release show), The Baberaham and Bird Shuus. $5, 9 p.m.

Saturday night a band out of Kansas City called Yes You Are plays at Slowdown Jr. Among the mysterious band’s members is Tilly and the Wall vocalist Kianna Alarid. Also on the bill are Lawrence band Oils and Omaha’s own Derby Birds. $5, 9 p.m.

Saturday is Dundee Days in, well, Dundee.  Bands performing are a middle-of-the-road bunch except for something described on event posters at “Noahs Arch Was a Spaceship.” Assume they mean Noah’s Ark…?  Music starts at 5 p.m. and costs $5 to get in. More info here.

No word as to whether there will be a Dario’s Day this year (which is usually run in conjunction with Dundee Day). If anyone has any data, please post it in the comments section.

Finally, NYC/Philly punks Mannequin Pussy play at good ol’ Middle Haüs (you know, that duplex right across the street from The Brothers) Saturday night along with Manic Pixie Dream Girls and the infamous TBA. $5, 9 p.m.

If I missed anything, put it in the comments section. Have a red hot weekend…

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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 © 2014 Tim McMahan. All rights reserved.