by Tim McMahan, Lazy-i.com

Crazy busy lately, which is why no update yesterday. There’s also been a deficit show-wise. That should reside this weekend (hopefully).

Coming Lazy-i events include feature stories on The Rentals (including a podcast interview with Matt Sharp)(BTW, no podcast this week) and Dereck Higgins, both written for the May issue of The Reader, which should be out next week.

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Other than that, there’s a lot of buzz about Hop Along, Saddle Creek Records’ latest signing, and for good reason. The band’s Creek debut, Painted Shut, is one of the best records I’ve heard this year and among the best things that Creek has ever released. You have to go back to the Jenny Lewis/Rilo Kiley days to find a non-Nebraska based Creek artist that has had this kind of national push going into a release.

Among the hype is this Village Voice blog item that just came out and includes an interview with front woman Frances Quinlan. Says the writer, “Painted Shut is less a vast departure from what Hop Along have created previously than a confident leap forward, in terms of musicianship, storytelling, and studio mastery…. And on the verge of Painted Shut’s release, those aren’t stars in the members of Hop Along’s eyes — though they’ve produced a knockout record. They’re not gunning to quit their day jobs. In fact, Frances says, ‘I’d just like to see what the album does over time.’”

This follows a Q&A in Vice’s Noisey blog (here) “… they don’t look like they plan on hitting the wall softly, but exploding through it...” and an “A”  review at AV Club, which concluded with “Unfortunately for some, Painted Shut signals the end of Hop Along’s tenure as a little-known buzz band. For everyone else, it’s the sound of being welcomed to the party.”

I suspect more hype to come, plenty more. It’s deserved. The album drops May 4.

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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 © 2015 Tim McMahan. All rights reserved.