Desaparecidos at The Waiting Room, Oct. 22, 2013. The band returns to The Waiting Room tonight.

by Tim McMahan, Lazy-i.com

Before I left on vacation to NYC, warnings were being posted in Facebook that tickets to tonight’s Desaparecidos show at The Waiting Room were in short supply. It’s now the day of the show and tickets are still available — which is surprising, or maybe not so surprising.

Desa played Coachella this year; their new album, Payola, has been heaped with praise; the band performed on Late Night with Seth Meyers this past June, and Desa regularly sells out shows in other cities. So why haven’t they sold out their home town gig?

Well, the question of whether or not Desa is even an “Omaha band” has been kicked around by a few folks. I definitely consider them a hometown band even though Denver Dalley and Ian McElroy no longer live in Omaha, and Conor Oberst is (probably) only a part-time resident. Landon Hedges and Matt Baum remain fixtures of the local music scene, with Landon fronting Little Brazil and Baum performing in Montee Men.

The lack of a sell-out heralds back to a trend that began in mid-’90s and continued through the next 20 years, a trend of Omaha / Nebraska bands drawing better outside of their home state. I can’t tell you the number of times bands have commented to me that they enjoyed bigger crowds in St. Louis, New York, Chicago and Kansas City than when they played right here. Maybe we take the local talent for granted? Maybe we just assume “Meh, I’ll catch them next time” even if there may not be a “next time.”

That said, I wouldn’t be surprised if tonight’s show sells out before the 9 p.m. start time. Before you go, read (or reread) the band’s “secret origin story” in The Reader, online here. Asian Man Records punk/emo band Joyce Manor opens the show, along with St. Louis act Radkey. $20. See you there.

Also tonight, Rock Paper Dynamite begins its September-long Thursday-night residency at fabulous O’Leaver’s. Opening is Super Ghost, who recently announced that they’ve been “signed” to new local label We’re Trying Records. Also on the bill is Clear the Day. $5, 9:30 p.m.

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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.