Two curious things about a press release that crossed my electronic desk yesterday…
First, when was the last time anyone thought of the Trashcan Sinatras? I bought a copy of their 1990 debut, Cake, solely on the strength of the band’s name. It turned out to be not a half-bad investment, though it’s not a disc that stands out in my mind. I would try to dig out my copy but Spotify has it, in all its jangly glory.
Now comes word of a new Sinatras’ album, Wild Pendulum, slated for release May 13 on Red River Records, which brings me to the second stand-out point from the one-sheet issued by PR firm Grand Stand. Our very own Mike Mogis is the primary sell point in the headline. I guess Chloe Walsh (formerly of Press Here PR) figures if you don’t remember the Sinatras you’ll at least be familiar with “Bright Eyes’ member/producer extraordinaire” Mogis. For a while now, Mogis has risen to the ranks as one of those producers whose name can sell a record, like an Albini or Phil Ek.
Anyway, check out a couple Mogis-produced Trashcan Sinatra tracks below:
The annual South By Southwest music festival is kicking off in Austin today. I would be remiss in not saying it pangs me not being there this year, especially since they’re having 90-degree weather in Austin. The weather at SXSW has blown the past couple of years.
Lots o’ people from Nebraska will be down there. Taking my place (and Chris Aponick’s place) representing/reporting for The Reader is cartoonist Paul Trap. Paul is known first and foremost as the dude behind syndicated comic strip “Thatababy,” which I believe is carried in more than 100 newspapers nationally.
Paul also is a huge indie music fan. If you’ve gone to shows locally over the past few years you’ve probably seen him. When he told me he was going to try going to SXSW this year without a badge I suggested he get one from The Reader and be their correspondent. He took my advice (and so did The Reader), so you’ll be seeing Paul’s updates throughout the week, starting with this one. I’ll post links to more of his updates as they go online.
I can’t wait to see how he illustrates this year’s SXSW for the printed version of The Reader.
Of course Hear Nebraska is going to have a bevy of writers and photographers on hand this year as well. You can follow their hi-jinx at hearnebraska.org. No doubt they’ll be covering Lincoln’s Nebraska Exposed showcase, which takes place tomorrow.
And as always, the Omaha World-Herald‘s Kevin Coffey has conned his paper into sending him to Austin on their dime (and getting paid for it). Look for Kevin’s updates via his twitter feed @owhmusicguy. Oh, what a life.
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This week’s Live @ O’Leaver’s sessions just hit the ‘net. Check them out below. Lush Bruise Crew is David Nance’s band, BTW…
Is this the biggest indie-rock show The Lookout Lounge has ever hosted?
Craig Finn is the lead dude from The Hold Steady striking out on his own for a solo tour. Titus Andronicus, known for the long, drawn-out waltz-time punk rock songs, is one of the more interesting indie bands to emerge from Matador Records in the past half decade. You get both tonight at Lookout Lounge, along with Lincoln’s Universe Contest (on their way to SXSW) and Omaha band Gordon (get there early, you don’t want to miss them) for one price of $18. Tickets available at the door. I have yet to venture into the Lookout Lounge. This could be the night.
Also tonight, Americana/folk band Ragged Company headlines at fabulous O’Leaver’s. Joining them is Justin Ready & the Echo Prairie and Omaha buzz band The Hottman Sisters. For whatever reason, I thought the Hottmans were a country & western band, then Ian sent me a link to the following Live at O’Leaver’s. Check it. $5, 9:30 p.m. And pssst… the back patio is open!
Also tonight, Chicago is invading Milk Run. Chi-town bands Ratboy and Coaster headline, with locals Bed Rest and Crypt Kid. $7, 9 p.m.
Tomorrow night Mitch Gettman and The Way Out open for Wichita band The Travel Guide. $7, 9 p.m.
While down at Slowdown Jr. Omaha emo band Super Ghost headlines a show with Blét, This Machine Kills Vibes and Intergalactic Star Hero. $8, 9 p.m.
By the way, my favorite time of year begins Sunday morning at 2 a.m. — that’s when Daylight Savings Time kicks in. Does that mean we lose an hour of drinking or gain an hour of drinking?
One more thing: The Brigadiers are headlining a show at Reverb Lounge Sunday night with Glen Hollow and Polka Police. The event is a fundraiser for art/photography startup Copper Collective. They’re trying to construct a dark room. The 7:30 p.m. show is $7. Find out more here.
That’s it for shows. If I missed your, put it in the comments section. Have a great weekend.
Sounds like the time Landon Hedges has spent playing in Desparecidos over the past few years has had an impact on his own band, Little Brazil. At least judging from two tracks Hedges recently let me preview from the band’s forthcoming album, Send the Wolves.
Both songs — “Making a Mess” and “You” — sport that classic Little Brazil guitar-fueled bombast we’ve all come to expect after years of releases dating back to 2004’s self-titled EP. The “Desa difference” can be heard in the sheer power of the songs and the choices made with melodies. These songs sound unlike anything else Little Brazil has recorded, and are among their best.
Another difference in their sound could be due to the band’s new line-up. While Hedges and Danny Maxwell remain at the core of Little Brazil, veteran Matt Bowen (The Faint, Commander Venus, Lullaby for the Working Class, Race for Titles, The Third Men, to name a few) has taken over on drums while one of the city’s most talented guitarists, Mike Friedman (The Lupines, Simon Joyner) now handles leads.
Hedges says you’ll have to wait until this fall to get your copy of Send the Wolves. Little Brazil is working with old compadre Mike Jaworski, who is managing the band and helping shop the album to labels and booking agents. Jaworski released three previews Little Brazil albums on his own Mt. Fuji Records imprint.
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Get ready for the weird tonight at The Waiting Room when Ty Segall returns with his band the Muggers. Segall has been tearing up the TV lately with a number of appearances where he goes shit-crazy, usually wearing a creepy baby mask — a tie-in to his latest album, Emotional Mugger (Drag City, 2016). Expect the usual over-the-top garage rock mayhem. Feels and Oquoa open the show 9 p.m. show. $17.
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Also tonight, See Through Dresses warm up for their trip to this year’s South By Southwest Festival (it’s next week!) with a set tonight at fabulous O’Leaver’s. Opening the show tonight is Lincoln band Better Friend and Omaha trio The Sunks. $5, 9 p.m.
The last time: “Pixie-ish Channy Leaneagh looked like a young Mia Farrow (back when Farrow was married to Sinatra, circa Rosemary’s Baby) doing a jerky genie ballet, her tiny hands casting quirky spells on the mesmerized crowd, with a voice like a Twin Cities’ version of Bjork of Sinead.”
Poliça return to The Waiting Room tonight. Their latest album, United Crushers (Mom + Pop, 2016), is enjoying a 72/100 score at Album of the Year, though Pitchfork gave it a tepid 6.6 rating. LA band Clara-Nova opens. $15, 9 p.m.
Also tonight, Noah Sterba band plays a live gig at fabulous O’Leavers. Mike Schlesinger opens. The fun starts at 9.
Hear Nebraska announced yesterday that it is taking over the annual Lincoln Calling music festival, which this year runs from Oct. 6-8 (They wisely cut the festival to just three days) in venues throughout downtown Lincoln.
Full disclosure, I’m on the board of Hear Nebraska. When HN Executive Director Andrew Norman brought up the idea, it made perfect sense. LC fits nicely in HN’s mission to develop and provide exposure for Nebraska’s music, arts and creative industry.
LC founder Jeremy Buckley will still be involved with the event, which will be celebrating its 13th anniversary this year. Says Norman, “Buckley will be in charge of identifying and booking bands, as well as coordinating with some venues and many other planning and logistical elements. HN’s involvement involves budget, relationships and systems (for ticketing and otherwise) building, promotion and lots of logistical/production responsibilities.”
LC has proudly done what only a few local festivals do — it pays the bands that perform. That tradition will continue under Hear Nebraska’s direction.
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Another festival getting organized for 2016 is the second annual Femme Fest.
Organized by Rebecca Lowry of the band All Young Girls Are Machine Guns, and promoter Emily Cox, the festival, which highlights female talent in Nebraska, takes place Sept. 2 in venues throughout Benson (in conjunction with Benson First Friday).
There’s currently a call for participants under way. The requirement: The band/artist must have one woman actively participating in the submitted project. And like Lincoln Calling “You will be compensated again this year dependent on the response of the people, as you were last year” — i.e. bands will get paid, though they’ll have to negotiate that pay with organizers.
Submissions are being taken until April 2 via email at bfffemmefest@gmail.com. Find out more here.
Suck part about Femme Fest (for me, anyway) — it takes place the first weekend of September, which (if that continues) pretty much guarantees I’ll never attend because that date coincides with my annual anniversary trip to New York City. Boo!
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Saddle Creek Records’ latest roster addition, Big Thief, just dropped another track from their forthcoming Creek debut, Masterpiece. Listen below. Creek is taking pre-orders for the LP, which is scheduled to drop May 27.
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Tonight at Milk Run Minneapolis band Lemonade headlines with Dumb Beach, Sophie Hug & the Kisses and Jocko. $5, 9 p.m.
A look back at the weekend, or Friday night to be more precise.
Matt Whipkey performed in one of his most high-profile gigs in Omaha at 1200 Club Friday night. Backed by guitar, drums, bass and keyboards, Whipkey was center stage under the white-hot lights giving his all to a mostly full house. Ironically, even though there were a few hundred people collected around tables in the crowded room, it was likely one of the smaller crowds he’s played to recently, thanks to becoming one of Dwight Yoakam’s standard opening acts.
Matt Whipkey at 1200 Club, March 4, 2016.
That road work has left Whipkey and his band water-tight as they played his double-LP Penny Park in sequence (even announcing the end of each side throughout the set). You might think it was strange he was playing an album that came out in 2013 rather than his most recent material except that Whipkey undoubtedly looked at this performance as a career high water mark and wanted to make it something special. Penny Park is probably his most thought-out release to date, something he may never duplicate. Might as well give it the staging it deserves.
I stuck around for two sides of Penny Park before heading cross town to O’Leaver’s. On stage when I arrived was Low Long Signal, a proggy, mathy four-piece instrumental rock band that ripped though a set of high-energy compositions rife with intricate rhythms. Just when you got inside one of their fast, tight grooves they’d throw a heavy riff into the mix. Very interesting and worth further investigation.
Wild Powwers were harder and faster than they sound on their most recent album — they sounded more like a punk band than a self-proclaimed grunge act. I point to the density of production on that new record for the Pacific Northwest narrative, vs. the straight-up, stripped down sound we got Friday night.
While Lara Hilgeman’s vocals and guitarwork were spot on, it was the rhythm section of while-knuckle drummer Lupe Flores and bassist Jordan (JoJo) Gomes (his bass acting more like a second guitar on most of the songs) that “powwered” the evening.
Bien Fang at O’Leaver’s March 4, 2016.
Finally locals Bien Fang closed out the night. I didn’t know going in that BF is a Rachel Tomlinson Dick project (or I’d forgotten) and was pleasantly surprised to see her on stage fronting the band on heavy rock songs that bordered on punk. Two ’90s bands — Live Skull and Come — came to mind. A comrade who watched the night’s festivities said Wild Powwers had a riot grrrl flair to their set; I’d say that tag more appropriately belonged to Bien Fang.
A great night of music.
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Very quickly: Tonight at The Waiting Room it’s the Omaha return of Basia Bulat. From the press release: “Her new album Good Advice is out now to rave reviews—the LA Times callis it ‘an irresistible blend of lush pop and effervescent R&B…undeniable’ while Paste says it’s ‘playful to the point of pure effusiveness, each [song] swathed with catchy choruses and brisk, bubbly refrains.'” I haven’t heard it yet. No doubt you will tonight. The Weather Station opens. $13, 9 p.m.
The weekend is front-loaded. Lots happening tonight, and then…
Matt Whipkey has enjoyed the best 12 months of his musical life. New record. Touring with Dwight Yoakam, and now a headlining gig at The Holland Performing Arts Center’s ritzy 1200 Club. If you’ve never been there, you owe yourself the favor — big room, bar, great stage, great sound system. Think of it as a giant, high-ceilinged lounge filled with large round tables and chairs.
It’s a perfect setting for Whipkey and his band to perform for the first time ever his 2013 double-LP Penny Park in sequence. For Whip, it’s a career highlight. Expect him at his very best. Opening is R&B singer Rothsteen. Tickets are $20. Show starts at 8 p.m.
It’s an early show, which means if Whipkey keeps his set under 90 minutes you’ll have time to hit other hot shows tonight.
Top of list is Wild Powwers at fabulous O’Leaver’s. I wrote about them Wednesday, here. Note they are NOT the headliner. Lincoln band Bien Fang has that honor. Low Long Signal opens. Show starts at 9:30, $5.
Also tonight, the city’s hottest up-and-coming band, High Up, headlines at The Waiting Room with M34N STR33T. Lineman’s Rodeo opens at 9 p.m. Hopefully by start time they’ll have cleared out all the Secret Service from Bill Clinton’s visit to TWR, which is scheduled to take place at 2:15 p.m. Please note, there is an RSVP form you’d be wise to fill out if you intend to see the president stump for his wife.
No doubt Clinton will return to Omaha (after a visit to Lincoln) just in time to catch Bloodcow at The Barley Street Tavern tonight. Wouldn’t be surprised if Bill has his sax in tow to join the band for a jazzed up version of “Ultra Super Sexual.” Opening is Super Moon and Montee Men. $5, 9 p.m.
And lest you forget, it’s Benson First Friday. If you’re checking out the art, drop by The Little Gallery, right across the street from The Sydney, for the opening of Jennifer Radil’s abstract cartography show. Eye popping stuff. From 6 to 9 p.m. More info here.
Tomorrow is caucus day. Get your carcass out and caucus.
That’s all I got. If I missed your show, put it in the comments section. Happy weekend, y’all…
Last year Digital Leather released a digital-only collection called Whack Jam. Now a cassette version of the album is for sale via Bobby Hussy’s Kind Turkey Records. It’s all the same great tunes direct from Shawn Foree’s attic studio but now you can enjoy it with added benefit of tape hiss!
The cassette costs $5 and is available for pre-order at the Kind Turkey bandcamp page, here, where you can also hear Whack Jam streamed in its entirety. Get yourselves one before they’re all gone!
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This being Throwback Thursday, enjoy this column printed one decade ago in Lazy-i and The Reader about how to go to movies, restaurants and rock shows alone without feeling like a loser. Bonus: It includes some sweet 49’r memories…
Column 66: Being Alone Together The art of flying solo.
Lazy-i, March 1, 2006
I was trying to put my finger on why I don’t like going to shows at The 49’r and finally figured it out last weekend.
I swung by at around 11 p.m. Saturday night to catch Past Punchy and the Present — the band I wrote about here last week — but they started early and I was too late and I only caught the last couple songs of their set (which I dug, by the way. Seek out this band whenever it pops its head out of its rabbit hole). A few minutes after they finished their set, I turned around and left. Total time at the Niner (after paying $5 cover and $5 for beer (with tip)) — 15 minutes. No, there’s nothing wrong with The Niner per se — in fact, I’m quite fond of the bar. The staff is first-rate, their PA has never sounded better, the vibe is laidback and fun. No, it’s something else, something ridiculous.
Look, I knew when I started listening to indie music 20 years ago that going to shows was going to be a problem. The genre is underground by its very nature. Friends who I grew up with listening to Zeppelin and Floyd aren’t interested in seeing bands they’ve never heard on the radio. And though my girlfriend likes indie music (almost) as much as I do, she’s physically incapable of staying awake past 11 o’clock (especially on school nights), effectively taking her out of the equation since most indie rock shows don’t start until 10. Add it all together and it meant that I had to get used to going to shows alone. It wasn’t easy.
There are three activities (not including those defined in the bible as “sins”) that just seem strange doing by yourself: Attending movies, eating at fine restaurants, and going to rock shows. Call it the “Loser Syndrome,” most people have deep-seated insecurities about being seen at social events without companionship. No one wants to be thought of as being friendless. But chances are, if you love indie music, indie films or adventurous dining, you’re gonna have to get over it or suffer a future of cheesy cover bands, knife-kill horror flicks and flavorless chain-restaurant dining.
Let’s start with the movies. You want to see “Transamerica” or “The Three Burials of Melquiades Estrada” or Film Streams’ indie movie of the week at The Joslyn. Your friends want to see “Date Movie” or “Saw VII” or whatever piece of shit Julia Roberts is starring in this week. It’s a dilemma; because you’re never going to talk them into seeing “your movie.” You either go alone or wait for it to come out on NetFlix. You’re better off just showing up at the theater about five minutes after the start time and taking a seat in the back. If you’ve never gone to the movies by yourself, it’s pretty weird the first time. But once the film starts, you quickly realize that it doesn’t matter if you’re with someone or not — you’re inside the film’s world now. And when the lights come up afterward, you’ll wonder why you ever cared about going alone in the first place.
Movies are easy. Dining alone, well, that’s another story. The Food Channel is creating a culture of “foodies” who want something more than the usual prefabricated pound o’ flesh served at the neighborhood Chili’s or Appleby’s or The Outback (where, for whatever reason, everything must be smothered in cheese). Good luck, however, getting your crew to eat at, say, an Indian restaurant or — god forbid — Thai. Everyone remembers the “Table for One” scene from Steve Martin’s “The Lonely Guy” where, once seated alone, the restaurant falls silent and a spotlight blares on Martin as a team of waiters clears the other three settings off the four-topper. His solution: Pretend to be a food critic on assignment. My solution: Forget about dinner and go to your restaurant-of-choice at lunchtime, when you’ll be surrounded by a sea of one-toppers. An added bonus: Entrées will cost about a third less.
OK, so what about rock shows.
Is there a comfortable way to go see a band by yourself without feeling like a dork? The task is daunting, but it can be done. Sokol Underground is so dark that once you get in and get your beer no one will see you. Most people at O’Leaver’s are so drunk that they can’t see anything at all. And just like at the movies, no one notices anything after the band starts. There’s really nothing to be afraid of.
It’s between sets that can be weird. At Sokol you can hang out in the back; at O’Leaver’s, just turn your attention to whatever game’s on the television sets. But the Niner, well, there’s simply no place to hide. Just like the guy at the party who doesn’t know anyone, no matter what you do you’re gonna feel like a freak as you stand in everyone’s way waiting for the next band to start.
That leaves you with two options: You can do what I did and just turn around and leave like a wuss, or you can just stand there and wait uncomfortably until the next band starts.
Actually, there’s a third choice. You could — god forbid — actually talk to someone — preferably someone else who looks as uncomfortable as you. Suddenly, you know someone else at the show. And then another, and another. And before you know it, you’re a full-fledged scenester!
On second thought, maybe you should just go home.
— Lazy-i and The Omaha Reader, March 1, 2006
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Speaking of going to shows alone, I’ll be flying solo when Foxing plays at Slowdown Jr. tonight. The St. Louis post-emo band who records for Triple Crown Records (home of Weatherbox) dropped a new album last October called Dealer. Very earnest-sounding stuff. Opening is recent Triple Crown roster addition ADJY, who has a 4-song EP coming out called Prelude (.3333) that is anthemic to the core. This special 7:30 show also includes Lymbyc Systym and Tancred. $13.
Seems like there have been a lot of emo bands coming through towns or in the news lately. Then yesterday Rolling Stone publishes the “40 greatest emo records of all time” (Cursive’s Domestica came in at No. 25). It all begs the question: Is emo making a comeback?
I get a lot of requests from bands coming through town to do interviews for Lazy-i and The Reader. No surprise there. How else are they — unknown quantities traveling through a maze-like network of faceless towns— going to get people to come to their shows? Any buzz — no matter how little — is better than no buzz.
Unfortunately, it’s not possible to interview all these bands. I simply don’t have the time or resources, especially considering the money I get for writing for Lazy-i and The Reader. Still, I want to be helpful, which is why I came up with Ten Questions.
Actually, it was Bernard Pivot who came up with the idea for the French series Bouillon de Culture. James Lipton stole the questions and uses them to close out each episode of TV show Inside the Actors Studio. And I stole the idea from Lipton, changing the questions so they have a music spin. The 10 questions will be the same for all the bands and performers, though I might adapt and/or change a few if I can come up with something better.
The first band to take the plunge is Seattle band Wild Powwers, who are playing at fabulous O’Leaver’s this Friday night. The trio of guitarist/vocalist Lara Hilgeman, drummer/vocalist Lupe Flores and bassist/vocalist Jordan (JoJo) Gomes wholly embrace the “grunge” label, though their sound more closely resembles modern-day bands like Dilly Dally (Who sounds like Hole to me, so yeah, I guess there is a grunge connection).
Their new album, Hugs and Kisses and Other Things (linked below), comes out this month and is a real grinder — towering guitar lines and soaring vocals that reflect the musical heritage of the Pacific Northwest city they call home. Actually, the more I listen to this album the more I hear Seattle influences from Temple of the Dog to Screaming Trees.
To me, grunge was a throwback genre coming out of the mid-’80s post-punk/new wave/hair metal era, grunge brought back big guitars and heavy rhythm sections. Alice in Chains, Soundgarden, Pearl Jam were repackaged ’70s heavy metal. Somehow Nirvana got roped in with the label, though (to me) they weren’t grunge. These guys are. If you’re a fan of the kind of music heard on the Singles soundtrack, you’re going to love Wild Powwers.
So without further ado, here are the Ten Questions:
1. What is your favorite album?
Lupe:Exile on Main St Lara:The Man Who Sold The World Jojo: Right now I’m listening the most to Dilly Dally’s Sore
2. What is your least favorite song?
“Hotel California” and anything by Mackelmore
3. What do you enjoy most about being in a band?
Getting to write sweet rock ‘n’ roll with your friends and touring.
4. What do you hate about being in a band?
Not being able to do it full time.
5. What is your favorite substance?
I mean, tequila.
6. What city or town do you love performing at?
Anywhere, all the time.
7. What city or town did you have your worst gig?
Eugene, OR
8. How do you pay your bills?
We all work at the same bar — Hattie’s Hat — the best bar in the world. We slang dranks and snacks.
9. What one profession other than music would you like to attempt; what one profession would you absolutely hate to do?
Lara: Illustration. I would hate to be a telemarketer.
Lupe: Deep sea diver; insurance salesman
Jojo: Dog walker; janitor at a strip club.
10. What one piece of advice would you give to aspiring musicians?
Have fun. Making music isn’t about getting attention or being the coolest person in the room. Making music is about putting all you are into something you believe in and loving it despite the fact that people may not care, or listen. Have fun with your friends.
Wild Powwers plays with Bien Fang and Low Long Signal Friday, March 4, at O’Leaver’s, 1322 Saddle Creek Rd. Showtime is 9:30 p.m. Admission is $5. For more information, visit liveatoleavers.com.
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Austin-based modern-day shoe-gazers Ringo Deathstarr headlines tonight at Reverb Lounge. Their latest album, Pure Mood, came out this past November. Noise-rock band Future Death opens. $10, 9 p.m.
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