by Tim McMahan, Lazy-i.com

Digital Leather, Pink Thunder (2017, self-release)

Out of the blue, Digital Leather today dropped a new LP titled Pink Thunder in Bandcamp. It’s a strong return to form from a band that I thought had hung it up last year. Since then, they’ve played a handful of shows when the gig money was right. Still, when the pre-announcement came out about Pink Thunder I had no idea DL mastermind Shawn Foree was working on new material.

The LP is stripped down, very electronic but with nice guitar touches. I assume it’s a one-man show, with Foree on all the parts but I don’t know for sure as I haven’t received a one-sheet (I found out just like you, on Twitter). Listening through the tracks a few times this morning, it reminded me of Blow Machine, though it’s not as racy lyrically. My favorite track so far is an instrumental called “One to One” — a real digital grinder.

Foree mentioned this would be coming out as an LP in the fall. Don’t wait to download the digital tracks right now, though…

* * *

Just got a press release from Nasty Little Man:

“Arcade Fire has released a third track from its forthcoming fifth album, Everything Now, due out July 28 on CD, cassette, digital download and heavyweight black vinyl LP through an exclusive 360-degree partnership with global media and e-commerce platform Everything Now in synergy with the Sony corporation.”

Included was their North American tour dates, of which there are many. Their closest pass to Omaha, however:

10/25/17 – Denver, CO – Pepsi Center
10/27/17- Kansas City, MO – Silverstein Eye Centers Arena
10/29/17 – St. Paul, MN – Xcel Energy Center
NOmaha

Anyone surprised? Their tour starts Aug. 6 in Chicago at Lollapalooza. Meanwhile, I swivel my chair and look out my window and see a 25,000 seat baseball stadium that will sit vacant until next June…

* * *

Onto the weekends…

Kansas at Memorial Park, July 3, 2010. Tonight it’s Kool & the Gang. Blurg.

Tonight is the dreaded Memorial Park Concert. Imagine if we had gotten last night’s hail storm tonight? Devastation. Well, Kool and the Gang will be handing out the devastation tonight. The city really blew it with this booking, as they just played down by the river last year. Someday someone with some knowledge of music will help the city book this concert (Who am I kidding? No one goes to this for the music)…

Cover bands and such start at 6. K&tG probably won’t be on stage until 8:30 or 9. Fireworks usually around 10 or 10: 30, which is worth the hassle, I suppose. If you go, park at UNO and stay the hell off my lawn.

Other than that, there ain’t shit happening tonight, though Lincoln singer/songwriter Scott Severin is taking the plunge and playing a free gig at the new, and rather controversial Hotel RL on south 72nd Street. This place has been lambasted in social media for booking bands and not paying them. No doubt Scott negotiated something sweeter. Starts at 7.

Tomorrow night (Saturday) is the big Shipwrecked! fest.

What’s Shipwrecked? It’s a concert on the River City Star river boat, but instead of rolling up and down the Missouri, the boat will be docked all night. We’re talking two floors (or two decks) of music with bars on each deck, with fireworks (courtesy of TD Ameritrade Park’s home run derby).

The line-up is impressive:

A Giant Dog (Austin, TX) — One of Merge Records’ hottest new bands returns to Omaha.
HIDE (Chicago, IL) — Gritty, big-beat punk from Chicago, on Joyful Noise Records.
Leggy (Cincinnati, OH) — Self-proclaimed “bubble-gum punk” on Manic Static Records.
Plack Blague (Lincoln, NE) — Starcity electro-geek leather fetish noise band.
David Nance Band (Omaha, NE) — Low-fi garage punk dynamo about to blow up.
Cult Play (Omaha, NE) – Dark, electronic dance rock.
Winstons (Brooklyn, NY) — No-frills garage soul.

Music starts at 7 p.m. Runs ’til midnight (but since it’s docked, leave / come whenever you wanna). Tickets are $15, sorry kids, 21+ only. I’m told plenty of parking near the landing. Should be a blast.

That’s all I got. If I missed your show, put it in the comments section. Have a great weekend.

* * *

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 © 2017 Tim McMahan. All rights reserved.

by Tim McMahan, Lazy-i.com

Listening to

Public Service Broadcasting, Every Valley (2017, PIAS)

Public Service Broadcasting, Every Valley (2017, Play It Again Sam) — If you haven’t heard of Public Service Broadcasting, their shtick is creating gorgeous instrumental compositions in the typical quiet-build-climax sort of way. Within these compositions are clips of old broadcasts and interviews centered upon a topic.

Their magnum opus is 2015’s The Race for Space (Test Card Recordings) that, as the name implies, captures the Soviet vs. U.S. space race from Sputnik and beyond. The track “Go” is particularly amazing and inspiring, grabbing audio clips form Houston Space Center during one of the early Mercury Program launches.

Every Valley carries on the tradition, but in a more moribund sort of way. The topic this time is the rise and fall of the coal mining industry in South Wales. Tracks such as “The Pit” and “People Will Always Need Coal” take UK propaganda encouraging men to sign up for life in the mines and marries it to PSB’s usual driving instrumentals. But unlike The Race for Space, the effect can be harrowing.  The song cycle continues through the eventual decay of the mining industry and its impacts on the Welsh community.

It’s in these later tracks that PSB uses actual vocal lines — i.e., singing — with contributions from Tracyanne Campbell on “Progress” and James Dean Bradfield of Manic Street Preachers on “Turn No More,” which would have worked better if, say, an angry Roger Waters sang it instead of someone who sounds like Dennis DeYoung.

It’s an interesting concept for an album, and certainly apropos with today’s economies, though it’s much less enthralling than Race for Space (and certainly less uplifting). With this subject matter, PSB risks sounding too academic, too literal, and as a result, more educational than entertaining. I’d still love to see how they’d stage this album live… Rating: Yes

* * *

Tonight at Milk Run Denver emo/post-hardcore act Old Sport headlines a bill that includes Culture War and No Getter. $5, 9 p.m.

* * *

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 © 2017 Tim McMahan. All rights reserved.

MONO at The Waiting Room, Sept. 25, 2012. The band returns tonight to The Waiting Room.

by Tim McMahan, Lazy-i.com

The NOmaha Alerts caught the attention of readers who pointed out that Alvvays, Slowdive and Pinegrove all are bypassing Omaha on upcoming tours. Of those three, the Pinegrove tour is the most surprising miss, though they played Milk Run last July. Alvvays played Maha in 2015. Getting Slowdive would be a feat I’d never expect to happen (but stranger things have).

Add to those NOmaha additions Thee Oh Sees — or just Oh Sees, as they’ve officially changed their name. Oh Sees has consistently bypassed Omaha for years, and one has to assume there’s a story behind it. Why else would the band avoid us? Here’s the closest pass to Omaha on Oh Sees’ upcoming tour:

11-18 Cleveland, OH – Beachland Ballroom
11-19 Chicago, IL – Thalia Hall
11-23 Missoula, MT – Stage 112

It doesn’t take four days to drive from Chicago to Missoula.

Today’s NOmaha Alert:

“Joseph will kick off a fall headline tour on Sept. 13 at the 9:30 Club in Washington, DC. Produced by Mike Mogis (Bright Eyes, Jenny Lewis), I’m Alone, No You’re Not (ATO) spent two weeks at No. 1 on Billboard’s Heatseekers Albums chart.”

9/22 – Chicago, IL @ Thalia Hall *
9/23 – Minneapolis, MN @ First Avenue *
9/24 – Franklin, TN @ Pilgrimage Music & Cultural Festival
NOmaha

* * *

So who is actually playing in Omaha tonight?

Japanese 4-piece instrumental prog rock band MONO returns to The Waiting Room. I saw them open for The Album Leaf in 2012. From that 2012 Lazy-i Review: “MONO is a four-piece ambient rock band from Japan that plays soaring all-instrumental compositions that are equal parts majesty and sorrow. The recipe is two guitars, a bassist who doubles on keyboards, and drums. It’s gorgeous, lush music that tries to replicate the density of orchestral music using rock instruments, and at its best moments, succeeds.”

But there was a flaw to their performance, which you’ll have to go hear to read about. Opening for them tonight is our very own Thick Paint. $15, 9 p.m.

There’s also a house show at West Wing tonight (according to Facebook) with Springfield IL band Livin’ Thing, Champaign, IL’s Dream Probe and our very own BIB. $5, 9 p.m. More info here…

* * *

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 © 2017 Tim McMahan. All rights reserved.

Rusty Lord at O’Leaver’s, June 23, 2017.

by Tim McMahan, Lazy-i.com

It was a packed house Friday night at O’Leaver’s to see the debut of Rusty Lord. What can I say about Omaha’s latest garage-rock supergroup?

Their sound was close to what I expected: heavy-psych rock fueled equally by guitars and synths. Someone mentioned Ministry before the show, and you could hear the influence on the opening song, but mostly what we got was guitar metal a la Pro-Magnum with Johnny Vredenburg and Austin Ulmer screeching/yelling over layers of dense chaos.

Of course the main attraction was seeing Omaha rock legend Dave Goldberg behind a full drum kit riding his precise, hyper-kinetic rapid-fire attack. With everything else happening on stage, Goldberg carried these guys on his proverbial shoulders, keeping it all together, while the crowd went bananas.

If you missed it, Rusty Lord is scheduled to play Benson First Friday at The Sydney August 4 with Leafblower and DJ Tyrone Storm.

BTW, no sightings of the actual Rusty Lord (the WOWT weather guy). I’m told he was notified that he’d be on the list, but… no show. Next time, Rusty, next time…

* * *

I get lots of press releases from promoters and labels. Lots and lots.

And I open almost every one. The reason I do is to see if the band being promoted is coming to Omaha on its next tour. The tour list always is at the bottom of the press release. Like the one I got last week about The Afghan Whigs’ North American Tour.

I go down the tour stops list and find:

Minneapolis
Chicago
Milwaukee

and

No Omaha

or, as it’s starting to become known: NOmaha

Unless I’m dreaming, it’s happening a lot more lately, at least when it comes to indie bands. If you’re wondering why Lazy-i isn’t updated every day, day in and day out, it’s because fewer indie shows means fewer reviews to post, fewer 10 Questions interviews, etc.

So, as a new feature here at Lazy-i, every time I get notified of a cool indie tour that is, once again, bypassing our fair city, I’ll put on a NOmaha Alert.

Today’s NOmaha alert(s):

Broken Social Scene:

“The tour will follow the release of Broken Social Scene’s upcoming album Hug of Thunder, out on Arts & Crafts on July 7th, 2017.”

9/26/17 — Des Moines, IA @ Hoyt Sherman *
9/27/17 — Milwaukee, WI @ Pabst Theater *
9/28/17 — St. Paul, MN @ The Palace *
9/29/17– Chicago, IL @ Aragon Ballroom *
NOMAHA

!!! (chk chk chk) with Algiers

“!!! (Chk Chk Chk) have announced additional US tour dates beginning this fall, a selection of which will be supported by Matador recording band, Algiers.” This is one I’d love to see.

June 30 | Salt Lake City, UT – Kilby Court
July 1 | Denver, CO – Globe Hall
July 7 | Katowice, Poland, – Tabron Nowa Muzyka
NOMAHA

Someone get on it! We need these shows…

* * *

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 © 2017 Tim McMahan. All rights reserved.

Adult Mom plays Saturday night at Milk Run. Photo by Richard Gin.

by Tim McMahan, Lazy-i.com

On to the hotness that is this weekend…

Tonight, another mega debut, this time at fabulous O’Leaver’s. Omaha welcomes Rusty Lord. No, not the bald, nebbish WOWT meteorologist, the new rock project featuring Austin Ulmer (Dumb Beach) on guitar and vocals, Ben VanHoolandt (Digital Leather) on synth/guitar, Johnny Vredenburg (Digital Leather, Pro-Magnum) on bass/synth/vocals, and the legendary Dave Goldberg behind a FULL drum kit.

Says Vredenburg, “It’s somewhat what you’d imagine it to be. loud, abrasive dissonance with maniacal drumming driving it, yet a different sound from any of our previous bands.” I asked him to pin down a genre, and he said “probably psych/synth-punk.”

This is a four-band show, kicked off by Alcools, then Rusty Lord, followed by Effluvium and headlined by Satanic Abortion. $5, 10 p.m.

Also tonight, it’s another River City Star rock ‘n’ roll cruise down the Missouri River, this time featuring Miwi La Lupa, with AllSortsOfGood and the turntable stylings of DJ Tyrone Storm. The details:

Gates – 7 p.m.
Boat Access – 8 p.m.
Set Sail – 9 p.m. (they leave with or without you, folks)
Dock – Midnight

Cost is $20 for General Admission-only ticket, or $35 for General Admission + Miwi La Lupa’s Beginners Guide on vinyl!

And then Saturday night…

Through some happy accident a few years ago a link to Adult Mom’s Bandcamp page made it into my email, wherein I purchased a cassette copy of her 2014 release Sometimes Bad Happens, a great debut. That release must have caught the attention of Tiny Engines (the label that releases See Through Dresses’ albums), who put out Adult Mom’s 2015 full-length debut Momentary Lapse of Happily.

Now along comes Soft Spots (2017, Tiny Engines), which is her best release yet. “Her” is Adult Mom frontwoman/songwriter Stephanie Knipe, who is described by her label as “a gender-weird queer navigating through heartache, trauma and subsequent growth” and who gives the record an RIYL of The Weakerthans, The Cranberries, Girlpool, Liz Phair and Diet Cig.

In fact, Adult Mom emerged from the crowded forest of indie bands at about the same time as Diet Cig. I thought AM would be the one to break through, but it’s been Diet Cig that’s gotten all the attention, unfortunately. As a result, Diet Cig has had sweet opening tour slots and played Maha and Slowdown, while Adult Mom is relegated to playing tiny venues like Saturday night’s show at Milk Run.

Soft Spots is a gorgeous collection of bitter-sweet relationship songs that sonically remind me of K Records bands like The Softies while lyrically her music has a similar honesty heard on Elliott Smith albums. Knipe has a one-of-a-kind voice that emotes a sort of confident loneliness that fuels rocking tracks like “Steal the Lake from the Water” and “Drive Me Home.” The record is definitely worth checking out.

And so is the show — Saturday night at Milk Run. Opening for Adult Mom is Philly band Free Cake for Every Creature and our own The Morbs. $8, 9 p.m. Remember, Milk Run is now at Midtown Art Supply. Enter through the alley.

One more thing to mention this weekend… Brothers Lounge is hosting another Omaha Record Swap from 4 to 7 p.m. Almost Music, Homer’s, Vinyl Therapy and D-Tour are among those who will have stock on hand. It’s free and the drinks are extra tasty at Brothers.

And that’s all I got. If I missed your show, put it in the comments section. Have a great weekend.

* * *

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 © 2017 Tim McMahan. All rights reserved.

by Tim McMahan, Lazy-i.com

Listening to…

The Knast, Reckless Soul (2017)

The Knast, Reckless Soul (2017, self-release) — Seattle pseudo garage-rock band… and I say “pseudo” because their sound is too smoothed over and mainstream to be confused with, say, a Burger Records act. Call their sound “professional” as in well-played, clean, pop rock that’s easy on the ears and easy to forget. Standout track: “Side Effects.” Rating: No.

* * *

I’ve listened to a few Media Jeweler tracks (from $99 R/T Hawaii); it took awhile to find one with vocals. So, a lot of instrumentals, angular/progressive, almost mathy, at times exhausting, intricate, by way of Santa Ana, CA. Omaha’s own Thick Paint headlines tonight. Sam Martin opens. And… it’s at fabulous O’Leaver’s. $5, 9 p.m.

* * *

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 © 2017 Tim McMahan. All rights reserved.

by Tim McMahan, Lazy-i.com

Currently listening to…

Priests, Nothing Feels Natural (2017, Sister Polygon)

Priests, Nothing Feels Natural (2017, Sister Polygon) – The band is playing Maha this year. Pitchfork gave this an 8.5. DC post-punk that’s been compared to Savages. I actually prefer it to Savages, but that doesn’t say much since I’ve never been a Savages fan. This is more like if Protomartyr were fronted by Debbie Harry… or Heidi Ore. In fact track “Pink White House” reminds me a lot of Mercy Rule thanks to the guitar line and Katie Alice Greer’s howl, which I prefer to her snotty, spoken delivery on tracks “No Big Bang” and “Puff” that, combined with the jittery bass-driven arrangements, sound like ’80s post-punk Debora Iyall/Romeo Void territory. Each song ends with a nice *wump* which will be good audience cues when blasted on the Maha stage. Rating: Yes

* * *

Seattle sludge rock band Big Business headlines at Brothers tonight. They’ve released a lot of stuff on Hydra Head, though their last one came out on Joyful Noise. Anthem stoner rock? The band’s name is apt. Opening is our own sludge/stoner rock power trio Ocean Black. This is a $15 show that starts as 9 and will be louder than hell.

* * *

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 © 2017 Tim McMahan. All rights reserved.

What I presume is the soothing artwork for Simon Joyner’s new double LP Step Into the Earthquake, available late October from Grapefruit Records.

by Tim McMahan, Lazy-i.com

Simon Joyner announced last week that his label, Grapefruit, is taking pre-orders on his new double-album, Step Into The Earthquake. The record feature’s Simon’s deft band, the Ghosts (which includes David Nance and Noah Sterba) and longtime-collaborator Michael Krassner. The original message said the album is slated for release Oct. 20, though the website is saying “late October.”

There are two versions available for pre-order. The $70 Deluxe Edition of Step Into The Earthquake is limited to 50 copies, and will contain:
-The gatefold double-album wrapped in a screenprinted and die-cut paper outer-sleeve,
-A limited edition signed and numbered broadside of the song “I’m Feeling It Today” suitable for framing, designed and printed by Sara Adkisson Joyner,
-A bonus vinyl LP (signed, numbered, and limited to 60 pressed) of The Phoenix Demos, which features piano and guitar duo versions of songs from Step Into The Earthquake recorded with Michael Krassner at his home in Phoenix in preparation for the album

Or you can order a regular copy of the double-LP for $24.

I think I’m getting the expensive one because, well, WTF? It’s Simon Joyner!

* * *

Last night I was going through my iTunes, trying to tighten up my list of songs I listen to on my morning jogs. Too often I listen to this playlist and something drops in I don’t recognize. And if I’m on a treadmill, I can’t go over to the hi-fi and change it, and then I’m stuck with this droning piece of drone that goes on and on…

Anyway. I’m going through my massive list of albums in iTunes and come across a band called Superstar. Their debut album came out in 1994, and I fell upon a copy of the CD when it was included in one of the monthly care packages from The Note, a magazine I wrote for way back when as an Omaha correspondent.

Superstar, self-titled (1994, SBK)

It’s one of those records that is virtually unknown ’round these parts, and probably anywhere. despite being released by SBK Records, whose claims to fame included Jesus Jones and Vanilla Ice. This record, Superstar, sounded like a tuneful, melodic version of Teenage Fanclub, which probably was what I wrote in my review for The Note. Despite being from Glasgow, Superstar had a distinctive So Cal sunset sound, very layered, very dense, with huge melodies and harmonies that I figured would put them in the same sentence as Fanclub, but never did…

I wondered whatever happened to the band. And the internet being what it is, it didn’t take long to find out. I found the ’94 album on Discogs, where (no surprise) it’s virtually worthless. But through Discogs I discovered Superstar actually recorded two more albums, neither of which I’d known about. It was on one of those Discogs pages that the band’s personnel was listed

From there, it was a simple bit of Googling before I discovered an article in The Guardian from Sept. 1, 2015, about Joe McAlinden. “His band Superstar never quite lived up to their name, despite being covered by Rod Stewart. Now, 30 years later, he returns as Linden, and he’s lost none of his melodic gift.”

From there, onto Spotfy where I found Linden’s 2015 album Rest and Be Thankful, released on Oakland label Slumberland Records. And that’s what I listened to this morning as I jogged through Elmwood Park.

OK, not much of a story, though if you’re into early Teenage Fanclub or ’90s Glasgow pop rock you can’t go wrong with Linden.

* * *

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 © 2017 Tim McMahan. All rights reserved.

Satchel Grande at River’s Edge Park, May 27, 2013. The band plays at The Slowdown tonight.

by Tim McMahan, Lazy-i.com

Judging by the white tents that have risen from the concrete in the NoDo area around the ball park, it’s College World Series time again.

While I applaud the City of Omaha for continuing this fine collegiate tradition, I personally could not give two f—s about the CWS. But The Slowdown does, and who can blame them? Their complex, prime real estate just west of the stadium, hosts a large outdoor beer garden with a stage. Ah, but their live music almost always features cover bands. Because the folks who come to see the CWS care about as much about indie rock as I do about college baseball.

That said, tonight original music band Satchel Grande is playing on Slowdown’s outdoor stage starting at 9 p.m. If you can find a place to park — and you’re not afraid of the impending thunderstorms — the free concert could be crazy and weird. And Satchel Grande always is worth catching.

What else is happening tonight and this weekend?

There’s an interesting show at The Milk Run headlined by The Hollands. According to their Facebook page they’re “a 21st century nomadic family based in the US via Australia and frolic in the Americana, folk revival scene.” They count among their influences The Pogues, Carter Family and Woven Hand. Also on the bill: Madison Growler, Not Ben Shin, and Druce Campbell. $5, 9 p.m.

Fabulous O’Leaver’s is hosting Low Long Signal, Armful of Tiger Lilies, Barrows and Towering Rogue. $5, 9:30 p.m.

Lincoln singer/songwriter and former NYC scenester Scott Severin headlines at Barley Street Tavern tonight. Joining him are Deven Cadwell and Brikwondo. $5, 9 p.m.

Tomorrow night’s marquee event is The Joy Formidable at The Waiting Room. You remember them from Maha2016. Radkey, another Maha refugee, opens. $18, 9 p.m.

Believe it or not, that’s all I got for this weekend. If I missed your show, put it in the comments section. Have a good one…

* * *

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 © 2017 Tim McMahan. All rights reserved

Cover art of Matt Whipkey’s new album, Best New Music. He launched a Pledge Music drive this morning for the album.

by Tim McMahan, Lazy-i.com

This past February I mentioned a new-ish Kickstarter-type site called Pledge Music. Pledge is truly music-focused (unlike Kickstarter which is wide open to any offer), and is more of a pre-sale website with some monster users, including Willie Nelson, Weird Al and Nelly Furtado.

Well, the first local Pledge campaign (that I’m aware of) went live this morning. It’s for Matt Whipkey’s two new LPs, Best New Music and Driver. People can pre-order both albums from Whipkey’s PledgeMusic site as well as purchase other premiums, such as a private live band performance ($3,000), online music lessons ($125), even a Whipkey-exclusive Uber ride anywhere in Omaha ($125).

“I have been beyond impressed with Pledge Music’s support for artists, it has been awesome working with them,” Whipkey said. “Their client list speaks for itself, Fleetwood Mac, Hold Steady, Deer Tick, etc., so many great artists. To me, it feels like it is more about the music itself rather than the ‘@e are running out time; give us all your money’ aspect. Although, don’t get me wrong, it is about that as well 🙂 Please, we need your dough, you have no idea how expensive this shit is lol.”

Some people frown upon Kickstarter and these types of websites. I think they’re a necessary evil and a reflection of a modern music industry that is less willing to take chances on new artists. How else is an unsigned band going to release new vinyl without taking a huge financial risk?

Whipkey is hosting a listening party tomorrow night at Hi-Fi House, where you can get a sneak preview of Best New Music and Driver. And score free booze. 7 to 10 p.m. You an also check out some tracks from BNM below:

* * *

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 © 2017 Tim McMahan. All rights reserved.