Jake Bellows at The Sydney, June 9, 2017.

by Tim McMahan, Lazy-i.com

I’m still catching up on last weekend, specifically last Friday night when Jake Bellows played at The Sydney. I point to the crowd and the overall vibe of the room for what ended up being one of the best Bellows sets I’ve ever witnessed. Jake solo with electric guitar played a selection from his rather extensive oeuvre with the crowd pushed right up to the Sydney’s stage/platform. You can hear a bit of the set in the Facebook Live recording below (I always feel like a dork when I’m shooting these things, but…).

Now that he’s living in LA, every Bellows set in Omaha is like a family reunion, with lots of familiar faces in the crowd come to pay their respects to our lost hero. Jake may be a Californian these days, but he knows he always has a home in Nebraska.

Sun-Less Trio at The Sydney, June 9, 2017.

Opening for Jake Friday night was a new line-up for Sun-Less Trio. Usual drummer Marc Phillips was replaced for this gig by someone banging on a tom with mallets. Frontman Mike Saklar played a couple of my favorites from his last couple albums along with a few new ones. The set felt stripped down and bare compared to the usual larger, fuller S-LT sound.

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Two shows tonight…

Over at The Brothers Lounge Hussies headline for Brooklyn’s Cat Tatt. The Natural States also are on the bill. $5, 9 p.m.

Meanwhile, alt-country southern-fried rockers Drive-By Truckers headlines at The Waiting Room. Opening is BJ Barham. $30, 8 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 © 2017 Tim McMahan. All rights reserved.