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.