Matthew Sweet at fabulous O’Leaver’s, July 30, 2014. Sweet and his plan plays at The Waiting Room Saturday and Sunday nights.

by Tim McMahan, Lazy-i.com

Who’s going to the horse races this weekend? Anybody? Anybody? Ah well, what else is going on? Glad you asked…

Tonight is Benson First Friday, and part of BFF is a show at The Sydney featuring Oquoa, Dave Nance Band and FiFi NoNo, who just dropped a new single (below). 10 p.m. and free, according to Facebook (though the last free show I went to at The Sydney cost me $5).

If you’re going to the Sydney, you might as well drop by The Little Gallery, 5901 Maple, at the bottom of the Masonic Lodge building. We’ll be opening a new show featuring prints by Myles Dunigan. The show runs 6 to 10 p.m. And as always, the beer is free. Come on over… More info here.

Also tonight, Lodgings is playing at fabulous O’Leaver’s. I’m told their recently released EP, Daisies, is about to come out on colored vinyl. Jump the Tiger headlines this show and St. Bernard opens. $5, 9:30 p.m.

And The New BLK is having a moving out party tonight at what will soon be their old digs at 12th and Howard. The new The New BLK will be located at 2626 Harney, about a block west of Midtown Art Supply. Anyway, the party starts at 4 and runs until 2 p.m. Performers include Digital Leather and Conny Franko. Find out more.

Tomorrow and Sunday night Matthew Sweet is playing at The Waiting Room. The two-night engagement is in support of his new double album, Tomorrow, Forever, which I reviewed here yesterday. Tommy Keene, who was releasing music on Matador back when Sweet was on Zoo, is opening both nights. Keene opened for Sweet when he played at O’Leaver’s a few years ago, and is something of a legend in his own right. Tickets for either night are $20; these are early shows with 8 p.m. start times.

Finally Sunday NYC band Rips plays at Milk Run. Their debut album was produced by Austin Brown of Parquet Courts. Thick Paint and Razors also are on the bill. No price given for this 8:30 p.m. show, so you’re on your own.

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

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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.