Stephen Sheehan at The Waiting Room, Dec. 23, 2018.

by Tim McMahan, Lazy-i.com

Stephen Sheehan’s 2017 return to the performance stage at Reverb Lounge was mostly a retrospective affair. Sheehan and a band that included Donovan Johnson on keyboards played songs from Sheehan’s former bands, including Digital Sex and The World. He followed up with another live performance in December 2018.

The standout during both those sets was a new song called “Less and Less” that took his musical history and put it in one pop moment. Now nearly a year later, Sheehan is releasing three versions of the song, recorded at Ware House Productions. The first version to be released, called “the (Single Mix)” features Johnson on keyboards and Bob Boyce (ex-Grasshopper Takeover) on guitar and keyboards.

Lyrically, it’s some dark shit, no doubt a reflection on some past relationship gone bad. Donovan’s keyboards in the introduction lift a sonic phrase from Carol King’s “It’s Too Late,” a clever clue as to what lies ahead.

Two more versions of the song — a remix and “the original version” — are still on deck. For now, here’s the single mix, which you can purchase at Sheehan’s Bandcamp page:

Sheehan’s live ensemble was impressive and included some of the area’s best musicians. Unfortunately, there are no plans for another live performance anytime soon, though Sheehan says he’s fielding offers.

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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 © 2019 Tim McMahan. All rights reserved.