This morning 1% Productions published an apology via Facebook for statements reported in the Omaha World-Herald after the Aug. 8, 2019, shooting death of Michael Rowell, Jr., outside The Waiting Room Lounge, a club owned and operated by Marc Leibowitz and Jim Johnson, the duo behind 1%. Rowell reportedly had come to watch a performance at the club the night of the shooting.

Arguably Omaha’s most important concert promotion company, 1% books The Waiting Room, Reverb Lounge and other venues around town, and has lined up the acts for the the annual Maha Music Festival for the past decade. In the Aug. 20, 2019, OWH article, Leibowitz said 1% no longer would book local rap artists at The Waiting Room or Reverb Lounge.

“In the wake of last year’s tragic murder of Michael Rowell Jr., we made statements to the Omaha World Herald that were hurtful to the local hip-hop community. We want to publicly apologize for the impact of our statements,” the statement reads. “Music, and specifically hip-hop music, has long been a platform for expressing the inequities in society. Now, more than ever, we need to take time to listen to what those voices are saying. As we strive to create a better future, we wanted to officially clarify that we do plan on booking more hip-hop in Omaha. Whether it’s national or local artists, we want to continue our support for the community by trying to provide a safe environment for this critical genre to perform and to be celebrated.”

The Waiting Room, which had been closed since March due to COVID-19, reopened a couple weeks ago after Gov. Ricketts relaxed COVID-related restrictions to music venues. Reverb Lounge likely will reopen in August, Leibowitz said, as the venue is undergoing some upgrades.

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Saddle Creek Records artist Disq today released a cover of Jeff Tweedy’s “I Know What It’s Like” via Bandcamp.

Said Disq’s Isaac duBroux-Slone: “I sped up the original recording a decent amount so I’d have something to play along to and off I went. We decided it’d be fun to present the finished product as an interim release; post-Collector and pre-whatever’s next.” Check it out below…

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Even though these are just “virtual” concerts, I get the feeling things are starting to pick up performance-wise around here.

Tomorrow night (Wednesday) Low End at The Bemis is having yet another virtual concert, this time featuring San Jose experimental act Xiu Xiu (Polyvinyl, Kill Rock Stars). I would have loved to see them play live at Low End; this is the next best thing. The stream, free via The Bemis’ Twitch account, starts at 8 p.m.

And then Thursday night is Essential Festival, a live-streamed concert from the stage at The Slowdown featuring a plethora of local acts, including:

And How
Clarence Tilton
DVH Recordings (Dereck Higgins)
Keith Rodger (Kethro)
Matt Whipkey
Mesonjixx
McCarthy Trenching
Nathan Ma

It’s a “pick your ticket price” event that benefits Catholic Charities of Omaha, and kicks off at 6 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 © 2020 Tim McMahan. All rights reserved.

Some Tim Kasher news.

First off, Kasher has a new film script called “I Have to Have You,” which is being pimped by SXSW at Fantastic 7, a pitching session held yesterday at Cannes Marche du Film Online.

“It’s being repped by SXSW this year in a ‘genre’ section for the Cannes Film Festival,” Kasher said. “I’m working with Travis Stevens / Snowfort Pictures, we are looking for funding to shoot it.”

The script’s description in Variety, tinsel town’s trade publication: “Tim Kasher’s U.S. horror thriller, “I Have to Have You,” produced by Travis Stevens, focuses on a heavy metal rocker obsessed with a young woman. Kasher explains that the pic is about the male gaze, voyeurism, objectification and surveillance society.”

And then today the Austin band Mountain Time premiered a video for the single “Rosemary, Etc.,” off the band’s just released full-length Music for Looking Animals (Spartan Records). The video was directed by Tim Kasher, who also plays the role of a shifty preacher. And look for some other familiar faces who make cameos throughout the video. Mountain Time is the latest project by Chris Simpson of classic emo bands Mineral and The Gloria Record.

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Adding to the COVID misery, Stir Cove today announced it’s cancelling its summer 2020 concert season.

“This is the first time in its 17-year history of entertainment in Council Bluffs that the Summer Concert Series will take a hiatus,” said Regional VP Missy Hardersen. “The health and safety of our fans, artists, partners, staff and community is always our highest priority, therefore; we have decided to cancel the series normally scheduled throughout the summer season.”

Gonna be a long summer…

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Saturday night Lincoln folk country act Jack Hotel tonight celebrates the release of its new album, A Town Called Hesitation (Sower Records) via Facebook live. The show starts with an album listening party at 6 p.m. More info here.

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Also Saturday night, electro-prog act Glow in the Dark opens for Flux Amuck at The Waiting Room. This is an actual live event. Live and Obey opens at 8 p.m. It’s $7. The minimum 4-ticket purchase requirement has been dropped, but you still have to sit at a table.

That’s all I got. 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 © 2020 Tim McMahan. All rights reserved.

It was a busy day for Bright Eyes yesterday. The outfit led by Conor Oberst announced a new single, “Mariana Trench” and the name and tracklist for their new album, Down in the Weeds Where the World Once Was, out Aug. 21 on Dead Oceans.

And the band performed sort of live on the Late Show with Stephen Colbert, which you can watch below. See Conor sporting what looks like strangler gloves, Mike Mogis in a seed cap and Nate Walcott splitting time between keyboards and trumpet. It’s the band’s first performance in 10 years. Like I told you, they never broke up.

From the press release: “As a title, as a thesis, Down In The Weeds Where the World Once Was functions on a global, apocalyptic level of anxiety that looms throughout the record. But on a personal level, it speaks to rooting around in the dirt of one’s memories, trying to find the preciousness that’s overgrown and unrecognizable.”

After hearing the first four tracks, it sounds like this is going to be another doomsday album from Bright Eyes, which will make a nice bookend with the new one by Conor’s partner in crime, Phoebe Bridgers, which came out last Thursday: Punisher, also on Dead Oceans (poor Saddle Creek).

This new Bright Eyes track is the best one so far, certainly the most upbeat, and along with “Forced Convalescence” sounds like a natural progression post-Cassadaga had the band not gone wandering for a decade, certainly more so than the wooden, folky stuff Conor released on Ruminations/Salutations…

No word on a tour yet. Imagine a Bright Eyes / Phoebe Bridgers / Better Oblivion Community Center joint tour. I think my head just exploded…

https://youtu.be/I4au-zxd8u0

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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 © 2020 Tim McMahan. All rights reserved.

Well, Saddle Creek Records lost again (this time to Sacred Bones) for Label of the Year (Medium) at last night’s Libera Awards, streamed live in what was a pretty efficient program. Big Thief, who flew the coop from Saddle Creek to 4AD, won Album of the Year for U.F.O.F., an album that probably would have been released on Saddle Creek had the band not skipped the label.

A few other notable winners: IDLES won for Best Live Act; Fontaines D.C.’s Dogrel (Partison) won for Best Alternative Rock Album; Weyes Blood’s Titanic Rising (Sub Pop) was named Best Indie Rock Album; Cigarettes After Sex’s Cry (Partisan) won Best Mainstream Rock Album (though it’s hardly a rock album); Amyl and The Sniffers’ self-titled album (ATO) won for Best Punk/Emo Album; and Orville Peck took home Breakthrough Artist and Best Country Album (though it’s not really a Country album) for Pony (Sub Pop).

The program kicked off with a lengthy Black Lives Matter video and testimonials from artists, which was well done. And though there were plenty of mentions of COVID 19’s impacts on the industry throughout the program, the overall tone was somewhat muted rather than desperate. Strangely, there were no mentions of efforts by the National Independent Venue Association (NIVA) to get legislation passed to financially support the live music industry. Odd.

Meanwhile, there’s this story today in Consequence of Sound stating 600 artists have signed the open letter to Congress asking for funding. You can, too.

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I typically don’t write about cover bands or tribute acts, but tonight’s Shoot to Thrill AC/DC tribute is different because it marks the return of live music to The Waiting Room.

As explained a couple weeks ago, tickets are $15 but you have to buy a minimum of four tickets, which gets you a table. Remember, due to COVID-19 restrictions, you have to be seated at all times at these kinds of events, with people six feet apart at your table and tables six feet apart, etc.

Beginning June 22, those restrictions change again as we enter “Phase 2,” but I’m not sure how that will impact venues except apparently allowing for eight people per table instead of the current limit of six.

As mentioned before, if tickets are still available at the door the day of the show, they might sell some singles/doubles, if possible. The show starts at 8 p.m.

By the way, that July 3 Good Life show at The Waiting Room (still listed on the 1% website) has been postponed until later this year.

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Josh Hoyer doesn’t have to worry about any stinking table restrictions. His show tonight with his band Soul Colossal is a drive-in concert, which means you drive your ass there and stay in — or around — your car for the duration of the concert, held at Falconwood Park, 905, Allied Road, Bellevue.

Tickets start at $40 per 1- or 2-person vehicle, and then go up by $20 per person per vehicle after that. The show starts at 7 p.m. Find out more about what you can and cannot do right here.

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It looked like about 100 people were tuning in to watch Dereck Higgins last night while I was watching his virtual concert streamed from Low End at The Bemis.

Low End is doing it again tomorrow night (Saturday), this time with Thrill Jockey / Matador Records act Matmos. The Baltimore-based ambient/electronic duo has released 10 albums since their start in the late ‘90s, including last year’s Plastic Anniversary on Thrill Jockey.

Tonight’s free stream starts at 8 p.m. and you can find it via the Low End Facebook page or their Twitch account at twitch.com/bemiscenter.

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Finally, this year’s Under the Radar Festival is also a virtual affair. Sunday night’s concert starts streaming at 6 p.m. Here’s the line-up:

6:00 – Kristin Jonina Taylor  
6:30 – Anna Elder  
6:50 – Adam Marks
7:20 – Cubby Philips
7:50 – Aaron Allen Jr
8:10 – Stacy Busch
8:40 – Mesonjixx

You can plug into the show from the Experimental Sound Studio webpage, here.

And that’s all I got for now. Seems like we’re getting closer and closer to returning to real live concerts, but we’ve still got a ways to go. If you go out, don’t forget to wear a mask. It’s not only healthy, it’s pretty cool.

Hope you 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 © 2020 Tim McMahan. All rights reserved.

Who doesn’t like an awards show, especially one focused on music?

No, I’m not talking about The Grammy’s, I’m talkin’ ’bout the Libera Awards, brought to you by the American Association of Independent Music (A2IM), the trade group for the indie music industry.

For the first time, the awards show is going to be streamed live for free, tonight starting at 5:30 p.m.

It’s sort of like the Grammy’s for indie rock. For example, the bands nominated for Album of the Year: FKA Twigs, Angel Olsen, Brittany Howard, Orville Peck and Big Thief. Big Thief, formerly on our very own Saddle Creek Records (now on 4AD), also is nominated for Best Alternative Rock album, and will be performing live at the ceremony.

Once again this year, Saddle Creek Records has been nominated for the Label of the Year (Medium) award, alongside 4AD, ATO, Sacred Bones and Drag City. Will the Creek take home the coveted Libera? You’ll have to tune in to find out. Register for free here.

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Also tonight, Omaha legend Dereck Higgins is performing a virtual concert streamed live from The Bemis Center’s Low End performance space.

“For his performance, he will play a variety of his electronic compositions with live accompaniment as well as improvise several ambient pieces created on the spot,” Bemis writes. The stream begins via Facebook and Twitch (twitch.com/bemiscenter) starting at 8 p.m.

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Finally, this month’s Over the Edge column in The Reader is all about the fashion of face masks, and includes an interview with Fashion Institute Midwest’s Denise Ervin. Who would have thought Billie Eilish and Gucci could be so precog as to know face masks would become fashion staples months before the pandemic? Read the column here.

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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 © 2020 Tim McMahan. All rights reserved.

by Tim McMahan, Lazy-i.com

A few weeks ago I begged you to write your representatives in Washington via the the National Independent Venue Association (NIVA) website, asking them to start paying attention to how COVID-19 is destroying the live music industry and to DO SOMETHING ABOUT IT.

Well, last Wednesday I got a response from Nebraska Sen. Deb Fischer. The reply pretty much was what I expected — a templated letter that outlined past COVID-related legislation, introduced with, “Congress and the Trump administration have taken a number of steps to restore confidence to the American people.”

A few hundred words later toward the end of the letter it read, “Rest assured I will keep your thoughts in mind regarding the impacts on the live entertainment industry.“

OK, this doesn’t give me confidence that Deb’s going to do much to help the live music industry recover financially post COVID other than keep it in her thoughts. Certainly she doesn’t mention introducing or supporting a bill, etc. Does that mean you shouldn’t submit a letter via the NIVA website? No. The more our representatives hear from us, the more likely they will begin to realize their constituents are concerned about this issue.

And since I sent my note, a piece of legislation has been introduced: S. 3814, the ReStart Act, introduced by Senators Todd Young (R-Indiana) and Michael Bennet (D-Colorado). According to NIVA, who supports the legislation, the act:

— Finances the equivalent of six months’ worth of payroll, benefits and fixed operating costs.

— Allows for flexible use of loan proceeds and loan forgiveness with no minimums on the percentage dedicated to any one expense.

— Expands eligibility to ensure access for small businesses that have many part-time employees.

— Allows up to 90% loan forgiveness for businesses with fewer than 500​ ​FTEs (full time employees) ​and high revenue loss.

— Implements a generous 7-year payback schedule, wherein principal payments are not required for two years and interest payments aren’t due for the first 12 months.

So with that in mind, I’m going back to the Take Action form and sending another letter to my congress people. Hey, it can’t hurt.

No doubt an intern in Deb’s office is responsible for keeping track of how many of these letters are received, and after that number exceeds some imaginary threshold, senators like Fischer will begin paying attention. Or not.

Read more about how COVID-19 is impacting the live music industry in this new NIVA fact sheet. Among its tidbits: According to a survey of NIVA members, ​90 percent of independent venues report they will close permanently in a few months without federal funding. ​Current PPP funding will not solve the crisis.

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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 © 2020 Tim McMahan. All rights reserved.

Oh, what a week it’s been. And the last thing that’s probably been on your minds is music and the lack thereof. But here we are with the weekend upon us and still no live music in which to partake.

Though to be honest, even if shows were booked they’d likely be cancelled due to curfews tonight and tomorrow night that will see the city of Omaha close its doors at 10 p.m. I like to think they’re being done in support of Black Lives Matter events rather than out of fear of them.

That said, things are loosening up with regard to bars and venues reopening. Bars, as you know, got the go-ahead to reopen on Monday, June 1.

The first venue to reopen: Fabulous O’Leaver’s. I got word about the reopening Tuesday from Craig Dee, who said both O’Leaver’s and Winchester are now open. They’re obviously following Douglas County Health Department guidelines, which means they have tables set up six feet apart, four to a table. And yes, the outside patio is open.

O’Leaver’s is open today from 3:30 to 9 and tomorrow from 12 to 9. Expect an announcement very soon about the launch of their new grill.

While there’s no drink minimums or charges to enter O’Leaver’s, there’s also no live music. The first show listed on their schedule isn’t until July 18 (but that could always change).

On the other hand, The Waiting Room’s first show is slated for June 19 — Shoot to Thrill, an AC/DC tribute act. Tickets are $15, but you have to buy a minimum of four tickets — which will get you a table. If you want to go alone, you can, but you still have to buy a table. The reason being, regulations require people to be seated at tables, not standing around. Hey, you’ve got three friends to share the freight, right?

Marc Leibowitz, who owns/operates The Waiting Room with Jim Johnson, said if tickets are still available at the door the day of the show (meaning it’s not sold out in advance), then they’ll sell some singles/doubles if possible.

He said the new rules brings The Waiting Room’s capacity down to just 84 people — that’s 21 tables of four.

Reverb Lounge, btw, has no shows scheduled until August, and no plans to reopen this month.

As for The Slowdown, Jason Kulbel could only tell me that the venue will not be reopening this month. And still no word from The Brothers (it’s closed, too).

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Today until midnight Bandcamp is once again waiving its share of sales to support artists impacted by COVID-19. Most labels (including Saddle Creek Records) also are sharing 100% of digital revenue with artists.

But artists also are donating to BLM causes.

— SAVAK (Mike Jaworski’s joint) is donating proceeds from sales of a new 7-inch to the Brooklyn Community Bail Fund.

— Simon Joyner is splitting profits among four national and local organizations (including the Union for Contemporary Art and Culxr House).

See the full list here.

That’s all I got for now. 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 © 2020 Tim McMahan. All rights reserved.