by Tim McMahan, Lazy-i.com

Azure Ray recently opened a date for Bright Eyes. Now half of Azure Ray — Maria Taylor — has announced a new project with Mike Bloom (Jenny Lewis, Julian Casablancas) called HAHA. They dropped their first single yesterday on Taylor’s Flower Moon Records, and it features Elvis Costello drummer Pete Thomas. The track was mixed by Jonathan Low (The National, Taylor Swift). No word if there’s more to come, but if I had to guess…

In other new music news, Teenage Fanclub has a new album coming out Sept. 22 on Merge Records called Nothing Lasts Forever. The album’s first single, “Foreign Land,” dropped awhile ago, and is classic TF. The whole album is pretty good. Here’s hoping someone books them here in Omaha.

Yesterday 1% Productions announced An Evening with Yo La Tengo Sept. 29 at The Waiting Room. The show supports their new album, This Stupid World, which Pitchfork has crowned with a “Best New Music” designation and an 8.5 rating. Tickets go on sale Friday at 10 a.m. and are $32.

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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 © 2023 Tim McMahan. All rights reserved.