David Nance & Mowed Sound at The Waiting Room Dec. 26, 2023.

by Tim McMahan, Lazy-i.com

Yesterday it was announced via their PR agency that David Nance’s next album, titled David Nance & Mowed Sound, will be released Feb. 9 on Jack White’s Third Man Records.  

Nance’s relationship with White goes back at least to September 2018 when a member of White’s team reached out and asked if Nance would open for White at an outdoor gig at ONEOK Field in Tulsa, according to this interview. A year later, Third Man released a 7-inch by David Nance Group, “Meanwhile” b/w “Credit Line”. I guess ol’ Jack liked what he heard.

From yesterday’s press release: 

“Led by Nance on vocals and guitar alongside Kevin Donahue on drums, James Schroeder on guitar, Derrick Higgins and Sam Lipsett on bass, alongside guest appearances from Megan Siebe, Skye Junginger, and Pearl LoveJoy Boyd, Nance brings together a crew of veteran Omaha musicians for a record that showcases Nance’s  voracious appetite for anything that rocks, anything that soothes, and all the glorious static and disturbed transmissions in between. ‘The whole album is a big magic trick,’ Nance says, ‘most of these songs were written as country songs and then were perverted into different forms…but it sure as shit isn’t a country record.’”

No, it’s definitely not C&W. Folks who saw David Nance & Mowed Sound open for Icky Blossoms Dec. 26 at The Waiting Room likely got a sneak preview of some of the new material, which, as I mentioned in the show review, sounded like a midwestern version of Robbie Robertson and The Band. Listen to the first single, “Mock the Hours,” embedded below. You can pre-order the album from the Bandcamp page, which, strangely enough, has Nance’s own Western Records logo on the header (but includes a link back to the Third Man Records site). 

The album’s track listing includes yet another version of “Credit Line” — this will mark the third recorded version of the song that I’m aware of, and hopefully resembles the gritty, rock version they played at Petfest back in ’22.

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There are no indie shows to speak of this weekend. It’s as simple as that. 

However, in perusing my Instagram feed this week, I discovered that New York-based heavy shoegaze band MX Lonely will be playing at the mysterious, illusive, new all-ages punk venue The Blindspot Feb. 1. 

It took some serious internet digging to find out anything about the band, but I finally found this article on Post-punk.com that said MX Lonely was formed in November 2021 by Rae Haas and Jake Harms (ex-HARMS), initially as a home recording project. In November 2020 Haas began collaborating with fellow Brooklyn multi-instrumentalists, Gabe Garman and Chris Curtin. The article’s author, Alice Teeple, said thier music sounds like “a mix of Deftones, Hotline TNT, Preoccupations, Nothing, Cloakroom, and a few Frank Black screams for good measure,” which is pretty straight on. Hear for yourself. 

Anyway, stick a pin in Feb. 1 for this show. Opening is Omaha underground buzz bands Western Haikus and Cupholder. The Blindspot used to be one of those places that didn’t list their address, however their latest posts on Instagram show the addy as 619 So. 20th St. $10, 7:30 p.m. Considering my age, I’m going to have to go in disguise…

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 © 2024 Tim McMahan. All rights reserved.

by Tim McMahan, Lazy-i.com

Last year, the first touring indie rock show I attended was Lala Lala and Minne Lussa at Slowdown Jr. on March 12. So, basically, no rock shows after the holidays until spring. Despite Omaha having added two state-of-the-art live music venues, things won’t be much different this year. 

It’s just a fact that we get very few indie shows in the winter months, and I can’t say I blame the venues, who know people are less likely to go out to shows when it’s below-zero outside. Plus, bands don’t want to be driving around the country in the snow. I get it.

Still, there are a couple indie shows worth noting in the next few months, but not at Steelhouse Omaha (only seven shows total booked through the end of February, three of which are comedians), or The Astro (four shows booked leading up to March, including Porno for Pyros Feb. 24).

Here’s your touring indie rock calendar through spring:

• – Jan. 11 – Big Head Todd and the Monsters at The Slowdown
• – Jan. 21 – Squirrel Flower, Goon, The Dirts at Reverb
• – Feb. 17 – Matthew Sweet at The Waiting Room
• – Feb. 19 – Yo La Tengo at The Waiting Room 
• – Feb. 24 – Porno for Pyros at The Astro
• – Feb. 29 – Katy Kirby at Reverb Lounge
• – March 6 – Jenny Lewis at The Admiral

Throw in a couple local shows no doubt more shows will be added (probably) — slim pickings, but it looks better than last winter. 

To give you context, Minneapolis’ First Avenue/7th St. Entry indie rock calendar doesn’t look much better. Of note, they also have Indigo De Souza Feb. 14, Militarie Gun and Cold War Kids Feb. 24, and Silversun Pickups Feb. 25. In fact, by comparison, Omaha has a better winter calendar, IMHO…

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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 © 2024 Tim McMahan. All rights reserved.

by Tim McMahan, Lazy-i.com

Happy 2024. If you wisely stayed away from social media and your usual online haunts during your holiday break, bravo! 

You missed nothing. Really. What you might have missed are the end-of-year articles at Lazy-i.com. And that’s fine. You can catch up now. Here are the links:

• – 2023: The Year in Music
• – Music Visions for 2024
• – The Lazy-i Best of 2023 Comp CD

There are still copies of the 2023 Best of Comp CD available. If you want one (they’re free), drop me a line at tim.mcmahan@gmail.com with your mailing address and I’ll drop one in the mail for you. It includes music from Genesis Owusu, Slowdive, Blondshell, Neva Dinova, Boygenius, Lewsberg, Lana Del Rey, Bad Bad Men, Palehound and more. You can also listen to the playlist at Spotify from this link or search “Tim McMahan” in Spotify, then select Profiles, then Public Playlists. You’ll find it along with a few from past years.

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Tonight, the first indie rock show of the year is at The Slowdown. Laura Jane Grace is, as we all know, the front person of indie/emo act Against Me! but also has been playing out as a solo performer since before releasing her 2018 debut, Bought to Rot, on Red Scare Records. These days Grace releases music on Polyvinyl Records, the latest EP being 2021’s At War With the Silverfish.  

Joining Grace tonight is Mya Byrne, former member of the roots rock band The Ramblers. She’s maintained that twang on her latest album, Rhinestone Tomboy (2023, Kill Rock Stars Nashville). Omaha’s own Glow opens at 8 p.m. $32.

This is the first indie rock show of the year, and also the last touring indie rock show until Squirrel Flower plays at Reverb Jan. 21 (and what looks like the last touring indie show at The Slowdown until May!). Get it in while you can, it’s going to be a long, cold winter…

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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 © 2024 Tim McMahan. All rights reserved.