by Tim McMahan, Lazy-i.com

Didn’t get tickets to tonight’s Faint concert at The Waiting Room before it sold out weeks ago? Me, neither. Tickets were available at Stubhub.com for just north of $200 per ticket yesterday. 

Why wasn’t this concert held at The Admiral, Astro or any other venue larger than The Waiting Room? It’s tough to say. Both Admiral and Astro are available tonight. I’m guessing it was a joint decision by the band and the booker – 1% Productions – but still, it’s a head-scratcher. In the past, The Faint have played capacity shows at Sokol Auditorium – now called The Admiral – and based on the quick sell out, would have had not problem filling the old South Omaha ballroom again. Plack Blague and Jeff in Leather open tonight’s show at 8 p.m.

So, out of luck? Well, don’t fret. There are other things going on while all your friends are at The Faint concert. Among them is a concert just around the corner at Reverb Lounge headlined by California-based singer/songwriter Marlon Funaki. His dreamy style of guitar-driven indie pop appears to be entirely self-released, and despite not having record-label suport still has nearly a million monthly Spotify listeners. Is it the power of TikTok? I don’t know because I don’t have TikTok. Omaha newcomer Sand opens this show at 8 p.m.   $17.

Also tonight, Omaha’s indie folk orchestra, Midwest Dilemma, headlines at Slowdown’s front room. Joining them are Justin Bloss and Matt Cox. $12, 7 p.m. 

Back to tonight’s sold-out Faint concert… 

It’s surprising how the show sold out so quickly considering their tour isn’t supporting new music, but reissues of albums that came out literally decades ago. Here’s the setlist for their March 31 show at The Taft Theatre in Cincinnati, which they no doubt will replicate on stage tonight. It’s a well-balanced selection that includes songs from throughout their post-Media career, including a few nice dives into the under-appreciated 2019 album, Egowerks. 

I’ve heard and seen all these songs performed before (in some cases, over a dozen times). What will the band pull out of their hats to make this different than past shows? Likely nothing, as The Faint is one of those established acts that can continue to tour on the strength of their old material ad infinitum. I

The band isn’t not alone. Bright Eyes and Cursive — the other two jewels in the Nebraska/Saddle Creek triple crown of indie superstars — could also rest on their laurels and tour just playing past “hits,” but instead both bands continue to write, record and preform new music. 

They’re even finding ways to reinvent it. 

This past Monday, the bands released a “mash-up” track that combines BE’s “Lover I Don’t Have to Love” and Cursive’s “The Recluse.” The cleverly produced “Recluse I Don’t Have to Love” has been written about in just about every online publication that covers indie music. 

From the write-up included on the track’s Bandcamp page: 

“Best bud Carly (spouse to Cursive’s Matt Maginn) pointed out the musical hook and libertine similarities between (‘Lover I Don’t Have to Love’’s) lyrics, and ‘The Recluse’ by her husband’s band. For years it was an inside joke – ‘should we make a mashup, just for fun?’  And on the eve of Bright Eyes’ North American tour with Cursive, the Kash-up mashup dream has become a reality.  And it weirdly works.  Carly was right.”

The track is available from both Bright Eyes’ and Cursive’s bandcamp pages and judging by the “supported by” tiles, they’ve sold a shit-ton of copies. All profits from the song will benefit the Poison Oak Project, Bright Eyes’ 501C3 non-profit dedicated to advancing equity for LGBTQ+ people, with a particular focus on supporting the trans community.

One has to wonder if they’ll try to perform the mash-up when the two bands play April 27 at The Astro. I think if they do, it should happen during Cursive’s set, as of the two tracks, “The Recluse” has the upper hand with around 16 million plays in Spotify vs. “Lover’s” 12 million. And besides, all Conor would have to do is walk out and sing it.  By the way, you may want to buy your tickets to that one now before it also sells out…

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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 © 2025 Tim McMahan. All rights reserved.