by Tim McMahan, Lazy-i.com

Saddle Creek Records has a history of discovering amazing talent and then somehow losing it to other record labels. One recent, unfortunate example is indie powerhouse Big Thief, who broke to a huge national audience with their debut studio album, Masterpiece in 2016, and the follow-up, Capacity, the following year, both released on Saddle Creek.  But the band moved to legendary indie powerhouse 4AD Records with the release of U.F.O.F. in 2018.

Now Indigo De Souza, another rising indie star who got her start at Saddle Creek Records, has ditched the label after 2023’s All of This Will End, and today announced her full-length, Precipice, will be coming out July 25 on Loma Vista Recordings. Check out the first single, “Heartthrob,” below. De Souza will be doing limited touring, including performances at Pitchfork Festivals in London and Paris. 

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With Saddle Creek still in mind, today some news about Desaparecidos member Ian McElroy a.k.a. Rig 1. The former Omahan now New Yorker dropped a new single today, “Old Gaia,” that also features Brad Greenberg a.k.a. BrightA. It was released by Flower Moon Records, a label run by Maria Taylor of former Saddle Creek Records act, Azure Ray fame. Check it.

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Saddle Creek got a shout out in the New York Times in a feature story about the Rilo Kiley’s “Resurrection” published this past Tuesday (link behind firewall). The article traces the band’s rise with the release of arguably their best album, The Execution of All Things, in 2002, and follow-up, More Adventurous, in 2004, both released by Creek. The band split with Saddle Creek for 2007’s Under the Blacklight, which came out on Warner Bros. They broke up a year later.

Now Rilo Kiley’s back and on the road again (including a show at the Astro Amphitheater Sept. 17), supporting last week’s reissue of Execution, again on Saddle Creek Records. The Times article states there’s a “greatest hits album” coming out on Saddle Creek; but are they talking about the reissue? Can’t imagine the Times being inaccurate…

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Just a head’s up: As I was perusing upcoming shows on The Slowdown website, I noticed one of the few shows I was looking forward to seeing at the venue — Hurray for the Riff Raff — has canceled their July 15 show. No reason was given for the cancelation, as the tour continues to Chicago July 17…

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One show that’s not cancelled is tonight’s Nada Surf concert at The Waiting Room. Described as an indie band, I’ve always thought of them as alternative, having scored a hit back in ’96 with the Weezer-ish track “Popular,” off their High/Low album, released on Elektra. Man, it must be weird singing that song almost 30 years later. The band has always made Omaha a tour stop, going back to the early 2000s. Chattanooga duo The Cle Elum opens the show at 8 p.m. $25. 

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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.