Yuppies at Slowdown Jr., April 6, 2012.

by Tim McMahan, Lazy-i.com

If I had to choose a winner of last night’s battle of the punk bands at Slowdown Jr. it would be Yuppies by a furlong. I haven’t seen them for more than a year and didn’t recognize their sound or style. Here I thought they were run-of-the-mill low-fi garage rockers. Instead, they’re more like noise/prog/punk than the usually sloppy garage doo-rah.  They came on at around 9:30 to a crowd of around 50 and played all their material as one long song with a lot of changes and shifts, from spoiled-rotten, screamin’ punk to throbbing distorted prog/noise, intense enough to drive a few outside for a smoke. The set’s last “movement” was something akin to listening to a wasted lumberjack chop down a tree or a tired killer kick someone to death one boot-to-the-head at a time. I don’t know if their recordings are a reflection of their live show, but if they are, it’s probably not something you’d want to listen to at the gym. Yuppies don’t so much play songs as perform ebb-and-flow music that, when it does have a semblance of songcraft, can be driving and catchy and inspired. The rest of it will leave you bent over, coughing up blood.

Digital Leather at Slowdown Jr. April 6, 2012

It was an off night for Digital Leather. Frontman Shawn Foree’s guitar sounded out of tune most of the set. He even noticed, saying something to bassist Johnny Vrendenburg between songs, trying to tune to his bass. It sounded so off at times I wondered if there was something wrong with his guitar. Unfortunately, the vocal mix was bad as well, leaving Foree lost in the fog of noise, and making the whole set off kilter. It wasn’t a total loss.  The rhythm section of Vrendenburg and drummer Jeff Lambelet pushed forward in their usual breakneck fashion. Lambelet is the best rock drummer in Omaha.

What made DL’s off night more disappointing (for me, anyway) was that before the set someone I know and respect told me one of the reasons he was there was because of how I’ve been lauding Digital Leather on this blog. I asked if he’d heard DL’s albums before, and he said he had, and didn’t much care for them. I’ve got a feeling he now thinks his suspicions about the band have been empirically proven, which is a shame.

He’s not the first person in the past couple days to tell me I’m wrong about a band. Since last night, I’ve had no less than three people tell me I’m way off about Capgun Coup. One told me I was stupid to call them a “garage band” (I didn’t really call them a garage band; what I said was their new record showcases “Intelligent garage rock songwriting,” which one could argue is an oxymoron on a number of levels). Turns out most people I’ve spoken to who don’t like Capgun Coup’s music don’t like Sam Martin for whatever reason. I don’t know Sam Martin, just like I don’t know Shawn Foree, and the fact that I do or don’t know either of them doesn’t play into my opinion of their music. But I’m finding more and more that people’s opinions about certain local bands are based entirely on their relationships with people in those bands. If they’re pals, the music is great; if they don’t know the people, they’re indifferent or apt to not like the music; if for whatever reason they don’t like the people in the band, they hate their music. I’ve met a lot of musicians that are complete pricks who make great music; conversely, I know a lot of super nice musicians whose music sucks.

But I digress.

Los Vigilantes at Slowdown Jr., April 6, 2012.

Last up was Los Vigilantes, an upbeat band from San Juan that’s more rock than punk, sort of Black Lips meets Social Distortion sung in Spanish. Very energetic, the lead guy even took off his shirt during the performance. I thought they were fun and the crowd seemed to like it, but apparently not enough for the band’s guitarist, who said “Why don’t you fucking dance?” between songs. I guess he never heard the rule about Omaha crowds and dancing. Now he knows.

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Lots o’ shows going on this Easter weekend.

Tonight at O’Leaver’s it will be a reconvening of the same crowd that was at Slowdown Jr. last night, as Baby Tears takes the stage with Watching the Train Wreck and recent Omaha transplants Worried Mothers. $5, 9:30 p.m. I’m buzzin’ already.

Also tonight, opening for Des Moines band Envy Corp, is Eli Mardock, whose new five-piece band in many ways already has exceeded Eagle Seagull (see review). Also on the bill is Machete Archive and Great American Desert. $8, 9 p.m.

Tomorrow night’s big show is the Conchance album release party at House of Loom. Not only will this vinyl record mark Conchance’s debut, but it also is the debut release by new Omaha label Make Believe Records, an offshoot of Make Believe Studio. Also on the bill are Dirty Diamonds, Max Fischer, DJ Kethro and DJ Really Real. $5, 9 p.m.

Also Saturday night, it’s yet another return of Kite Pilot, this time at The Barley Street Tavern with Well-Aimed Arrows and We Live in Sod Houses. $5, 9:30 p.m.

Meanwhile, back at O’Leaver’s, it’s Dim Light with Electric Jellyfish, Snake Island and Saintseneca. $5, 9:30 p.m.

One more thing: Tomorrow afternoon another “Songs @ Shop” event is being held at the Saddle Creek Shop in the Slowdown compound. Performers include Dan McCarthy, Anna Marie McClellan of the band Howard, and who knows who else will show up for this Slumber Party Records showcase. Performances start at 3 p.m. and it’s free.

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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 © 2012 Tim McMahan. All rights reserved.

Los Vigilantes

by Tim McMahan, Lazy-i.com

I can’t think of a better way to celebrate the death of Jesus Christ than a punk rock show at Slowdown Jr. And tonight’s show is as good as any.

Los Vigilantes is a four-piece punk band from San Juan who records on Slovenly Records and lists among its influences the Fleshtones, New York Dolls, Freddie King, The Black Lips, The Stooges, King Khan, The Gories, The Clash and Danzig. I don’t know if they speak English, and I don’t think it matters, judging by this track on SoundCloud:

Los Vigilantes, “Mi Mami Dijo”

My unbridled passion for Digital Leather is renowned. You can see their ugly faces on the Lazy-i homepage every stinkin’ day. Shawn Foree is a national touring musical evil genius that continues to fly under the radar in Omaha despite the fact that he’s lived here for years. The band’s latest album, Modern Problems (2012, FDH Records) is among my favorites so far this year. Any chance you get to see this band, take it, and tonight is obviously no exception.

Yuppies are your run-of-the-mill juvenile delinquents with guitars, sort of a slacker surf punk explosion that just happens to be catching fire on the national garage circuit. I’m not sure they speak English, either, based on this Soundclound track:

Yuppies, “Getting Out”

You’re getting all three bands for $8. Take a few minutes out of your annual Stations of the Cross ritual and come down to Slowdown Jr. at 9 tonight and witness this spectacle. Who knows, there could be a Second Coming or two.

Also tonight, uber-nerd band Harry and the Potters are playing at The Waiting Room with Koo Koo Kangaroo. $12, 8 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 © 2012 Tim McMahan. All rights reserved.

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Get ready for Contextual Doom.

by Tim McMahan, Lazy-i.com

It is with utter dissapointment that I fell asleep before heading out to The Waiting Room last night for the Antiquarium Subversion Showcase and seeing Capgun Coup. Though I can’t comment on their performance, I will say this about CC’s new album, Contextual Doom: It sounds like frontman/CC mastermind Sam Martin had an epiphany involving early Velvet Underground. The album, slated for release next month by ORG Music, has the same looking-through-a-dirty-window-on-the-Lower-East-Side feeling associated with, say, the VU & Nico album.

Half of the record involves laid-back “Sunday Morning” guitar riffs, tom-and-tambourine percussion and Martin’s own flat, seen-it-all-before vicodine-infused vocal delivery. It doesn’t get more slacker than on “My Bordumb Is Bored,” where Martin mumbles, seemingly with half-closed eyes, “I’m high as the ocean and my mind is commotion all my thoughts are unspoken and my heart it is broken…” The other half is garage ravers like “Claire Doesn’t Care,” which props up Martin’s lethargy like a dancing, twitching corpse. But even pumped up mothers like “Laugh/Cry” have a Velvet overlap — if you slowed the song by about 50 bpm you’d get something akin to “Heroin,” but with the lyrics, “Don’t it feel so good inside to have a good reason to cry? All your tears will dry.”

Martin is a musical enigma. He’s not so much Omaha’s version of Lou Reed as much as Omaha’s own Anton Newcombe — as unpredictable as he is talented, out there as much as out of control. And Capgun Coup is one of those bands that has a different life on vinyl than it has on stage. Their recordings (and no more than this one) are showcases for intelligent garage rock songwriting that nods knowingly toward the past while defining a better, if not slumped-shouldered, future. On stage, Capgun Coup is unpredictable — you never know what you’re going to get from gig to gig, which can vary from a taut, high-energy rock show to an extended, off-kilter caterwaul careening out of control. Whether triumphant or disappointing, they’re never boring. And neither is Martin, or for that matter, this album.

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For those keeping score at home, my latest column is in print and online right here at thereader.com and centers on the life and death disappointments of Game of Thrones. Check it.

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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 © 2012 Tim McMahan. All rights reserved.

by Tim McMahan, Lazy-i.com

The folks at Des Moines’ 80/35 Festival today announced their initial line-up for the July 6 and 7 event:

Friday, July 6 – The Avett Brothers, Dinosaur Jr., Freddie Gibbs, Fucked Up

Saturday, July 7 – Death Cab for Cutie, Leftover Salmon, Dan Deacon, Greensky Bluegrass, Leslie and the Ly’s, The Sundogs, Maxilla Blue, Mumford’s (and no, that’s not Mumford & Sons).

Avett Bros. and DCFC already are coming to our area. And we got J Mascis at MAHA last year. The rest of this rather blah lineup falls into the jam band/alt country/pop category, except for the highlight of their festival, Matador band Fucked Up, who I’d love to see come to Omaha, though I don’t think Red Sky/MAHA quite know how they’d explain the band’s name to their sponsors (Apparently U.S. Cellular, 80/35’s financiers, has no qualms about it, nor should they).

The press release says they’ve already sold out of “Early Bird and VIP” tickets. As for the rest:

Advance: $49 Two-Day, $29 One-Day
Regular: $65 Two-Day, $39 One-Day
Day of: $45 per day

80/35 says “many more exciting national, regional and local acts will be announced in early May.” Let’s hope so. Is this rather weak lineup more evidence of how difficult it is to book a festival these days, what with all the other bigger festivals going on in larger markets? Maybe. It also might be a reflection of a paradigm shift for bands, who used to make decent money off album sales. Now they depend more on performance income, and are getting it — higher demand means higher prices. More info at the 80/35 website

.

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They’re calling tonight’s show at The Waiting Room “The Antiquarium Subversive Showcase Vol. 1.” The line-up is huge — we’re talking five musical acts, a comedy group and a DJ. Headlining the subversion is Capgun Coup, who’s new album, Contextual Doom, is about to be released. Get a sneak preview tonight. Also on the bill: Noah Sterba and The Cocktails, Dads, Zach La Grou and The Romantic Poets, Comedy by DO IT WITH US, & Records by DJ Oddible. All for just $5. Show starts at 9.

Also tonight, another installment of The Record Club at the Shop at Saddle Creek. Tonight’s listening party features Bruce Springsteen’s Nebraska. The needle drops at 7 p.m., with discussion to follow. More info 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 © 2012 Tim McMahan. All rights reserved.

by Tim McMahan, Lazy-i.com

Thanks to all who came out for my “non-DJ” DJ night at House of Loom on Friday. As expected, there was virtually no one there at 5 p.m. when it began, but things livened up as the evening rolled on, and a total of about 20 people eventually showed up. It was actually quite rowdy at around 7 p.m., and I ended up “spinning” for an extra 45 minutes beyond the 8 p.m. cutoff.

It was a trip meeting a couple people who read the column and website regularly and wanted to “see what I looked like.” I hope I didn’t disappoint them too much. It also was nice seeing a number of music-scene collegues who dropped by for a few drinks and a few songs.

If you haven’t been to House of Loom, you really need to give it a try if only for the ambience. I can’t think of a better place to grab a drink right after work, and for those into the DJ/ dance culture, House of Loom is among Omaha’s best dance clubs. Check it out. Thanks again to Loom, Brent and Ethan for being such gracious hosts.

* * *

Speaking of checking things out, as Cursive continues its ongoing national tour, they’re (currently) bringing Conduits along for the ride. And as interesting as it is to read how people dig Kasher and Co’s live rendition of I Am Gemini, we’re starting to see the first reactions to Conduits from a “foreign market.”

Among them, this piece from the Carnegie Mellon student newspaper The Tartan:

“Conduits, an indie rock sextet based out of Omaha, Neb., was the first opening band. Despite releasing their debut album on March 20, they performed a cohesive set that mixed the straightforward arrangements of pop rock with the sonic textures of shoegaze and psychedelic rock. The crowd was small for Conduits’ set, but it was clear that the pulsating bass lines and beautiful guitar ­— imagine rippling water as a sound instead of a vision — captivated these dedicated fans completely.”

The review concluded with: “While a majority of the audience had come for Cursive, it was difficult not to leave as a fan of all three groups.” Read the whole thing here.

Then there’s this from the University of Buffalo student newspaper The Spectrum

:

“Opening for Cursive was five-piece outfit Conduits, from Cursive’s hometown of Omaha, Neb., and the bands even shared member Patrick Newbery, who played synth and keys for both bands. Conduits immediately asserted their place in Mohawk’s tightly packed venue, with the audience crowding in front of them, as if they were headlining.

“Conduits’ music consisted of a mix of slow rock combined with rhythmically dynamic maracas and tom-toms rising to importance during their set, juxtaposing the lead into the flowing synthesized music.”

So far, so good. It’ll be interesting to read what the New York media says when Cursive and Conduits play back-to-back sold-out shows at The Bowery Ballroom tomorrow and Wednesday.

* * *

Tonight at The Waiting Room it’s Barsuk band Yellow Ostrich with Rough Trade artist Howler. $10, 9 p.m. Both bands are rising to that middle-echelon of touring indie bands. Check out a couple of their tracks below:

Yellow Ostrich, “Marathon Runner”

Howler, “Back to the Grave”

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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 © 2012 Tim McMahan. All rights reserved.

by Tim McMahan, Lazy-i.com

So I’ve come to the conclusion that no one is going to show up at my DJ thing at House of Loom from 5 to 8 tonight except Teresa, a couple stylish friends of mine, Brent and Dr. Sheehan and that’s fine. It’ll be a chill way to kick off the evening. If you’re looking for something to do after work and you’re dying to hear dance and/or rock music from the ’80s to the present in a finely decorated, uncrowded lounge or outside on the patio, at a place where you can enjoy some of the best craft drinks in the area or great beer on tap, then come on by. It’s free. The weather is supposed to be spectacular and you can join in on the conversation, which likely will center around yesterday’s announcement of the Stir Cove Summer Concert Series and how very lame it is.

If you haven’t seen the announcement, it’s right here. The highlights are The Shins May 31 and The Avett Brothers July 3. Let’s be honest, the new Shins album is somewhat…lacking, and the band couldn’t be more boring live. Then there’s the Avett Brothers, who would be amazing in an intimate venue like Slowdown or even The Holland, but outside of a casino? No. The rest of the acts are a mish-mash of has-beens (Creed? Really? Michael Bolton? Well, they do need to cater to the high rollers who are throwing away their retirement checks one penny at a time). Acts like Chicago and George Thorogood just make sense when you consider the best thing your typical casino patron can hope for is to somehow make time stand still, or better yet, go backward. We’re talking about an audience who would enjoy nothing more than to relive their glory days driving around West Broadway in that fourth-hand Camaro with “Bad to the Bone” pounding out of the ol’ Spark-o-Matic 6 x 9s, smoking and drinking and waiting to die.

Relax, Harrah’s, I keed. In fact, Avett Bros. is a definite maybe. I think it might even sell out. And there’s a very good chance that I’ll end up getting loaded at Heart. Let it ride, baby…

* * *

So, the weekend.

After you finish your hand-crafted cocktails at House of Loom tonight — and if you should decide to not stay there all night — there’s a  live music opportunity to consider — Nada Surf at The Waiting Room. Get there early to catch opening band, Brisbane’s An Horse (Mom + Pop Records). $18, 9 p.m.

Saturday night, our friends at Omahype.com are hosting Saddle Creek band UUVVWWZ at The Barley Street Tavern with the return of Noah’s Ark Was a Spaceship and Brother’s Family Temple. $5, 9 p.m.

The lucky-if-you’re-there performance of the weekend, however, is Lost in the Trees at Slowdown Jr. Saturday night. The band, who releases music on Anti-, is the epitome of intelligent, lush pop, and I mean lush. Check out the tunes in the soundcloud below and see why they’re compared to Sufjan Stevens by many and Tears for Fears by me. Gorgeous stuff. And get this — opening the show is Sub Pop artist Poor Moon. Poor Moon is Christian Wargo (Fleet Foxes, Crystal Skulls) and brothers Ian and Peter Murray (The Christmas Cards). Their new album, Illusion, was released this past Tuesday. Both bands, $10, small stage. What more could you want, except for maybe Michael Bolton?

Lost in the Trees, “Golden Eyelids”

Lost in the Trees, “Red”

Poor Moon, “People In Her Mind”:

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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 © 2012 Tim McMahan. All rights reserved.

by Tim McMahan, Lazy-i.com

So is this the most boring week ever? There have been very few shows to speak of, and virtually no national shows scheduled. I took a look back at the last week of March 2011 just to see if this is an annual trend and discovered that we were: enjoying the return of It’s True, Lincoln Exposed was happening, a new band called New Lungs was debuting at O’Leaver’s, Landing on the Moon was playing at the Waiting Room and Old ’97s were playing at The Slowdown. Not a bad way to close out a March, and a helluva lot better that what we’ve been seeing here lately.

Ah, but despite yet another night of no shows, things are looking up for the weekend. And based on Stir Cove’s twitter feed, we’ll be hearing about this year’s Stir lineup this evening at 6:40 p.m. We already know that The Shins are playing at Harrah’s May 31 with The Antlers *yawn*. And the nightmarish “Last Summer On Earth Tour” takes over the Stir Cove Aug. 9, featuring soccer mom bands Barenaked Ladies, Blues Traveler, Big Head Todd & the Monsters and Cracker. Ugh. I’ve got a sad, sick feeling that the Shins date may be the highlight of Stir schedule. Let’s hope not.

Think about how challenging it is to book a mid-level or higher indie band in Omaha these days, especially in the summer. There’s practically a different huge festival going on every week/weekend somewhere in the U.S., including our own MAHA Festival and Red Sky (though RS’s focus seems to be in the pop/country/legacy/shit realm rather than indie, so far). The casinos, who used to be more concerned about booking Vegas-style schlock, are now turning their attention to indie in a big way, with Black Keys last year and now The Shins and who knows who else. It would seem to put more pressure on our very own 1% Productions, who can already boast booking upcoming festival-worthy shows featuring Death Cab and Low (April 11, Music Hall), Heartless Bastards (May 27, TWR), St. Vincent (May 14, Slowdown), Best Coast (May 29, Slowdown), Son Volt (May 24, TWR), Deer Tick (May 20, TWR) and Sleigh Bells (April 14, Slowdown), among others. I’ll be surprised if Stir announces a date with any indie band of that caliber…

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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 © 2012 Tim McMahan. All rights reserved.

Brent Crampton. Photo by Randy Powell.

by Tim McMahan, Lazy-i.com

While listening to Neon Trees at SXSW, one of their lyrics jumped out at me, a lyric that I can’t find online (maybe it was made up on the fly?): Paraphrasing: “Anyone who can play a record calls themselves a DJ.” Frontman Tyler Glenn sung the line with a certain amount of venom — odd when you consider that a band like Neon Trees would seem to want to court DJs. Regardless, Glenn’s attitude reflects a lot of people who think that DJing is far from an art form and is no more difficult than playing good music (not necessarily records) in a logical sequence.

That idea was at the center of an interview conducted with DJ Brent Crampton Monday night, and is the theme behind this week’s column, which you can read in The Reader or online right here. Brent answers my inane question: What exactly is a DJ? Most of his answers are in the column; but some didn’t make the cut due to space. Among the edits is Crampton’s response to those who diss DJs as being nothing more than highfalutin stereo operators. “I think a lot of criticism comes from DJs who get put on the same level as bands, and the two are different things,” he said. “Personally speaking, being a DJ I only have to deal with myself. A band can have four, five, six members, and half the battle is just staying together.”

Being a one-man shop can make DJs a more affordable option. “I feel like dance music is recession-proof,” Crampton said. “There will always be a need for people to dance, especially when things are tough. During the recession, I was getting more gigs than ever, and there were house parties every weekend. People are living more poor. You can buy a six-pack and hang out with friends until who knows when, and dancing is free.”

He also pointed to the history of DJing going back to the disco era of the ’70s when DJs began to replace live music. “The gay rights movement really came out during that era, and disco was the tugboat that pulled it out of the closet,” Crampton said. White America took out its homophobic fears on disco in the form of stadium events where piles of disco records were literally blown up. But DJs lived on.

“Historically, rock very much has had a thing against DJs from the get go,” Crampton said. When it comes to comparing live performances to DJs “really they’re apples and oranges,” he said. “We need both. There’s a need for what we do.”

Also not in the article, Crampton’s take on where DJing is headed. “History tells you it’s going to follow the technology,” he said. “You’ll get more and more away from traditional forms of DJs. It could be a blend of other people’s music and live mixing. On the flip side — that element of technology could go so far that purists will go back to vinyl. There’s something magical about vinyl. People are just blown away by the skill level it takes to mix two records together. All kinds of things can go wrong.”

Finally, we talked about the current financial state of House of Loom, the club that Crampton operates with partners Jay Kline and Ethan Bondelid. “I’m pleased with what’s happening,” he said. “It was a very difficult process. None of the partners had owned a bar before. With our heads to the ground we fumbled from one point to the next. There were some humbling moments. I don’t think I was expecting it to be as difficult as it was. And I’m surprised I didn’t get as much warning from my friends in the business.”

Crampton and Co. had an advantage over other start-up clubs — six years’ worth of branding built up from the Loom concept. “It wasn’t like we had this idea from scratch, there was a lot of groundwork,” he said. That groundwork is paying off, but it’s a lot of work…

Like I said, the full story is in The Reader, which you can read here. The column supports House of Loom’s Friday Afternoon Club program, of which I will be the central participant this Friday from 5 to 8 as the club’s guest “DJ” or “non-DJ” as Crampton is calling us. His description is accurate. I am not a DJ. And as a result, there (probably) won’t be any dancing going on at Loom Friday afternoon, but it could still be a good time. Details here.

* *

Tonight at The Slowdown it’s a four-band bill headlined by Skypiper and featuring The Big Deep, The River Monks and Great American Desert. Early 8 p.m. start, $7.

And speaking of DJ gigs, Darren Keen’s Good Speakers series continues at House of Loom tonight with Bad Speler (Keen), DJ Kobrakyle and Kethro. The real deal. Check out Bad Speler’s latest Illegal Art track “Superman,”  below or at the Illegal Art website. 10 p.m. and free.

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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 © 2012 Tim McMahan. All rights reserved.

The Mynabirds at The Waiting Room, March 23, 2012.

by Tim McMahan, Lazy-i.com

I don’t know if that’s supposed to be a fox or a coyote or a wolf plopped upon Laura Burhenn’s lovely head. For you vegans in the audience wondering, it’s not real, though the spirit of it is (However, it would have been even more effective had it been a griz head, just like ol’ Bear Claw’s in Jeremiah Johnson

). Everywhere she goes these days, Burhenn is photographed with that stuffed animal on her noggin, representing, what… rebellion? or the death of it, because nothing says futility more than the head of a dead animal balanced on your head, even if it resembles a plush toy.

Still, the crowd loves it, and when Burhenn put it on again at the end of the show, they went nuts, so I guess we all better get used to seeing it. If anything, it represents Burhenn’s new music, or her departure from the old(er) stuff from her debut. Friday night at The Waiting Room was the first time I’d heard any of it, and my impression is that she’s taken a hard right turn toward drama — even stoicism — on stage. All those months backing Conor on last year’s Bright Eyes tour pumped up the “importance” of her approach, as evidenced by her announcement about three songs into her set that her new album, Generals, is a a protest album with “a lot of anger.” She seems to have volunteered to take on the role as front piece for a movement that isn’t terribly well defined, but that she’s very serious about, and you should be too, even though a lot of what I heard Friday night sounded like love songs.

According to the press release, the forthcoming album, which arrives in June, “is both a protest record and concept album. It’s fueled by a full decade of Burhenn’s political frustration and aimed at finding a revolutionary yet pacifist way in a world where, these days, it seems warring comes quick.” The record is “filled with armies of stomps and claps, sweeping full spectrum orchestrations, and moments that range from intensely personal pleas to shout-out-loud protests with teeth.” For me, the best protest music is more subtle than that. Dylan’s best moments are met through metaphor. And some of the best ’60s political commentary is outlined in humor. Even Conor’s best political statements are draped in clever irony (“When the President Talks to God,” is an obvious example). Go too far with it, and you risk sounding too self-serious or preachy. Whether Burhenn suffers that pitfall, I’ll withhold judgement until I hear the record.

That said, such earnestness was marked as much by Burhenn’s between-song patter as the songs themselves, which you couldn’t really absorb from the stage Friday night. At one point, Burhenn congratulated the crowd for their support in getting the LGBT ordinance passed by the City Council, but added that the fight isn’t over yet, and that we’ll all be hearing more about it in the future. Yes, indeed. Despite the politics, most of the evening was dedicated to music and Burhenn’s new band. Gone are all the original members that hailed from Omaha — Johnny Kotchian, Dan McCarthy, Pearl Lovejoy Boyd, Ben Brodin and Alex McManus. I don’t know the story behind their departure, but have been told it had to do with touring availability. I can’t seem to find a listing of the new band members anywhere, but will say they all had the tact and talent of veteran support folks or session players. None of them stood out, but all were competent. This galvanizes the idea that The Mynabirds is fully a Laura Burhenn project. If so, why not just go by the name “Laura Burhenn,” especially if you intend to put your politics out front?

Look, I realize I’m asking more questions than providing a review. Musically, it all sounded fine. The new stuff  seemed less orchestrated and more poppy than the songs heard on the first album (which as a result, is a record I’ve come to appreciate even more). It’s too early to say if there will be a song on the new album as gorgeous as “Right Place” or as sing-along fun as “Numbers Don’t Lie.” Burhenn seems destined to be compared to Jenny Lewis, whose own music feels less constrained and more easy-going than Burhenn’s. But then again, Lewis isn’t a self-proclaimed writer of protest songs.

Opening band Big Harp continued on the hard(er) electric path that I briefly heard unveiled in Austin at SXSW. If you liked the simple acoustic two-step of songs like “Goodbye Crazy City,” you might be disappointed with the new blues explosion approach that recalls The Black Keys more than, say, Justin Townes Earle or Willie Nelson. Luckily, frontman/guitarist Chris Senseney has more than enough guitar and vocal prowess to pull it off and give Dan Auerbach a run for his money.

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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 © 2012 Tim McMahan. All rights reserved.

by Tim McMahan, Lazy-i.com

The Seattle Weekly

 ran this story Tuesday

about Nebraska’s thebandbrokeup.com

 website — the now nationally famous online archive where anyone can download albums by a selection of Nebraska bands that no longer exist, including Polecat, Frontier Trust, Opium Taylor, 13 Nightmares, Pablo’s Triangle and a ton more (and I just noticed they have the download available of the classic Capitol Dark Mix compilation, taken from live recordings at the long gone Capitol Bar & Grill, which includes tracks by Cellophane Ceiling, Ritual Device, Mousetrap and Cactus Nerve Thang, among others — a must).

In addition to talking to site co-founder Dan Jenkins, The Seattle Weekly also spoke to Nebraska ex-pat now Seattle-ite Mike Jaworski about translating the idea to Seattle. Why not? Check it out, and check out thebandbrokeup.com if you haven’t already.

* * *

Lots of good local shows going on this weekend.

Prime among them is tonight at The Waiting Room where The Mynabirds take center stage. Laura Burhenn and Co. will perform songs off the band’s upcoming Saddle Creek release Generals

. Also on the bill are Big Harp and Howard. $8, 9 p.m.

Also tonight, Bear Stories plays at O’Leaver’s with Dan Mariska and Family Picnic. $5, 9:30 p.m.

Tomorrow night (Saturday) Digital Leather returns to The Brothers Lounge with Baby Tears and Peace of Shit. They’re calling it a “night of pure, filthy energy,” which sounds about right. I’m told PoS will have a new cassette for sale as well. $5, 9 p.m.

Also tomorrow night it’s (yet another) return of Kite Pilot

, this time to The Barley Street Tavern. Seems like the band pops its head out every six months for a show. Also on the bill are I Am The Navigator and Howard (that’s two nights in the row for them). $5, 9 p.m.

Finally Sunday night, experimental post-rock artist Delicate Steve headlines a show at Slowdown Jr. with Janka Nbay and the BuBu Gang, Dustin Bushon and the amazing InDreama — a psych rock project featuring Icky Blossoms’ Nik Fackler and Omaha legend Dereck Higgins. $8, 9 p.m.

* * *

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 © 2012 Tim McMahan. All rights reserved.