I don’t know if it was the rain or the fact that the band hasn’t released an album in a year, but only about 150 showed up last night for Nada Surf at Sokol Underground compared to, what, 500 the last time they came through and played upstairs? There are those who will point to the fact that Rogue Wave opened for them last March, and maybe Rogue Wave was the draw. Who knows? Regardless, I wasn’t the only one expecting a sell out. Maybe if the show had been marketed as part of a “greatest hits” tour, more people would have come out, but more on that in a minute…

White Whale was up first (after The Plus Ones, who I missed), and despite the fact that their new album is kinda interesting in its without-borders approach, the band came off somewhat flat. You knew there was going to be trouble when they took 20 minutes to do their sound check. There was just too much stuff going on, what with three guitarists (two of whom doubled on keyboards) and a mix that was soaking in delay and echo. It sounded like the band was playing inside an empty blimp hanger. All that delay made for a mushy mess, which made it that much harder to find the songs’ already-buried hooks. Their best stuff was saved for the end (vs. the eight or nine-minute “odysseys” that made up the first half of their set). I’d like to hear these guys stripped down to the bare essentials with a more conventional mix and fewer (or no) effects.

Nada Surf came on at around 11:30 and announced that they were going to do their entire set in chronological order, starting with a cover (I can’t remember what it was) and blowing right into their all-time hit “Popular,” a song that I’m told they’ve never played in Omaha before and that they supposedly quit playing live years ago. It was followed a cover of Joy Division’s “Love Will Tear Us Apart,” which wasn’t half bad. From then on, the set consisted of songs from their other early albums. “We now go from 1998 to 2002,” said frontman Matthew Caws, who explained that last night’s gig was a fill-in for an open date on their tour with Guster (ironically, that tour is coming to Omaha Oct. 31, without Nada Surf). This gave them plenty of room to stretch out on the set, which I’m sure was a treat for the hardcore Nada Surf fans who braved the elements. I thought the band sounded pretty good, but when I mentioned that to the guy next to me (a big fan), he said they sounded like shit, and that they already blew it on a couple of the older songs. I couldn’t tell because I’ve only heard their last record. By the time midnight rolled around and I had to leave, they were still playing songs from 2002’s Let Go.

Tonight, it’s Ladyfinger and Criteria at Sokol Underground. I beseech anyone who followed the Omaha punk scene in the early to mid-’90s to get to this show early and check out opening band Now Archimedes! (Here’s a review of their last O’Leaver’s gig). I’m told Criteria will be playing with their new drummer (Mike Sweeney apparently left the band a few weeks ago). Expect a sizable turnout for this, the kickoff of Ladyfinger’s first national tour in support of Heavy Hands. I assume copies of the new CD will be available at the show. Pick one up. $8, 9 p.m.

As for the rest of the weekend:

— Saturday night it’s Neva Dinova with No Blood Orphan, Tomato a Day and Drake’s Hotel at Sokol Underground. That’s a lot of music for $8.

— Sunday night brings an interesting show to O’Leaver’s featuring gritty, earthy, folkie singer-songwriter Jon Crocker, on tour supporting his new album, Death.. Also on the fight card are local singer-songwriter Brad Hoshaw and the legendary Dereck Higgins (Digital Sex, The Family Radio). $5, 9:30 p.m.

–Got comments? Post ’em here.—

Column 93: What’s in a Name?
The high cost of being Ladyfinger…

Before we get started, go read the feature on Ladyfinger on page __. We’ll wait. We always do….

Waitaminit… Did I say Ladyfinger? I should have said Ladyfinger (NE). After all, that is their legal name these days, despite how wonky it sounds, right? Look, no one I’ve talked to, including the band, likes the name Ladyfinger (NE). The added parenthetical albatross is awkward, confusing and just plain strange looking. But the cost of doing business without it could be higher than the retail, which in this case, is around $8,750.

Let’s start from the beginning: The Omaha punk rock four-piece who we fondly know as Ladyfinger has been using the name since their conception in August 2003. Over the past three years, Ladyfinger has played gigs all over the country with no incidents, warnings, or threats of reprisals, legal or otherwise.

Everything seemed hunky-dory until Saddle Creek Records agreed to release Ladyfinger’s debut LP. The band had already done their share of Googling and MySpacing and all the other Internet-related research, and couldn’t find another band by the name. Things seemed copasetic. “The only thing we didn’t do was check the trademark registry,” said Ladyfinger frontman Chris Machmuller. “Why would we think to when we couldn’t find a band by that name?”

But just for the heck of it, they decided to check the trademark registry of the United States Patent and Trademark Office. And that’s when the problems started. Seems there actually is another band called Ladyfinger based out of Los Angeles that apparently has owned the name for years.

Drummer Pat Oakes said the LA band has no viable interest in the name Ladyfinger and hadn’t even been playing anywhere. “It seems like they decided one day to trademark it,” he said. “We thought maybe they’d be understanding, since they weren’t functioning as a band.”

In an e-mail dated May 16, 2006, Omaha’s Ladyfinger reached out to LA’s Ladyfinger, saying yes, they had found mention of the LA Ladyfinger, but couldn’t find any contact information or active website. Since they thought it was no longer a functioning band, they went ahead and named their band Ladyfinger. “We’d really like to release our record under the name Ladyfinger,” the email said. “To do so we would need to purchase the trademark from you to avoid infringement.”

So Omaha’s Ladyfinger made an offer, which the LA Ladyfinger, of course, immediately turned down. “If you want to buy the trademark, we would consider a reasonable offer that makes more sense for us…” the LA band said in a reply.

Incidentally, a few days after Omaha’s Ladyfinger made contact, Ladyfinger.org — the LA band’s website — curiously went online. Hmm…

Anyway, Omaha’s Ladyfinger upped the ante — considerably — taking into account things like registration and lawyers’ fees. The LA Ladyfinger wasn’t biting. Instead, their counter offer included a detailed price list:

— $1,000 for all fees necessary for the LA band to come up with a new trademark (license and legal)
— $500 to cover legal fees to transfer the existing name to the Omaha band.
— $500 for new artwork
— $2,000 to repress their two CDs
— $1,000 for printing new T-shirts
— $200 for 2,000 stickers
— $50 for registering a new website domain.
— $3,500 for their perceived personal value of the name, derived by charging $500 per year for the seven years they’ve been in existence

The grand total: $8,750, not including $500 “for our time and effort.”

The price was too high. Omaha’s Ladyfinger considered fighting the claim. “And we could have won,” Oakes said, citing trademark abandonment as a defense. But there simply wasn’t time for a drawn-out legal battle.

Instead, the band considered the alternatives. Ladyfinger Jr., Ladyfinger UK, adding “The” or an “s” or a period or exclamation point. Purposely misspelling the name. Adding “Inc.” or “Ltd.” They even wrestled with new names like Bad Marks, Burger Time and Ages. Nothing seemed to work, Oakes said.

Time ticked by. The promo CD already had been held for a couple weeks at the plant. Decisions had to be made. “It got to be such a burden,” Oakes said. “We just wanted it to end so we could move on with our lives.”

Finally in June while on tour, the band sat down over coffee in an mall in Indianapolis and decided to add (NE) to their name — representing Nebraska. “We thought it would be the most unobtrusive option,” said bass player Ethan Jones.

“We were at the point where you could call us whatever the fuck you wanted,” Oakes said.

And so, the band was rechristened Ladyfinger (NE), for better or worse, for richer or poorer, til death do they part. And if you don’t like it, do what I do. I’ll continue to call Pat, Chris, Jamie and Ethan “Ladyfinger,” because that’s who they are. And if those guys in LA don’t like it, they can sue me.

This week’s profile is a massive feature on Ladyfinger that may or may not be the cover story of this week’s issue of The Reader. It was originally slated to be the cover, but now that looks doubtful, though the story is still cover-story length. It’s confusing. The story was supposed to be the main feature of The Reader‘s “music issue,” but that got pushed back until next week, which would mean this story wouldn’t run until after their big show Friday night at Sokol Underground. The band will still be on the cover of next week’s issue of The Reader along with two other bands, but not with this story (which is in the issue coming out late this afternoon).

Screw it — just read the story now. It’s right here. Chris, Jamie, Pat and Ethan talk about how the band got together, how they hooked up with Saddle Creek, how they made their new album, Heavy Hands, (including details on how they worked with producer Matt Bayles) and all kinds of other fun stuff. It’s long. It’s comprehensive. It’s Ladyfinger! And yes, I know that I’ve left off the (NE). Find out why in tomorrow’s column (which, btw, also is in today’s issue of The Reader). Yes, I believe this band could be on a rocketship, what with a primo opening slot on Cursive’s next tour and almost a month’s worth of touring in Europe. Catch them while you can this Friday. It could be a while until Ladyfinger plays here again.

Tonight, it’s Polyvinyl recording artist Headlights with Decibully and Someday Stories. Headlights just played at O’Leavers in April supporting their EP, The Enemies. Now they’re supporting their debut LP, Kill Them with Kindness. See them again. $5, 9:30 p.m.

–Got comments? Post ’em here.—

Sorry for the delays in updates. I was out of pocket yesterday, but I’m back now with an update on how well Lincoln Calling did last weekend. Organizer Jeremy Buckley IM’d me to say that the numbers weren’t as hot as he’d hoped. The breakdown: 600 attended Thursday night’s shows, 500 on Friday and 250 on Saturday, bringing the grand total to around 1,350 — a far cry from his hoped-for 2,000. The UNL-USC “rivalry” had more of an impact on the draw than he expected. So did last Saturday night’s thunderstorms, which had the sirens going off here in Omaha throughout the game. That said, Buckley is OK with how things turned out. He’s already looking at next year’s Husker schedule for by weeks, and he’s even considering adding a Wednesday night session. Here’s to the 4th Annual Lincoln Calling…

What else…

Am I the only one to notice the new Appleby’s (or was it Outback) commercial that features a rewritten version of Of Montreal’s “Wraith Pinned to the Mist and Other Games”? There’s no mistaking the source of the commercial’s jingle, and you have to assume that whatever ad firm came up with it paid Of Montreal for the rights, which is a shame because it’s my favorite song off that album and now it’s being used to sell poorly prepared fast food. Or maybe Of Montreal isn’t even aware that the commercial exists, which means there may be a lawsuit in the making (if they ever find out about it).

A big four-band show tonight at Sokol Underground: The moody Murder by Death with Appleseed Cast, Unwed Sailor and Sam Lowry. $10, 9 p.m. Meanwhile, the velvet tones of Voodoo Organist will be heard down at O’Leaver’s with Life After Laserdisque and We’re From Japan. $5, 9:30 p.m.

Stay tuned tomorrow morning for a huge feature/interview with Ladyfinger as we prepare for Friday’s big shoe.

–Got comments? Post ’em here.—

I’m looking at the calendar and other than tonight’s Gillian Welch / David Rawlings / Conor Oberst concert at The Scottish Rite Hall (which, curiously, is still not sold out, according to the One Percent Productions website, where you can by tickets for $15) there ain’t a whole lot happening in Omaha this weekend. Actually, I don’t see a single show here in town worth commenting on, which is yet another indication that Lincoln Calling should have a banner year. I talked about the line-up yesterday and included a full schedule. Jeremy Buckley, who runs the event, lost the rights to lincolncalling.com — the festival website — but has since established a new site — lincolncallingfestival.com — which one would believe would have the most up-to-date schedule (although they failed to add the last-minute Gillian Welch afternoon show at The Zoo Bar yesterday that I hinted at in my column).

If I were going to the festival tonight, my first inclination would be to head to Duffy’s for the Ideal Cleaners/Virgasound/Domestica show, which starts at 9 and is a measly $5. But considering that 2/3rds of this lineup is bound to play at The Brothers in the coming weeks, I’d probably end up at Knickerbocker’s for The Show is the Rainbow / Heiruspecs ($9, 9 p.m.). Tomorrow’s early show choice is Jake Bellows and McCarthy Trenching at The Zoo Bar ($3, 5 p.m.). Buckley tells me this version of Trenching won’t be of the Oberst/Taylor variety, but should be just as good. My late show would be Neva Dinova, Little Brazil and The Golden Age at Knickerbocker’s ($8, 9 p.m.). The Golden Age will likely be hampered by the Husker game, but things should get rolling after that.

–Got comments? Post ’em here.—

Column 92: Growing Pains
Lincoln Calling struggles through third year

My one question for Jeremy Buckley, the UNL student, music lover and organizer of the annual Lincoln Calling Music Festival, slated for this Thursday-Saturday at venues throughout the Capitol City:

Is it getting easier or harder?

“I don’t know. Maybe both,” Buckley said. “Each year I add a couple more bands, which adds logistical problems.”

And there certainly have been a few of those over the years, but what did Buckley expect? No one else is trying to do anything on this scale in Omaha or Lincoln: Three full nights of music featuring 36 bands/performers at five different venues, plus a film series. Just the thought of pulling all that together gives me a migraine.

But imagine having the whole thing booked and, one-by-one, you started losing bands. And not just any bands — top-drawer acts that you’re depending on to draw large crowds. Such was the case when three bands — Saddle Creek Records’ newcomer Ladyfinger, Lincoln break-out ensemble Eagle*Seagull, and white-knuckle punkers Axes to the Sky — all told Buckley they couldn’t perform just 10 days before the event.

“You get frantic to figure out how to fix the leak,” said a nervous Buckley. “There’s only so much you can do.”

The biggest rupture was Friday night’s Duffy’s line-up, which lost both Ladyfinger and Axes to the Sky. Remaining on the bill was area favorite Ideal Cleaners and Omaha power-punk band Virgasound — an act that’s just getting its feet wet in Lincoln. Buckley said the folks at Duffy’s almost pulled the plug. “Friday night is important business-wise for them,” he said. “People come in to buy their fishbowls. If they have a cover and the show isn’t strong, they’ll just walk on by.” Which is easy to do, considering Lincoln venues are all walking distance from one another.

But Duffy’s said they’d gladly keep the show going if Buckley could line up Domestica, a new band featuring Jon Taylor and Heidi Ore of Mercy Rule and Boz Hicks of Her Flyaway Manner. “Heidi said Boz was available, so let’s do it,” Buckley said. “That’s what you want to see — a band that’s willing to throw down.”

Crisis averted. Nothing, however, could be done about Eagle*Seagull, but the rest of that Saturday night line-up at Knickerbockers — Neva Dinova, Little Brazil and The Golden Age — is more than enough to hold its own, Buckley said. E*S frontman Eli Mardock also was scheduled to perform a solo gig at The Zoo Bar Thursday afternoon with Rob Hawkins of The Golden Age. Buckley said a “very special guest” could fill in for Mardock (but he couldn’t confirm it).

Why put up with these headaches? Because the festival, now in its third year, is finally catching on. “It’s easier now that bands, for the most part, know what Lincoln Calling is,” Buckley said. Last year’s event drew about 1,800, despite sagging Sunday attendance (Sunday’s been nixed this year) and problems at Duggan’s, a venue that cancelled a show after one band — The Architects — failed to show up, Buckley said.

“Only 20 people were there for the opening band, The Gov’t. So Duggan’s just closed the bar.” Leaving Omaha band Anonymous American out in the cold. “Matt (Whipkey, AA’s frontman) was extremely frustrated — they wasted an entire night — but the band was understanding.” Scheduling issues prevent AA from performing this year, but Whipkey is doing a solo opening set for The Mezcal Brothers Saturday night at The Zoo Bar.

“You remember who was easy and who was hard to deal with,” Buckley said, adding that Duggan’s wasn’t approached to participate this year.

His goal for ’06 is to exceed 2,000 in attendance. Considering the line-up, it should be a shoe-in. The 28-year-old Husker junior plans on graduating next summer with a degree in English. Teaching or writing is in his future, and so is Lincoln Calling, which he hopes to grow into something akin to Austin’s South by Southwest Festival — an event that involves more than just bands and venues, it involves the entire city.

“I suppose (I’m) interested in knowing how big this can get,” he said. “It’s important not to create limits to what can be achieved, so it’s an interesting question to consider what something like a little music festival in the middle of Nebraska can become.”

Here’s this year’s Lincoln Calling schedule:

Thursday, Sept. 14

Knickerbockers
Criteria
Maritime
Tie These Hands
9 p.m., $8, 18+

Zoo Bar
Early (5-7 p.m.)
Rob Hawkins of The Golden Age
(TBA)
5-7 p.m., 21+

Late:
The Jazzwholes
Tijuana Gigolos
9:30 p.m., $6, 21+

Christo’s Pub
56 Hope Road
9 p.m., $5

Duffy’s Tavern
The Prids
Her Flyaway Manner
Spring Gun
9 p.m., $6, 21+

Friday, Sept. 15

Zoo Bar
Early:
Son of ’76
5 p.m., $3, 21+

Late:
Forty Twenty
The Killigans
9:30 p.m., $6, 21+

Duffy’s Tavern
Ideal Cleaners
Virgasound
Domestica (Former Mercy Rule)
9 p.m., $5, 21+

Knickerbockers
Heiruspecs
The Show is the Rainbow
9 p.m., $9, 18+

Chatterbox
Early (6 p.m.)
Bloody Stump
This is We
The Speech Impediments
6 p.m., $5, all ages

Late (9 p.m.)
Jaeger Fight
Boycaught
The Hooligans
9 p.m., $5, 18+

Saturday, Sept. 16

Zoo Bar
Early:
McCarthy Trenching
Jake Bellows of Neva Dinova
5 p.m., $3, 21+

Late:
The Mezcal Brothers
Matt Whipkey of Anonymous American
10 p.m., $6, 21+

Knickerbockers
Neva Dinova
Little Brazil
The Golden Age
9 p.m., $8, 18+

Chatterbox
Early (6 p.m.)
Once a Pawn
The Deformities
6 p.m., $5, all ages

Late (9 p.m.)
The Goddamn Rights
Brimstone Howl
Bloodcow
9 p.m., $5, 18+

Tonight’s music calendar just got a bit more crowded: Mick’s in Benson will be hosting Gillian Welch tonight along with Conor Oberst, Sarah Benck and Korey Anderson. The show starts at 9 p.m. and is free. Better get there early if you want in!

–Got comments? Post ’em here.—

This week’s feature is a short one. Short, mainly because the cell connection sucked. Cell phones have become the blessing and bane of interviewers. They’re great because you can get ahold of bands much, much easier (usually from the back of their van) and they suck because it’s like talking to someone on a walkie-talkie (from the back of a van). I don’t own a cell phone, by the way (*readers cringe in disgust*), so let me let you folks who own one in on a secret — you sound like shit from a land line and we’re not hearing the first word of most your sentences. And you drive like shit. And you’re annoying in elevators…

Anyway…

Here’s this week’s feature on White Whale (read it here). Bassist Rob Pope, formerly of The Get Up Kids, does a bit of compare-and-contrast between the two bands, about their music and their careers. Though I interviewed them back in 2002, I never much cared for The Get Up Kids, whereas I much dig White Whale’s debut on Merge Records. And as for Pope’s question to me in the story, my reply was, “Yes I do. When you grow up in the country (in my case, Fort Calhoun) all you ever listen to in high school is Led Zeppelin. Maybe a little Pink Floyd and Van Halen, but mostly just Led Zeppelin.” Pope said I was lucky, that he didn’t get into Zeppelin and Floyd until he was in in his 20s. He obviously didn’t grow up listening to Z-92.

A couple marquee shows tonight. I already talked about Black Squirrels at The Dubliner (in yesterday’s blog entry — You really should come down there tonight and buy me a Guinness). That one starts at 8:30 and will cost you $5. Also tonight, down at O’Leaver’s, our old friends Race For Titles is playing with Back When. I hear those RFT boys will be hitting the studio hard over the next week, working on a new album. It’s about time. $5, 9:30.

–Got comments? Post ’em here.—

Remember that column where I asked ‘Where are all the new bands going to come from?’ (read it here, if you missed it)? Well, two new promising bands are making their debuts this week.

Tonight at O’Leaver’s is the debut of Thunder Power, a supergroup of sorts consisting of members of Life After Laserdisque, Watch the Stereo and the Davenports, specifically Matt Hutton, vocals, guitar; Jason Koba, synth, vocals; Ian Simons, sax; squeeze box; Brendan Walsh, drums; and Will Simons, clarinet. Their myspace is here. With Pontiak and The Pistol Brothers.$5, 9 p.m.

Then tomorrow night at The Dubliner is the unveiling of Black Squirrels, consisting of two former Dark Town House Band employees — Kat Smith, vocals/guitar and Kate Williams, accordion/vocals/keyboards — and former Fizzle Like a Flood-ers Travis Sing, bass/vocals and Doug Kabourek on drums. Check out their myspace at www.myspace.com/blacksquirrelsomaha. The Squirrels will be opening for Gael Sli, a neo-traditional band from Dublin. $5, 8:30. If anything, it’s just a great excuse to get down to The Dubliner!

By the way, One Percent Productions announced that the “mystery guest” for Friday’s Gillian Welch show at Scottish Rite Hall is (ta-da!) Conor Oberst a.k.a. Bright Eyes. Expect the show to now sell out quickly. It should have sold out with Welch alone. Tickets are still available at onepercentproductions.com. I’m hearing rumblings of a second (even maybe a third) Welch show sometime this week. I’ll pass on the details when/if I get them.

–Got comments? Post ’em here.—

When someone asks me “How was Thor on Saturday night?” it’s kind of like asking “How was meeting the Pope?” or “What was it like to witness the parting of the Red Sea?” or “What did Santa Claus say when you met him at the North Pole?” The phrase “bigger than life” just doesn’t cut it. Nor do words like “miraculous” or “biblical” or “Godlike.” This wasn’t just a concert, it was a life-changing event, like watching the birth of your first child or waking up from a 10-year coma (neither of which, admittedly, I have ever done).

I knew I was in for the heights of rock theater when one of the band’s roadies opened up a large plastic container next to the stage filled with skull masks and plenty of plastic battle weapons (axes, swords, etc.). Oh yes, there would be blood.

But first, there was “Rock and Roll Nightmare,” a film narrated by the man/god himself. I walked into the Saddle Creek Bar about halfway through what appeared to be a soft-porn horror flick complete with rubber monsters, fake blood and boobs. On screen was a younger, more muscular version of Thor with a huge head of blond hair and pecs the size of your thigh (a version of Thor, incidentally, that’s long gone). Nothing feels quite as uncomfortable as watching a movie of a women taking a shower and then getting humped by Thor while surrounded by a 100 or so folks who you will likely see at The Brothers on any given night.

After someone tripped over the projector chord — bringing the film to a close before we could find out who was responsible for all that fine cinematography — Zolar X, a science-fiction punk band from the ’90s that I’m told are friends with Jello Biafra, took the stage. Dressed in blond wigs and skin-tight Lycra space suits, these scrawny guys weren’t “brothers from another planet” as much as “geezers from another era.” Their music was punk merged with ’60s garage rock played by a trio that looked like they’ve lived through every bad moment of the last four decades (and have the wrinkles to prove it). It was like watching My Favorite Martian’s Ray Walston fronting an effeminate version of The Buzzcocks dressed in Star Trek costumes. Things got off to a hairy start when the band was assaulted with ear-splitting feedback from the monitors (I couldn’t hear it from the floor). After the first song, the drummer threw his sticks down and yelled, “The fucking feedback is killing us. FIX IT!” before storming off the stage. Someone apparently did, and he came back a few minutes later, looking a lot more relaxed. Their set was fun, if not too long. Or maybe it just seemed too long because we were all waiting to see the Thunder God.

We got our wish moments later, when Thor and his band of merry warriors took the stage, tearing into a set of heavy metal that would make Spinal Tap proud. Donning a huge black (plastic) chest plate and a series of gruesome rubber masks, Thor had the crowd in the palm of his mighty fist, proudly belting out one heavy metal ditty after another. Whether standing tall with shining crossed swords or looking for evil amidst the audience holding forth an electric Coleman lantern, Thor filled the crowd with a sense of awe and wonder. As the crowd pressed the stage, shaking their devil-horns high above their heads, I felt for a brief moment like I was back at Fat Jacks circa 1985, an era when touring heavy metal bands ruled the club circuit (Ah, those were fun times indeed. Where have they gone?).

Without his hood/masks, Thor’s graying locks betrayed the aging God, and he sort of looked like a buff version of Kenny Rogers (albeit, with a broadsword). Whether he was singing about Thunderhawks or about to behead a goblin or just making friends with a monstrous ogre, everything about Thor’s stage show was pure entertainment, right down to the band, which featured Omahans Dave Goldberg, Steve Jacobs and Jeff Decker, all of whom definitely are earning their money on this tour. As I mentioned before, I’ve seen some of the best touring heavy metal bands from the ’80s era, and these guys definitely could hold their own with any of them, showing an incredible respect for a genre that I have to believe peaked well before their time.

Saturday night was another success for the Saddle Creek Bar, bringing in a crowd that was even larger than that On No! Oh My! show the weekend before. Yeah, there were a few technical difficulties again (the Zolar X feedback episode, Thor’s microphone cut out on the first few songs), but overall the sound was first class. Unfortunately, I’m not aware of any other shows slated for the venue worth mentioning. The folks at One Percent Productions tell me they don’t have anything planned at the SCB in the future. And though I’ve talked to three or four local bands who want to play there, nothing has been scheduled that I’m aware of. It would be a shame if this stage didn’t get utilized to the extent that it could/should — it’s a perfect venue for shows too big for O’Leaver’s and not big enough for Sokol Underground. And damn, it’s so close to home.

–Got comments? Post ’em here.—