So who came up with the name? “We wanted it to be kind of self-deprecating,” said MAHA Festival organizer Tyler Owen said, “but we wanted it to describe the area, too. Bemis Press (a local design firm) came up with the name. There was some resistance, but it was better than some of the others we were considering. (The name) was a very contentious issue for the board for two months. It wasn’t the name I wanted, but I like it. It’s kind of a silly word that doesn’t mean anything, like Bonnaroo and Coachella.”

Column 234: MAHA Explained
The festival’s organizer talks about compromise.

Tyler Owen, one of the key people behind next weekend’s MAHA Festival at Lewis and Clark Landing, wasn’t too happy with last week’s column, where I suggested that the terribly named event was nothing more than a repackaging of the usual casino acts, along with a sprinkling of local bands that had to win talent contests to get on the Kermit Brashear (I-Love-Sarpy-County) Local Stage.

It wasn’t the first criticism that Owen and the rest of the “YFC” committee have heard about MAHA. And word on the street (confirmed by Owen) is that ticket sales have been lagging in the wake of The River Riot and Green Day, which have siphoned off all of the extra lawn-mowing money from their target audience.

Owen called Sunday while driving back from a South Dakota vacation. His key message: The festival being held next weekend is not the festival that he wanted. The real goal is to make MAHA into a Midwestern version of the Bonnaroo or Coachella festivals.

Sound ambitious? He went on to say organizers envision MAHA as a three-day event held at a dam site that would be preceded by a week-long South by Southwest-style invitational hosted in Benson or the Old Market.

“The intent is to get this thing big and powerful enough to get Radiohead here,” he said. But instead, they got G. Love and Special Sauce and Dashboard Confessional. What happened?

“We asked over 200 bands and ended up with the lineup we have, for better or worse,” he said.

They thought they had The Flaming Lips, but that fell through. The list of targeted bands also included Fran Ferdinand, The Killers, Phoenix and Bob Mould, but because of their touring schedules — and the fact that MAHA is an unproven quantity — none would commit.

Add to that the fact that they got started three months too late, in February. One of their first decisions, Owen said, was hiring One Percent Productions’ Marc Leibowitz — easily the best promoter of local indie rock shows, who books The Waiting Room, Slowdown and larger venues such as The Holland and Anchor Inn. Owen said off the bat they had The Decemberists locked in, “but we became concerned about selling 3,000 tickets for them,” he said. “So we went a little bit more commercial.”

With that in mind, Owen said they dropped One Percent. “Marc is 100 percent indie, so we decided to wait and collaborate with him next year,” he said. Instead, the YFC turned to Events Resources Presents, Inc., a company out of Green Bay, Wisconsin, whose festivals include Sioux City’s Saturday in the Park Festival. Their headliner this year was Counting Crows. You can figure out the rest yourself.

So who is the YFC? Owen said the acronym doesn’t stand for Your Festival Committee, as had been reported. “I can’t reveal its true definition,” he said without explaining why. The five-member committee includes Mike App, Trey Brashear (yes, he’s related to Kermit), Mike Toohey and Traci Hancock. And Owen, who said he’s worked in the music business in Los Angeles and has played in bands for 25 years. His current band, The Eye, has a new album coming out in December. These days Owen makes a living working in his family’s steel business.

The MAHA Festival is a non-profit endeavor — designated 501c3 — and depends not only on ticket sales but donations and sponsors to make it work. Owen said a festival mission is to keep prices down “so it’s not going to cost $150 for tickets” — an admirable goal.

From a local standpoint, Owen said the YFC tried to get Cursive, Bright Eyes and The Faint on the bill, but had no luck. “We wanted Saddle Creek and the Slumber Party Records guys involved in the say in the local lineup,” Owen said. But instead, they decided to go with a “battle of the bands” approach because “we thought it would be a good opportunity for people to get excited” about MAHA. The final local band line-up is Jes Winter Band, Little Brazil and Noah’s Ark Was a Spaceship. It’s True, which is also playing, got invited without winning a contest because they are “kind of a favorite” of the YFC.

Owen said that indie bands Appleseed Cast and Army Navy are his “favorite bands on the bill.” So why relegate them to early afternoon time slots when no one will be there? “That’s where we felt they fit in the overall lineup,” he said, adding that G. Love and Dashboard got the plum 7 and 9 p.m. slots because “We kind of went by who we thought would pull the largest number of people.”

“It was a hard decision to make,” he added. “Were we going to hire a band for twice as much to play a festival environment that would be lucky to fill Slowdown on a Saturday night? Maybe we did this bigger than we should have. This whole thing is a learning experience.”

In the end, this year’s MAHA Festival has been an endless series of compromises, right down to the location. “Our first choice was Anchor Inn,” Owen said. Lewis and Clark Landing was chosen because “it’s plug and play, and we just wanted to get this first one under our belts.”

Things will be different next year, Owen said. They’re considering Levi Carter Park or Standing Bear Lake as possible locations, and plans call for forming a panel of local music experts to make recommendations for bands.

“The thing I keep coming back to with people not into the lineup is to go down and be a part of it anyway,” Owen said. “Be a part of an all-day festival and help us become viable for the future.”

* * *

Tonight at Slowdown Jr, it’s Oakland, California low-fi garage punk-rock freak Nobunny. Check out his rabbit-masked hi-jinx on YouTube. Opening is Flamboyant Gods and Mr. Wizard. $7, 9 p.m.

Tomorrow: Whipkey

–Got comments? Post ’em here.—

Regarding yesterday’s blog item about Conor playing Jimi at Woodstock… I didn’t believe it, either, but I figured, heck, this is The Washington Post ferchrissake, the home of Woodward and Bernstein, they couldn’t possibly have gotten this wrong no matter how upside-down-and-backwards the story sounds.

Then yesterday afternoon I got an e-mail from a reader that said the following: “I also found it strange that Conor would be playing in place of the dead Jimi Hendrix. Seems The Washington Post got the facts wrong…figures! The kid’s name is Conrad Oberg…close but still wrong.”

He included links to two other stories, including this one in USA Today which shows a picture of Conrad in mid-shred.

The Post apparently printed a correction yesterday. Ironically, I can link to the original article online (and it still references Conor), but I can’t link to the correction because it’s “by subscription only.”

* * *

We all make mistakes.

In last week’s column I referred to Saddle Creek’s Miles Benjamin Anthony Robinson in second reference as MBAB — not MBAR. I blame fatigue and poor eyesight for the miscue, and have since fixed it on my website. Wish I could say that the typo was caught by the fine folks at The Reader…

* * *

The Lincoln Journal-Star reported yesterday (here) that Homer’s is closing its Lincoln store sometime next month. In the article, Homer’s general manager Mike Fratt said the economy and the inability to negotiate more favorable lease terms with the building’s owner combined to prompt the closing. “It was really ugly in October, really ugly in January and really ugly this month,” said Fratt in the LJS article, noting that Homer’s did not see a similar decline at its Omaha stores.

Does that mean we’re not going to see any Omaha Homer’s stores close their doors in the very near future? Hey Mike, I just bought three CDs at the Saddle Creek location Sunday! If you’re thinking of closing it, at least consider moving it to Benson. I think there’s an empty storefront that just became available where a bridal shop used to be.

* * *

It’s a busy Tuesday music-wise.

Keyboard-and-drum pop-rock duo Shiver Shiver is playing at The Waiting Room with The Half Hearts. $7, 9 p.m.

Down the street at The Sydney, art-noise-rock trio Fromanhole is playing with The Stay Awake and The Short Histories of Powerful Nations. $5, 9 p.m.

And the Voodoo Organist returns once again to fabulous O’Leaver’s Pub, with godshamgod (formerly Prostitute America). $5, 9:30 p.m.

* * *

Tomorrow: MAHA Explained…

–Got comments? Post ’em here.—

Thanks to the rain, the weekend was a giant bust. I went to no shows at all, but I did pick up three CDs at Homer’s — new ones by Wilco, Grizzly Bear and Dirty Projectors — all are among the most-hyped indie albums so far in ’09. I’ll let you know what I think, but so far, the Wilco album is making the cut, the Grizz album started out strong but seems to meander and meander and meander. I haven’t had a chance to listen to the DP album.

I also did a couple interviews — Matt Whipkey, which you’ll see online Thursday, and a member of the MAHA Festival committee reacting to last week’s Lazy-i column, which will be online Wednesday. Very interesting indeed.

What else…

According to the Washington Post (here) Conor Oberst opened the Woodstock reunion concert this past Saturday “reprising Jimi Hendrix’s electric guitar version of ‘The Star Spangled Banner’ that became legendary after he performed it at Woodstock.” Conor is a strange choice for such an honor. He’s about as well known for his guitar playing as Hendrix was known as a singer/songwriter.

Anyway…

O’Leaver’s is kicking off a busier than normal music week tonight with Anaheim garage band Thee Makeout Party (who just got off the road with Nobunny), along with The Contrails and The Prairies. $5, 9:30 p.m.

–Got comments? Post ’em here.—

Wasilla Alaska indie band Portugal. The Man is playing tonight at The Waiting Room with Landing on the Moon. Portugal’s new album, The Satanic Satanist, kind of reminds me of low-end MGMT with some groovy rock touches and plenty of falsetto. If you’re wondering about the name, Wikipedia says they were going for a “bigger than life” vibe. Says guitarist John Gourley, “The band’s name is ‘Portugal’. The period is stating that, and ‘The Man’ states that it’s just one person,” though there’s more than one person in the band (more like five). They just played at Lollapalooza and did Bonnaroo earlier this year, so their star seems to be on the rise. Catch them for a mere $12. Show starts at 9 p.m.

* * *

A few newsy bits to pass along:

— Capgun Coup announced yesterday that its sophomore effort, Maudlin, will be released Nov. 3 on Team Love Records. According to the publicist: “The new album is often a satiric commentary on the state of contemporary life, from the futility of sadness, self-pity, and ennui to economic and social inequities to the anesthetizing effects of technology. With dishwater-colored and cracked glasses, Capgun Coup are almost modern, Midwestern Holden Caulfields – howling with restless dissatisfaction in anguished, dissonant vocals and armed with guitars.” Yeah, but does it have a beat you can dance to?

— Speed! Nebraska announced that Techlepathy’s debut CD is “at the plant” with more release info to follow. Techlepathy frontman Lincoln Dickison will be playing at noon this Saturday at famous Omaha craft store Mangelsen’s along with The Wagon Blasters and Outlaw Con Bandana. It’s free; bring the kids.

— I just noticed that the Meat Puppets are slated to play at The Waiting Room Nov. 7. I’ve never thought much of these guys live, but caught them at SXSW and was indeed impressed with their over-the-top arena-rock sound.

* * *

This week’s column is a slight retooling of Monday’s blog entry, so if you read Lazy-i regularly, you’ve already seen this. I include it here for completist’s sake. I’m told that Little Brazil and Noah’s Ark Was a Spaceship won the talent contest and will be playing the Brashear LLC Local Stage, or as one clever reader suggested, perhaps they should rename it The Sarpy County Stage (see this OWH story for the punch line).

Column 233: Homeless in MAHA
Creek signs NYC singer/songwriter, MAHA hosts another talent contest.

Some bits and pieces from last week, culled from the blog…

Altsounds.com reported Sunday that Saddle Creek Records signed singer/songwriter Miles Benjamin Anthony Robinson and will be releasing his new album, Summer of Fear, Oct. 20. MBAR has worked with a couple guys in Grizzly Bear and TV on the Radio.

I’ve never heard of MBAR. Looks like there was a rather large swell of press surrounding him last summer, including an item in SPIN and a Q&A in New York blog Gothamist that included this quote about his stint as a homeless person in NYC:

“Q: Are there any nights you remember distinctly from that time in your life? A: This album is not about being homeless in New York. Maybe if we’re having a beer sometime we can bullshit about our past and tell drug stories but the repeated discussion of them in relation to talking about my music is beginning to bore me. I HAVE DONE A SHIT TON OF DRUGS AND I USED TO SLEEP OUTSIDE SOMETIMES. I ATE FOOD OUT OF THE GARBAGE AND SAVED FOUND CHANGE TO BUY MALT LIQOUR (sic). IF YOU DON’T ALREADY HATE THIS STORY YOU WILL SOON. Oh the unshakeable stench of cliché that surrounds me.”

Poor, poor MBAR. I have to agree with him, his background certainly is sad and cliché, and there are those who will assume that the experience permeates his songs, whether it does or not. He better get used to being asked about living in a cardboard box because us poor, lazy music journalists — dying to find some kind of hook to write around — are going to ask about it again and again. It reminds me of a comment I read from a musician who had a different kind of pre-fame hardship: “Yeah, I lived in my car for a year, in fact I was parked right behind Jewel.”

Checking out some of MBAR’s music on Myspace, it indeed sounds like something that belongs on Saddle Creek. How did it all come about? Saddle Creek head honcho Robb Nansel e-mailed me to say, “Jeff Tafolla (who works at Saddle Creek) came across him online. We all really liked his music and he was looking for a label. Jeff and I met him and his manager at SXSW earlier this year.” So, along with the recently signed Rural Alberta Advantage, it’s yet another SXSW success story for Saddle Creek.

Creek is on a signing binge these days. The label announced last month that it signed Lawrence band Old Canes. It’s as if they’ve decided to throw a handful of indie haircuts at the wall and see what sticks. Hopefully it’ll turn into a big, sticky wig.

* * *

Yet another “talent competition”-style audition was held Monday night for the MAHA Festival (O! what a terrible name). This time it was Little Brazil, Noah’s Ark Was a Spaceship, Anniversaire, Little Black Stereo and Conchance battling for a chance to play on the festival’s “local stage.”

Two of the five were to be chosen via audience ballot. I told members of one of the bands prior to the show that they should form a union and tell the MAHA organizers that it’s all or nothing — take all the bands or take none. All have moved beyond the “battle of the bands” point in their careers a long time ago.

The two “winners” will be joining a couple other local bands on the litigiously titled “Brashear LLP Local Stage.” A similar audience-ballot process was conducted during the recent Omaha Entertainment and Arts Showcase. MAHA organizers issued a press release last weekend announcing that Jes Winter Band received the most ballots in that election. But it also said that “Another local band, It’s True, will appear after a collaborative effort between YFC, MAHA’s organizing committee, and 1% Productions earned them an invitation to play.”

Don’t get me wrong, I dig It’s True, but what exactly is “a collaborative effort” supposed to mean? That they got together and just decided? That would be a refreshing alternative to this endless stream of talent contests.

By the way, who or what is “YFC”? Well, Google “YFC” and the first search results you’ll see is Youth For Christ, which this ain’t. Instead, YFC stands for the not-so-cleverly titled “Your Festival Committee.” They may want to rethink that TLA (Three Letter Acronym).

The fest takes place at the Lewis & Clark Riverfront Landing on Aug. 29. Tickets are $30. On the bill are some Harrah’s Casino-type bands including Big Head Todd and the Monsters, G. Love and Special Sauce and Dashboard Confessional. Guess they couldn’t get The Spin Doctors or Crash Test Dummies.

There actually are a couple good national acts on the bill — Appleseed Cast and Army Navy, two bands that I’d rather see perform at The Waiting Room or Slowdown. The bad news is that they’ll be playing at 1 p.m. and 2:30 p.m. respectively. Of course no one will be there yet, so the organizers will feel justified in saying, “See, no one’s here. Good thing we scheduled them early.” And they’ll be right, because no one who wants to see Big Head Todd knows or cares for Appleseed Cast.

I’m still waiting for someone to step up with a real festival that would include some truly vital bands, like Sonic Youth, Wilco, PJ Harvey, or a reformed Jane’s Addiction. Waitaminit, that festival was held last weekend… in Chicago.

–Got comments? Post ’em here.—

So who is backing Daniel Johnston tonight at The Slowdown? The mystery was solved last week when Kyle Harvey e-mailed me to say that Daniel’s backing band would once again be The Rayguns — Mike Friedman, Reagan Roeder, Scott “Zip” Zimmerman and Mr. Harvey himself. Those of you who missed Daniel’s last Omaha performance (back in February 2008) can catch up on it with this review. Opening tonight’s show is Hubble (Roeder’s and Friedman’s latest project) and Darren Keen (of The Show Is the Rainbow fame). Tickets are $18 and the show starts at 9.

Also tonight, indie dance pop band Someone Still Loves You Boris Yeltsin (or simply SSLYBY) is playing at The Waiting Room with Joe Firstman and Brian Wright. $8, 9 p.m.

–Got comments? Post ’em here.—

The Box Elders tore it up at their CD release show at The Waiting Room Friday night. Though we didn’t get any green-foam-drooling, the crowd of around 200 (I’d hoped for a sell-out, and I’m sure they did, too) did get a scorching two-song encore. Opening band The Goodnight Loving was OK, but too many of their songs sounded the same (and their set was too long).

Saturday night I swung by The Saddle Creek Bar for a late-night drink(s) and saw The Pilots and Lawrence band American Lowlife. The Pilots played mainstream FM rock, while American Lowlife was trying for punk but relied too much on the same chord progressions and rhythms as Blink/Green Day, which is a shame because they could do more with it if they wanted to. They had one song with a vocal line that reminded me of Chavez. I mentioned this to the band afterward and of course they’d never heard of Chavez (but said they’d check it out). Total audience size at The Saddle Creek Bar, not including the help, was around five. BTW, I’d gone there to see Akita-Ken, who I’d been told played a good set at least week’s OEA showcase, but the band didn’t show up — they didn’t cancel, they just didn’t show up.

* * *

Altsounds.com reported yesterday (here) that Saddle Creek Records has signed Miles Benjamin Anthony Robinson and will be releasing his new album, Summer of Fear, Oct. 20. MBAR has worked with a couple guys in Grizzly Bear and TV on the Radio.

I’ve never heard of MBAR. Looks like there was a rather large swell of press about him last summer, including an item in SPIN and this Q&A in Gothamist that included this quote about his homeless stint:

Q: Are there any nights you remember distinctly from that time in your life? A: This album is not about being homeless in New York. Maybe if we’re having a beer sometime we can bullshit about our past and tell drug stories but the repeated discussion of them in relation to talking about my music is beginning to bore me. I HAVE DONE A SHIT TON OF DRUGS AND I USED TO SLEEP OUTSIDE SOMETIMES. I ATE FOOD OUT OF THE GARBAGE AND SAVED FOUND CHANGE TO BUY MALT LIQOUR. IF YOU DON’T ALREADY HATE THIS STORY YOU WILL SOON. Oh the unshakeable stench of cliché that surrounds me.

Poor MBAR. I have to agree with him, his background is sad and cliché, and there are those who will assume that the experience permeates his songs, whether it does or not. He better get used to being asked about it because us poor, lazy music journalists — dying to find some kind of hook to write around — are going to ask about it one way or another. I like how Gothamist broached the topic. It reminds me of a comment I read somewhere from a musician who had a different kind of pre-fame hardship: “Yeah, I lived in my car for a year, in fact I was parked right behind Jewel.”

Check out some of MBAR’s music on his Myspace page. Sounds like something that belongs on Saddle Creek. So how did this all come about? Saddle Creek’s Robb Nansel e-mailed me just now to say, “Jeff Tafolla (who works at Saddle Creek) came across him online. We all really liked his music and he was looking for a label. Jeff and I met him and his manager at SXSW earlier this year.” So yet another SXSW success story.

Creek appears to be on a signing binge these days. It’s like they’re throwing a handful of spaghetti at the wall and seeing which piece sticks. Hopefully it’ll turn into a big, sticky pasta puck.

* * *

Tonight is another “talent competition”-type audition for the poorly named MAHA festival. This time it’s Little Brazil, Noah’s Ark Was a Spaceship, Anniversaire and (last-minute addition) Conchance battling for a chance to play on the festival’s second stage. The show is at The Waiting Room at 8 and is free of charge.

Two of the four will be chosen via ballot. I told members of one of the bands that they should form a union and tell the BLAHA organizers that it’s all or nothing — take all four bands or take none. They all have moved beyond the “battle of the bands” point in their careers a long time ago. I wonder if any of these bands will be getting paid for performing tonight. I wonder if they’ll get paid for performing at the BLAHA Festival or if they should “just feel lucky” that they’ve been given a chance to play in front of what organizers believe will be a large crowd.

I’m also trying to figure out who’s actually behind this event. The BLAHA folks issued a press release a couple days ago announcing that Jes Winter Band received the most ballots during the OEA Summer Showcase, and will be performing at the fest. But it also said that “Another local band, It’s True, will appear after a collaborative effort between YFC, MAHA’s organizing committee, and 1% Productions earned them an invitation to play.”

Don’t get me wrong, I dig It’s True, but what exactly is “a collaborative effort” supposed to mean? That they got together and just decided? That would be a refreshing alternative to this endless stream of talent contests.

By the way, if you Google “YFC” the first search results you’ll get back is Youth For Christ, which this ain’t. Instead, YFC stands for “Your Festival Committee.” You guys may want to rethink that TLA (Three Letter Acronym).

Anyway, you can find out more about the BLAHA Festival here. On the bill are a couple of Harrah’s Casino-type bands including Big Head Todd and the Monsters, G. Love and Special Sauce and Dashboard Confessional. Guess they couldn’t get The Spin Doctors or Crash Test Dummies.

There actually are a couple good bands on the bill — Appleseed Cast and Army Navy, two bands that I’d rather see perform at TWR or Slowdown. The bad news is that they’ll be playing at 1 p.m. and 2:30 p.m. respectively. No one will be there yet, so the organizers will feel justified in saying, “See, no one’s here. Good thing we scheduled them early.” And they’ll be right, because no one who wants to see Big Head Todd knows or cares for Appleseed Cast.

The fest takes place at the Lewis & Clark Riverfront Landing on Aug. 29. Tickets are $30.

–Got comments? Post ’em here.—

Here’s what I have for the weekend…

Tonight at The Waiting room it’s the Box Elders CD release show with Hercules and The Goodnight Loving. Methinks this one will draw very well indeed, especially for a mere $7. Show starts at 9 p.m. Get there early to see a rare club appearance by Hercules.

Also tonight, Chris Kramer, the former member of Talking Moutain who as you all know moved to Chicago earlier this year, is back in town tonight for a very special performance by Stolen Kisses at The Barley Street Tavern with Darren Keen (TSITR), Adam Robert Haug and The Red Burros. Quite a line-up for $5. Starts at 9.

Down at Slowdown Jr., singer/songwriter supreme Kyle Harvey opens a show for Vago and 24 Hour Cardlock. $7, 9 p.m.

Saturday night, Pete Yorn, who recorded a ton of his new album right here in Omaha at ARC studio with Mike Mogis, heads to Council Bluffs to perform at The Whiskey Roadhouse at the Horseshoe Casino. $22.50, 8 p.m.

Also Saturday night, Akita-Ken and The Pilots open for American Lowlife at The Saddle Creek Bar. No idea on the cover, but the fun starts at 9 p.m.

Finally on Sunday, The Breeders return to Omaha to perform at The Slowdown with Times New Viking. Tix are $17, show starts at 9 p.m.

Also Sunday night, the incomparable Thunder Power plays at O’Leaver’s with Sleeping in the Aviary, Cloud Dog and Adam Robert Haug. 5, 9:30 p.m.

See you tonight at The Waiting Room.

–Got comments? Post ’em here.—

I easily could have written 2,500 words on Box Elders, but the paper just didn’t have the room. Such is life. Instead, this streamlined 1,000-word epic (which you can read here) covers the origins of the band, the sibling characteristics, the new album and the stage show. Read it, then get your tickets to tomorrow night’s CD release show at The Waiting Room featuring Hercules and The Goodnight Loving, all for a mere $7.

* * *

A reader pointed out on the webboard that I forgot to mention in yesterday’s column — where I talked about how bands from a number of labels, including Slumber Party Records, didn’t take part in the OEA showcase — that Thunder Power (which played the showcase) is actually on Slumber Party Records. Not only that, but Thunder Power has a new EP called And Everything After that just came out on the label that includes three songs that previously were only available on that hard-to-find split EP the band did with Alessi’s Ark. Check it out at slumberpartyrecords.com.

* * *

Tonight at The Waiting Room it’s Magnolia Electric Co. with The Donkeys and Thousand Arrows. $10, 9 p.m.

Meanwhile, down at Slowdown Jr. it’s Little Brazil with The Valley Arena and Anniversaire. $5, 9 p.m.

–Got comments? Post ’em here.—