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Wild Flag at The Waiting Room, Oct. 4, 2011.

by Tim McMahan, Lazy-i.com

Wild Flag may be the first super group whose former-band baggage is actually a disadvantage.

Without a doubt there likely wouldn’t have been the 150 or so people at The Waiting Room last night if not for the band’s famous pedigree. The average audience-member age was late-20s/early-30s, and consisted of people like me who grew up listening to Helium and Sleater-Kinney. But if those folks thought they were going to hear a medley of songs by those bands sandwiched between new material, they were in for a surprise (but not disappointment).

Wild Flag’s sound is wholly rooted in the now. The 4-piece has as much creative energy as any band of young upstarts currently touring a successful debut album. So it’s deceptive to go into a Wild Flag concert with a preconceived notion as to what you’re going to hear based on, say, Helium’s output. They don’t sound like Helium, however there’s no denying Mary Timony’s wonky vocal style, heard on more than half the material. Her quirky, swirling voice has all the swagger of a young Iggy Pop (but in a sparkling dress), countered by Carrie Brownstein’s more direct, straightforward vocals that come off like punk Chrissie Hynde. There’s nothing girly about the music, but when all four sing, it can conjure memories of The Go-Go’s.

Ten minutes in and I doubt anyone was interested in hearing any old S-K or Minders songs anyway. “Glass Tambourine,” a driving, almost tribal rocker played early in the set was a psychedelic, feedback-fueled head trip, with Timony playing her guitar above her head. Live, the 5+ minute song (on record) stretched out over 10, and no one wanted it to stop.

If Brownstein played the roll of sonic bedrock (with impressive high kicks), Timony was the demure rock star. Her simple guitar lines and solos broke though on every song. Musically, their style vacillates between garage, art punk and modern psychedelic. Through it all, there’s always something familiar that holds it together, though it’s never what you expect. For example, it’s impossible to listen to Timony’s guitar line in the middle of “Short Version” and not be reminded of the middle section of Deerhunter’s “Nothing Ever Happened.” Set highlight “Racehorse,” which came toward the end of the evening, went from a jagged riff rocker into blinding groove stretching forward on Rebecca Cole’s glowing keyboards and Janet Weiss’ seismic drums. Huge. Top-five? Probably. The band came out for a two-song encore that included a very loose-grooved version of “Beast of Burden” before calling it a night.

Opener YellowFever was a quirky guitar-and-drum duo that filled out its sound thanks to drummer Adam Jones also playing a synth/keyboard. Each song began with Jones punching out a rhythm along with a bass line on the keyboard (set to repeat) while guitarist vocalist Jennifer Moore proceeded to chop away at the bass strings of her ax. When Moore added her pretty chirp it became pure art rock. Think early punk B-52s meets Micachu. Fun stuff.

* * *

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 © 2011 Tim McMahan. All rights reserved.

Gomez at The Waiting Room, Sept. 21, 2011.

by Tim McMahan, Lazy-i.com

Ah the rise and fall and rise and fall of rock bands. I remember when Gomez was on its way up, when they were covering Beatles songs in Phillips lightbulb commercials. There was a sense that Gomez might be the next big thing, maybe the next Oasis? That was in 1998 when their debut, Bring It On, was released on Virgin. The band’s had its ups and downs over the past 13 years. One Omaha highlight: Playing at Memorial Park in 2009 to about 1,000 people.

Last night Gomez played to fewer than 200 people at The Waiting Room, but in its defense, the band sounded better than at that big outdoor shindig. If the British 5-piece has a sweet spot, it’s playing club gigs, where they have a better chance of connecting with the crowd — and they need all the help they can get with a stage presence that consists of standing (or sitting), singing and playing and nothing else. Dynamic they are not, but their music is so well-played — stunningly so — that in the confines of a space the size of The Waiting Room they can get the crowd grooving, at least as much as a band can that plays their rather safe style of indie/folk rock.

The hour-plus set balanced all three vocalists on songs that focused mostly on their new album but ranged back to their ’90s catalog. The older crowd did a grind to the familiar songs — you can’t call them “hits” because Gomez never really had one. In fact, while listening to this very pristine, very professional performance I was stricken at how no one player —  and no one song — stood out. There’s a comfortable, familiar ease to Gomez music – simple love songs with forgettable melodies that are pleasant and upbeat and completely unoffensive. I wonder what they’d sound like if they ever took some chances with their lyrics or arrangements, if they ever took a walk on the wild side…

* * *

R.E.M. yesterday officially announced that they’re hanging it up for good after 31 years. The common rejoinder to the announcement on Facebook has been “I didn’t know they were still around.” They have been, though you wouldn’t know it based on how little traction their recent full lengths garnered in the media. To me the band never recovered when Bill Berry left in ’97, releasing five albums since then — including this year’s Collapse Into Now — that sounded flat and lifeless. Maybe they should have hung it up when Bill left? Who knows. At the end of the day, they had the heart but not the creative inspiration that made all their earlier albums so good. Even if they weren’t making interesting new music, it was nice knowing that they were out there trying. I don’t think you’ve heard the last of Stipe, Buck and Mills (or Berry for that matter). There will be other projects, solo efforts and one day, the inevitable reunion.

* * *

It’s folk rock night at O’Leaver’s tonight when Ragged Company takes the stage with Travelling Mercies and Kindlewood. Get your yee-ha on for a mere $5. Show starts at 9:30.

* * *

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 © 2011 Tim McMahan. All rights reserved.

Skypiper at The Waiting Room, Sept. 9, 2011.

by Tim McMahan, Lazy-i.com

When I first started writing about music years and years ago, one of the first things I needed to get over was being intimidated by the artists I was interviewing. Case in point: I remember visiting the mid-town home of Sydney Buchanan, where I was slated to interview a very young version of Mousetrap (featuring Sydney’s son, Patrick) for a feature in The Note, a Lawrence Kansas-based music publication that’s long since defunct. I was quite a few years older than those teen-aged Mousetrap kids, but I was still nervous as hell — nervous about asking a stupid question, nervous about just looking stupid in general.

It didn’t take long to get over that sense of insecurity, to the point where I eventually became comfortable interviewing anyone, from a nationally renowned rock band, to a politician or the head of a global corporation. We’re all just people, right?

I had to go through a similar thing when it came to going to rock shows by myself, a situation I’ve written about at length before (right here, actually

). I figured as I got older, that stigma that comes with flying solo at shows would ease somewhat, but it really hasn’t. Case in point this past Friday night.

My first stop for the evening was The Waiting Room for the Skypiper CD release show. I got there in time to catch the last song by opener Tarlton, and quickly regretted not getting there sooner. They were followed by Anniversaire, a somber chamber-pop band purposely drenched in melancholy despite a very excited drummer dressed in gym shorts, knee-highs and headband who looked like he’d be more comfortable backing a party band at a kegger. Then came Skypiper. I’ve been listening to the band’s new record off and on for the past couple days, reminded of acts like Jeremy Messersmith and Decemberists. They brought a similar exuberance to their live show, performed in front of a large audience, none of whom I recognized — this wasn’t your typical Waiting Room crowd, and I’m sure there’s a reason for that.

I hung out for about five Skypiper songs before heading to my car and downtown to House of Loom for the Depressed Buttons inaugural show. It was around midnight when I rolled past the building, located just south of Western Heritage Museum on 10th Street. I could hear the chaos boiling out of Loom from my car, where I noticed dozens of people crushed outside the door, not waiting to get in, just enjoying the cool pre-fall night.

And as I looked for a parking spot along the overpass I said to myself, “Who are you kidding? You’re not going in there. Not by yourself.”  So yeah, I chickened out. It’s one thing to go to TWR or Slowdown by yourself and get lost in the crowd with the rest of the people staring at the stage. It’s entirely another thing to show up at a dance club alone and try to inconspicuously mix in with hundreds of people shaking their asses on the dance floor, especially if your ass is older than theirs, and ain’t shaking. As much as I wanted to see and hear what Todd and Jacob were up to, I couldn’t get over that feeling that I would be very much out of place. It’s not a “you thing,” Loom, it’s a “me thing.” And I have to get over it.

* * *

One place where you’ll never feel intimidated is O’Leaver’s, mainly because no matter when you arrive, everyone there is already loaded. Tonight should be no exception when Peace of Shit takes the stage along with Dikes of Holland and The Prairies. $5, 9:30 p.m. By all means, go.

* * *

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 © 2011 Tim McMahan. All rights reserved.

The Show Is the Rainbow's Darren Keen at Dundee Day, Aug. 27, 2011.

Column 339: Dancing in the Street

by Tim McMahan, Lazy-i.com

by Tim McMahan, Lazy-i.com

The weather was perfect. The bands were awesome. And the crowd was… well, it could have been bigger.

The final “official” head count, according to MAHA Music Festival organizer Tre Brashear, was 4,000, “slightly down from last year.”

A disappointment, and yet, by all other accounts, this year’s MAHA, held last Saturday at Stinson Park in Aksarben Village, was a success, certainly from a fan perspective. I realized this about 15 minutes into Guided By Voices’ set, standing in a crowd of T-shirts and sunscreen and Coors Lites snuggled in red Kum & Go koozies, the sun just peeking over the western horizon after a long day of warm light, slight breezes, temperatures in the upper 70s — a perfect day weather-wise. By all accounts, by everyone I spoke with, MAHA was flawless. The bands and the stages and the sound were fantastic. You could not have asked for anything more… except, of course, for more people.

The review: In addition to Guided By Voices, which flawlessly tore through a set of their finest (“14 Cheerleader Coldfront,”  “I Am a Scientist” “Hot Freaks,” “The Official Ironmen Rally Song,” you know, the classics), the other main stage standout was — strangely, unexpectedly — J Mascis of Dinosaur Jr. Seated with an acoustic guitar on his lap, looking like a worried Mr. Natural in nerd glasses, long gray hair blowing in the afternoon breeze, Mascis leaned forward and played a blistering set that drew from his solo work and D. Jr. catalog, highlighting his intricate, ornate, gorgeous guitar work. His voice, a craggy, weary, heart-broken moan, sang of personal yearning while his guitar didn’t gently weep, but soared. Undeniably beautiful, but at the same time, desperate and utterly depressing. By mid-set, it was actually bringing me down.

Mascis was quite a contrast to what came right before it — So-So Sailors on the “second stage,” located to the left (south) of the main stage and sounding somewhat better, thanks to an easing of volume and the natural earth barrier behind it. You could argue that the main stage sounded slightly overblown, overdriven, just plain too loud. By the end of the evening my voice was ragged from having to scream to talk to the person standing right next to me (no matter where I stood in the Stinson compound).

So-So Sailors was the second stage’s highlight, along with Noah’s Ark Was a Spaceship, which has people asking if they’re the best unsigned band in Nebraska. The other local stage highlight was Lincoln instrumental prog act Machete Archive, a band perfectly suited to cover Rush’s 2112 if only one of them knew how to sing. OEA talent show winner The Big Deep and Lincoln electronic dance/groove act Somasphere rounded out the “little acts.”

Cursive crowds the stage at MAHA.

Des Moines’ The Envy Corps launched the “big acts” on the main stage shortly after 1 p.m. to a smallish crowd that was still 10-fold larger than the typical early afternoon crowd at last month’s multi-million dollar Red Sky Festival. The Reverend Horton Heat followed with an omnibus career-spanning set of indie rockabilly. Local superstars Cursive, featuring original drummer Clint Schnase, was the most bombastic (and loudest) of the day. To me, it was worth thirty bucks just to hear them do “The Martyr.” So-called “headliner” Matisyahu’s electronic reggae rap closed out the evening to a dwindling crowd (despite the half-priced beers).

Overall, a great day in the park for any indie music fan. Still, “from an ‘economic’ perspective, the day was just OK,” Brashear said. “We had good ticket numbers, but we found that people didn’t stay for the whole day, which hurt our food/beverage/merch sales. People came just for RHH, or just for Cursive and GBV, or just for Matisyahu.” The “coming and going” is likely a symptom of MAHA not being a true “festival” — a multi-day event where people have to commit (due to traveling and camping) to stay for the duration. For MAHA to expand to something like that next year (and yes, there will be a “next year”) the festival will need to find a “presenting sponsor,” which it lacked this year.

Maybe the day’s biggest winner was Stinson Park. “The fans LOVED it,” Brashear said, “but (we’re) not sure what Aksarben Village thinks about us.” He said more volunteers were needed for after-show clean-up. “We had too much mess left over when the Farmer’s Market started the next morning.”

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Guided By Voices after sundown at MAHA 2011.

Then there’s Aksarben Cinema, who I’d been told was livid after discovering during last month’s Playing With Fire concert, also held at Stinson, that they had some sound “leakage” problems that caused Harry Potter fans to experience Sharon Jones and the Dap Kings from their theater seats. The buzz Saturday was that the theater, which is the central village draw, was going to put its foot down for future festivals.

During Matisyahu’s set, I walked over to the theater and chatted with the kind gentleman stationed at the ticket-tearing gate and asked if they’d had any noise complaints. He said a couple patrons mentioned something, but that was about it. He suggested I find out for myself. “The auditoriums closest to the park are probably 5 and 6,” he said. “Pop in and see.”

So I did. The Smurfs movie was playing in No. 5. I stretched my eardrums as much as I could, and thought I heard something, maybe a low rumble, but I couldn’t be certain. No. 6 was seating for Harry Potter. Pre-movie commercials and music were playing. Again, I heard nothing. Matisyahu wasn’t “Cursive loud,” but they were certainly earplug loud.

Instead of fighting it, the theater needs to figure out a way to tie into MAHA, that is if it’s held in the park next year. If it were up to the fans I spoke with, it would be. They all said they preferred Stinson’s cool grass lawn to the sun-baked concrete slab of Lewis & Clark Landing. But for MAHA to grow into a real multi-day festival, it’ll need to find some place even bigger and better than both those locations.

* * *

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 © 2011 Tim McMahan. All rights reserved.

by Tim McMahan, Lazy-i.com

Look for a comprehensive review of Saturday’s MAHA Music Festival tomorrow. It’ll also be featured in this week’s column. For now, here are some images from the show, held at Stinson Park, Aksarben Village.

The crowd was somewhat light at 1:30 p.m., but still exponentially larger than any early afternoon at the Red Sky Festival.

Machete Archive on the MAHA "second stage," which was located just to the left (south) of the main stage. Soundwise, it blew away the small stage at last year's MAHA fest at Lewis & Clark, and gave the main stage a run for its money.

The Rev. Horton Heat as seen from behind the metal barrier that kept the crowd from the stage -- something that wasn't there for Playing With Fire.

The So-So Sailors was one of the afternoon highlights, and along with Noah's Ark, had the strongest performance on the small stage.

Despite being seated behind a music stand for his entire set, J Mascis moved the MAHA crowd.

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Noah's Ark Was a Spaceship's huge crowd pushed as far back as the edge of the Main Stage. Are they the best unsigned band in Nebraska?

Cursive on the big stage, from left, Matt Maginn, Tim Kasher and Ted Stevens. Meanwhile, keeping time in back, was returning legendary drummer Clint Schnase.

Between cigarettes and quarts of hard stuff, Guided by Voices rifled through a set of their greatest hits.

More to come.

* * *

Tonight at Slowdown Jr., it’s Grandfather with Lightning Bug and Family Picnic. Though unsigned, Brooklyn’s Grandfather has been getting a lot of press lately, including listed in SPIN’s “10 Must Hear Artists at Brooklyn’s Northside Festival, 2011,” as well as being name checked by the legendary Steve Albini in a GQ article. Says Albini: “There was a band that came into the studio a while back called Grandfather. They were an art-rock band that organized the funding of their record through Kickstarter. They were really well rehearsed and came into the studio and knocked the record out in a couple of days… That’s the kind of nimble, efficient behavior that was previously impossible when there was a corporate structure involved. It gives me confidence other bands will figure it out.” $6, 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 © 2011 Tim McMahan. All rights reserved.

So-So Sailors at the MAHA / Hear Nebraska Showcase at The Slowdown, July 28, 2011.

by Tim McMahan, Lazy-i.com

I don’t know what more to say about Digital Leather that I haven’t already said. The band continues to be one of my favorites, not only in Omaha, but anywhere. Last night at the MAHA/Hear Nebraska Showcase at The Slowdown, DL sported the same three-piece configuration they had at O’Leaver’s in May: John Vredenburg on bass, Jeff Lambelet on drums, and guitarist/vocalist Shawn Foree in the lead — a lean, mean trio burning brightly through their set as if they had nothing to lose.

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Digital Leather at the MAHA / Hear Nebraska Showcase at The Slowdown, July 28, 2011.

Yeah, I loved the old synth-driven version of Digital Leather (One person asked me last night, “Where’s the digital part?”), but I dig the raw energy of this stripped down version almost as much. Foree is an electric, muscular frontman, Vredenburg is a chaotic, spitting punk madman, and Lambelet is out of control, driving his kick drum to the edge of the stage with every song, knocking cymbals off the tee for audience members to run on stage and fix (touching moments indeed). Imagine how these guys would have sounded sandwiched between J. Mascis and Guided By Voices at the MAHA Music Festival. Oh well, maybe next year, that is if they’re available. By then they’ll have a new record out on Absolutely Kosher and will likely be on an unending national/international tour, well on their way to becoming great big rock stars.

So-So Sailors had no problem following DL. The line-up included Ben Brodin on keys, replacing (for the evening) a busy Dan McCarthy, and doing a fine job. I’m so used to hearing S-SS’s set that each song is like an old friend, familiar and comfortable, as if their record came out a year ago when in fact it hasn’t been released yet. Imagine how “familiar” we’re going to be with these songs a year from now when they’re still playing them, supporting their debut release… Something tells me I won’t mind, although I’m already dying to hear some new material.

Speaking of comfortable bands, Fortnight continues to refine its Midwestern indie-rock sound, reaching out the furthest on their last song. I’d like to see these folks push their sound even further.

* * *

Tonight, more MAHA star power as The Envy Corps play at The Waiting Room with Conduits and Tangent Arc. $8, 9 p.m.

Meanwhile, over at O’Leaver’s tonight it’s Cloven Path, Blyeth and Flesh Eat Skin Disease. The usual 9:30 start, the usual $5.

At Barley St. tonight, Lonely Estates plays with Blue Rosa. 9 p.m. $5.

Talking Mountain continues to bombard Omaha with its spazz-aholic, smoke-choking, laser-blinded pop goodness at O’Leavers Saturday night, along with Mammoth Life. 9:30, $5.

Sunday is the biggest show of the weekend: Cold Cave with Astra and Touch People (the indescribable Darren Keen) at The Waiting Room. $10 now, $12 DOS. 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 © 2011 Tim McMahan. All rights reserved.

Icky Blossoms at The Waiting Room, July 22, 2011.

by Tim McMahan, Lazy-i.com

I strongly suggested that the MAHA guys book Icky Blossoms for this year’s festival. Strongly suggested. But for whatever reason, they passed. Maybe they didn’t know who they were. Maybe they were afraid the band wouldn’t “draw.” Probably they never heard their music. Pity. Because Icky Blossoms is now poised to take The Faint’s place as the premiere show-stopping dance, prance, throb-rock psychedelic must-see band in Omaha (and beyond).

They galvanized their position Friday night at The Waiting Room with a crush-mob set that had the dance floor bouncing with its hands in the air. Sweaty, orgiastic. They are no longer “emerging.” They have arrived. And maybe there is a reason that three members of The Faint were in the audience along with a large contingent of Saddle Creek Records “management” (though I have no doubt that The Creek will pass on this one, too).

That Icky Blossoms has something going on is undeniable. They are sitting on a launch pad with the countdown clock ticking down down down. The thing that could light that candle is a full-length record consisting of each of the 8 or 9 songs they performed Friday night. In this sad time in the music industry where there no longer is a “sure thing;” they are a sure thing (probably).

In a lot of ways they remind me of The Faint, circa 1999. Right after that band changed its sound and began investing in lighting gear. Imagine if the Baechle boys (one now a Fink) were to take Icky Blossoms under their wing and produce their record. The problem with that fantasy is that at the rate the Faint gets things done, the record wouldn’t be released until 2015. And the band needs a record other than its singles collection. Then there’s the question of frontman Derek Pressnall who is about to have another baby with his wife and co-hort in Tilly in the Wall, Jamie Pressnall.  Babies have a way of taking precedence things like rock music and touring. And then there’s Tilly, the Pressnalls’ other band, which rumor has it is working on a new recording.

But you labels out there, put all that aside and consider what you’re getting with this band. Pressnall, a natural frontman who knows how to get asses shaking. A frontwoman in Sarah Bohling who is his perfect match (or foil). A madman/genius in the form of writhing Nik Fackler on guitar. A rhythm section that had every internal organ in my body shaken to guava jelly, and a keyboard guy who looks like he could be the second coming of Greg Hawkes.

But at their core are their songs — modern dance numbers that combine house beats and sonic stylings influenced by bands like Jesus and Mary Chain, The Happy Mondays, Depeche Mode, The B-52s, The Cure, Brian Jonestown Massacre, and, yes, The Faint. Pressnall and Co. know what buttons to push, and gleefully jam them down as hard as they can. Live, they’re stellar, but they’re as good on their recordings, where they pull back enough to keep everything in perfect focus.

So yeah, this is just the kind of act that MAHA needed, and MAHA was just the type of coming out party that Icky Blossoms needs, though I don’t know how well their set would go over if they had been scheduled to play at 3 p.m. on a 100-degree day in Stinson Park in the middle of an all-male revue headlined by a legendary ’90s-era power pop band in GBV. Even though they don’t have the light show, like The Faint, Icky Blossoms seems like a night band, an androgynous hedonistic dream with a style and lilt that women can’t seem to resist. They were just what MAHA needed, but that ship has, sadly, sailed, even though the boat doesn’t leave the dock until Aug. 13.

Talking Mountain at The Waiting Room, 7/22/11.

Walking to the club at around 10:30, I noticed smoke billowing out of the front doors of The Waiting Room. Smokers? No, way too much for that. A fire? No, this smoke didn’t have that burnt smell. I peered through the front window and figured it out. It was Talking Mountain’s new(ish) stage show that involves blaring multi-color LED panels, lasers and way too much stage smoke.

No longer wearing their lovable fake-fur handmade masks, the Mountains play their fun-pop dance songs in rainbow hatchet light, figures cut from the fog. It is an impressive thing to see, each light perfectly choreographed, but that smoke, gag. Fifteen minutes after their set a member if Icky Blossoms had propped open the exit door in a vain attempt at clearing out the air in The Waiting Room.  It was hopeless.

* * *

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 © 2011 Tim McMahan. All rights reserved.

Sharon Jones and the Dap Kings ignite Playing With Fire, July 16, 2011.

Column 333: Live Reviews: Omaha Girls Rock and Playing With Fire

by Tim McMahan, Lazy-i.com

I can only imagine what it was like backstage at the Omaha Girls Rock (OGR) showcase moments before the night’s first band, The Jellybeans, took the stage. Utter chaos? Faces gripped in panic-fear? Tears? Nervous laughter?

For most of the 24 girls who took part in this, the inaugural OGR band camp, it would be their first time on any stage. Many had never held an instrument before signing up. Now here they were, formed into six bands — The Jellybeans, Cherrybombs, I Just Don’t Like Trees, Mischieff Managed, Urban Scrunchies and Pandas Of Peace — about to perform their own songs in front of an audience of more than 200 that likely included their proud, nervous parents.

OGR volunteer Jenn Bernard, a professional teacher who also performs in indie rock band Fortnight, said volunteers did their best to prepare the girls for their moment under the lights.

“Before the doors opened, we took each group on stage and showed them their mics and where their instruments would be,” Bernard said. “Then, to distract them, they took a tour of the Saddle Creek (Records) warehouse. After the tour, we sang the ‘camp song’ a few times together and got ready to go on stage. The girls’ instruments were all ready to go and everything was very organized.”

The Jellybeans at the Omaha Girls Rock! showcase July 16, 2011.

Even I was nervous when the four Jellybeans were introduced to hoots and applause. They took their places behind their instruments and microphones, and then did something most of us could never do. A little redheaded firebrand in a purple outfit grasped the mic like a miniature Janis Joplin and belted out her words with absolute, utter confidence while two friends joined in on guitar and keyboards, the fourth tapping out a rhythm on a drum set.

No, they didn’t sound like the band in School of Rock. They sounded better than that, because what they were doing was real — fun and goofy and filled with charming mistakes.

It was only a matter of time before someone organized something as smart as Omaha Girls Rock. The talent that created Omaha’s indie music scene a decade ago — a scene that’s become world-renowned — has grown up and had (or will have) kids of their own. And though those musicians may not make a “living” making music, they’ve figured out a way to keep music in their lives. Now they’re passing on what they’ve learned to the next generation, who will carry on the tradition in their own way, in their own voices.

Everyone left The Slowdown that evening with grins on their faces, and for the organizers, a few proud tears. Find out more about OGR and make donations at omahagirlsrock.com. Get involved.

*  * *

Who knows, maybe some day one of the OGR campers will emerge as talented as Sharon Jones, who along with her band, The Dap-Kings, performed Saturday night at this year’s Playing With Fire concert in a sauna called Stinson Park.

Blame the heat for a crowd that looked to be around 2-3,000, not the 7-8,000 organizers had hoped for, and maybe that was a good thing considering the size of Stinson Park, located in the newly minted Aksarben Village. The venue, a last-minute substitute for the flooded Lewis and Clark Landing, worked out well. The crowd, with its lawn chairs and bug spray, had plenty of room to roam along the grassy bowl, while vendors hocked pizza and beer from tents along the closed Mercy Road.

Playing with Fire organizer Jeff Davis said the concert was successful, all things considered. “First we worked three days in heat indexes over 100 degrees,” he said. “Second, Aksarben Village squeezed us in between three other events. This required our load-in and load-out logistics to be timed perfectly. We made gates at 4 p.m. and were well ahead of schedule on move out. That was one of our success measures. We were pleased with everything about the show / venue / crowd, except the heat. It impacted the size of the crowd by at least 30 percent. That impacted our vendors, none of whom did well.”

No doubt MECA’s Red Sky Music Festival, being held this week at the TD Ameritrade ballpark and surrounding griddle-like parking lots, also will see attendance impacted by the blistering, painful heat. Why not simply hold these outdoor events earlier or later in the year?

“We didn’t do June because it interfered with the College World Series. NCAA said no,” he said. “(The) August date we gave to the MAHA (Music Festival) since we had cash for just one show. September never works because of Big Red. May means graduations, weddings and rain. We settled on July 16 because that was the date we could get Sharon.”

That was reason enough. It was one of those shows where you felt lucky to be there, to be able to say you saw and heard this incredible band live and in person. Jones, age 55, performed with more energy than most R&B divas one-third her age — singing, dancing, grooving, pulling guys on stage to act as foils for her “you-better-do-me-right” rockers. I’ve never heard a band half as a good playing this style of R&B.

“It was cool to see people of all ages, color and backgrounds having a great time,” Davis said. “That is the true power of music.”

As for next year, “We are going to make an attempt one last time to gain sponsorship dollars,” Davis said of the Playing With Fire concert series. “We would do this forever if we could just break even. Unfortunately, the heat took that away from us this year. Wish us luck.”

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It’s been a monumentally slow week for shows. Finally tonight there’s something going on worth talking about. At The Barley Street Tavern it’s the return of Lawrence indie pop band Cowboy Indian Bear with KC band AcB’s and veritable BT house band All Young Girls Are Machine Guns. $5, 9 p.m.

No, it’s not Deerhunter playing at The Waiting Room tonight; it’s The Dear Hunter, a Providence R.I.-based indie prog-rock band on New York label Triple Crown Records. Opening is Kay Kay and His Weathered Underground (members of Gatsbys American Dream), and Atlanta experimental band O’Brother. $14, 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 © 2011 Tim McMahan. All rights reserved.

Omaha Girls Rock! the Slowdown July 16, 2011.

by Tim McMahan, Lazy-i.com

I’ll be writing in more detail about both Omaha Girls Rock and the Playing With Fire / Sharon Jones & the Dap Kings concerts in this week’s column (out on Thursday), but suffice to say both events were hugely successful.

I would guestimate that more than 200 people were on hand for OGR, a crowd that included not only proud, nervous parents, but also all the usual suspects that make up the Omaha indie music scene. All left the show with huge smiles on their faces (and for the organizers, a few tears). How can anyone not love this program? This was merely its inaugural year. You can find out more about OGR and make donations at the Omaha Girls Rock website. Get involved.

Sharon Jones and the Dap Kings perform at Playing With Fire, July 16, 2011.

I guess you could say Stinson Park passed its Trial by Fire hosting the Playing With Fire concert Saturday night. I rode my bike to festivities at around 8:30 p.m and it was still muggy, hot, miserable. That could be why the numbers were what they were. If asked to guess, I’d say there was a little over 2,000 people in the park; but I’m hearing numbers as high as 7,000, which seems, well, unlikely. We’ll have to wait and see what the “official” numbers were. Regardless, there was plenty of room in Stinson to handle the crowd. The staging, the vendors, the security, all worked incredibly well.

As for sound and lighting, PWF organizers did a great job for what appeared to be a venue with some limitations (and time constraints). The sound was kind of… weird. It seemed like the further back from the stage I went, the louder it was (especially the high-end/snares, etc.). The best sound was right under the stage, where you’d expect it to be its loudest — but it wasn’t. Well, what do I know about sound engineering? Regardless, it was plenty loud, in fact, loud enough for the folks at nearby Pinhook Apartments to enjoy the show from their balconies with clarity.

My only comment about Sharon Jones & the Dap Kings — I felt lucky to be there, to be able to say I saw and heard this incredible band live and in person. If you don’t know what they’re about, check out there music (right now). Jones, age 55, performed with more energy than most R&B divas 1/3 her age — singing, dancing, grooving, pulling guys on stage to act as foils for her “you-better-do-me-right” rockers. I’ve never heard a band half as a good playing this style of R&B. Beyond that, you just had to be there.

There was talk from stage that this may not be the last Playing With Fire concert. Here’s hoping that’s the case.

More about both concerts Thursday…

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Speaking of concerts and festivals, the Red Sky Music Festival kicked off at noon today down at the TD Ameritrade ballpark and surrounding parking lots, whose surface temperature will likely exceed 130 degrees Fahrenheit. It’s already close to 100 right now. Tonight’s “headliner” is a Steve Perry-less version of Journey. You can see today’s schedule here. Good luck to those venturing out in this painful, miserable, intolerable heat.

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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 © 2011 Tim McMahan. All rights reserved.