by Tim McMahan, Lazy-i.com

So far it’s been a remarkably moribund year for touring indie rock shows in Omaha and it’s looking like that moribund-ity will only be continuing. There were no shows last weekend. There are no shows this weekend. If you’re an indie music fan, you’re probably starting to feel desperate. 

That said, there was a parade of show announcements yesterday that highlight Omaha’s sparkling new mega venues. Wilco will play at The Astro Oct. 23 with Nina Nastasia. In fact The Astro – the new indoor/outdoor amphitheater under construction in La Vista  – announced their “opening party” Sept. 7 will be headlined by funk band Here Come the Mummies. And, The Astro will also host the return of 311 Sept. 29. 

The Astro’s already announced shows by Dropkick Murphys (Oct. 5), American Idol performers Ruben Studdard and Clay Aiken (Oct. 28), Kenny Wayne Shepherd (Sept. 24), Beth Hart (Sept. 16), Ancient Aliens Live (Sept. 21), Goo Goo Dolls (Sept. 23), Gaslight Anthem (Sept. 30) and what appears to be their inaugural show, Rick Springfield and The Hooters (Aug. 30). 

That’s a hugs spate of shows that would seem to appeal to a very broad audience – which is what a facility of this size demands.

Meanwhile, Astro’s main competition – Steelhouse Omaha – had a few announcements of their own yesterday, not the least of which was alt-rock band Queens of the Stone Age with opener Viagra Boys Sept. 19, along with two days/nights of bachelorette party bro comedian Matt Rife for seated shows Nov. 4 and 5.

There were no touring indie rock show announcements yesterday. Well, except one.

San Francisco post-punk band Pardoner saw the release of their debut album, Uncontrollable Salvation, on tiny indie label Father/Daughter Records in 2017 before being signed to classic indie label Bar / None Records, where they’ve released 2021’s Came Down Different. Their most recent release is a a three-song single, “Rosemary’s Gone,” that dropped yesterday. Their new album, Peace Loving People, drops on Bar/None June 23.

The band has been compared to acts ranging from Polvo to Dinosaur Jr. They kind of remind me of early Pavement, Pile, early Parquet Courts – you get the drift, gritty DIY-style post-punk with a heart of gold.

Anyway, yesterday I received an email from their publicist at Grandstand saying Pardoner is playing in Omaha as part of a tour that includes gigs at Empty Bottle, Replay Lounge, Hi Dive, Turf Club, the usual list of national indie rock clubs. The Omaha gig will be at American Legion July 3.

OK, there are a number of American Legion Halls, which one? I asked the publicist, who said the show has now been moved to The Blindspot, “a new all ages diy spot” located around 20th and St. Mary’s. A quick Google Maps search indicates that this is probably a house show, but the publicist wasn’t sure as he hadn’t booked the tour.

So, maybe the show’s happening. I’ve seen no other info about it, never heard of The Blind Spot, don’t know who’s actually putting it on, etc. And it got me thinking: Is this how it’s going to be from now on? This is the kind of band that a few years ago would be playing a 1% venue or Slowdown Jr. or The Brothers or O’Leaver’s or somewhere you and I recognize.

This explosion in 700+ capacity venues is great for Omaha and fans of middle-of-the-road alt rock and/or bands whose heyday was two decades ago, but for those of us who love young, up-and-coming indie acts — the kind of acts that Omaha’s music scene thrived on in the early 2000s up ’til the pandemic — things ain’t looking so good. 

I have no idea if Pardoner’s booker (who I’m trying to get in touch with) offered this show to any of the local show promoters, or if s/he even knows who those promoters are these days. But I’m starting to wonder if Omaha is becoming a blind spot (pun intended) for touring indie acts like Pardoner.  Time will tell, but a glance at the local show calendars is not terribly hopeful.

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One of those young up-and-coming bands that played Omaha countless times in the early 2000s was Death Cab for Cutie. It seems like they were gigging down at Sokol Underground a couple times a year to crowds of fewer than 200 when their first albums were being released on Barsuk Records (We Have the Facts… is still a high water mark).

Welp, Death Cab is back and they’re playing a long sold-out gig at The  Admiral tonight. If the show follows the path of last night’s gig at Riverside Theater in Milwaukee (setlist here), expect a 20-song collection of tunes that span their entire career but is heavy on songs from their most recent albums. Lomelda opens at 8 p.m. and like I said, it’s SOLD OUT.

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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 © 2023 Tim McMahan. All rights reserved.

by Tim McMahan, Lazy-i.com

Looks like we’re in for a very quiet weekend. No shows at The Slowdown; 1% properties also have no touring indie shows this weekend.

That said, it is the first Friday of the month which means it’s Benson First Friday. Get yourself to Benson tonight and enjoy a huge selection of local art up and down Maple Street, including at Ming Toy Gallery, 6606 Maple, where Omaha artist Amy Haney will have an opening for “Don’t Let the Name Deceive You,” a collection of new works derived from old concepts. We’re open from 6 to 9 p.m. and there’s booze and treats available.  Come say hi. BFF is starting to have a real festival feel to it. Check it out tonight.

One music show on the radar this weekend is singer/songwriter Theadoore, a quiet acoustic performer, kind of like Suzanne Vega on valium. Also on the bill is Omaha self-claimed “experimental pop band” Sgt. Leisure, singer/songwriter Ben Eisenberger and Goodview. 8 p.m., $10.

Also Saturday night, Garst and Bad Self Portraits are supporting the album release show for Omaha alt rock band Fox Paw at The Waiting Room. $12, 8 p.m. 

And: Saturday is Benson Beerfest. Parts of west Benson along Maple will be blocked off from 2:30 to 6 p.m. “For the price of one ticket, you can enjoy unlimited pours of all your favorite brews, making this festival an unbeatable deal.” Admission is $45. 

That’s it, folks. If I missed your show, put it in the comments section. Have a great weekend.

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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 © 2023 Tim McMahan. All rights reserved.

by Tim McMahan, Lazy-i.com

On a throw-back Thursday it’s probably a good idea to look back on some recent history. It was on this day in 2020 that our “esteemed” governor announced that bars and lounges could reopen, effectively ending the COVID-19 pandemic.

Just kidding. Ricketts’ June 1 proclamation, while making it OK for bars to reopen, meant little to music venues because of the onerous and necessary restrictions placed on venues, as outlined in this Lazy-i article from May 23, 2020. From that article:

(The Slowdown’s) Jason Kulbel says bars can open just like restaurants with a 50 percent capacity, though all must be seated at tables and can only move around when going to the restroom or ordering food/drinks.

The Slowdown would fall under the “Venues” category — that means 25 percent capacity, with 6-foot spacing between groups. “Groups” and “tables” are interchangeable terms for argument’s sake. So for a 600-capacity rock show at The Slowdown, the current capacity allowed by COVID rules is 150. Again, groups have to be separated by six feet, which will have to be defined somehow by the venue with tape on the floors or something.

Where it gets real tricky: bathroom capacity is three at a time. Expect 6-foot distancing while waiting in line for your booze. And when the show is over, there has to be staggered exiting, which will be just plain weird.

And remember, everyone is wearing masks the entire time. How is the venue going to enforce all these rules?

“All of the above equals 300% of the staff with a max potential of 25% of the business, for us AND the band,” Jason said.

Of course maybe the biggest challenge is just getting people comfortable going to shows amidst all the above regulations and general fear of COVID. Like I said yesterday, I would definitely go to a show under these conditions (especially if I could sit at a table and get table service). But based on comments I’ve heard online and elsewhere, I’m the minority.

He said Slowdown isn’t planning to reopen June 1. Look for an opening later in the month of June at the earliest.

Jason would push that date back almost a year, instead hosting their first show in April 2021, whereas The Waiting Room’s first big show was Crash Test Dummies in March 2021. If you look on the sidewalk outside The Slowdown, you can still see the symbols spray-painted on the sidewalk marking where people should stand in line to remain safely separated.

It was a f___ing weird time, folks, but like that spray painted sidewalk, it’s already starting to fade from memory, which is why we have to remind ourselves every once in a while what we went through. The lucky among us were only inconvenienced; the not-so-lucky died. 

Happy Thursday!

Tonight at Reverb Lounge, Mississippi electronic noise band MSPAINT headlines. As described in Stereogum, the four-piece “developed a surging, seismic, but curiously meditative future-punk style that sounds like a glitch storm avalanche swallowing a SimCity 2000 skyline. Their instrumental tones are modeled on the warbling, gated fuzz of fax machines and the dial-up sounds of their 1990s childhoods.”

Lots of yell-vocals and synth tones. Borders on hardcore. Could be a moshpit (but I doubt it). Opening is Omaha’s own synth-master, Jeff in Leather, and XID. $12, 8 p.m. 

Also tonight…. I generally don’t write about Lincoln shows, but one of my faves is playing at The Royal Grove — electro-clash-dance maven Peaches a.k.a. Merrill Nisker, whose 2009 album, I Feel Cream (XL Records) is still a regular in my running mix. Opening is Nebraska beat-master PROBLEMS a.k.a. Darren Keen, who I’m told may not be a one-man act tonight. 8 p.m., $30, definitely worth the drive.

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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 © 2023 Tim McMahan. All rights reserved.

by Tim McMahan. Lazy-i.com

I’m not entirely sure when I first started writing for The Reader. I know it was after the launch of its predecessor publication, which was going strong at the same time I was covering Omaha’s music scene for the regional magazine, The Note, published out of Lawrence, Kansas. Somewhere along he way, that predecessor publication became The Reader at around the same time The Note folded after its editor/publisher discovered he was losing a few thousand dollars with every issue published. 

The transition to working for The Reader was seamless; and I carried on covering Omaha (and national) indie bands and musicians through cover stories, features, reviews and columns, all while holding down my real gig at Union Pacific, wondering if someday I would leave the corporate world and take on more responsibilities at The Reader, never doubting the publication would be around forever.

Well, friends, yesterday the gut punch came a-punching, as editor/publisher John Heaston announced The Reader will quit publication after its September issue. You can read all the details in this letter from the editor, but the short of it is that John needs to focus on something more important than deadlines and ad sales. 

Reaction to the news has been extreme, ranging from “This will cripple the Omaha arts scene!” to “I thought they quit publishing years ago.” For those who have escaped into social media and left behind formal, locally produced journalistic publications, the loss of The Reader will hardly be noticeable, just like the loss of the Omaha World-Herald, which really died when Buffett sold it out years ago. 

But for those who run art galleries, produce plays, record albums, make films or partake in the products of all those endeavors, the loss of The Reader will be something more profound. In a metro (and surrounding area) whose population exceeds a million — a city currently experiencing an explosion in the growth of music venues, with a nationally recognized food culture and a globally recognized indie music record label — it’s both strange and unfortunate that there are no arts and entertainment publications covering it. With the loss of The Reader, that void will become even more noticeable. 

So say your goodbyes. I know I will. On top of everything else, I’ve written a column for The Reader continually since December 2004 – a little over 18 years. And while I’ve sweated them deadlines, I’ll also miss them along with the opportunity to share my voice and opinions in a print publication. I know there will be other places to publish my words. But will those words be forged with ink on paper? 

After more than 30 years of editing and publishing, Mr. Heaston deserves his chance to focus on the most important things in life. Maybe it’s time for someone else to step up and continue telling the story of Omaha’s creative class…

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Just a reminder that indie artist Say Hi is performing tonight at a home somewhere in Dundee. If you’re freaked out about going to a house show, bring a friend along. The two of you can share in the awkwardness and who knows, you might might meet some new friends. Tickets are $25 and can be purchased here. Upon receipt you’ll be sent the secret address. The music starts at 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 © 2023 Tim McMahan. All rights reserved.

by Tim McMahan, Lazy-i.com

The crowd last Saturday night for Ondara at Slowdown Jr. was unusual in that almost all of the mostly older folks were seated at high-top tables that filled the room. I don’t remember ever seeing a set-up like that at Slowdown. Opener Kiely Connell was finishing her set when I walked in and noticed not a soul standing in front of the stage. It felt like a formal jazz lounge.

Before he took the stage, I stood back along the edge toward the door that leads to the patio, having spent the between-set time sitting alone outside. Ondara stood in the make-shift “backstage” area behind the curtain off of stage left, not quite pacing next to the pool table, but looking down as he quietly sang to himself in a sort of pre-show voice-warmup ritual. Then he stood up straight and strolled onto the stage to warm applause.

It’s been a long time since I’ve heard anyone with a voice as strong and sure as Ondara’s. He started his set with an a-cappella number that had the crowd mesmerized. And then he methodically went through a set list of a little over a dozen songs, all accompanied by his simple acoustic guitar, all reminding me of early Tracy Chapman — both in melody and vocal style — and it just so happens that I adore Tracy Chapman.

The difference between Ondara and Chapman is in his lack of variety – most of his songs have a similar mid-tempo four-chord style – and his lyrics that, while personal, are nowhere near as gut-wrenchingly confessional as Chapman’s early material, which was revelatory for its time. That said, his songs are no less depressing, introducing them with “Here’s another sad one” and closing out the evening by saying “Time goes by quickly when you’re sad,” though he looked anything but sad as he rifled through the set list, explaining how some of the songs came along. This one is a lock-down song; this one is about aliens, and so on. 

Really beautiful stuff and, like I said, sung with a strong, confident voice so unlike the style of singing I’m accustomed to hearing at indie shows where vocals hold a distant third behind the lyrics and instrumentation, almost as if an after-thought (“hey, someone has to sing these lines.”). 

Not Ondara. His voice alone is a treasure. To underscore this, the first of his three-song encore was another a-cappella number, sung perfectly, unwavering, again mesmerizing the strange, seated crowd. 

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In the early 2000, one of the staple indie acts that toured throughout the country and into Omaha was Say Hi to Your Mom, a one-man act consisting of singer/songwriter Eric Elbogen. We used to call his kind of records “bedroom recordings” because the artist typically recorded the albums themselves on computer. playing all the parts. Thus was how Elbogen did it for his first album, 2002’s Discosadness, and for many that would be released over the next 20 years, some on the PNW label Barsuk Records, whose massive roster also included Mates of State, Death Cab for Cutie, Rilo Kiley, Starlight Mints, Viva Voce, Ra Ra Riot and a ton more of bands I love. 

Sometime over the course of that 20 years, Say Hi to Your Mom became just Say Hi. I guess Elbogen outgrew that earlier name. And now you’ll have a chance to see Say Hi yourself, as Elbogen brings his one-man show to a home in Dundee this Wednesday as part of his Undertow Tour – a tour played entirely in people’s homes. So where is the actual location? All I know is that it’s somewhere in Dundee and that you’ll be notified when you buy your ticket, which is $25 and available for purchase online at this website. Don’t worry, it’s probably a super nice place. Hurry, there are only 18 tickets left as of this writing, and Say Hi shows have a way of selling out. Starts at 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 © 2023 Tim McMahan. All rights reserved.

by Tim McMahan, Lazy-i.com

Here’s what I know (or at least what I can tell you) about yesterday’s big announcement that the Maha Music Festival will move to the Omaha Riverfront a.k.a. Heartland of America Park for its 2024 festival:

The newly designed park will have a humongous green lawn space able to comfortably handle a boost the event’s estimated attendance to 20,000 over two days. That’s nearly double what they did at last year’s festival. The huge space will allow Maha to add a third stage opposite of the main and second stages, which will host local bands. I’m not sure how that will work, considering last night I could clearly hear Little Brazil playing their final song all the way at 14th and Dodge St. where my car was parked.

Anyway, to draw 20,000, Maha will have to book bands that pull arena-sized crowds. Will that mean a shift in Maha’s booking philosophy, away from the indie style of music they built their reputation on? We’ll see, but rumor has it Maha already has someone lined up for next year’s Riverfront debut. 

I’m already seeing people complain online about parking downtown. No doubt Maha will have a plan in place to get you to the festival easily, but there’s no question it’ll be hard to beat the pure convenience of Stinson Park at Aksarben Village, where the festival has been held the past decade (and will be held for one final time again this year). For us mid-towners, the Stinson location was pretty awesome – heck, I rode my bike to Maha. That won’t be an option next year. 

But parking ain’t no thing, compared to what the new location will potentially provide. Though for me, just like Steelhouse Omaha and The Astro, it all comes down to the booking… 

A gaggle of local muckety-mucks were on hand for yesterday’s announcement, including representatives from the Mayor’s office (wonder where she was?), MECA and BFF. And the biggest muckety-mucks of all — Little Brazil — played a full set from the make-shift performance space located on the edge of the new park (which won’t be open until sometime later this summer).

Landon Hedges and the boys ripped through a tight set that featured selections from the most recent album as well as a couple oldies. Maybe it was the afternoon timeframe (and the lack of pre-concert imbibing) but Landon never sounded better vocally, hitting all those precious high notes for a crowd of around 70 stretched out in lawn chairs on the green next to the dog park. Yeah, it was loud, but the dogs didn’t seem to mind. The set-up’s tiny PA, however, began to crackle halfway through the set, unable to handle the sheer power of Little Brazil. 

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Onward to the weekend, and it’s packed for a holiday, except for tonight – which is a vast wasteland.

Tomorrow night (Saturday), singer/songwriter J.S. Ondara – or just Ondara, as he’s known — headlines at Slowdown Jr. Born in Nairobi, legend has it he grew up listening to rock music on his sister’s battery-powered radio, and cites Radiohead, Nirvana, Death Cab and Jeff Buckley as inspirations. His latest album, Spanish Villager No. 3, was released last year on Verve Forecast. To me, Ondara sounds like next-generation Tracy Chapman, right down to the quivering vocal style.  Check out MarQ Manner’s interview with Ondara in The Reader, right here. Opening is Nashville roots singer/songwriter Kiely Connell. 8 p.m. $30. 

Also tomorrow night (Saturday), Omaha prog-rock masters Violenteer opens for Reno noise rock band Elephant Rifle at Reverb Lounge. Local Ponzi Scheme also is on this 3-band bill that starts at 8 p.m. and will run you $15.

Meanwhile, just down the street at The Sydney, Madison Wisconsin’s Carrellee headlines. Her debut album, Scale of Dreams, was produced by Brett Bullion (Low, Polica). Also on the bill are Mr. Softheart. Specter Poetics opens at 9 p.m. $10. 

Finally, Sunday night, Omaha noise-punk band Leafblower opens for KC growlers Nerver. Omaha punkers Nowhere also are on the bill. 8 p.m., $12. 

And that’s all I got. If I missed your show, put it in the comments section. Have a great weekend!

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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 © 2023 Tim McMahan. All rights reserved.

by Tim McMahan, Lazy-i.com

Yesterday it was announced that The Good Life’s seminal 2004 album, titled Album of the Year, is being reissued as a gold-colored double-vinyl album by Saddle Creek Records. Here I thought all of Tim Kasher’s projects were now released by the record label he runs with the Cursive bandmates — 15 Passenger Records. But it looks like Saddle Creek is still releasing The Good Life’s catalog, and now, this fancy reissue. Why has Kasher kept this project with the Creek? I don’t know, but for some reason, it feels endearing. Pre-order here.

Anyway, The Good Life is touring this new reissue for two weeks in August, which includes the Aug. 11 Outlandia Festival gig (which is specifically NOT AN ALBUM OF THE YEAR SHOW, according the Saddle Creek press release).

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Here’s another quick reminder about this afternoon’s Maha Festival pop-up event in the park downtown featuring a performance by Little Brazil. It’s free and starts at 5 p.m. down by the giant Kaneko head.

Also tonight, the electronic duo Princess (Alexis Gideon and Michael O’Neill) is performing at Low End at The Bemis – an amazing space to see live music, located at 724 So. 12th St. Princess is “is a queer interdisciplinary performing arts duo that uses music as the narrative basis for their conceptual, visually dynamic video operas.” Opening for Princess is Nebraska’s own Problems a.k.a. Darren Keen, which Bemis describes as a “one-person dance-punk project.” Show starts at 8 p.m. and is free.

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Read Tim McMahan’s blog daily at Lazy-i.com — an online music magazine that includes feature interviews, reviews and news. The focus is on the national indie music scene with a special emphasis on the best original bands in the Omaha area. Copyright © 2023 Tim McMahan. All rights reserved.

by Tim McMahan, Lazy-i.com

Firstly, welcome back – or more accurately – it’s good to be back. I’ve been in Savannah the past week on R & R. I won’t get into it other than to say it’s as gorgeous as in Midnight in the Garden of Good and Evil.

Anyway, in my absence, the Maha Music Festival announced a “surprise summer showcase” taking place tomorrow afternoon from 5 to 6:30 p.m. at 8th and Farnam downtown (right near the dog park and the Jun Kaneko giant head). Now I wonder why they chose that location? The fun will include a live set from Little Brazil and DJ Crabrangucci. LB, btw, played the first-ever Maha festival back in 2009.

Stand ready for some special announcements about the future of Maha. Head downtown tomorrow and find out. The whole dang thing is free.

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Sacramento garage rock duo Dog Party usually plays at O’Leaver’s when they’re in town. Tonight they’re headlining at Reverb Lounge and recent recordings reflect a shift in their sound in some new directions. Also on the bill are CatBeret and Ragdoll. $17, 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 © 2023 Tim McMahan. All rights reserved.

by Tim McMahan, Lazy-i.com

The Astro Amphitheater in La Vista is still being constructed but that isn’t stopping it from announcing the first slate of shows for its new live performance complex located at 8302 City Center Drive in beautiful La Vista. 

The facility’s details you already know: 2,400-capacity 52,000-square-foot indoor theater (The Astro) attached to an outdoor grass amphitheater that can host 5,500 attendees (The Astro Amphitheater). Mammoth, Inc., out of Kansas City and 1% Productions manage the facility’s bookings. If you follow them on the socials or their new website, you’ve already heard who will be among the first bands playing at the Astro:

• Aug. 30 — Rick Springfield, The Hooters, Paul Young and Tommy Tutone, outdoors
• Sept. 16 — Beth Hart, inside
• Sept. 21 — Ancient Aliens Live, inside
• Sept. 23 — Goo Goo Dolls and Fitz & the Tantrums, outdoors
• Sept. 24 — Kenny Wayne Shepherd Band, inside
• Sept. 30 — The Gaslight Anthem, inside
• Oct. 5 — Dropkick Murphys, The Interrupters and Jesse Ahern, outdoors

Carmen Stalker from Mammoth said the Astro will “have a wide range of musical genres, including rock, alt rock, country, bluegrass, and more.” I’m trying to line up an interview with whomever will be the facility’s primary booker for a story similar to what I wrote about Steelhouse, here. 

Like Steelhouse, it may be too early to say what kind of bands The Astro will book, though if this initial lineup is any indication, I have a feeling they might be after the same sort of bands that Stir Cove traditionally has booked. Stir is handled by Live Nation, and the last show I attended there was Beck way back in September 2017. Time will tell. 

By the way, Astro has yet to announce its “grand opening” festivities. You’d think, like Steelhouse, who sort of seems to be among their chief competition, they’ll want to start off with a bang, like their sold out Killers show. Hold onto your hats.

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Speaking of sold out shows, tonight at The Waiting Room its Cursive performing Domestica in its entirety. Hard to believe that album came out 23 years ago. If the show follows the same set list the band played last weekend in Dallas and Austin, expect the performance to be broken into four parts, with an initial set of three songs, followed by Domestica, then a set of five songs followed by an encore. That’s a long-ass show.

Opening is Neva Dinova, which appears to consist of members of Cursive joining Jake Bellows, but this being Omaha, anything could happen. This one’s been sold out for a long time – even your poor, lowly scribe didn’t manage to get a ticket. If you’re going, the fun starts at 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 © 2023 Tim McMahan. All rights reserved.

by Tim McMahan, Lazy-i.com

In case it slipped your mind, The Killers are from “fabulous Las Vegas” and they’ll never let you forget it. 

Frontman / telethon host Brandon Flowers reminded the crowd multiple times throughout Friday night’s set at the grand opening of Steelhouse Omaha, strutting across the enormous stage in a purple tux jacket, leading the confetti-covered crowd through a tight, well-choreographed evening of fist-pump anthems.

But before I get to that, first Steelhouse Omaha itself. Located at 11th and Dodge St. only a stone’s throw from the Holland Performing Arts Center, the new facility is destined to become a landmark for live music. From the ground up, it is an ultra-modern concert hall that appears to have erupted right out of the concrete in downtown Omaha. 

Announced at the height of COVID in November 2019, many thought it could be a fool’s dream — no one knew what was going to happen with the pandemic. At the same time, it was a beacon of hope, assurance that somehow we’d get through all this sickness and death, that Omaha Performing Arts and its patrons must know something or they wouldn’t commit north of $110 million in a new facility designed to host a crowd like a herd of cattle, standing shoulder-to-shoulder in a windowless, confined hall – the absolute last place you’d want to be in the middle of an airborne-spread pandemic.

Yet, here we were, three-and-a-half years later, Covid all but eradicated, waiting to dive head-first into a maskless crowd. Ain’t humanity amazing?

I arrived at around 7:15 and stood in the short queue to get in. The first checkpoint was an ID check for an alcohol wristband, located outside the facility. Through the door and some sort of high-tech metal detector (no need to empty your pockets), I made a beeline to the box office, where my ticket was waiting in will-call. Most older box offices  have multiple windows – this was one walk-up hole in the wall, which made me think they must really want to sell advance tickets because if they ever have a large walk-up crowd, this small ticket window would be a challenge (and you know what they say — Omaha is a walk-up city).

From there, it was right into the venue. Booking The Killers – a band that usually plays 20,000-seat arenas — was like learning to swim by being tossed into a deep, dark lake. I guess if you’re going to pressure-test the system, do it right out of the box. To their credit, Steelhouse passed the hospitality portion of the test with flying colors, thanks to a massive phalanx of smiling, crew-shirted staff at every turn (reminding me of the Maha Festival, whose success has floated on its own massive volunteer staff). No gruff, overworked bouncers here, these folks all looked like they were having a good time. 

The lobby held a large merch area and bar, then through the doors on your right and you entered the enormous main hall cram-packed with T-shirt-clad fans holding plastic cups. Stairs on either side were well-guarded to keep riff-raff without club tickets (like me) from going upstairs. 

Bars (concessions) were built into the walls on either side of the hall, and in back – seemed like they were everywhere. Even with a sold-out crowd, I had no problem buying my $13 pint of wheat beer. All purchases are cashless, so grab your credit card and ID and leave your wallet at home. 

With my beer in hand, this was when things got tricky. The main floor was already crush-filled. I stepped into the mass of humanity a couple times just to check out the sight-lines. Instead of being sloped, the main, standing-floor area seemed flat, but the stage was raised high enough that sightlines would only be a problem for the most height-challenged. 

Somehow, I ended standing on one of the elevated decks along stage right, where I noticed a guy manning what looked like a battery of T-shirt cannons.

“Confetti cannons?” I asked. He nodded, smiling. “When will those go off? At the beginning? At the end?”

“All night,” the guy said. “The Killers love their confetti.”

We all discovered this shortly after 8 p.m. when the band took the stage and – bamf! — off went the cannons in a glittering cloud of paper as the Killers slammed into their opening number, “My Own Soul’s Warning.” And the crowd, as they say, went nuts.

It’s here that I should tell you I’m not a fan of The Killers. I think their music is fine if not a bit generic and by-the-numbers for my personal taste. With their hooks and their sing-along choruses, I understand why the mostly older crowd loved them. Frontman Flowers has a stage presence that seems to emote “We’re here all week with two shows a day on weekends,” ticking off the hits the fans so desperately want to hear. 

The room sounded overall pretty good, if a bit tinny and oversaturated on the high end. Volume was even throughout the entire facility. The arsenal of lighting was impressive, as was the giant backdrop video that augmented every song, as if The Killers had brought a Las Vegas stage show to Omaha (because they sort of did).

Problems began when I turned around to make my way to the back of the room. There were no walk-throughs and people were smashed all the way across the aisles, requiring that I shoulder my way against the current of flesh. Still, I never really felt trapped. The main auditorium is designed with large exit doors that open into a secondary lounge where the bathrooms are located, which then exits into a large patio area — both nice touches and areas to escape to when you feel overwhelmed by the sound and noise. 

Sunday I went to the Steelhouse Open House to get a look at the facility without all the people, and yes, it does feel rather sterile in the cold light of day. But you go for the rock show, not the feng shui.

Flowers and Co. slammed through one song after the next, never slowing down and only briefly acknowledging that they had the honor of playing the grand opening. “We’ve been asked to christen The Steelhouse,” Flowers yelled. “Usually we’re asked to blow the roof off the place!” 

Yeah! the crowd roared, and then they fired right into one of their more lyrically in-ept songs, “Human,” with the robot chorus, “Are we human or are we dancer?” (sic). Lots of air punches ensued. 

Later in the set, Flowers brought the vibe down.  “We usually play larger rooms than this,” he said. “This next song is perfect for this room. We made a Bright Eyes record during Covid called Pressure Machine. Wherever Conor is tonight, this is for him.” Little did he realize few in the audience knew who he was talking about as he sang the acoustic-guitar-drive “Runaway Horses,” a song that sounds nothing like a Bright Eyes song. 

After about 75 minutes, they closed out their set with another fan favorite, “All These Things That I’ve Done,” where the crowd sang along to the repeated line, “I’ve got soul but I’m not a soldier.” OK. Instead of a typical encore, the set ended with about five minutes of low-end hum and smoke from smoke machines. 

I stood in the back, taking it in, when a short, young, bearded guy came up to me and asked, “Did they do ‘Brightside’ yet?” I said I didn’t know. He shook his head and walked off before I could add, “because I have no idea what that song is.” 

The band then came back for the visually homo-erotic “The Man,” followed by, you guessed it, “Mr. Brightside.” And Bamf! more confetti! And there you have it. I walked out to the patio and escaped into the night. All in all, a big success for Steelhouse. I’m looking forward to going back to see a band that I actually want to see. Now if they would only book one.

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Speaking of standing-room shows, there’s one tonight at Reverb Lounge. Quirky ‘90s-era surf rock act Man or Astro-Man? headlines a four-band bill that includes the always-amazing Solid Goldberg. Also on the scorecard are laughingthrush & B.Sonnier. $28, 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 © 2023 Tim McMahan. All rights reserved.