by Tim McMahan, Lazy-i.com

I showed up at Reverb Lounge Saturday night at around 9 figuring I’d missed the opener when, in fact, there were two opening acts. The door guy said High Curbs already played, and Ultra Q was up next for a short set before Red Pears. 

I always try to catch opening acts when possible, at least half their set, anyway. I’d never heard of Ultra Q and was surprised at the crowd’s size (around 100) and enthusiasm. As well as the number of older folks flecked among the kids. 

On came Ultra Q. Their website has no bio information, so I was flying blind. In the old days, you’d call their sound “power pop,” just bordering on the edge of emo, but with more straightforward – at time straight-4 – rhythms. The drummer was ultra clean and economic in his approach and drove the whole band. In fact the entire band was well-honed.

Ah, but the vocalist… while his voice was fine, he had an affected style that clearly sounded as if he was aping Billy Joe Armstrong from Green Day (with the lead guitarist dropping in a few out-of-place hardcore growls). 

Looking at the notes I wrote that night: “Bay Area band, great energy, great drummer and guitarist, but… Green Day vocals.” Well, the vocal similarities can be forgiven, because it turned out the lead vocalist was Jakob Armstrong, son of Green Day’s Billy Joe Armstrong. You get a pass if you sing like your dad. Interestingly, the band’s music had more in common with early Cure than Green Day. No songs stood out, but with that talent it’ll be interesting to see where they take their sound.

Maybe that explained the crowd’s demographics (and why all the chairs had been removed from the club)?

The Red Pears had been advertised as a trio, but there were five dudes on stage at 9:40. Listening to their latest album, Better Late than Never (2024, Daycare Records), I couldn’t figure out where the “Latin tinged” came from in the one-sheet, other than the guys’ names (frontman Henry Vargas, bassist Pat Juarez, drummer Jose Corona). 

Their sound certainly wasn’t Latin-tinged, more like indie post-punk a la The Strokes, bordering on White Stripes’ psych-rock. Actually, they reminded me of Sheer Mag (“Expect the Bayonet”), and vocalist Vargas even sported a masculine version of Christine Halladay’s snarl. 

After a couple songs, one of the five musicians left the stage and the Pears played the rest of the set as a four-piece. And then, four or five songs or so in, Vargas sang some Spanish lyrics. Latin-tinged indeed. Great band.  

. 0 0 0 . 

It’s back to Reverb Lounge tonight for Advance Base, a project of Chicago singer/songwriter Owen Ashworth of Casiotone for the Painfully Alone. His latest EP, The Year I Lived in Richmond (2024, Run for Cover), is a lonely, sparse collection of quiet, keyboard-accompanied memory songs. Pretty. Joining him is UK singer/songwriter Katie Malco, who has worked with the likes of Laura Stevenson and SOAK in the past. Our very own Jim Schroeder opens this show at 8 p.m. $15.

* * *

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 © 2024 Tim McMahan. All rights reserved.

by Tim McMahan, Lazy-i.com

Steelhouse Omaha, the new 3,000 capacity standing-room live music venue owned and operated by Omaha Performing Arts, announced today that their grand opening has been set for May 12, 2023.

Steelhouse will be booked by Live Nation, which handles the one of the largest catalogs of touring rock bands in the country, so the opening performer could be just about anyone you could imagine, though no doubt it will be someone who will appeal to the widest possible range of audiences. Look, I’m not expecting LCD Soundsystem. Still, if Steelhouse can book just six quality touring indie acts per year, I’d be happy.

And just as they wind down construction on that $104 million project, OPA announced last week a new $103 million Center for Arts Engagement that will be built in that vacant lot on the east side of the Holland Performing Arts Center. This one is more of an education center, and will include rehearsal space, workroom and classroom space.

. 0 0 0 .

Pageturners Lounge has another pop-up shows tonight, this time featuring Advance Base, the project from Owen Ashworth formerly of Casiotone for the Painfully Alone. Ashworth has some heavy credits, including contributing to Sun Kil Moon’s exquisite Benji album from 2014. Joining him tonight are Vera Deborah and Jim Schroeder (David Nance Band, UUVVWWZ). $10, 8 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 © 2022 Tim McMahan. All rights reserved.

Summer Cannibals at O’Leaver’s, Aug. 21, 2015. They return to the club Saturday night.

by Tim McMahan, Lazy-i.com

Semi-busy weekend show-wise.

Here’s one that was under my radar, probably because I never heard of these guys (and they’re on a major label). Peach Pit is Vancouver band signed to Columbia that’s been around since 2016. They describe their sound as melding “teenage angst with bummer summer vibes that have them sounding somewhere between Mac Demarco and Homeshake.”

That description alone would be enough for me move onto something else, but when I listened to a couple of their tracks on Spotify I was intrigued. Their new album, Being So Normal, was originally released on Vancouver indie label Kingfisher Bluez. They kind of remind me of upbeat Pernice Brothers crossed with Susto. Strangely, there’s virtually no listing on Allmusic.com and not much else about them online, and yet tonight’s show at Slowdown Jr. is sold out, so the word’s gotten out about them somehow.

Opening is Nashville indie act Sun Seeker who’s 2017 album Biddeford was released by Third Man Records. $12, 9 p.m.

Also tonight at fabulous O’Leaver’s: Advance Base is the project of Chicago’s Owen Ashworth (fka Casiotone for the Painfully Alone). The new album, Animal Companionship, is “about humans and their relationships with their pets: what pets mean to their owners and how those animal relationships affect our human relationships and vice versa.” Who couldn’t love that?

This is a massive four-band bill with Philly act Friendship, Hartford/Focht and Mike Schlessinger. $7, 9 p.m.

If that weren’t enough, punk legends Millions of Dead Cops (MDC) roll into Lookout Lounge tonight. Here’s a column I wrote about these dudes 13 years ago. Local punkers RAF and Top-Notch Defective open at 9 p.m. $15.

Tomorrow night it’s back to O’Leaver’s for the return of Summer Cannibals. The Portland four-piece plays an infectious style of indie rock which sounds influenced by acts like Sleater-Kinney or Girl in a Coma. Their new album Full Of It is out now on Kill Rock Stars. This is yet another massive four-band bill with Hussies headlining, The Cult of Lip and The Natural States opening at 9:30 p.m.

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

* * *

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 © 2018 Tim McMahan. All rights reserved.