by Tim McMahan, Lazy-i.com

For Throwback Thursday, a blog entry from 20 years ago… Whatever happened to Beep Beep? Whatever happened to The Goofy Foot?

Beep Beep and a peek behind the Creek; Kyle Harvey says goodbye, The Lepers tonight – Aug. 19, 2004

I guess you can call this extended version of the Beep Beep profile/interview (read it here) a Lazy-i exclusive — The Reader chopped off about a third of the story to make room for ads (I think they also cut my Sebadoh story as well — hey, that’s business). You get an interesting look inside the decision-making process that Creek goes through when they bring on a new band. Beep Beep is the latest expansion team in this successful league of indie rock stars. The fact that the band thinks of itself as the “black sheep” of the label is amusing and fitting and probably appropriate. Creek may not have a “sound” as Jason Kulbel says, but they do have certain boundaries that the bands are comfortable playing within, and Beep Beep breaks through them all. Yeah, Creek doesn’t have a “sound,” and they don’t really have anything like Beep Beep, either. There’s something strange and psychotic about their music, something that borders on violence and voyeurism, an eccentric decadence indeed. The guys in Beep Beep are as curious as anyone as to how their oddity will mesh with the rest of the label’s bands, which seem almost mainstream in comparison. As Chris Hughes says, “The record takes five listens to get the hook. If you give it a chance, you’ll get it.” I just don’t know if indie America (or America in general, for that matter) has the patience or the attention span to listen to anything five times. 

Tonight’s shows: Kyle Harvey “and friends” at the Goofy Foot — it’s being billed as one of his last Omaha performances before he moves to Nashville. Meanwhile The Lepers and Players Club are at O’Leaver’s. Very unlikely that I’ll attend either show as I’m looking at three days in a row starting Friday night. Instead, I might check out the Metallica documentary at The Dundee Theater — I hate Metallica, but I hear this is a good flick. If I go, I’ll pass on a review tomorrow.

Check-in: The Good Life, Album of the Year; The Faint, Wet from Birth.

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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 © 2024 Tim McMahan. All rights reserved.

by Tim McMahan, Lazy-i.com

Happy Monday. How about a slice of pop candy to brighten up your home offices (or whatever)…

Last week See Through Dresses’ drummer Nate Van Fleet released another two-song EP from his band Big Nope. Recorded by Nate and STD bandmate Mathew Carroll last fall, listen for the Benson shout-out in A-side “Kid I” and enjoy the party slacker vibe of flip-side “Throwaways.” Both tracks are here. So when are we going to see Big Nope on stage? Hey, when are we going to see anyone again on stage?

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Last week Pitchfork published an article about Apple Music’s $50 million COVID-19 fund and what it means for indie labels. Apple’s program offers interest-free loans against future royalties to indie labels and distributors that earn more than $10,000 through Apple Music per quarter and have a deal with Apple.

While it seems like a generous officer, the details can get rather complicated as to who qualifies. And let’s face it, this isn’t a grant, it’s a loan, so while Apple may be waiving interest on that $50 mil, we’re talking about a company with $207 billion in free cash on hand.

Among those quoted in the Pitchfork article is Saddle Creek label exec Robb Nansel, who said he doesn’t plan on taking advantage of Apple’s generosity.

“I’m interested to see what the terms are. It’s not like they’re just giving you free money.” Nansel is quoted as saying in the article. “They have a lot of cash and if they can help some people out that can be cash-strapped, it seems like it could be a good thing.”

That said, the last thing struggling labels need right now is to get further in debt.

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Speaking of Saddle Creek Records, the label has declared April the “Month of the Album” and is offering a 15 percent discount on its entire catalog with the offer code: SUPPORT. It makes it as good a time as any to finally pick up a copy of that Beep Beep album you’ve always wanted… Find out more.

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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 © 2020 Tim McMahan. All rights reserved.