by Tim McMahan, Lazy-i.com

O’Leaver’s has become (over the course of, what, a decade?) one of the best places to see live music in Omaha. It’s a stop for national touring indie bands and a welcome stage for the best local original live acts in Omaha. It’s “The Club,” a comfortable place to hang, a great place to drink.

But there’s a problem with O’Leaver’s when it comes to live music. On nights when the band is really packing them in, you’re probably not going to be able to see a damn thing. Because O’Leaver’s doesn’t have a real stage. Bands play on a cleared off space in the back of the room. So when there’s a crowd standing in front of the band, the only thing you’re likely to see is the back of a lot of unwashed heads of hair.

There are a few strategic places in the club that offer a glimpse of the band, if you’ve staked out your spot while they were humping in their gear between sets. If not, you better be standing right on top of the band. That’s the way it’s always been at O’Leaver’s, and because of the physical limitations of the room, that’s the way it’ll always be — there’s no way to build an elevated stage — the ceiling’s too low.

When we first walked into a sold-out and packed Winchester Bar & Grill Saturday night, the venue was reminiscent of O’Leaver’s in a number of ways. It’s a comfortable hole-in-the-wall hang-out that’s probably looked the way it does for a few decades. Like O’Leaver’s, there’s volleyball courts, this time located outside the back of the bar, which opens into an inviting patio with picnic benches and a small bar of its own, no doubt a smoker’s paradise. Unlike O’Leaver’s (for now) Winchester has a kitchen which makes a mighty fine cheeseburger.

But the thing that’s most similar to O’Leaver’s was the sight-line problems. Having been there for lunch when only a few folks were noshing sandwiches sitting in the booths, I thought Winchester had a leg up on O’Leaver’s because it has a fixed stage back in the corner. But as I quickly realized Saturday night, that stage wasn’t elevated enough. The band could be heard but, alas, could not be seen.

When Cursive was on stage I wasn’t even sure the entire band was up there. I could hear Megan Siebe’s cello but couldn’t see it. Where was drummer Pat Oakes? There were moments when frontman Tim Kasher’s head appeared between the spaces of bodies, and bassist Matt Maginn and guitarist Ted Stevens were playing so far off to the sides at times they could be seen, too. But see the whole band at once? Not Saturday night, not unless you got there early and were standing right in front of them.

It’s a problem easy to remedy — just raise the stage a foot, or two. Unlike O’Leaver’s, there’s plenty of head space. No doubt it’s not a problem on karaoke nights or when there’s a cover band playing, but if they ever have another sold-out show like Saturday hight, they’re in trouble.

The venue’s PA/sound system was serviceable. The room’s acoustics are what they are — i.e., this is no Waiting Room/Reverb set-up, but it was all they needed Saturday night. Of note — I could hear the cello throughout the set. I remember back in the old Gretta days when she might as well have been playing a cardboard cello for as much as it could be heard over the rest of the band.

Kasher sounded right at home, because he was at home — he’s an owner of Winchester as part of a consortium of partners that include Stevens and Maginn and host of Omaha rock glitterati. He looked relaxed and having fun, or maybe it was due to the fact it was the last night of a long tour.

The band opened with “Sierra” and played through a set of old favorites (“The Radiator Hums,” “Dorothy at Forty” “From the Hips” among the highlights) as well as songs off Vitriola, their latest release, including rousing versions of “It’s Gonna Hurt” and “Free to Be or Not to Be You and Me.” The crowd hooted and hollered after every song.

It was a sort of break-in performance for Winchester at least from a big show perspective, and despite the challenges of actually seeing the band, was a good time. As great as the music was, the best part for me was hanging out on the patio and catching up with old friends over beers (one drawback — no Rolling Rock. How is that even possible?).

During a recent interview with Kasher, Tim said he’d love to see Winchester evolve into another viable tour stop for original live music, just like O’Leaver’s. I’d love to see that happen, too. The club’s size (capacity has to be around 300?) makes it a great alternative to O’leaver’s when Craig D. has an opportunity to book a band with a larger following. They just need to jack up that stage a couple feet higher…

* * *

Awakebutstillinbed (ABSIB) is singer/guitarist Shannon Taylor and her band playing indie rock that glides between emo and folk but, in the end, is emo. She can scream with the best of them. Reminds me of the ’00s. From San Jose. On Tiny Engines Records. Opening act Pity Party is Oakland emo. Living Conditions is Omaha screamo. All three play tonight at Reverb Lounge. $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 © 2019 Tim McMahan. All rights reserved.

The Faint at The Waiting Room, May 24, 2019.

by Tim McMahan, Lazy-i.com

We got to The Waiting Room at around 9:15 Friday night, halfway through Choir Boy’s set. The person sitting next to me said it doesn’t sound like that voice should be coming out of the lead guy’s body. I said he sounds like Rick Astley. And their music also sounded like it came from the same decade that produced Astley — the era of Simply Red and Spandau Ballet and Simple Minds and Paul Young. MTV music. Choir Boy sounded like the soundtrack to a John Hughes film, but not necessarily one of his better ones.

I was reminded how much I heard this stuff in the early ’80s when I’d just graduated from high school and was going to places like The Depot and The Warehouse in Council Bluffs/Carter Lake, places where people listened and danced to this style of music, met people, went home with people. It was a time long, long before the internet and texting, when you actually had to walk up to someone and talk to them and ask them to dance. I wasn’t very good at that. But I had fun anyway, partially because of music like this.

I’m surprised an act like Choir Boy, a Team Love band playing ’80s-style New Romantic synth-pop, has a following among today’s youngsters. Or maybe they don’t. After all, The Faint’s biggest hits came out about 20 years ago, and Friday night’s audience reflected this — an older crowd for sure.

Todd and the boys came on just after 10 and ripped right into their set with their usual fervor.

I was reminded of another Faint concert at The Waiting Room about a decade ago in what was one of the venue’s “break in” concerts. Back then The Waiting Room was sort of two rooms — a stage room (where the stage is now) separated by pseudo walls that created a sort of separate room where the bar is located. The partial enclosures made the stage room louder, or so it seemed. That show was a sell out, and I spent it standing on a ledge that ran along the load-in ramp that lifted me above the throng. I watched the humanity down below bounce like butter on a hot skillet and felt every deep-bass throb in my bones.

And while Friday’s performance was as good as that one 10 years ago, the energy wasn’t as intense as those early Faint shows. We watched from behind the crowd along that soundboard wall that backs into the bar area. One super-tall guy, he must have been seven feet tall, stood in the center of the crowd and threw his arms in the air like an alien life form. He was the most animated of the mob that indeed bounced when they recognized a hit (“Worked Up So Sexual,” “Your Retro Career Melted,” etc.).

The set list for shows leading up to this one included maybe one song from the new album. But the band played at least three off the new one Friday night, including leading off their encore with “Child Asleep” — for my money, one of the best songs they’ve ever written. In fact, Egowerk sits right up there with The Faint’s best and the new songs blended in well with the rest of the set.

You have to ask yourself if they even need to produce new music with their rep as one of indie’s best full-tilt party bands. Egowerk isn’t what brought the crowd Friday night. And yet, how satisfying would it be for the band to just keep on playing the same songs over and over? Egowerk adds some new life into an already lively body of work. It’s not an evolution, but it continues their journey in the same dance-punk direction.

Anyway, the moment that everyone waits for always happens during the encore — “Glass Danse” — when the whole crowd erupts, and Friday night was no exception. The floor became a trampoline, just like in the good ol’ days. I have no doubt that a large portion of Friday night’s crowd came back for Saturday night’s encore.

* * *

Because this is running long (and because I don’t haven’t finished writing it yet) I’ll publish the Cursive (and Winchester) review tomorrow.

* * *

Tonight, Alternative Tentacles/Enigma recording artist T.S.O.L. plays at Lookout Lounge. They headline a night of punk that includes R.A.F., Hand Painted Police Car and The Scabby Ghouls. $15, 8 p.m. Wear your Docs.

* * *

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 © 2019 Tim McMahan. All rights reserved.

The Faint at the 2017 Maha Music Festival, Aug. 19, 2017. The band is playing at The Waiting Room tonight and tomorrow night.

by Tim McMahan, Lazy-i.com

Holy smokes, it’s an indie rock weekend!

It starts tonight at The Waiting Room where The Faint begin a two-night tour of duty. The band is on the road supporting Egowerk, the new release and a return to Saddle Creek Records.

Expect a mostly retrospective set, if the set list from the May 18 show in Seattle is any indication, where they played only one song off the new album? That can’t be right, can it? I guess we’ll find out tonight and tomorrow night.

I’m assuming Closeness will open the show for what will likely be the last time they play in Omaha for a long while due to Todd and Orenda Fink moving out west a few months ago. DAIS Recording artist Choir Boy has the center slot. What I’ve heard off their last album Passive with Desire, sounds like laid-back, synth-driven Bryan Ferry.

Saturday night’s Faint show, also at The Waiting Room, has the same line-up. Tickets are still available for both shows for $25. Start time is 8 p.m.

Also happening tonight, Chase the Ghost plays at fabulous O’Leaver’s with La Te Da and Jeremy Mercy. No price shown, but probably $5 and it probably starts at 10 p.m.

That brings us to Saturday and Cursive at Winchester Bar & Grill. You read my interview with Tim Kasher yesterday (and if you didn’t, go do it now). Here’s the set list from their May 20 show in Richmond. Seems like I remember hearing capacity at Winchester is north of 200. The venue is about twice the size of O’Leaver’s, but it’s still pretty small for a gig like this. Especially with openers mewithoutYou and The Appleseed Cast. This is the last gig on this tour, so expect fireworks.

Believe it or not, $22 tickets are still available. THIS ONE”S sold out. Don’t sleep on this one. Start time is 8 p.m.

O’Leaver’s will be limping along Saturday night with Wichita power-pop band Kill Vargas, Seymour and Garst. $5, 8 p.m.

Finally, Sunday night Sebadoh returns to Reverb Lounge. Who remembers when the band played the room’s grand opening? It was a comedy of errors that the band suffered through with good humor. In addition to a battery of sound issues, frontman Lou Barlow was suffering a painful toothache. Still, it was a pretty good set.

Opening is NYC punk band Flower (Simple Machines Records). Their bio: “Flower is a post-punk noise/pop band from NYC formed in 1986 featuring later members of Versus, French, and Cell. Flower was a staple of the NYC underground scene carved out by Sonic Youth, Live Skull, Swans, etc, utilizing the noise element of the aforementioned artists to deepen the textures of more classically oriented pop/rock songs. They continue to perform and record today.“

$25, 8 p.m. Tickets are still available.

That’s all I got. If I missed your show, put it in the comments section. Have a great weekend and I’ll see you at the clubs.

* * *

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 © 2019 Tim McMahan. All rights reserved.

Cursive, from left, are Ted Stevens, Patrick Newbery, Matt Maginn, Tim Kasher, Clint Schnase and Megan Siebe. Photo by Tony Bonacci.

by Tim McMahan, Lazy-i.com

When Cursive takes the stage at Winchester Bar, the ramshackle home of volleyball and karaoke recently purchased by a consortium that includes members of the band, you’ll see some old and new faces.

The band’s core — frontman Tim Kasher, guitarist Ted Stevens and bass player Matt Maginn — will be joined by new permanent members keyboardist Patrick Newbery and cellist Megan Siebe. Drummer Pat Oakes will be sitting in for returning member, drummer Clint Schnase.

It’s a big group that creates a big sound on the band’s new album, Vitriola, recorded at ARC Studios with wizard knob turner Mike Mogis. To my ears, it’s a return to the classic bash-rock style Cursive became known for beginning in the late ’90s on its many Saddle Creek Records releases. 

My simplistic (and there’s no one more simplistic than I) take on the record’s theme is that Kasher’s getting older and these songs reflect his anxiety about aging and/or the struggle and futility of life (versus say, songs about his struggles with relationships (Domestica) or religion (Happy Hollow)). There’s also a  political theme that runs through a few songs that’s hard to miss, though I wouldn’t consider this a protest album. 

During a phone interview that took place a few weeks ago, Kasher talks about the new album, the band’s new record label, 15 Passenger (which they own and operate), working again with Schnase and buying yet another volleyball bar to run alongside The Club called O’Leaver’s.

Tell me about Winchester? Why did you buy it? What are your plans? What do you feel about playing there?

Kasher: Winchester is a bar that went up for sale a handful of years ago and the fellas that are in this group business that we have saw it as an opportunity. And Chris Machmuller (of Ladyfinger fame, who also runs O’Leaver’s) also has been wanting a kitchen for some time, and that has a restaurant as part of it. O’Leaver’s is also going to be utilizing its kitchen soon. But those are the reasons, I mean, the volleyball, essentially.  They know how that works, so they thought they’d go for it. I like the spot myself. I guess we all liked it, you know?

It is bigger. It’s got a stage, it’s got good cheeseburgers and you’re cornering the market on volleyball. You guys are becoming the volleyball kings.

Yeah, it’s funny, we have definitely become the volleyball people. And it’s really not that far out of the way. It’s just kind of relative to what we understand and which direction we go in Omaha.

So, you’re in Chicago, right?

No. I’m in L.A.

So, you’re in L.A. and they call you and say ‘Hey, we’re thinking about buying Winchester. What do you think?’ Because it couldn’t have been your idea, right?

No. It was not. The whole process really took a while. I guess it is over a year ago now, and we just kind of talked about it and considered it. But I only offer as much input as is necessary, only if there is any major red flags, but I don’t think that has ever come up for me. I’m just kind of happy to let them do what they do.

Alright, so tell me about the album. Everyone says it is this angry album, but I think it’s just delightful. I like ‘Remorse,’ which is my favorite Cursive song since ‘From the Hips.’ 

Thanks. That’s actually a song that Patrick Newbery brought in. This is the first time that we more completely wrote with Patrick. He worked on I am Gemini but it was a little bit after the fact. He kind of came in and rounded the edges and put organs and different things on. But this time he wrote from the start and I encouraged him to bring songs in, too, and that was one of the things he had lying around. So I put some melody and vocals on it and it’s a nice piece.

Yeah I assume you’re playing that live?

No. We actually haven’t been.

What?

Perhaps we should.

Why not?

I don’t know, I guess for us it felt like more of the appropriate somber deep cut for the album. 

You’ve really analyzed this record more than any of the others I think. It’s amazing the stuff you’ve said about it in interviews. Does that much thought go into it? I mean it seems no darker than the other records. 

Sometimes it just has to do with what the press says, you know? Prior to being released I kind of scratched my head and I’m not sure what to think of it and I wonder what others think of it. Others kind of enlightened me to what their impression is and what their perception of it is, so then I just kind of start going along. So apparently this one came off as a lot darker and heavier than what, though, I’m not sure. Because I agree with you, every Cursive record is pretty heavy, I guess. Happy Hollow was probably in a little bit of a different direction, but…

It sounds like you’re getting older to me, that’s all. You know. In the same way I’m getting older, too. You’re getting more pissed at stuff.

Yes, that’s true.

So, tell me how it’s going in terms of putting this out yourselves versus Saddle Creek Records? I talked to (Saddle Creek label chief) Robb Nansel and he said ‘I think they just wanted to do it themselves. I’m not sure why they want to do it themselves, because it’s such a pain in the neck, etc.’ Has it been difficult doing the label for you guys? Is it more work than you thought is was going to be? 

No, I don’t really think there’s been much of a problem. Also Saddle Creek has a lot of bands. They have a lot more moving pieces as a result of that. We are very boutique, as you can tell. It might be a better question for Matt and Ted, but it’s been actually pretty enjoyable and we do have a distributor and stuff, too. It’s not like every role has been thrown in our laps.

Part of the joy of life is doing things yourself and running your own business. The bars are kind of like that as well. It’s a challenge, and I think everybody kind of likes the challenge.

Is it more financially satisfying?

You know, probably not. But that wasn’t part of it. Those were the conversations we had with Robb before we ever made the decision.

Money really wasn’t the driver?

No, we were always clear about that. Money is not a factor at all because we actually know that money won’t be a factor. There’s not some big slice that we’re getting, you know? It’s a modest business.

So it’s about controlling the product then?

Yeah, yeah. And feeling good about that and representing ourselves.

Why hasn’t Cursive issued a Greatest Hits album? Or a live album, you know? Conor’s done a live record, The Faint did Capsule (a retrospective). When are you guys going to do your Greatest Hits collection?

We never talk about it. It’s not a terrible idea.

Well, it brings up the question if whether they’re even relevant in an era of streaming?

True. I mean really, it’s just almost like making a play list. I think we’ve already done that. We still have an interest in documenting what we do live, and that’s still a conversation we throw around. We still haven’t pulled the trigger on that. But that would probably be our version of a “best of” record.

Like… Cursive Live at Oleaver’s, maybe?

Absolutely.

So where does the band live these days?

Actually everybody is here in Omaha. Except for me.

What’s it like having Clint Schnase back in the band?

It’s a blast.

How did that come about?

It was just great timing. Everything clicked together really well. As 15 Passenger, Matt, Ted and I saw it as a means to slowly re-release our catalog under the same umbrella. But as we would have those conversations it was always just kind of fun to play around and say, ‘Jeez, we could really do what we want, we don’t have to set any perimeters.’ And the obvious conclusion to that would be, ‘I guess if there’s anything we were to release, it would probably be a new Cursive record.’ So we asked ourselves, ‘Are we doing another Cursive record?‘ Because we sincerely never know. Every record we do, we never really talk about another one.

So doing 15 Passenger kind of helped stimulate us, made us curious and gave us something to work toward. It would be kind of cool to release another Cursive record on our own label. So that idea was very slowly marinating between us, and then out of the blue Clint reached out and (said), ‘If you guys ever want to do a record again, I’d love to.’ And so hearing that we were like ‘Actually, we’ve been talking about doing another record, so if you wanted to then that’s perfect.’ Once he reached out to us, we were just like ‘Oh my gosh, we’ve got to do it.’

I assumed he kind of pulled away for personal or possibly family stuff and now he must have some time to do this.

I probably shouldn’t speak on his behalf, but I think that’s quite fair to say that he wanted to kind of settle down more and start a family. And I think for him his daughter is like a young lady now, so I think he felt that he could dedicate a little more time. But I don’t think he would ever like to do the heavy tour circuit again like we used to do. (Pat Oakes is the band’s tour drummer and will be playing the Winchester show). Even when we were young and we were doing that, it really wasn’t his bag. And Clint was always very vocal about that.

He’s just a crazy drummer. I mean he’s one of my favorites, so muscular and aggressive. 

For me it really shines through. I’ve loved the other drummers we’ve played with, they’re just amazing. But the actual Cursive drummer is Clint. That’s the sound of what we are and what we do, you know?

How’s Megan enjoying being part of the band? She’s kind of been touring with you for years before this anyway, right?

Yeah, Megan and I have become really close touring partners. She does solo tours as well now and it’s great. We get along great. We’re great friends and I think she’s enjoying herself.

So tell me about what’s next. What are you guys working on after this tour is done?

Well, I kind of had to ask myself that. I wasn’t really sure. I always want to keep moving forward, writing stuff. So after some consideration of what it is I do in this life, I just started writing songs again. So I started working on another solo record that I’ll hopefully put out next year. I’ll see how it goes.  And then, of course, I’ll always have scripts. I’m having a string of good luck right now, so I’m hoping to give that a shot this summer.

So another movie possibly (Kasher wrote and directed 2017 feature film No Resolution)?

Yeah. But I don’t want to jinx it. I’ve had those things fall through so many times in my life, but I’m trying to stay on track to shoot it this summer.

What about the label? There’s rumors about another band joining the label.

Yeah, we have two things and maybe a third thing. I don’t think it’s stuff I can talk about yet, because it’s another thing that, if it falls through, that’s like… And then there’s a secret announcement that we are going to do for one of them, too, and who knows?

So, anything else? Anything else going on that you want to mention?

We’re excited about doing Winchester. Excited for people come out and see it. I imagine a lot of people probably haven’t yet.

Cursive plays with mewithoutYou and The Appleseed Cast Saturday, May 25, at Winchester Bar & Grill, 7002 Q Tickets are $22, showtime is 8 p.m. For more information, go to winchesteromaha.com.

by Tim McMahan, Lazy-i.com

Reaching back into the archive on this Throwback Thursday, to a time when Twitter was just getting going. Who’da thunk back than that Twitter would become the main tool for the country’s Biggest Tool? And yet, here we are. This column was a sort of introduction to Twitter, and the first time I used the tool for doing live concert reviews. It was also the last time. There’s no point in “real time” reporting a live concert in Twitter. It’s about as interesting as seeing pictures from people’s vacation while they’re still on vacation. Actually, isn’t that what Facebook is based on?

The concert I was tweeting from was a preview show by Cursive of material that would appear on Mama, I’m Swollen, which was released March 10, 2009, and is still one of my favorite Cursive albums.

From Lazy-i, Jan. 29, 2009…

Column 207: In a Twitter
The end of conversation.

Back in the old days — a few short years ago — just blogging was enough. People had a way of electronically publishing their ideas — no matter how mundane — in a format that was accessible to the entire world via the Internet. Bored college students in Toledo could now share their insights with bored college students in Gdansk about such nail-biting topics as: what they had for dinner, why they’re pissed at their boyfriend/girlfriend, and what’s on TV.

Now along comes Twitter. Well, not just now. Twitter’s been around since 2006 (according to Wikipedia, which itself has been around since 2001), but it seems like no one started using it until last year. Oh sure, there were a couple Twitter pioneers (drones who will proudly boast that they’ve been Tweeting (the verb form) for years), but the technology — and the term itself — only just entered our vernacular in the past year or so (or mine, at least).

Brief tech discussion: Twitter is a browser-based “social networking” environment that limits its users to 140 characters per post. The limit is there, in part, to facilitate the use of cell phones as input devices, along with the web. It also forces people to strenuously self-edit themselves, to carefully hone their ideas to only the most critical few words. Each comment answers the universal question: What are you doing? The result: Briefer discussions about what’s for dinner, boyfriends/girlfriends, and what’s on TV.

Unlike blogs (but like Facebook, which is another slice of entropy altogether) people search Twitter for their friends, and then “follow” them. Twitter aggregates everyone you’re “following” into one inane conversation, each comment conveniently time-stamped, something like:

Husker_power: Hungry. Taco Johns tonight fur shure. about 3 hours ago from TwitterBerry
Santinofan: Watching Top Chef. Ariane got screwed. Padme where are you? about 5 hours ago from web

And so on. Twitter appears to be a natural de-evolution of human interaction. Soon all discussions will be limited to Tarzan-like grunts, culminating in: “Poop. Pee. Eat. Poop. Screw. Eat. Simpsons. Poop.”

So why all this discussion about Twitter? About six months ago, I logged onto Twitter for the first time. You can “follow” my tweeting online at: twitter.com/tim_mcmahan. I quickly discovered that “micro-blogging” has its advantages. Take CD reviews, for instance. Instead of spending hours writing gripping, nuanced examinations of an album’s true meaning, I only have room for:

tim_mcmahan: Listening to the new Ladyfinger album. Brutal fun.

or

tim_mcmahan: Listening to new Springsteen. Nothing new here *yawn*.

Conversely, Twitter allows bands, record labels and assorted famous folk to keep in touch with their fans. I now know what The Willowz (thewillowz), Saddle Creek Records (saddlecreek) and Lance Armstrong (lancearmstrong) are having for lunch. For better or worse.

One perceived value of Twitter is the real-time nature of the medium. Instead of text messaging to one person, you’re text messaging to all of your “followers” at once. To test Twitters’ capabilities and limitations, I took my iPhone to Slowdown last Saturday night for the Cursive concert and annoyed everyone within a few feet of me by tapping in the following comments throughout the evening. Here’s the transcript/review:

tim_mcmahan: Full house. I’m buying Rolling Rocks two at a time. 10:34 PM Jan 24th from mobile web

tim_mcmahan: House music is Michael Jackson, or at least it sounds like Jacko. 10:37 PM

tim_mcmahan: Nice. Kasher’s voice sounds husky. 10:57 PM

tim_mcmahan: Classic Kasher rant. “Bark bark bark.” 11:11 PM

tim_mcmahan: Seems like they’re working trumpet into every song these days. For better or worse. 11:14 PM

tim_mcmahan: Some of this new stuff sounds like The Good Life. The convergence keeps getting closer. 11:31 PM

tim_mcmahan: Halfway through the set. Ted Stevens finally switches from the 12-string to his LP. 11:34 PM

tim_mcmahan: Kasher says he’s got a sore throat and is drinking hot tea. He sounds fine. 11:41 PM

tim_mcmahan: “What Have I Done.” Kasher’s back to the self-referential lyrics. Songs about writing songs. 11:44 PM

tim_mcmahan: His most soulful song since Domestica. 11:46 PM

tim_mcmahan: Cornbread on drums changes the entire complexion of Cursive. They swing now, moreso than the old frontal assault of Schnase. 11:54 PM

tim_mcmahan: Off stage now. Encore’s next. This is a longer set than Union Hall. 11:55 PM

tim_mcmahan: Back. With “Art is Hard.” Crowd loves it. Kasher’s right. Mostly kids huddled along the stage. 11:59 PM

tim_mcmahan: Never get tired of hearing “The Martyr.” 12:04 AM

tim_mcmahan: Okay, now his voice is giving out. 12:06 AM

tim_mcmahan: Struggling through “Sierra.” The last song of the night. 12:11 AM

tim_mcmahan: Kasher takes over the drum kit. 12:13 AM

tim_mcmahan: That’s it. Kasher won’t be talking for a week. 12:14 AM

Just like being there? Not really. Looking over the comments the following morning, I wondered if they needed to be augmented with explanations, but realized that anyone who knows me and what I write about understands the shorthand. They know who Kasher and Cursive is. They know the song titles and the terminology. And if they don’t, they can always find out. On Myspace or Facebook. On YouTube. On Wikipedia. Or on Twitter, which is effectively shoe-horning the world into a conversation that’s only 140 characters wide. For better or worse.

* * *

Tonight, BMG Recording artist Jocelyn releases the first single from her upcoming album, a song titled “Speak Up,” at Slowdown Jr. I’ve heard it and it’s pop-candy fun. Aly Peeler opens the show at 7 p.m. $10.

* * *

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 © 2019 Tim McMahan. All rights reserved.

Rusty Lord at Almost Music during Record Store Day, April 21, 2018. The shop will be closing its doors in January.

by Tim McMahan, Lazy-i.com

If you haven’t already got the news let me be the last to tell you that yesterday Brad Smith announced on Facebook that Almost Music will be closing its doors forever in January.

Seems like only yesterday (instead of nearly three years ago (April 2016)) that Almost Music moved to the Blackstone District from its original Benson location (65th & Maple), which opened in October 2013.

I don’t know what more I can add to what’s already been said by the broken-hearted wretches responding to the news on Facebook, other than what I told Brad:

Almost Music for me was a connection back to the old Antiquarium days, to the ’90s Omaha music scene and old friends like the long-departed Dave Sink.

Almost Music had that same Antiquarium vibe. It was a neighborhood store that welcomed anyone, but beyond that for music fans, Brad and his staff just made it easy to buy stuff. The difference between Almost Music and other record stores was the way the stock was curated, so the good stuff bubbled to the surface and was easy to find. I get exhausted just thinking about having to dig through stacks of dirty, dusty vinyl at Kanesville or the endless used bins at Homer’s looking for hidden treasure. Brad put the treasure right out front, clean and in perfect alpha order.

I’m speaking in past-tense. Almost Music is still open and will be through the holidays. I suggest you drop by with your wallet or credit card and take advantage of it before it’s gone for good, along with the remaining fond memories you had of Omaha’s past.

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Back to the weekend…

Chicago indie band Typesetter headlines tonight at fabulous O’Leaver’s. Joining them are fellow Windy City act Kali Masi and Omaha’s Centerpiece. $12, 10 p.m.

Meanwhile, over at Reverb Lounge Tulsa indie band Broncho headlines. The band’s latest album, Bad Behavior, was release last month by Park The Van Records. Sydney Australia band Valen opens at 9 p.m. $15

While you’re in Benson, tonight is the OEAA Nominee Showcase. Your $10 gets you into three venues — B-Side, Barley Street Tavern and Burke’s (all the “B” bars!) to check out bands nominated for this year’s awards. More info here.

Meanwhile, tonight down at Slowdown Jr. indie experimental instrumental duo El Ten Eleven headlines. Their latest, Banker’s Hill, was released this year by Top Shelf Records. Indiana band Thunder Dreamer opens at 9 p.m. $14.

Saturday The Omaha Bug Symposium is happening at OutrSpaces, 1258 So. 13th St. Says the press release: “It’s a mixture of science, art and music that we’ve been doing for the past five years. This year’s musical guest is Wrong Pets.” Starts at 8 p.m. Tix are $10.

Also Saturday night DMX (The Dereck Higgins Experience) headlines at O’Leaver’s with Dead on Dust and Bound. 10 p.m., $5.

Finally Sunday is the big 15 Passenger Records showcase at The Waiting Room featuring Cursive and Campdogzz. It’s been awhile since Cursive, who’s out touring their new album Vitriola, has graced an Omaha stage, and never with this new line-up (that includes the return of Clint Schnase on drums). Chicago’s Campdogzz saw the release of their latest album, In Rounds, this year on 15 Passenger, which, as we all know, is a label run by the guys in Cursive. Fellow Chicago act Meat Wave opens the show at 8 p.m., $15.

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 © 2018 Tim McMahan. All rights reserved.

Jeremy Messersmith at Swan Dive at SXSW 2014. Messersmith plays tonight at Reverb.

by Tim McMahan, Lazy-i.com

Hey, it’s snowing out…

A new three-song “unplugged” performance by a stripped-down version of Cursive (Tim Kasher, Megan Siebe, Patrick Newberry and featuring Pat Oakes on drums) dropped at Stereogum Wednesday. It was recorded as a Facebook Live performance, which explains the 3-minute countdown clock at the beginning of the video (Just skip over it). Watch it here.

You get two songs from Vitriola — “Remorse” and “Ouroboros” — and “The Recluse” from The Ugly Organ. It’s interesting to hear these songs interpreted acoustically. FYI, Cursive plays The Waiting Room Nov. 18 with Meatwave and 15 Passenger labelmate Campdogzz

Onto the weekend…

An old favorite, Minneapolis singer/songwriter Jeremy Messersmith rolls back through town tonight at Reverb Lounge. I’ve been a fan of Messersmith since his 2008 album The Silver City (read a Lazy-i interview with Jeremy from 2010). His latest, Late Stage Capitalism, was released on Glassnote. Locals Garst opens at 9 p.m. $16.

There’s a fundraiser tonight for OutrSpaces, 1258 S 13th Street. “OutrSpaces provides shared workspace for performing artists to rehearse, perform, develop their careers, & engage surrounding communities in an accessible and inclusive environment,” according to their mission statement. The fundraiser includes performances by The Mynabirds, DJ Brent Crampton and Tbd. Dance Collective, among others. Tickets are $50 or $15, depending on your financial position. Program starts at 7 p.m. More info here.

Also tonight, Tragic Jack plays at The Harney Street Tavern. Matt Whipkey opens at 9 p.m. This one’s free.

The rest of my weekend will be spent at fabulous O’Leaver’s.

Saturday night at O’Leaver’s sees the return of Well Aimed Arrows (ex-Protoculture). Stephen Bartolomei and Stathi open at 10 p.m. $5.

I would be remiss in not mentioning The Urge show Saturday night at The Waiting Room. I’ve never been a fan, but I know they’ve got lots of them in Omaha. Local ska band The Bishops opens at 9 p.m. $25.

Then Sunday night back at O’Leaver’s it’s the return of Kansas City’s Shy Boys (High Dive Records). Ojai and Candy Boys (John Klemmensen’s latest project) open at 6 p.m. (remember, Sundays are early at O’Leaver’s). $10.

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 © 2018 Tim McMahan. All rights reserved.

A screen cap from Cursive’s “Life Savings” video, featuring a killer Tim Kasher.

by Tim McMahan, Lazy-i.com

Not only do I not go to horror movies, I don’t watch them when they’re on TV. I just don’t like knife-kill flicks, gore and blood, violence-porn, etc. I get that people dig that stuff, it’s just not my thing.

So when I saw that Cursive’s brand new video for “Life Savings,” a track off the just-released Vitriola album, was a take off on gorror flicks I dreaded having to watch it. But then I saw a screen cap of frontman Tim Kasher getting hatcheted (oops, spoiler alert) and thought “OK, I can handle this.” I mean, who hasn’t wanted to take a hatchet to Kasher at some point, right? Not to mention that mega-star Jake Bellows also has a star-turn as a victim. It’s gross fun! Check it out below, and get a copy of this fine, fine album.

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Tonight at fabulous O’Leaver’s Denver’s Bud Bronson and the Good Timers headline a special Halloween program. The band is on the road touring their new album, Between The Outfield And Outer Space, which came out a couple weeks ago.

“This will be our second LP, our fourth time in Omaha, and the last show of our album-release tour,” said Good Timer Brian Beer.  “As it is Halloween, we will also be wearing costumes.” That doesn’t mean you have to, of course, but you know… Also on the bill are the always amazing Wagon Blasters. Dross, featuring members of Noah’s Ark Was a Spaceship and Mint Wad Wall, opens at 9 p.m. $10.

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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 © 2018 Tim McMahan. All rights reserved.

by Tim McMahan, Lazy-i.com

Cursive albums always get the full critical once-over, but this new one, Vitriola, is really getting the treatment. In addition to being such a great album, critics remember the band and have the back-knowledge to make comparisons. And they are.

Cursive, Vitriola (2018, 15 Passenger)

Pop Matters called Vitriola “among Cursive’s most ambitious work.” But of the 10 or so reviews for the record currently out there, this was the most negative. Check it: “When Kasher and his bandmates really have something to say, this scream can be a revelation; when they don’t, it sounds stilted, silly, like it’s issuing from a mouth that has nothing to scream for but still screams anyway.” Ouch. They gave the record the lowest rating of the 10 reviews so far, scoring a 5 out of 10.

On the other hand, there’s DIY, which called Vitriola “a fiercely political record, but one that seldom feels trite; married to the aggressive tone of a band back to make a point, it’s a razor-sharp lament of America in 2018.” Whoa! Their rating: Four out of five stars. Solid.

But maybe the only review that matters these days is Pitchfork. Just getting a Pitchfork review has become something of a triumph for bands (though Stereogum is quickly unseating Pitchfork as the internet indie-music taste-maker of choice). Pitchfork reviews can be somewhat obtuse, unless you luck into a review by long-time Pitchfork critic Ian Cohen. which Cursive did.

Cohen drones on and on but concludes with, “On Vitriola, Cursive songs again supply the satisfaction of blaring your horn at a shitty driver or hanging up on a robocall—fighting against an encroaching sense of cosmic impotence with contained acts of victimless aggression.” He gave the record a 6.8 — somewhat middle-of-the-road in Pitchfork terms. Anything less than a 7 can get ignored (at least by me).

One way to check how well a record is doing is by looking at the number of plays tracks are getting in Spotify. Hardly scientific, I know, but I don’t have access to sales numbers, so…

As of 6 a.m. this morning, Vitriola track “It’s Gonna Hurt” had 55,107 plays in Spotify, while “Under the Rainbow” had 85,247 spins. Contrast that with “The Recluse” off Domestica, which had 3.7 million spins. This tells me Vitriola has gained some traction.

BTW, streamingroyaltycalculator.com says 85,247 spins equates to $340.99 in royalties. Wonder if that’s true?

David Nance Band, Peaced and Slightly Pulverized (2018, Trouble in Mind)

I only found three reviews for the new David Nance Group record Peaced and Slightly Pulverized, but one of them was from Pitchfork, and was particularly meandering. The pull quote: “The album was recorded by guitarist/keyboardist Jim Schroeder in his basement, but Nance’s newly anointed four-piece rips and wails through these seven tracks like they’re headlining the Fillmore.” Nice. Even nicer was the rating: 7.7.

Spotify spins for Peaced are, not surprisingly, much less than Vitriola. Opening track “Poison” had 5,774 spins this morning; “In her Kingdom” had 2,329.

I’ve been told spins aren’t what the labels look at as much as the number of people who have added an album to their Spotify Library. Though not equivalent to a sale, it indicates that listeners are playing the album more than once (and as such, is more important than, say, getting a track added to some tastemaker’s Spotify playlist, though that doesn’t hurt, either).

Adrianne Lenker, abysskiss (2018, Saddle Creek)

One more example: Saddle Creek Record’s latest release, the solo outing by Big Thief’s Adrianne Lenker called abysskiss, got the highest Pitchfork rating of all three, with a mighty 8.0. It still wasn’t high enough to earn the record the coveted “Best New Music” status.

Abysskiss‘ Spotify numbers also are the highest of all three, with tracks “symbol” pulling in 260,000 plays and “cradle” with 266,000.

In the end it’s all just navel-gazing in an era where record sales are becoming secondary to streaming numbers and the only real income left is from touring.

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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 © 2018 Tim McMahan. All rights reserved.

Cursive’s next album, Vitriola, comes out tomorrow on 15 Passenger.

by Tim McMahan, Lazy-i.com

Early press for the new Cursive album, Vitriola, appears to be rather strong. The record drops tomorrow on the band’s label, 15 Passenger.

Having listened to the album a few times I can add to the choir that this record is reminiscent of early Cursive. The songs certainly sound more cohesive and structured than, say, what we got with I Am Gemini, which is a complicated way of saying they have great guitar riffs, hooks and massive, percussive rhythms that consistently head in one direction, versus Gemini‘s proggy where-is-this-going approach.

OK, let’s just get it out there — Gemini is my least favorite Cursive record. It’s difficult to get through. And I’m a sucker for big riffs and repeat choruses — i.e., straight-forward indie rock songs, like on this record. There’s a familiarity to this music that is oddly comforting.

Both Noisey and Stereogum posted interviews with Cursive leader Tim Kasher that try to dissect the record’s meaning — true navel-gazing exercises that could be valuable to a Cursive superfan.

My simplistic (and there’s no one more simplistic than I) take is that Kasher’s getting older and these songs reflect his anxiety about aging and/or the struggle and futility of life (versus say, songs about his struggles with relationships (Domestica) or religion (Happy Hollow)). There’s also a  political theme that runs through a few songs that’s hard to miss, though I wouldn’t consider this a protest album. The Noisey article makes it sound like there’s a glimmer of hope underlying the collection. Maybe, but I don’t hear it. To me, it’s a collection of true bummers connected by massive riffs. But what else is new?

All I can think of is how well these songs will sound live. For example, can Kasher get the crowd to scream along to the “Ouroboros” chorus: “I am a parasite / I am a shill / I am that lowly snake / Chasing its tail.” By god, I think he can. Which is good, because I have a feeling Tim and the crew are going to be touring this one for a long time.

If you haven’t already, pre-order it here.

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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 © 2018 Tim McMahan. All rights reserved.