Live Review: Mitch Gettman, Little Bo Bash…

Category: Reviews — Tags: , , — @ 6:56 am September 18, 2023

Mitch Gettman at The Slowdown, Sept. 16, 2023.

by Tim McMahan, Lazy-i.com

Mitch Gettman and his band played most (but not all) of his new double-CD Tilde to a crowd of less than 100 Saturday night at The Slowdown. He kicked off the set with Track 1 from CD 1, “Someday,” and then went right into Track 2, “PS,” and so on, but eventually changed it up. In the end, he didn’t play it all but did play all my favorites from the 90-minute audio tome.

Backed by a rhythm section of bassist Kevin Sullivan and drummer Adam Stoltenberg (who also co-produced the album), along with a guitarist whose name I didn’t catch, Gettman filled out the dense sound heard on the record playing either keyboards or guitar (using a repeater pedal to give him even more coverage). He seemed at times to be a reluctant frontman, as if he didn’t want to get in the way of his own songs. This makes for an enigmatic performance, with Gettman looking focused, earnest, not wanting to miss a single note (which he didn’t). 

I guess you’d call it a tight performance. He did loosen up on his R&B send-up, “Adore You,” which included some righteous rapping and a rhythm that got the crowd moving. Not one of my favorites from the album, it translated much better live than on record, likely because Gettman knew he has to really throw himself into it to make it work. 

That was the case with most of the guitar-driven numbers (versus the more retrained keyboard tunes), including the night’s centerpiece, a gorgeous rendition of “Empire,” my favorite track from the album, which Gettman held for his encore. I wish he would have instead launched his set with it. The other big standout was an extended version of “Goldie,” a track that, if this album was released by a label, would be the primary single despite its nearly 12 minute run time. 

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Uh Oh on the Omaha Mobile Stage at teh Little Bo Backyard Bash, Sept. 16, 2023.

Earlier in the day I swung by the Little Bo Backyard Bash, the third-annual “festival” held in the parking lot across the street from the old Bohemian Cafe on 13th St. If the intent was to get people to rediscover this new, vital district, it worked, for me at least. I haven’t been down along this street in years and was pleasantly surprised by the cool, new little shops and restaurants (including Fizzy’s, a hip diner/bar that took over part of the Bohemian Cafe). 

In addition to the usual art and beer tents, the Omaha Mobile Stage was on hand to host the music. Uh Oh played a full set in front of an intimate gathering of neighbors, families and their pets (lots of dogs!).

David Nance at the Little Bo Backyard Bash, Sept. 16, 2023.

David Nance closed out the day with a solo acoustic set. He’s one of the only performers who can hold my attention with only his guitar and his voice. Despite the small crowd (by then, the Husker game had started), Nance looked content sitting on stage and singing his stories. 

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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.

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Pageturners Lounge weekend (Jake Bellows, Digital Leather, David Nance Band, Solid Goldberg, special guests?); Gary Numan Saturday…

Category: Blog — Tags: , , , — @ 12:47 pm September 9, 2022
Pageturners Lounge at 50th and Dodge celebrates its 10-year Anniversary this weekend, starting tonight.

by Tim McMahan, Lazy-i.com

Tonight is the first night of the Pageturners Lounge 10 Year Anniversary weekend. I still don’t know how they’re gonna cram all this entertainment into that little bar, but at least now we have start times and line-ups, as follows:

FRIDAY 9/9:

6:30PM
Las Cruxes
Cat Piss
Digital Leather
Oquoa
Marcey Yates
Jake Bellows

MIDNIGHT:
Specter Poetics
DJ Tyrone Storm

SATURDAY 9/10:

6:00PM
Stathi
Bug Heaven
M34n Str33t
Mesonjixxx
Felice Brothers w/ Special Guest

MIDNIGHT:
Solid Goldberg
Crabrangucci

SUNDAY 9/11: 

6:00PM
Hartford/Focht
McCarthy Trenching
Megan Siebe
Ben Eisenberger
Jim Schroeder Band
David Nance & Mowed Sound

Not listed in the acts above Conor Oberst, who’s name is prominently displayed on the the weekend’s show poster. I’m told there may be an unannounced performance (of sorts) tonight was well, which should be the crush mob as Jake Bellows is headlining and there are tons friends and family dying to see Jake back on stage, especially with the re-release of the entire Neva Dinova catalog on Saddle Creek Records. Should be something special.

“Suggested Donation” is $10, which I guess is an alternative to charging a cover (is this a tax dodge?)? If you’re going, get there early, though I have a feeling there will be a constantly rotating audience throughout the night, cuminating with the headliners each night (Felice Brothers w/”Special Guest” headline Saturday night, which has got to be the Oberst appearance (if there is one)). 

It’s a shame this isn’t being held outdoors (but where would they put it?). Of course it’s supposed to rain tomorrow, so that would have brought everyone inside anyway. 

Pageturnersfest not the only thing going on this weekend. 

Gary Numan’s long rescheduled concert is finally happening Saturday night at The Waiting Room, and lo and behold, the show still isn’t sold out. This is among his last shows on Numan’s tour and who knows when he’ll tour again (if ever). I Speak Machine opens at 8 p.m. $35.

Also Saturday night, Des Moines singer/songwriter Dan Tedesco headlines at Reverb Lounge. Local boys Farewell Transmission and singer/songwriter Jeremy Mercy open. 8 p.m. $17.

Is that everything? Oh yeah, 311 is playing out at Shadow Ridge Country Club tonight. Wouldn’t want to forget that. Did I miss 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 © 2022 Tim McMahan. All rights reserved.

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Live Review: David Nance, Nathan Ma and the Guitars; busy week of shows…

Category: Blog,Reviews — Tags: , , — @ 7:15 am June 20, 2022
David Nance at Reverb Lounge, June 17, 2022.
David Nance at Reverb Lounge, June 17, 2022.

by Tim McMahan, Lazy-i.com

T’was a busy weekend. If you’re looking for the review of the Whipkey/America concert, it was published yesterday, here.

The weekend kicked off with David Nance Band at Reverb Lounge… actually, Nance said he doesn’t want to use that name anymore. I’m not sure if he’s kidding or not, but (maybe) look out for a new band name sometime in the near future.

The gig celebrated the release of his new album, Pulverized & Slightly Peaced, which came out last Friday on Philly label Petty Bunco Records. That said, the performance went well beyond that album’s material, with Nance and Co. playing songs from a number of past records.

The set’s highlight was an amazing version of “Credit Line,” which appears in a more deconstructed, low-fi version on the new record. The version performed Friday night was absolutely killer, and is begging (or I’m begging) to be properly recorded and released. The heart of the sound was the band’s rhythm section, consisting of drummer Kevin Donahue and bassist Dereck Higgins, but the soul came from Nance trading punches with fellow guitarist Jim Schroeder.

Nathan Ma and the Guitars at Reverb Lounge, June 17, 2022.
Nathan Ma and the Guitars at Reverb Lounge, June 17, 2022.

Among the night’s openers was Nathan Ma and the Guitars. I’m a fan of Ma’s music, especially his recent singles (here’s hoping he’s pulling them together for a proper album).

Backed by a stellar ensemble that included Tom May on guitar, Jon Cobb on bass, Billy Lieberman on percussion and Colin Duckworth on pedal steel, Ma writes and sings music that lies somewhere between country barroom and ’60s baroque, Flying Burrito Brothers meets The Byrds, with multiple guitar lines weaving in and out of dreamy, mid-tempo melodies sung in Ma’s soft, sweet mew (which, at times, got lost in the mix).

Lieberman’s minimal percussion (mostly bongos) and Duckworth’s warm, layered pedal steel really set the tone, but when all the guitars got into a meticulous groove, it was mesmerizing.

This was one of the largest crowds I’ve seen at Reverb since the pandemic, btw…

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It’s a busy week of touring shows, so get your Red Bull ready:

  • — it’s David Dondero and Craig Dee at Pageturners.
  • — Wednesday, Man Man at The Waiting Room.
  • — Thursday, Neko Case at The Waiting Room.
  • Friday, Helmet at The Waiting Room. This one has been postponed.

But then the weekend falls off a cliff….

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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 © 2022 Tim McMahan. All rights reserved.

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‘Top indie bands’ (in The Reader); David Nance Band, Nathan Ma tonight; Cactus Blossoms, Esther Rose, America, Matt Whipkey (at the Holland) Saturday…

Category: Blog — Tags: , , — @ 12:54 pm June 17, 2022
Dave Nance Group at The Waiting Room, Nov. 13, 2018. The band plays tonight at Reverb.

by Tim McMahan, Lazy-i.com

Before we get to the weekend, remember when I created this ‘Post-Pandemic Nebraska Indie Band List of 2022”? Well, The Reader’s “Music Issue” is on the newsstands now, and the list has made it into that esteemed publication, along with an explainer. I’ve also made a few adjustments to the list, and linked every band to their respective Bandcamp page (if they have one).

Go take a look! This is what replaced the Top 20 list this year, and why not? Because all these bands deserve to be in a Top 20 for surviving the pandemic…

. o o o .

Now, let’s get to the weekend…

Tonight at Reverb Lounge David Nance Band celebrates the release of their new album, Pulverized and Slightly Peaced. Recorded in early 2017, the album, available on vinyl, is a collection of home-recorded originals that were spit-shined to become the album Peaced & Slightly Pulverized, that was released a few years ago by Trouble in Mind Records.

From the Bandcamp description of the new album: “Conceived and recorded within a single work week, with our blue-collar Nance setting up all the microphones, playing all the instruments, and riding all the faders, Pulverized & Slightly Peaced contains all the elements that we at Petty Bunco admire in music: the tried and true Rn’R instruments lovingly misused to create a vital ragged sound dripping with personality and verve.”

So, an album of demoes? Outtakes? I actually don’t know because I’m only now listening to it this morning. The album includes a 20-minute version of “Amethyst,” which I assume will take up most of (if not all) of side 2. Check it out and order the record here. Performing with Nance and his band is the amazing Nathan Ma and the Guitars, and opener Kyle Jessen. 9 p.m., $10.

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Also tonight, there’s a punk rock show at The Sydney with Nowhere, Living Conditions and a “Special Guest.” Who could it be? Go and find out! 10 p.m. $10.

Tomorrow night (Saturday), indie alt-country acts Cactus Blossoms headlines at Reverb Lounge with Esther Rose, another twanger whose music is released on respected indie label Father/Daughter Records. I got a strange feeling that this will be one of those shows where you say in a few years that you saw these bands on the tiny Reverb stage before they were big. $20, 8 p.m.

And here’s some bonus coverage: Local singer/songwriter Matt Whipkey will be opening for legacy FM radio freedom-rock band America at The Holland Performing Arts Center Saturday night. This is the first time Matt has played the Holland stage, where he’ll be accompanied by his old wingman Scott Gaeta for the performance.

When checking out this show, I tapped through America’s catalog on Spotify. I thought their only hit was “Horse with No Name,” but America actually has, like, a dozen hits, including one of my all-time FM radio faves, “Daisy Jane.” 7 p.m., tix range from $39 to $99.

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 © 2022 Tim McMahan. All rights reserved.

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Mousetrap ‘Attica’ EP gets pre-release; new Lodgings video; David Nance nabs 7.7 Pitchfork…

Category: Blog — Tags: , , , — @ 1:51 pm December 9, 2020
A sneak peek at the inside sleeve of the new Mousetrap Attica 12-inch.

It’s all about who you know.

I got my advanced copy of the new Mousetrap 4-song 12-inch 45 rpm EP, Attica, yesterday in all its blood-red vinyl glory. The story again — the four songs by this ’90s-era seminal Omaha indie punk band were recorded sometime in 1997 and have sat locked in a vault (or stashed in a cardboard box under bass player Craig Crawford’s bed) all these years only to be remaster by Bob Weston of Shellac in 2020 and released for this limited run of 500 copies. It is scorching, classic Mousetrap at its most angry and acidic. Check out the lead track below and pre-order the vinyl before the Dec. 16 release via the Mousetrap Bandcamp page.

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The last time we saw indie band Lodgings they were opening for Criteria at The Waiting Room last Dec. 28 for the annual holiday show. Alas, with COVID, there won’t be any holiday shows this year.

Well earlier this week, the band released the first video from its 2019 Albini-engineered LP Water Works for the song “Emu,” directed by Amélie Raoul. Check it out below and go to their Bandcamp page to buy the album!

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I’ve been meaning to mention this for awhile but it keeps slipping off my screen: Back at the end of November Pitchfork reviewed David Nance’s latest album, Staunch Honey (2020, Trouble in Mind), and gave it a very respectable 7.7 rating, saying “The Nebraska guitarist and songwriter strips his music to its raw, noisy core, revealing how his favorite records might have sounded when still being hammered out in rehearsal.”

It’s mostly a rave wherein critic Sam Sodomsky seems to revel in the idea of underproduction, pointing out numerous times the stripped down, recorded-from-scratch nature of this album. He concludes with: “While the songs on Staunch Honey feel like breakthroughs, it’s living proof that their real journey is just beginning.” Not sure what that’s supposed to mean…

At any rate, it’s great to see Pitchfork review Nance (or any Nebraska artist, for that matter). Twas a time when a Pitchfork review was a “big deal.” It’s hard to gauge a Pitchfork effect these days when no one is touring, but even when they were, the Pitchfork effect was very limited as far as its impact on the local show draw — I can’t count the number of times I went to see a band with an 8.0+ Pitchfork review at O’Leaver’s or The Waiting Room expecting an SRO crowd only to be met with 20 or so people.

That said, Pitchfork remains a go-to website for indie reviews (though there has to be something else out there)…

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Read Tim McMahan’s blog daily (if there’s news) 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.

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New McCarthy Trenching; David Nance’s Gonerfest performance, new album 11/13…

Category: Blog — Tags: , , , — @ 12:53 pm October 26, 2020
David Nance and his band performing in Omaha for Gonerfest 17.

New McCarthy Trenching is just what we need as we stumble through the darkness of a COVID-infected world. The project’s primary instigators, Dan McCarthy and James Maakestad, are joined by a stable of young, ambitious talent on their new album Perfect Game, which just dropped last Friday.

The 10-song LP has all the usual McCarthy Trenching storytelling charm, wherein Dan croons about maple trees and electrical black-outs, swimming dogs and drinking beer. It’s like sitting around a campfire making s’mores with Harry Nilsson, Randy Newman and some dude who lives in a duplex in Dundee.

The album was recorded by Jim Schroeder at ARC this past September. If you dig Dan’s past efforts – or if you just like good folk songwriting – this one’s for you. Buy it at Bandcamp.

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Last month David Nance took part in Gonerfest 17, the annual festival held by the fine folks at Goner Records down in Memphis. But because of COVID, the event was held virtually, which meant Nance performed from his Omaha abode. Joining him were drummer Kevin Donahue, guitarist Jim Schroeder and bassist Dereck Higgins. Check it below. Hat’s off to Anna Nance for the video recording.

Nance used the occasion to announce that his new album, Staunch Honey, will be released on Trouble in Mind Records Nov. 13.

From the site: “Staunch Honey is the culmination of two years of hard work – Nance worked and reworked the album three times over, recording & rerecording songs until they sounded just so – a stunning batch of sonic manna that hums with feeling and mood; expertly crafted, but sounding simultaneously off-the-cuff.” 

The album was recorded entirely to tape by Nance himself at his Omaha home with assistance from Schroeder and Donohue. Check out the first track below and preorder it here.

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Read Tim McMahan’s blog daily (if there’s news) 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.

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Bob Nastanovich (Pavement), Minne Lussa tonight; Unexplained Death, Safari Room Saturday; Young Guv, David Nance Sunday…

Category: Blog — Tags: , , , , , — @ 1:25 pm February 28, 2020

Young Guv plays Sunday night at Slowdown Jr.

by Tim McMahan, Lazy-i.com

Busy weekend, especially Saturday night, with a fantastic show Sunday. Here we go:

Tonight at The Sydney in Benson, Bob Nastanovich of Pavement fame is doing a DJ set. Joining him are Mike Schlesinger and Minne Lussa. Good times for just $5. Starts at 10 p.m.

Also tonight (Friday) Satchel Grande headlines at The Waiting Room with The Kevin Lloyd Experience. $9, 9 p.m.

Saturday night Matt Whipkey’s poli-punk project Unexplained Death headlines at fabulous O’Leaver’s. Also on the bill are Farewell Transmission and Soul Ghost. $7, 9:30 p.m.

Meanwhile, over at Reverb Lounge, Safari Room headlines. The Nashville band’s frontman, Alex Koukal, is a Bellevue West grad. Joining them are Omaha up-and-comers Garst. $10, 9 p.m.

Also Saturday night, Chicago R&B/blues singer/songwriter Neal Francis headlines at The Waiting Room. Joining him is Omaha’s Virginia Kathryn. $15, 9 p.m.

And then comes Sunday and the main event.

Toronto’s Young Guv is a project of Fucked Up guitarist Ben Cook, who plays power-pop summer-of-love psych rock, gorgeous and catchy. His albums, Guv I and Guv II are summertime staples. The band is playing Slowdown Jr. Sunday night on a loaded bill that includes Jocko and our very own David Nance, all for a mere $10. 8 p.m. start time.

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 © 2020 Tim McMahan. All rights reserved.

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Live Review: Cloud Nothings, Nap Eyes, David Nance Group…

Category: Reviews — Tags: , , — @ 1:49 pm November 14, 2018

Cloud Nothings at The Waiting Room, Nov. 13, 2018.

by Tim McMahan, Lazy-i.com

Solid crowd for a Tuesday night at The Waiting Room last night.

Cloud Nothings won me over with a set that intensely focused on their new album, Last Building Burning. While the album is white-hot fractured punk rock bordering on emo, there’s not a lot of melody in the songwriting to tie yourself to. It’s more about bright buzzsaw riffs and frontman Dylan Baldi screaming/croaking out the vocals that sounded like a cross between Cobain and the old punk version of Rzeznik.

No, what mesmerized me about their performance was their drummer, Jayson Gerycz. With merely a snare, tom, kick drum and a couple cymbals Gerycz blew me away with what was nothing less than a virtuoso performance, a rapid-fire machine-gun that dominated every song. I could not stop watching every clever, intricate, amazing roll, fill and crash, song after song. Blazing, exhausting; like watching the film Whiplash atop a mountain of coke.

The set’s high point was a lengthy feedback interlude during epic song “Dissolution”; all guitarists had their backs to the audience, their guitars jammed into amps, bending the necks, torturing the frets, while Gerycz slowly walked a beat back in, pulling it forward then giving a clinic as to what a human can do with a drum set as the band crashed back in like a 50-foot wave. Mind blown.

David Nance Group at The Waiting Room, Nov. 13, 2018.

Almost as mind blowing was opener David Nance Group. I’ve seen Nance at least a half dozen times and this was another memorable set highlighted by a cover of Richard & Linda Thompson’s “Down Where the Drunkards Roll” completely Nance-ified by his and sideman Jim Schroeder’s feedback-fueled guitar work. The rest of the set focused on the best off the band’s latest album, Peaced and Slightly Pulverized, with raging versions of “In Her Kingdom,” “When I Saw You Last Night,” “Amethyst” and “Poison.”

In a change from the usual set style, Nance and his band seamlessly transitioned from one song to the next by Nance pulling off one feedback wave and blending in a riff that crossed over into whatever was next. Transcendent.

Someone recently asked me what Omaha bands are most likely to break into the next level of national notoriety. David Nance Group was my first response, followed by Thick Paint. Interestingly, bassist Sarah Bohling has now played in both projects.

Nap Eyes at The Waiting Room, Nov. 13, 2018.

Between bands Nova Scotia act Nap Eyes played a set that reminded me of a cross between Kurt Vile, The Feelies and Velvet Underground, with frontman Nigel Chapman giving us his best Lou Reed vocals. I halfway expected to hear a cover of “Sunday Morning,” one of VU’s sleepier numbers that would have fit right in with the rest of their set.

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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.

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Live Review: Well Aimed Arrows; Cloud Nothings, Nap Eyes, David Nance tonight…

Category: Reviews — Tags: , , , — @ 1:40 pm November 13, 2018

Well Aimed Arrows at O’Leaver’s Nov. 10, 2018.

by Tim McMahan, Lazy-i.com

Catching up on this past weekend…

Saturday night I swung by O’Leaver’s to see the return of Well Aimed Arrows. The band hasn’t played on stage in a couple years, and life being what it is, experienced a line-up change — to a trio, consisting of frontman/drummer Koly Walters, guitarist Clayton Petersen and bassist Brian Byrd.

The new stripped down version didn’t sound a whole heckuva lot different than the old version, with Walters’ flat basso vox providing the perfect counter to the band’s simple, jangular post-rock arrangements. I’ve said before they remind me of ’80s-era indie bands like Pylon, Wire and early R.E.M., if not in sound than in spirit.

Rumor has it they’re working on their next record, we’ll (likely) be seeing more of these guys in the near future. If you get a chance, do yourself a favor…

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Tonight’s Cloud Nothings show at The Waiting Room is as stacked a line-up as you’re going to find on a Tuesday night.

You read about Cloud Nothings yesterday here. Based on this Daily Trojan review, expect tonight’s performance to be heavy and loud, focused on songs off the new album augmented by a few oldies.

You might remember that opening band Nap Eyes played with Fleet Foxes last year at an outdoor Benson show. Their latest, I’m Bad Now (2018, Jagjaguwar), reminded me of The Feelies, thanks in part to lead vocalist Nigel Chapman’s drab, nasal delivery that matches Feelies’ Glenn Mercer; though energy-wise Nap Eyes is much more laid-back.

Opening the show at 8 p.m. is our very own David Nance Group who is smack dab in the middle of a tour. You’ll want to get to The Waiting Room early to catch these guys. This show has a “nice price” of just $15. See you there.

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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.

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Cursive, Nance get the Pitchfork treatment, and an unscientific look at Spotify counts…

Category: Blog — Tags: , , , , — @ 12:45 pm October 16, 2018

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 Vitriolaamong 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 Vitriolaa 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.

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