Ladyfinger at O’Leaver’s Aug. 1, 2015. The band plays O’Leaver’s again tonight…

by Tim McMahan, Lazy-i.com

The answer to yesterday’s #TBT photo was Death Cab for Cutie at Sokol Underground in May 2000. Lots of people got it right. More #TBT trivia coming soon…

There are quite a few local shows this weekend. Here’s the highlights:

A birthday celebration tonight at fabulous O’Leaver’s (for Francis) features a performance by the one and only Ladyfinger. How long has it been since we’ve seen these guys on stage? (Uh, judging from the above photo, about a year?). Not sure exactly at what time tonight Ladyfinger will be playing, but it’ll be after 9:30. $5 gets you in.

Over at Reverb Lounge Omaha’s top southern-friend C&W band Clarence Tilton headlines. Bucka Ruse opens. Put on your cowboy hat and mosey on down. $7, 9 p.m.

Also tonight, Brooklyn garage-punk band Gymshorts (Burger Records) plays at Milk Run with The Ridgways. $7, 9 p.m.

Meanwhile over at the Down Under Lounge (with the Sidedoor Stage), Lincoln band Commander Kilroy plays with Faded. No idea if there’s a cover. Show starts at 9.

Tomorrow night (Saturday) Omaha Under the Radar founder Amanda Deboer has an in-store at Almost Music in the Blackstone District. Joining Amanda is Kyle Jessen, Ridgelines and Big Slur (Dan Scheuerman of Deleted Scenes). $5, 7 p.m.

Also tomorrow night O’Leaver’s welcomes Relax, It’s Science along with the Big Al Band (headliner) and Army of 2600. $5, 9:30 p.m.

Saturday is also Dundee Day, which means bands will be playing on a stage set up on Underwood sometime after 4 p.m. I have no idea what the line-up is, though it rarely features indie bands. Man, do I miss Dario Day, which used to be held in conjunction with Dundee Day, and featured cool bands and great beer. Come on, Dario, bring it back…

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

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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 © 2016 Tim McMahan. All rights reserved.

Stephen Pedersen of Criteria in full-rock mode at O’Leaver’s Aug. 1, 2015.

by Tim McMahan, Lazy-i.com

What they say about LA is true. The weather is fantastic. The traffic is horrendous. It’s definitely the land of the rich and beautiful, but even if I was a multi-millionaire I wouldn’t want to live there. Too congested; too expensive. Or maybe I just spent too much time hanging around Beverly Hills and Malibu.

Regardless, I’m back. In fact I’ve been back since last Friday, in time to catch Saturday night’s Live at O’Leaver’s concert featuring Ladyfinger and Criteria, two bands that have been kicking it for at least a decade and have never sounded better. Neither has O’Leaver’s tiny stage, which recently saw a bump in its sound system (again), making it rival soundwise any formal venue in town.

The other notable change to O’Leaver’s is the new patio hidden behind the building that was open Saturday night thanks to the city granting a one-day permit. If you go back there tonight, that door that leads to the patio is bound to be locked shut, which is a shame because that new patio is one of the best outdoor party areas in Omaha. Clocking in at around 2,000 square feet, it feels larger than The Club itself, with multiple built-in benches, an enormous pergola and another bar just ready to be open for business. As one guy told me, the patio has a big-city feel, like something you’d find in Portland.

Ladyfinger at O’Leaver’s Aug. 1, 2015.

It was jammed with people Saturday night, so many that I wondered how they’d all fit back inside the club when the bands began playing. It was wall-to-wall humanity when Ladyfinger lit into their set. They played a handful of songs off their previous albums; no new material that I could tell. You have to wonder what the future holds for these guys. Like I said, they’ve never sounded better, but are they ever going to write and record another album?

Criteria came on at just after 12:30 and gave their usual high-flying performance. Stephen Pedersen can still hit those crazy high notes when he wants to, and the band was as tight as ever. Unlike Ladyfinger, Criteria rolled out a few new songs, including one that bordered on anthem/ballad territory (but aren’t they all anthems?). No doubt they have plans for a new record.

Life has a way of catching up with all of us, and that’s certainly the case with both these bands. Members have lives and commitments and families and jobs that make touring difficult if not impossible. But that doesn’t stop them from wanting to play or having something to say with their music. Why should they stop recording and performing (if only at local gigs), especially at a time when record sales no longer are a game-changer in the life of a band? We might be entering an era of “regional indie bands” that self-release their material and perform only within a few hundred miles of their homes. If you want to see them, you’re going to have to get in your car or hop on a bus to find them. If the music can’t come to you, you’ll have to go to the music. Which makes clubs like O’Leaver’s that much more important.

No doubt these two bands’ performances Saturday night will wind up online at liveatoleavers.com. If you haven’t checked out the website, it’s high time that you do. Current featured artists (among the dozens on the site whose live gigs at O’Leaver’s you can now now enjoy) include J Fernandez, Bob Log III, The Kickback, Worried Mothers, Frontier Ruckus and Manic Pixie Dream Girls. Go, listen.

High Up at Reverb Lounge July 25, 2015.

One other show worth mentioning is High Up at Reverb July 25. I meant to post something about the show before I skipped town but never had the chance. Goddamn, Christine Fink is a major talent. I guess you’d expect nothing less coming from Orenda’s sister, but holy shit, she sings blue-eyed soul like she’s been doing it for a decade.

I tapped out on my iPhone that night at the show, “She’s an indie version of Amy Winehouse, or certainly Omaha’s version.” The attitude, the charisma, the voice, she was born for the stage. Watching her up front with only a microphone, you got a sense that High Up is her band, and what a band it is — pure pro blues/soul/rock, including a small horn section that featured sister Orenda on trumpet. The music is stylish but not too polished, an earthier version of neo-soul that strangely feels grounded in the Midwest. If you had any doubt of their origin, the band threw in a bluesy version of Bright Eyes’ “Make a Plan to Love Me” that they made their own.

So I’m watching Fink up there and wondering what would happen if she went full-on performance diva, you know, with the full costumes/dresses, a real formal approach to her performance? She already owns the stage just the way she is, but what if she kicked up the staging to sophisticated nightclub level? Would she broaden her audience well beyond the clubs she’s been playing? Would she even want that? You start messing with the presentation, you change everything. There’s a certain rebellious thing that’s up there now that I’d hate to see them lose, even if it limits the band to a smaller indie-music world…

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Before I left for LA last week I wrote two stories for The Reader, which should be online this week. One is an interview with The Good Life about their new album, Everybody’s Coming Down, which drops on Saddle Creek Records Aug. 14, just in time for their Maha Music Festival appearance Aug. 15.

The other story (not coincidentally) is an interview with Lauren Schomburg about the current state of Maha and what the board that runs the show has in mind for the festival’s future. Can it get bigger? Should it get bigger?

I’ll let you know when both stories are online, though they should be on newsstands right now.

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Speaking of festivals, I can’t figure out why anyone gives a shit about the fiasco known as the Grassroots Festival. Take a look at the line-up and who’s putting it on. What did you expect? I suppose if there was some sort of “indie” element to it, I’d be enraged, but I can’t imagine any band that I’d want to see being involved in such a snafu. It’s just another reason why you should never take One Percent Productions for granted.

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Fantastic show tonight at Sweatshop Gallery in Bension. Screaming Females headlines with Gordon, Vacation and The Ridgways. $7, 9 p.m. Be prepared to sweat!

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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 © 2015 Tim McMahan. All rights reserved.

Wagon Blasters at Almost Music on Record Store Day, April 18, 2015.

by Tim McMahan, Lazy-i.com

Three nights of music this week. I’m definitely NOT getting too old for this shit.

Andy Norman of Hear Nebraska suggested I check out Super Ghost, who recently played a Hear Nebraska / Urban Outfitters in-store. I’d never heard of the band, but since they were attached to Friday night’s bill at The Barley Street featuring Blue Bird, I figured I might as well stick around.

It’s been maybe two years since I’ve seen Blue Bird. Back then, their sound was folksy Americana, fronted by Marta Fiedler with Carrie Mardock. Carrie’s gone, replaced with Rebecca Smith. So is the band’s original sound. They’ve shifted to poppier, synth-driven music (two keyboards), more modern and more interesting. Fiedler does a fine job with the leads, but the band as a whole lacked energy. The performers got into position and stayed there, motionless the entire set. That’s not necessarily a bad thing, though it added a static quality to the proceedings. What are they supposed to do, jump around and high kick like Matt Whipkey? No, but when they stand like statues you can’t help but feel they’re just going through the motions whether they are or not, which is a pity considering the music’s colorful energy.

Super Ghost at the Barley Street Tavern April 18, 2015.

Then came Super Ghost, four youngsters from Omaha and Minneapolis weened on modern-day  emo bands like You Blew It! and mewithoutYou. Super Ghost is an emo throwback, not to first-wave acts like Rites of Spring and Sunny Day Real Estate, but ’90s-era second wave emo acts like California band Knapsack, which they most resemble, and Topeka legends Vitreous Humor, who they’ve never heard of (and in reality, very few people have).

Technically tight, smart compositions with insidious solos and counter melodies, Super Ghost was a pleasant surprise, a remarkable new band whose sound has a shimmering drama and musicality that at times recalled early Pavement and Dinosaur Jr. as much as those emo heroes they no doubt adore. Too bad there were only six people in the room to hear them.

Where they came from and what they’re up to next will all be revealed in this week’s podcast, which features a brief interview with frontman Jake Newbold, along with some samples from Friday night’s set.

Despite mother nature, Homer’s pulled off another big Record Store Day. When I rolled into the store at around 5 p.m., Homer’s GM Mike Fratt said he’d been pleased with the crowds, the excitement, the overall day even though he and his crack team fought through technical mine fields caused by the morning’s thunderstorm. Though late in the afternoon, there was still plenty of RSD stock in the bins, including the 25th Anniversary RSD pressing of Pills, Thrills and Bellyaches that I picked up.

Meanwhile, uptown in Benson, Almost Music’s Brad Smith said it was the first time he had line form outside his door before he opened. Almost Music’s daylong concert, originally slated for the sidewalk out front, was moved inside to the bookstore, where I watched the return of Gary Dean Davis and his band Wagon Blasters.

This was the band’s first performance in a couple years, but you wouldn’t know it by watching Gary Dean bouncing around bookcases like a hopped-up hillbilly in a racing windbreaker. His voice, those songs and this band proved once again that Wagon Blasters are Nebraska punk par excellence.

BTW, I picked up a Factory UK pressing of The Return of Durutti Column and The Grifters’ The Kingdom of Jones 10-inch (Shangri La 025), as well as the newly designed, fetching Almost Music T-shirt. Why can’t RSD be every day?

Jake Bellows at the Hear Nebraska Vol. 3 album release show at The Waiting Room, April 18, 2015.

Saturday night was the big Hear Nebraska Vol. 3 album release show at The Waiting Room. As per usual, Jake Bellows had the crowd eating out of his hand as he ripped through a solo electric set of his greatest hits including a few Neva Dinova songs. Jake has enough charisma to be a cult leader and/or standup comic, whichever you prefer.

Ladyfinger at The Waiting Room, April 18, 2015.

The blasting cap we call Ladyfinger closed out the evening. Over the course of a few weeks I’ve seen both musical sides of Chris Machmuller on stage — Mach the troubadour and Mach the rocker, each equally powerful in their own way.

You couldn’t help but wonder as Ladyfinger was belting out songs off their last album — 2013’s Errant Forms — what lies ahead for these guys. Their track “Junk City” off the HN Vol. 3 comp meets and/or exceeds anything they’ve done in the past. Would Saddle Creek roll the dice on another Ladyfinger full-length? And, for that matter, does the band have it in them to write and record a new album? Nebraskans — and the world — await the answers with baited breath.

Soft Moon at Reverb Lounge, April 19, 2015.

Finally Sunday night Oakland post-punk band Soft Moon sonically dismembered the Reverb Lounge. The band, which records on the edgy Captured Tracks label, epitomizes the electronic/industrial sound of the early ’90s from such bands as Nine Inch Nails, Throbbing Gristle, Bauhaus, Suicide, you get the drift. The mastermind behind the project is Luis Vasquez, who is marketed as a one-man project, though last night there were three guys on stage pounding on stuff, including Vasquez, who shoved a metal trashcan to the front of the stage which he banged on STOMP style for a couple numbers.

Their basic recipe was guitar, bass, synths and drums and lots of programming, along with Vasquez’s undecipherable, bronzed vocals drenched in echo for that special gothy touch. It was dark dance music for an elite leather club circa 1992; the instrumentals were powerful while the songs with vocals were the most accessible and leaned closely to early Reznor territory. Fantastic stuff.

Opening was one-woman ambient guitarist Noveller providing ethereal, layered sonic compositions that sometimes involved a violin bow adding deep blue tones. A pretty contrast to Soft Moon’s industrial din.

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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 © 2015 Tim McMahan. All rights reserved.

Little Brazil at The Waiting Room, July 19, 2014.

by Tim McMahan, Lazy-i.com

What a birthday bash for Sara Bertuldo. Something like 150 people (guess-timate) were there to celebrate Sara’s successful journey around the sun and to hear one of the strongest local line-ups in a long time.

See Through Dresses at The Waiting Room, July 19, 2014.

Sara kicked it off with her band, See Through Dresses. All this talk about a shoegaze revival with bands like Slowdive once again touring. Forget all that and check out this band, which combines the best droning shoe-gaze elements with the tunefulness of Dinosaur Jr. and Pixies. Bertuldo has grown not only in age but in voice, sharing the vocal chores with Matt Carroll, who’s no push-over himself. Post mammoth June tour, they were razor sharp.

As reported, Little Brazil swapped out half its personnel, and the difference was indeed noticeable. Matt Bowen brings a throatier style to the kit, somehow managing to work his way through Oliver Morgan’s intricate lines while adding his own unique voice to the proceedings. Mike Friedman’s lead guitar lines were altogether different not only from what Greg Edds used to contribute to the band, but from what Friedman does as a member of The Lupines. His Lupes’ style is sheer shredding, whereas his ornate touch on LB tunes recalls Layla-era Clapton (Yeah, I said it, I compared him to God). You had to pay attention, though, as Friedman is more musician than showman — playing (at times) with his back toward the audience.

It all came together on the third song of LB’s set, a new tune unlike anything I’ve heard them try before, a hook-laden rocker that separates itself from LB’s standard indie fare thanks to a unique vocal melody and amazing harmony guitars between Landon Hedges and Friedman that recalled the best of Thin Lizzy. This one has “hit” written all over it (too bad there ain’t no such thing as a hit these days). Hedges, btw, was in top vocal form, and bassist Danny Maxwell’s bass continued to be the bedrock it’s all built upon. Where can these guys take this next?

Ladyfinger rounding out the July 19 show at The Waiting Room.

Finally, Ladyfinger framed the evening with its usual bombast. It was a greatest hits set, with no new material (that I recognized, anyway). Here’s yet another band of local legends that has me scratching my head, wondering where they’re headed next.

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Nightbird at The Sydney, July 18, 2014.

Friday night I slipped into The Sydney to catch Nightbird’s debut performance, and it was pretty much as I expected — a set of sludgy, mid-tempo long-form rock songs inspired by your favorite stoner bands. Gerald Lee Meyerpeter howled over his guitar’s feedback as drummer Scott Zimmerman and bassist Jeff Harder provided the foundation. We used to call this “drug music” when I was a kid, and though I don’t do drugs, I can imagine (or maybe I can’t) what it would be like to trip out to this stuff in a smoke-filled bedroom surrounded by black-light posters and halter-tops. Nightbird is all about style rather than songs — if you’re into their kind of dirty sludge, a heavy heaven awaits. PS: Rumor has it they may be adding another guitar, someone from Omaha rock’s not-so-distant past…

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Big show tonight at fabulous O’Leavers — the return of Planes Mistaken for Stars. These guys have been coming through since the late ’90s playing an angular style of post-hardcore punk. Not to be missed. Opening is New Lungs (Little Brazil’s Danny Maxwell in the lead position) and Chicago post-hardcore band All Eyes West. $5, 9 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 © 2014 Tim McMahan. All rights reserved.

Cursive, Night Three at The Waiting Room, Dec. 19, 2013.

by Tim McMahan, Lazy-i.com

Night Three — the final night — of Cursive at The Waiting Room was just as packed as Night Two. Well, maybe not just as packed, but impressively crowded nonetheless.

The set-up was the same as the past two shows, but the set list was firmly in “extra angst” mode. The band came on around 11 and launched into “A Gentleman Caller,” which would have its usual reprise during the encore, but I’m getting ahead of myself.

The first half of the set felt dominated by odd, angular, proggy obscurities off the early releases, mixed with Gemini songs. Here’s a little secret: Though I have the records, I’m not intimately familiar with the band’s early material. Without access to a set list, my process for figuring out song names is to tap-in a specific lyric into my iPhone notepad, figuring I could look it up on the InteWeb the next morning.

Hence, this morning I typed “I once had pride, I once had guts…” into the Google machine and out popped the lyrics to “A Little Song and Dance,” from the band’s second album, The Storms of Early Summer: Semantics of Song.

“You lying naked next to me…” was from “Excerpts From Various Notes Strewn Around The Bedroom of April Connolly, Feb. 24, 1997” off 8 Teeth to Eat You.

“What are you missing…” was “Dedication to Desertion” off the band’s first album, Such Blinding Stars for Starving Eyes.

“You’re a major leaguer now…” — “A Career in Transcendence” from Storms…

And so on.

Crib notes weren’t needed for the hits, such as “Rise Up! Rise Up!” “Dorothy at 40” and “I Couldn’t Love You.”

The band played with the usual panache, but seemed a bit reserved through the first half. For added effect, pre-recorded noises and sound clips played between songs — something I didn’t notice the first two nights — maybe a device to help hold the set together?

While the old stuff was well received, the audience didn’t explode until the last 30 minutes of the night. The set was definitely back-loaded with gold. “The Casualty” went directly into “The Martyr,” and the crowd went nuts. The back-to-back performance was the “arena moment” I’d been waiting for, though frontman Tim Kasher’s voice began to give out on the high-octane screams.

Lovely cellist Megan Siebe (of Anniversaire) was particularly mesmerizing last night. The band needs to recruit her for the next album (if she’s willing, and who wouldn’t be?).

They closed out with “Big Bang” (Chris Machmuller again joining on sax alongside trumpeter / keyboardist / Kasher wingman Patrick Newbery) and one of my all-time faves, “From the Hip” before exiting and returning for a two-song encore of “Mothership, Mothership, Do You Read Me?” (off the Burst and Bloom EP) and perennial closer “Staying Alive” sounding more bombastic than ever.

Any one of the three nights of shows that comprised Cursive’s Waiting Room “residency” would make anyone’s “best shows of the year” list. All three taken as a whole is something of a landmark for local music, which (hopefully) will be documented for the ages with a live album next year.

And so it ends. Or does it?

Word leaked out last night that we might get two more nights of Cursive — tonight and Saturday — at O’Leaver’s, both nights also to be recorded. Scuttlebutt was that the band would announce the shows from stage last night, but they never did, which makes this a “secret show”… if it happens at all. Take your chances.

Ladyfinger at The Waiting Room, Dec. 19, 2013.

Hey, what about last night’s openers? I missed Ted Stevens Unknown Project (sorry Ted), but caught all of Ladyfinger. Someone pointed out a grievous error on my part — Ladyfinger’s last album, Errant Forms, actually came out in 2013. I forgot all about it while putting together my year-end “favorites” list. Had I remembered, I likely would have included it (“The list” comes out next week, btw).

Last night’s set drew heavily from that album. While the rest of the band couldn’t have been more on point — break-back rhythm section, screaming guitars — when it came time for frontman Chris Machmuller to sing the inspirational lines from “Galactic” he went into complete mumble mode. WTF! Just an off night for Mach? No. He followed it with a vocal performance on “Dark Horse” that would make Springsteen blush. So who knows. Needless to say, at the end of their short set I wanted more.

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I would tell you that my weekend plans are skewed by rumor of “secret” Cursive shows except that I was planning on going to O’Leaver’s this weekend anyway, starting tonight for The Seen and McCallen, Texas, band Crystal Wolf. Will Cursive also perform? Find out. $5, 9:30 p.m.

Also tonight is Barley Street Tavern’s Xmaspalooza Showcase, featuring Jeremy Mercy, Darren Keen, John Klemmensen, All Young Girls Are Machine Guns and a handful more. 9 p.m., $5.

Meanwhile, down the street at The Sydney it’s Hotlines (Dereck Higgins, Amanda DeBoer Bartlett, Javid Dabistani and Luke Polipnick), with American Cream. No details, but probably $5, 9 p.m.

And for an extra-special dance treat, Darren Keen and Crew are covering Daft Punk tonight down at House of Loom. $5, 10 p.m.

Tomorrow night it’s The Brigadiers with Bear Antlers at O’Leaver’s (and maybe/probably Cursive?). $5, 9:30 p.m.

Also Saturday night, The Envy Corps headlines at The Waiting Room with Oquoa and Millions of Boys. $8, 9 p.m.

Lastly, Sunday night The Mezcal Brothers headline at The Waiting Room with Matt Cox. $7, 6 p.m.

Have a good 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 © 2013 Tim McMahan. All rights reserved.

by Tim McMahan, Lazy-i.com

UUVVWWZ, The Trusted Language (Saddle Creek, 2013)

It’s a big day at Saddle Creek Records. UUVVWWZ’s The Trusted Language and Ladyfinger’s Errant Forms both drop today. Interestingly, both are being offered as digital/vinyl releases — i.e., Saddle Creek isn’t offering either on CD from the online shop, though the vinyl comes packaged with a compact disc. So if you want the CD, you have to buy the vinyl at a higher price ($15 for UU, $17 for Ladyfinger).

Is this CD-with-vinyl-only format how Saddle Creek will handle all releases in the future? I wouldn’t be surprised. Interestingly, digipak CDs of Errant Forms were on sale at last Friday’s album release show. I wonder if UU will have digipaks at Saturday’s release show at The Waiting Room…

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If Jenny Lewis wasn’t busy enough with the upcoming Postal Service tour, today Rilo Kiley announced (via Press Here Publicity) that it’s releasing a b-sides and rarities collection called RKives April 2 on LA based indie Little Record Company, owned by Rilo Kiley’s Pierre DeReeder.

“The record includes nine never-before released songs, a variety of demos, b-sides, and previously hard to find tracks. The 16-song CD and double vinyl will be available in multiple formats including a special deluxe bundle personally curated by Rilo Kiley.”

Who remembers when RK was on Saddle Creek?

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The Slowdown is featuring some interesting garage rock bands tonight, headlined by Cali band The Growlers (Burger Records), Milwaukee Sub Pop act Jaill, Bluenote/Capitol act Jessica Hernandez and the Deltas and Twinsmith. $13, 9 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 © 2013 Tim McMahan. All rights reserved.

Ladyfinger at The Waiting Room, Feb. 1, 2013.

by Tim McMahan, Lazy-i.com

After last Friday night, it’s high time that I dig out whatever parking maps may be available for the Benson area that identifies public parking. Big shows + First Friday = ol’ reliable parking places won’t be available. That certainly was the case last weekend, as I drove around and ’round looking for somewhere to park my ’96 POS Tracker, finally finding a parking lot east of PS Collective’s back parking area. There were no “No Parking” signs anywhere, so I figured I was safe (and was). I’m guessing there’s plenty of parking in Benson — if you know where it is — and even more importantly, where it isn’t. No one wants to go back to their car after a show and find it gone, which is a distinct possibility if you park in a private lot owned by an asshole who loves to tow cars.

But I digress…

I got to Ladyfinger’s album release show Friday night at The Waiting Room around 10:15 in time to see The Seen, who also was celebrating the release of a new record. I’d describe the 5-piece band’s sound as “alternative” in a ’90s connotation, a sort of post-grunge alternative, the kind of music that 89.7 The River plays between its usual spate of grunt/cookie monster goon bands.

Their recipe is big guitar riffs beneath frontman Buck Blanc’s breathy Counting Crows/Adam Duritz-style vocals.  I had one guy tell me his voice reminded him of Conor, but all I heard was Duritz, though The Seen’s music in no way resembled the Crows’. The band was tight, the music well-played, but just not my cup of tea. And no doubt their commercial style of rock would/could attract a much larger audience than the usual indie stuff that I listen to.

I was a tad bit concerned that there could be a drop-off in the crowd after The Seen. The fans pushed up against the stage during their set was way younger than who I’ve seen at past Ladyfinger shows — they looked like regular listerners of The River (which (I’m told) The Seen has been played on). And while the crowd’s demographics did indeed change between sets, the room was no less full when Ladyfinger hit the stage for what was easily the loudest set I’ve heard them play.

The band played mostly songs off their fantastic new Saddle Creek release, Errant Forms, as well as a few older numbers including “Smuggler” from their first record. The giant sound was a good test of The Waiting Room’s new sound system, which was impressive — huge, but with great separation. If there was a nit to pick it was (probably) with the mix. Cursive’s Patrick Newbery joined the band on keyboards for a handful of songs, but I couldn’t hear him above the roar… that is until I went to take a leak, when all the sudden, there were the keyboards coming straight out of the urinal! But once I got back out to the floor, they were gone, lost in the melee.

Errant Forms officially comes out tomorrow. Order your copy of the cool, clear, limited-edition (of 500) vinyl at the Creek store while you can…

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The Postal Service announced today via its press agent (Nasty Little Man) that the project, which centers around Ben Gibbard and Jimmy Tamborello, will play its first headlining gigs in 10 years. And get this, joining them as part of the backing band will be The Mynabirds’ Laura Burhenn.

From the press release:

Gibbard and Tamborello will be reuniting on the road with a band fleshed out by Jenny Lewis (Jenny & Johnny, Rilo Kiley) and Laura Burhenn (Mynabirds, Bright Eyes) to celebrate the 10th anniversary and deluxe edition reissue of The Postal Service’s universally acclaimed release, Give Up.  The Give Up Deluxe 10th Anniversary Edition out April 9 on Sub Pop, includes the original 10-track album along with 15 bonus tracks–including the brand new songs “Turn Around” and “A Tattered Line of String,” a previously unreleased live recording, and every other official recording the band has ever released-as well as cover versions of Postal Service classics by The Shins and Iron & Wine.

Both the tour and Give Up Deluxe 10th Anniversary Edition find Lewis reuniting with The Postal Service: She appeared on the original album and played with the band on its handful of 2003 tour dates. Lewis also sings on the two new songs on the Give Up Deluxe 10th Anniversary Edition. Give Up was certified platinum last year just shy of 10 years from its original Feb. 9, 2003, release. Led by the single “Such Great Heights,” the landmark album is the second-biggest selling album in Sub Pop’s nearly 25-year history after Nirvana’s Bleach.

The first tour dates announced were on the West Coast, Europe and NYC. No Omaha dates have been announced… yet. Who remembers when the Postal Service last came through town? Here’s a hint…

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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 © 2013 Tim McMahan. All rights reserved.

by Tim McMahan, Lazy-i.com

Ladyfinger CD release show

Lest we forget, the weekend starts now.

And the biggest show of the weekend is the Ladyfinger record release show at The Waiting Room tonight. I’m told the boys will actually have some CDs on hand for sale in addition to the vinyl. Opening is The Seen, who also are celebrating a CD release, and The Hussies. $8, 9 p.m. See you there, if I can find a place to park…

…Because in case you’ve forgotten, it’s Feb. 1, which means tonight is Benson First Friday. As part of the art walk festivities, Sweatshop Gallery, 2727 No. 67th St. (just south of The Barley Street) is hosting Club No Quiet featuring music by Howard, George Glass, Rock Paper Sisters, Sister Kisser and The Wayward Little Satan Daughters. The fun starts at 8. More info here.

Saturday night Florida “punk” band Hot Water Music plays at The Slowdown with La Dispute and The Menzingers. Hear Nebraska has a Q&A right here with Menzinger Tom May (wonder if he gets confused with former Omaha folk singer Tom May? Something tells me he doesn’t). $20, 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 © 2013 Tim McMahan. All rights reserved.

The men of Ladyfinger, from left, are Pat Oakes, Dan Brennan, Chris Machmuller and Jamie Massey.

by Tim McMahan, Lazy-i.com

Love and Aliens: Ladyfinger Releases Errant Forms

The evolution of Ladyfinger can be heard from the first track of the band’s new Saddle Creek Records release, Errant Forms.

“Renew” opens with brittle, electric guitar chords before the rhythm section of drummer Pat Oakes and bassist Dan Brennan slides beneath warm keyboards, Jamie Massey’s smokey, twirling guitar and frontman Chris Machmuller’s cool growl.

You could say Machmuller also sang on the band’s 2006 debut, Heavy Hands, but not like this. These days Machmuller really sings, confident on the ghostly, glowing high notes that follow the song’s prophetic line, “I will grow old.”

If it sounds “pretty” compared to the howling noise of Ladyfinger’s early years that’s because it is. Still, the music is no less bracing or powerful, just easier to grasp in its clarity.

Or as Machmuller put it, “There’s more space between the parts on this record.”

A brief history: Ladyfinger (also known by the legal restriction Ladyfinger (ne)) formed in 2004 out of three other bands: Massey from Race for Titles, Machmuller from Bleeders for Treats, and Oakes and bassist Ethan Jones from Putrescine The original foursome produced two albums, Heavy Hands and the 2009 followup, Dusk. After that, Jones left Ladyfinger to be replaced with “new guy” Brennan, formerly of rock band The ’89 Cubs.

Ladyfinger, Errant Forms (Saddle Creek, 2013)

Back to the present: Better singing means understandable lyrics. Good thing Machmuller knows how to tell a story. On Errant Forms‘ first single, “Dark Horse,” he spins a non-autobiographical yarn about a wild, irresponsible party hound who’s “looking for a road I ain’t ever gonna find” but finds it when he discovers his wife or girlfriend is carrying his baby. Coincidentally, Machmuller discovered his wife was in a “family way” shortly after writing the song.

Then there’s “Galactic” — also not auto-biographical…probably. The brutal rocker describes a guy who picks up signals in his head — numbers and images — obviously messages about an alien coup, which he explains with the line: “I’m a space invader and I think I can save this planet from galactic destroyers from space.” Rush’s 2112 has nothing on these guys.

Like their previous albums, Errant Forms was recorded by their old pal Matt Bayles, whose track record includes working with Mastodon, Minus the Bear, Pearl Jam and fellow Saddle Creekers Cursive.

Working with such an accomplished producer puts pressure on the band, Oakes said, especially when the band isn’t sure it’s ready to enter the studio.

“This record seemed like it was pieced together out of random parts more than the last ones,” Oakes said. “When we went in for Heavy Hands, we knew exactly what we wanted to do, and had played those songs a million times, but for this one, we asked ourselves, ‘Are we ready to record? What if this whole thing falls apart?’”

When it comes to working with Bayles, uncertainty could spell trouble. “Matt does not indulge you,” Machmuller said. “He refers to our sessions as ‘abridged.’ He’s used to having six to 12 weeks in the studio. We only had two weeks (at Omaha’s ARC Studio) to track 13 or 14 songs.”

“He’s very thorough, very meticulous, and that’s what makes him a good producer and engineer,” Oakes said. “If you push back, Matt will stand his ground and be a dick about it. He knows that time is of the essence, and he’s not going to negotiate with you.”

Good thing he likes these guys.

“He doesn’t do our records to make money” Massey added. “He’s been good to us when he didn’t have to be. He bends for us and we appreciate it.”

While the way they make records hasn’t changed much, the way the band and label sells them has. In the old days bands simply released records and hit the road, hoping college radio and good reviews piqued people’s interest.

These days marketing is all about online placement and social media. “The social network sphere is completely different than when Dusk came out,” Oakes said. “As a result, we’re seeing things happen with this record that have never happened before.”

Things like first single “Dark Horse” being selected as the “Daily Download” at rollingstone.com, where readers can listen to and download the track for free. Massey credited Saddle Creek’s Jeff Tafolla, in charge of licensing and new media, for the increased exposure, including Errant Forms being available as a digital stream from taste-making music blog AbsolutePunk.net.

But these new-fangled sales methods go beyond blogs. Tafolla suggested Ladyfinger launch a Twitter account (@ladyfingerne) as well as a Facebook page (@facebook.com/ladyfingerne).

“All four of us have access to these accounts and can do what we want with them,” Oakes said, “but it gets complicated.”

“I’ve been signed up to six brand new things that I have to figure out,” Machmuller said. “I’m worried about keeping all the passwords straight.”

With fans now able to hear the entire album from their computers for free, some of the “specialness” that comes with buying an album has faded. That’s one reason Errant Forms is being offered on vinyl in addition to digital download. “We considered going the vinyl route with Dusk,” Machmuller said. “Vinyl has become less of a novelty and more of a collectible. We saw the trend even back then.”

Saddle Creek says Ladyfinger’s combined sales for their past two releases was somewhere north of 1,200 units, far from what’s needed to make a living. All four band members have day jobs. Brennan, 34, is a sound engineer at The Slowdown when he isn’t on the road working sound for bands like Cursive. Massey, 37, is an art director at Turnpost Creative Group and proprietor of The Sydney in Benson. Machmuller, 32, launched Workers Take Out and now runs O’Leaver’s Pub, while Oakes, 35, is a production manager at Ink Tank Merch, a custom screen printing company owned by Saddle Creek.

With families to support and a music industry in decline, why keep putting out records?

“At the end of the day, for me, it’s all about playing shows,” Oakes said. “And if we sell more albums, that could mean playing bigger shows.”

“None of us have never not been in a band,” Machmuller said. “I love hearing things in my head and hearing them become recorded music. That’s the best part.”

Ladyfinger plays with The Seen and Hussies this Friday, Feb. 1, at The Waiting Room, 6212 Maple St. Tickets are $8. Show starts at 9 p.m. For more information and tickets, go to onepercentproductions.com.

First published in The Reader. Copyright © 2013 Tim McMahan. All rights reserved.

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More Ladyfinger… The fine folks at Love Drunk today released the new video for Ladyfinger’s “Away Too Long.” If you ever wondered what Saddle Creek Records’ world headquarters look like, here’s your chance to get a peek. Check it out below:

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The Thermals, Desperate Ground (Saddle Creek, 2013)

Saddle Creek Records announced via Pitchfork (Who needs to issue a press release when you’ve got Pitchfork?) that the label signed (former) Sub Pop act The Thermals. The details, from the actual press release issued by the band:

“The Thermals are pleased to announce they have signed to Saddle Creek, a label the band has known and admired for many years. The Thermals and Saddle Creek have a long history of sleeping on floors together: The Thermals have toured with Cursive and Ladyfinger, and Hutch and Kathy organized the first Bright Eyes show in Portland way back in 1999.

“The band formed in 2002 and has released five records and toured 15 countries. The Thermals’ sixth LP and debut for Saddle Creek, Desperate Ground, will be released April 16 and is available now for pre-order at the Saddle Creek Online Store. The album was produced by John Agnello (Dinosaur Jr, Sonic Youth) in Hoboken, NJ. Agnello and The Thermals completed the record and evacuated the studio just hours before Hurricane Sandy ravaged New Jersey, a fate quite fitting when you consider the product. Desperate Ground is a true scrappy and scratchy return-to-form for The Thermals, with all the raw power and unhinged adolescent energy that made their early LP’s so insanely enjoyable.

“Lyrically, Desperate Ground is a brash and irresponsible ode to human violence, a black celebration of the inevitability of war and death. A dark and yet joyous affair, Desperate Ground tells the (murky) tale of a lone rogue in the night. One man, one path, one sword. An unceasing urge to destroy. A never-ending battle against the forces of nature. A destiny impossible to avoid.”

The signing could be good timing for Saddle Creek, as Sub Pop announced last week that it’s reissuing the band’s first three albums on vinyl. “On March 5, fans can own limited-edition, colored vinyl copies of 2003’s More Parts Per Million, 2004’s Fuckin’ A, and 2006’s The Body, the Blood, the Machine. The triple-reissue (which also includes the rare “No Culture Icons” 7″) comes on the 10th anniversary of the release of More Parts Per Million.”

The only Thermals album I’ve owned was More Parts… which reminded me a ton of Superchunk. I haven’t heard their last couple of albums. After 2008’s “Returning to the Fold” single, the band jumped ship from Sub Pop (or was pushed) and landed at Kill Rock Stars for two more LPs, the last of which was Personal Life in 2010.

The Thermals are no strangers to Omaha stages. They last played in Omaha at The Waiting Room in May 2011. Before that, they played Slowdown Jr. in April 2009, and before that, Sokol Underground with Thunder Power back in November 2007.

Hey Maha, here’s another band for you to consider for this year’s festival…

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The Whipkey Three opens tonight for touring Columbus, Ohio band Red Wanting Blue (Fanatic/EMI/Caroline) at The Waiting Room. $10, 9 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 © 2013 Tim McMahan. All rights reserved.

by Tim McMahan, Lazy-i.com

I’m scattering the annual year in review coverage over the next few days, beginning with this column, which also appears in this week’s issue of The Reader, which I think is on the streets now (though I’m not entirely sure as my internal calendar is discombobulated).

Over the Edge #43: The Year in Review 2012 (or 1969?)

Every year at about this time for more than a decade, I’ve written a “Year In Review” article for The Reader that looks back at the events of the past 365 days and outlines the trends and direction of the coming year in popular music. This year, Music Editor Chris Aponick is handling those duties, but if I was writing a YIR article, the main message would be this:

Imagine that it’s 1969.

A major catastrophe has struck the eastern United States. President Nixon and a congress headed by Senator Hubert Humphrey (D-Minn) and John William McCormack (D-Mass) are doing what they can to pull together resources to help our fellow citizens in this time of need, but it’s just not enough. In a stroke of genius, an enterprising young person comes up with an idea to host a massive concert at the just-opened Madison Square Garden to generate funds to rebuild communities devastated by this unnamed disaster.

For the concert to succeed, only the most popular acts of the day would be invited to perform — a list that anyone in America could name off the top of their heads: Al Jolson, Duke Ellington, Bessie Smith, Louis Armstrong, Whisperin’ Jack Smith, the Kentucky Serenaders, George Olson and Jelly Roll Morton. You know, the music that everyone was listening to in 1969 at the height of the Viet Nam War.

Wait a minute, doofus, that’s not the music of 1969. Yeah, I know. In this Bizarro World, instead of inviting the current rock acts of the day, concert organizers invited the hottest acts from 43 years earlier, from 1926. Sounds crazy. An effort doomed to fail. And yet, it was a no-brainer, just like what happened two weeks ago.

When it came time for organizers to pull together a lineup for the 12-12-12 relief concert for the victims of Hurricane Sandy, the short list of top-name performers was obvious: Bruce Springsteen, Paul McCartney, The Who, Roger Waters, Eric Clapton and The Rolling Stones, acts whose heyday was 40+ years ago. Sure, Alicia Keys, Chris Martin and Kanye were there, but no one came to see them. They came to see the dinosaurs along with a few “more current” faves like Billy Joel (“Piano Man,” 1973), Bon Jovi (“Wanted Dead or Alive,” 1986), and Michael Stipe (“The One I Love,” 1987).

This is a reflection of the current state of pop music in this country. There are no new superstars making groundbreaking music anymore; and there hasn’t been in decades. The last universally recognized game-changing rock band was probably U2 in the ‘80s. Radiohead came close. Arcade Fire was important, but their music is far from known by the Great Wad.

Everything else is manufactured. Look at the charts. Bieber, Kelly Clarkson, PSY, Rihanna, Ke$ha, Taylor Swift, all diversionary fluff that no one would mistake for important game-changing music. And sure, there was plenty of fluff in the ‘70s and ‘80s, but there always was something that people could point to as timeless, embraced by a nation instead of a tiny sliver of indie music nerds who “know better” about what’s good.

Despite all the technology, there’s no longer a method for elevating talent, there’s no way for the cream to rise to the top. Because, believe me, the talent is still out there. There was some great music in 2012. You simply didn’t hear it because it wasn’t on your radio. When radio became irrelevant as a way to identify and escalate talent, we lost our national music identity.

What about television? Look, these people that emerge from American Idol or The Voice are performers; they’re not songwriters, they’re not musicians. In many ways, we’ve gone back to the pre-Beatles days of Pat Boone and Bobby Darin empty haircuts. What made The Beatles important was that they wrote and performed their own music.

But even more discouraging is that somewhere over the past few years, it has become painfully obvious that the dream of “making it” in rock ‘n’ roll is now and forever gone. There was a time not so long ago when a group of musicians could get together, write some great songs, practice, perform and record some demos that they would shop around to mid-level independent labels in hopes that maybe — just maybe — someone would spot their talent, sign them to a “deal” and put out a record whose sales would generate enough money so they could quit their day jobs.

Sure, bands still dream of getting signed, but they know better than to think that they’ll ever make a living selling records in this Spotify era when $10 a month gives a listener access to (nearly) everything. When Spotify launched a couple years ago, no one really understood how artists would get paid. Now we know — they get paid, but at a rate of around 0.004611 cents per play, according to an article on pitchfork.com. That equates to around $46 per 10,000 plays (before the split with their record label). Good luck with that.

Ironically, among the few bands who would actually make decent money off Spotify are those dinosaur acts like the ones who played at the Garden a couple weeks ago (though some of them, such as Led Zeppelin and Pink Floyd, have the wisdom to keep their music off the service).

I don’t know, maybe the music back then really was that good, that timeless. Maybe it will never be matched. But for the sake of future generations, I hope I’m wrong, or else in 43 years — in 2055 — when the next disaster occurs and a benefit concert is organized, the last great rock stars will be long gone.

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Sound hopeless? Maybe. Maybe not. This Spotify/streaming audio model is just beginning to fuck things up for everyone. We’ve only seen the tip of the iceberg, as non-music fans are just now beginning to discover it. It could pile on the already-catastrophic damage that downloading had done to CD sales…

Anyway, as I said above, there was some damn fine music produced in 2012, you just had to look really frickin’ hard to find it. Tomorrow: The Year in Review 2012, Pt. 2 — The top-10 of 2012, and the Lazy-i Best of 2012 Sampler track list and give-away — get ready to enter the drawing!

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Ladyfinger at Slowdown Jr. Dec, 21, 2012.

A bit of catch-up on some pre-holiday bric-a-brac: Ladyfinger at Slowdown Jr. last Friday was like being introduced to a different (i.e., new) band, as it was the first time I’ve really noticed the impact of Dan Brennan since he took over for Ethan Jones in 2010. One might assume “it’s just a bassist” and one would be wrong, as the entire rhythm section sounded different (in a good way). Actually, the entire band sounded more polished, more focused, more tuneful. Or maybe it was just the new songs. I’m not entirely sure.

Ladyfinger used to be a hazy noise rock band that was more about dirty, dark energy than music. There was a smear or recklessness to everything they did, and amidst the smoky sturm und drang the words didn’t matter. This new version is cleaner in every way, and that more cohesive sound is reflected on their upcoming album — the best collection of songs they’ve recorded in their career.

I would be lying if I said I didn’t think that elements of So-So Sailors’ anthem rock were beginning to seep into this band. The similarities are obvious, and other than the vocalist’s grainy style, are not two-way — So-So has never resembled Ladyfinger. Whether that’s good or bad depends on what you liked most and least about Ladyfinger before the shakeup.

Too cerebral? Never. The point: Ladyfinger is emerging as more of a straight-up rock band than the grizzled noise-punkers we’d grown accustomed to, and a big part is driven by the new approach to songwriting, especially in the rhythm section. While the guitars are nice, it’s Brennan and Pat Oakes driving the show these days — a pounding, pulsing freight train that pushes Chris Machmuller’s vocals as far as his brassy croon will go.

In fact, the only criticism I have is pointed directly at Machmuller, whose vocals sounded way too restrained and mumbling on stage. Part of the precision and appeal of the new record is being able to understand exactly what Mach is singing (another So-So overlap?). That quality was gone Friday as he casually rushed the vocals. So all the fun of “Galactic” was lost because you couldn’t understand his star soldier declarations; while the soul-searching of “Dark Horse” was merely a heart-ache mumble. We may never get those qualities live, which I guess makes the records that much more valuable.

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Holy Hannah!, it’s a garage rock blow-out tonight at Slowdown Jr. with Dads, Yuppies and Places We Slept all for a measly $5. Show starts at 9.

Also tonight, former Omahan and current legend Kyle Harvey returns to The Waiting Room’s stage opening for singer/songwriters Tara Vaughan and Jessica Errett. $7, 9 p.m.

So what if it’s one below zero outside? Get yourself to the clubs, people. The year ain’t over yet.

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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 © 2012 Tim McMahan. All rights reserved.