by Tim McMahan, Lazy-i.com

The weekend is finally here, so let’s review…

It’s the first Friday of the month, and that means Benson First Friday. Local artists will be showing their wares in art openings up and down Maple Street tonight, including at Ming Toy Gallery, 6066 Maple Street, where we’re hosting the 2024 Dragon Invitational Open House featuring the works of a whopping 25 artists. Full list of participating artists is right here. I currently am busy this morning baking cookies for this event (Chinese Almond Cookies, Classic Toll House). The opening runs from 6 to 9 p.m. Drop by, have a glass of wine (or whine) and say hello. See you there. 

It’s also Bandcamp Friday, which means it’s the best time to purchase music from your favorite artists as today Bandcamp is waving all fees and passing your hard-earned rubles directly to the bands. So whether it’s the Violenteer debut or the latest from Simon Joyner or this groovy new track from Max Holmquist’s Dream Ghoul, now is the time to buy and download.

And, though not a ska fan (except for The Specials, of course), there’s a three-band ska show happening tonight at fabulous O’Leaver’s. They’re calling it “A Plastic Holiday Special,” featuring Omaha skacore band Plastic Presidents, Minneapolis ska/punk/jazz fusion act Runaway Ricochet and Omaha ska/rocksteady act The Bishops. It’s free and has a published 8 p.m. start time. Wear a checkered neck tie and your top-siders!

Saturday night is the big Violenteer EP release show at Reverb Lounge. I wrote about the album here. The four-band bill also includes Dance Me Pregnant, Lodgings and Bad Bad Men. It’ll be a crowded room fer shure. $12, 8 p.m. start time.

Meanwhile, just down the street at The Sydney, Dave Goldberg’s new(ish) metal band Prolapse is headlining a show with Blood Tower and GLOW. $10, 9 p.m. (Sydney Time).

That brings us to Sunday and Simon Joyner’s album release show for Coyote Butterfly. As mentioned in yesterday’s write-up, this will likely be the only time the album is performed in its entirety. It’s also a seated show, so get there early to both get good seats and hear opener Megan Siebe. This early show (6:30 p.m. start time) could be a gut-wrencher. $15. PS: The Waiting Room will be featuring an NA-only special menu. All the profits from the tickets will be donated to the Arch Alumni Association, a non-profit organization whose mission is supporting former members of the Arch Halfway House.

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 © 2024 Tim McMahan. All rights reserved.

Lodgings plays tonight at The Sydney in Benson.

by Tim McMahan, Lazy-i.com

Last Friday (maybe for Bandcamp Friday?) David Nance released his rendition of The Cure’s seminal 1989 album Disintegration, which he called Shameless Kiss, and which I’m listening to as I type this. As one local music aficionado and singer described it, it sounds like David Nance playing Disintegration. I’m sure there’s an interesting story behind it, and I’ll try to find out what it is before Nance’s upcoming gig with Icky Blossoms Dec. 26 at The Waiting Room… Until then, here’s a highlight:

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Busy Friday, quiet rest of the weekend. 

Tonight at The Sydney in Benson, Lodgings opens for Violenteer and Sun-Less Trio at The Sydney in Benson. It’s been too long since I’ve seen Lodgings, a band that includes Bryce Hotz on guitar/vocals, Eric Ernst on drums, Michael Laughlin on bass and the illustrious Steve Micek on guitar – or at least that’s who played on their 2019 album, Water Works, which was recorded and mixed by studio legend Steve Albini. I’m not sure who’s in the band these days. Let’s find out tonight! $10, 9 p.m. 

Also tonight, Omaha’s No. 1 alt country / country band, Clarence Tilton, headlines at The Waiting Room for a bill that also includes Watson & Co. and The Electroliners. Cowboy hat, boots, you know the drill. $10, 8 p.m.  

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 © 2023 Tim McMahan. All rights reserved.

Turnstile Friday night at the 2023 Maha Music Festival.

by Tim McMahan, Lazy-i.com

The folks behind the Maha Music Festival released attendance numbers yesterday, showing a slight increase over last year’s numbers. Last weekend, “more than 12,000 people helped Maha Festival say goodbye to its longtime home” at Aksarben Village.

That’s a little over a 4% increase over 2023’s Maha Festival attendance. The increase was due to a sizable jump in Friday night attendance – 4,900 people were on hand last Friday night when Turnstile headlined vs. 4,100 on Friday night last year for Car Seat Headrest. Saturday attendance of 7,100 for headliner Big Thief was a drop from the 7,400 in attendance on Saturday last year for Beach House. 

These numbers include more than 800 volunteers. Maha also said a quarter of attendees traveled from out of state this year.  As info, Maha drew 6,400 in 2021 for their one-day, Covid-shorted festival. 

The festival is currently conducting an attendee survey, which you can take here as they begin to do it all over again for the two-day festival to be held down at the Riverfront next year, July 26 and 27, 2024.

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OK, so what about this weekend?

Tonight it’s all about Benson, where Benson First Friday (#BFF) will be in full effect. Maple Street will be alive with art as businesses throughout the district feature new openings by local artists. If you’re out and about, drop in at Ming Toy Gallery, 6066 Maple St. (right next to Au Courant) where artist Michael Trenhaile opens his show entitled “Hoodlums, Thieves and Dead People & Other Events.” He’s brought his guitar and amp, so expect a couple tunes as well. The show runs from 6 to 9 p.m. tonight. See you there.

Also tonight, The Sydney in Benson celebrates BFF with a red hot show headlined by Bug Heaven with Lodgings and Breakers. $10, 9 p.m. 

Saturday, get a sneak peak at Falconwood Park prior to Outlandia by attending GRRRL Camp, a one-day festival featuring 16 female-fronted alt rock and hip hop acts and performers including Boulder’s The Velveteers, Omaha acts Ione and Ebba Rose, and Lincoln’s Freakabout. All gender identifications are invited (that means dudes, too). This is kind of like FemmeFest from years gone by, only it’s held at a camp grounds. It starts at 1 p.m. and tickets are $45. More info here.

Also tomorrow night (Saturday), The Sydney in Benson has Moon 17 with Jeff in Leather and XID. $10, 9 p.m. 

And Saturday night at fabulous O’Leaver’s, Las Cruxes is among the bands celebrating Silas Poppy’s birthday. Joining them are Tiananmen Squares and The Content. 9 p.m., no cover listed.

And finally, it’s Bandcamp Friday again. If you’ve been mulling over buying some new music (or some old music), Bandcamp is waiving their fees today so all proceeds will go to the artist. Among those celebrating is Simon Joyner, who is releasing a new vinyl-only LP, This Is Where the Ocean Begins, a collection of old singles reinterpreted by Fred Lonberg Holm, Michael Krassner and Joyner as a trio, limited to 230 copies, with money generated used to help cover travel costs for his fall tour. Check it out here.

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 © 2023 Tim McMahan. All rights reserved.

by Tim McMahan, Lazy-i.com

Turns out someone from Gary Numan’s team got COVID, which is why Thursday’s show was postponed. In a message, Numan said he hopes to reschedule sometime toward the end of summer. Here’s hoping safe passage through illness.

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Tickets to the Outlandia and Maha music festivals both went on sale today at 10 a.m. If you want VIP tix to either event, you better buy them now.

Yesterday, @OutlandiaFest on Twitter replied to one of my tweets at @tim_mcmahan (come on by!) that “The ‘land adjacent’ was purchased by Falconwood and will now be home to the new, improved and vastly larger Falconwood. Maybe they need to rebrand to Falconwood Mega Park. Just wanted to clarify it most certainly is still Falconwood Park.”

The additional property is the Salvation Army Gene Eppley Camp, which Falconwood shared a border with on two sides. I’m still curious where the stage will be, and the parking. Organizer Marc Leibowitz (of 1% Productions) said in the OWH article that there would be thousands of parking spots available. I’ll try to swing by the park this weekend and see what I can see…

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As of this morning before I went to work, Petfest had announced six bands so far for their Aug. 13 festival in Benson:

Amulets
Cat Piss
Universe Contest
Ghost Foot
Mike Schlesinger
Problems

More to come. Amulets is an ambient/noise project by Portland’s Randall Taylor. Haunting. Petfest tickets go on sale Friday, April 2.

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Tonight at Reverb Lounge it’s Omaha indie band Lodgings. I’ve seen these folks a few times at O’Leaver’s (who, more than ever, appear to be out of the live music business. Come on, O’Leaver’s, book some shows). Joining Lodgings tonight is GLOW and southern-fried rockers Lightning Stills (Craig Fort and Co.). $8, 9 p.m.

Is the new normal 9 p.m. shows on weekends and 8 p.m. start times during the week (except, apparently, at The Sydney)? Well, it’s better than 10 p.m. start times.

That’s it. If I missed your show, put it in the comments section. Let me leave you with the just-released single by Nathan Ma, “She’s WIld” mixed by Young Guv. 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.

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.

by Tim McMahan, Lazy-i.com

The holidays are over. Now we enter into the dark, black chasm known as January (though so far, not so bad weather-wise!).

I caught a couple shows over the break. The top getter was Criteria at The Waiting Room Dec. 28 with Little Brazil for what has become a holiday tradition (what’s it been, five years in a row?).

Stephen Pedersen and Co. never sounded better. Killing behind the kit was Mike Sweeney, though I was half-expecting Nate Van Fleet to be up there seeing as he’ll be playing with the band for the upcoming Criteria/Cursive tour the last half of January. Instead, Nate was standing behind me during the set with his jaw wide open watching Sweeney chop down trees one at a time.

Pedersen was in his usual fine voice on what has got to be the hardest songs for anyone to sing. I felt exhausted after every tune. Doing it nightly will be herculean achievement, but if anyone can pull it off, it’s Pedersen. The band used the occasion to roll out a couple songs from the new album, which they’ve been performing live for a few years, so yeah, they fit right in with the rest of the catalog.

I’m very interested to see how the Cursive fans react to Criteria on this upcoming tour. No doubt, many already are familiar with the band. But there will be some young Cursive fans who may not be, and Criteria has a completely different vibe than Cursive — it’s like a guy wearing a gold lamé jacket standing next to some dude in a black hoodie. Criteria has always shimmered brightly, coming off like a rallying cry before a battle; whereas Cursive is a darker thing altogether, Cursive is the angry negotiations that go nowhere leading up to the war.

In these dark times we live in, we could use some new Criteria. So what happens if on this tour these guys break big and a nation demands more? Can Pedersen and Co. push back from their dusty office PCs and become the rock stars they were meant to be?

I got to the Waiting Room early to catch Lodgings, who put out one of my favorite albums of 2019 (the Steve Albini engineered Water Works). The songs sounded even better live (but don’t all good songs sound better live?). The four-piece with Bryce Hotz out front and backed by a stellar band that includes the legendary Steve Micek on guitar along with Michael Laughlin and Eric Ernst on drums have a grinding indie-rock style that stumbles forward with a throbbing heart. There is something about Hotz’s vocals that remind me of Vedder (more so the phrasing than the vox itself), whereas the music reminds me of classic Grifters (a band that no one seems to remember, and one of my all-time faves).

In the middle was Little Brazil, who rolled out a number of new songs, and hopefully are headed to a recording studio in the near future. It was funny looking out over the audience and seeing three past Little Brazil drummers in the crowd — Nate Van Fleet, Matt Bowen and Oliver Morgan — watch as new drummer Austin Elsberry took the reigns, keeping up a fine tradition.

Little Brazil is an enigma to me. They’re one of the city’s most unique bands that’s always deserved as much national attention as any Saddle Creek Records band. And they’re playing some of the best music of their careers right now. Why they haven’t caught fire is a mystery to me.

Finally, it was a treat to see Stephen Sheehan and his band play at The Waiting Room Dec. 23. Sheehan once again gathered together some of the area’s best talent to back him on a set of Digital Sex and The World songs, as well as a new original. It got me wondering if maybe he shouldn’t re-record these songs, giving us a modern take on what are considered Omaha classics.

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Speaking of classics, relive the classics of the year gone by with the  Lazy-i Best of 2019 Comp CD!

The collection includes my favorite indie tunes I’ve come across throughout last year as part of my tireless work as a music critic for Lazy-i. Among those represented: DIIV, Hand Habits, Uh Oh, Sharon Van Etten, Orville Peck, Simon Joyner, Prettiest Eyes, Purple Mountains and lots more.

To enter, send me an email with your mailing address to tim.mcmahan@gmail.com. Hurry, contest deadline is Monday, Jan. 6, at midnight.

Or listen on Spotify. Simply click this link or search “Lazy-i” in Spotify and you’ll find the 2019 playlist along with a few from past years, too!

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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.

by Tim McMahan, Lazy-i.com

Tonight is looking pretty thin. Only one show — Relax, It’s Science opens for White Wolf T-Shirt and The Bedrock at The B Bar (right to Barrett’s on Leavenworth). $5, 9 p.m.

Tomorrow is packed.

Bobby and Heather Hussy (and Tyler Fassnacht) — better known as The Hussy — return to fabulous O’Leaver’s Saturday night. The Madison band used to play here all the time. If you don’t have Galore, their 2015 album on Southpaw, you’re really missing out on some seriously blazing punk. The last thing they put out was a 7-inch called, “I See Just Fine.” We need more Hussy and we’re gonna get it Saturday night. If that weren’t enough, David Nance Band and Dross also are on the bill. This has all the makings of a classic night at OLeaver’s. $8, 10 p.m.

Meanwhile, over at The Barley Street Tavern Saturday night, Lodgings headlines. They have a new album called Water Works that dropped a couple weeks ago, recorded and mixed by the legendary Steve Albini at Electrical Audio. Get it. Mere Shadows and Tom Bartolomei open. $5, 9 p.m.

And earlier in the day Saturday, Almost Music is having a record show at Reverb Lounge from 3 to 8 p.m., which will be followed by music from the Almost Music DJs. And it’s free!

One last Saturday night show: Mike Schlesinger opens for Win/Win and Field Club at The Sydney in Benson. $5, 10 p.m.

Finally Sunday, Captured Tracks band Reptaliens headlines at Reverb Lounge. $10, 8 p.m. No opener listed!

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 © 2019 Tim McMahan. All rights reserved.

by Tim McMahan, Lazy-i.com

Winter hasn’t finished with us yet. Weather-wise, another a crappy weekend; show-wise, the selection is limited but pretty good.

Tonight Nightmarathons headline way out west at Dr. Jack’s Drinkery, a place I’ve yet to visit located at 3012 No. 102nd St., which (I think) used to be the old Brass Knocker? Someone help me here. I lived right down the street from there for years when I was in college.

Anyway, the Pittsburgh band plays punk pop/emo with lots o’ group vocals and rock riffs a la The Get Up Kids. Like I said, an emo band. Opening is Omaha pop-punters HeatWaves and Speedball Summer. $8, 9 p.m.

That’s it for Friday, but there are two awesome shows Saturday night.

Mary Timony’s band Ex Hex headlines at Reverb Saturday night. Their new album, It’s Real, just dropped via Merge Records and is a straight-up old-school rock album, or as Pitchfork said in this 7.8 rated review: “This time, they mine the denim-clad AOR of Billy Squier and Foreigner.” Yeah, this sounds very ’80s FM radio rock. Opening is Sub Pop band Moaning, an LA DIY post-punk trio. $18, 9 p.m.

Also Saturday night, Lodgings headlines at The Brothers Lounge. The band has been working on a new record, which they’ll likely preview. Opening is Bed Rest and Relax, It’s Science. $5, 9 p.m.

Finally Sunday night Louisiana band Ghost Foot headlines at The Sydney in Benson. Joining them are Lincoln’s Universe Contest and The Natural States. $5, 10 p.m.

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 © 2019 Tim McMahan. All rights reserved.

by Tim McMahan, Lazy-i.com

Somebody put a stake through the heart of winter so we can get back to something normal weather-wise? Sounds like tonight and Saturday night could be a shit-storm. If you go out, be careful, people.

Tonight’s big show is Satchel Grande at The Waiting Room. They always bring the party. Omaha Beat Brigade kicks it off at 9 p.m. $8.

And that’s it for tonight.

Tomorrow night (Saturday), the big show is at Brothers Lounge where Lodgings headlines. Opening is the double-bass attack of Relax, It’s Science and Lincoln power trio Her Flyaway Manner. $5, 10 p.m.

Also Saturday night, Mike Schlesinger plays at The Sydney in Benson with Dirt House and Tom Bartolomei. 9 p.m. $5.

Sunday night Dr. Dog headlines the big room at The Slowdown. The Nude Party opens at 8 p.m. $25 Adv/$28 DOS.

Meanwhile, over at Lookout Lounge, Ontario punkers Single Mothers headlines Sunday night. Mobina Galore, Kill Vargas and Uh Oh open at 8 p.m. $10.

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 © 2019 Tim McMahan. All rights reserved.

by Tim McMahan, Lazy-i.com

It feels like the holiday weekend, but Christmas isn’t until Tuesday. That said, this might be the best local weekend show line-up in recent memory.

It starts tonight at fabulous O’Leaver’s where the legendary Lupines are headlining. It’s been awhile since I’ve heard these dudes. Will they play “Maria” tonight? Even better, will they finally play “Hasn’t Failed Me Yet?”? As President Dumb-ass says, “Let’s see what happens…” Another of my faves, Lodgings, is in the second slot. The band has been in the studio. Will we hear some of their new stuff? Opening is Sean Pratt. All this for $5. Starts at 10.

Meanwhile, over at The Sydney in Benson it’s an outlaw country battle between headliners The Filter Kings and Sioux Falls act Mat D and the Profane Saints. $5, 10 p.m.

If you’re looking for the heavy shit, head on over to The Brothers tonight where they have Montee Men, Living Conditions and Leafblower (MaxTrax Records). $5, 9 p.m.

Tomorrow night (Saturday) it’s back to The Brothers Lounge for the 4th annual performance of SERIAL. SERIAL is Tim Moss, John Wolf, Lee Meyerpeter and Jerry Hug — four royalty from Omaha’s golden age of punk rock, having performed in such stellar ’90s acts as Ritual Device, Cellophane Ceiling, Bad Luck Charm, Cactus Nerve Thang and Men or Porn. Rusty Lord opens at 9. $5.

Also Saturday night Matt Whipkey headlines at O’Leaver’s with Brad Hoshaw and Joshua Mason. $7, 9 p.m.

Then comes Sunday and the Coat Drive for Heart Ministry Center at The Waiting Room. I wrote about this a couple days ago. The line-up is stacked: David Nance Group, Clarence Tilton, Stephen Sheehan and Garst. Tickets are $10 or a gently used coat. Bands start at 7 p.m.

And that’s all I got. If I missed your show put it in the comments section.

No doubt there’s nothing happening on Monday and Tuesday of next week, so let me take this opportunity to wish you a happy holiday from everyone at Lazy-i.com!

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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.