by Tim McMahan,  Lazy-i.com

Onward to the weekend…

Has it really been a year since See Through Dresses played a special benefit show at Benson Theater? The band is back tonight at Reverb Lounge. Will their drummer, post-Omahan now-Californian Nate Van Fleet, be along for the ride? I gotta believe he’s in town for tomorrow night’s Bokr Tov album release show (Nate produced the tracks). It’s been seven years since the last See Through Dresses album, which means (hopefully) they’ll be rolling out some new songs. Joining STD is singer/songwriter Mitch Gettman, who opens the show at 8 p.m. $10.

Also tonight, Midwest Dilemma takes over the Down Under stage (How will they get all 12 of them in that tiny space?). Joining them are Tom Bartolomei and Katie Kasher. $8, 9 p.m. 

As mentioned, tomorrow night (Saturday) Bokr Tov celebrates the release of their sophomore album, The Way a Tree Shakes, at Reverb Lounge.  Geno Beach and Bad Self Portraits are also on the bill. 8 p.m., $15. 

Meanwhile, down the street at The Sydney, it’s the stage debut of Housewares, the new project by Fromanhole’s Doug and Daryl Kiser. The five-piece is rounded out by Jason Koba of Thunder Power on drums, Scott Klemmensen of Reset on vocals, and Andy LaChance on keyboards. Doug described their sound as: “melodic, probably technical, with elements of post whatever, jazz, blues and maybe some country.  There is a lot of counting, that’s for sure.” Sounds mathy! Joining them are Minne Lussa and In Tongues. $10, 9 p.m. (Sydney Time). 

But wait, there’s more…

Mono in Stereo, the new project by The Millions’ Marty Amsler, is headlining a free show Saturday night at fabulous O’Leaver’s. Joining them are The Jericho Strays and Tony LaMar. 9 p.m. start time…

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.

See Through Dresses at The Benson Theatre, Oct. 27, 2023.

by Tim McMahan, Lazy-i.com

The Benson Theatre, located right in the middle of our drunken little townlet, could really be a cool stage for rock shows. The room is, indeed, quite beautiful, well designed, with rows of seating and plenty of room in front of the stage to stand. It’s the best of both worlds, or could be. In my mind I could imagine all those Undertow artists’ shows, like the recent Mark Eitzel show that took place downtown in a brew pub drinking room, performed on the Benson Theatre stage, a room just the right size for tours from past stars who now find themselves nomadically playing people’s living rooms. 

Alas, one assumes the operating costs associated with this “non-profit” theater makes such concerts impossible, which is a shame because there’s woefully little programming taking place in the state-of-the-art facility in the heart of the city. 

But I digress…

Friday night the theater hosted a fundraiser for Omaha Girls Rock, another Omaha non-profit, this one designed to provide direction both musically and ethically to young women from our community. The sold-out crowd consisted mostly of parents of these young rock stars on hand to give moral support, sitting or standing in groups while young kids ran around in costumes or wiggled on the “dance floor” in front of the stage. 

Omaha is currently suffering from a lack of young, up-and-coming indie bands. And as few new or touring Omaha indie bands as there are, there are even fewer bands fronted by women, which is ironic because today’s national indie music scene is dominated by women artists. No need to list them, if you know than you know. Omaha Girls Rock, while not established to fix this problem, could certainly provide an effective remedy. 

In times past when I’ve seen OGR bands play at fundraisers I’ve approached it like just another supportive parent (though I’m not), understanding the girls were only just learning their instruments. Not so Friday night. The two bands I saw were actually pretty good.  Nothing Rhymes with Orange was cute and showed promise, but UN-T.I.L. actually could stand on its own as a functioning post-punk power trio. No idea who’s in the band, but they had some chops, especially on the last two numbers that had more intricate compositions. And if you doubt me, you can find out for yourself as UN-T.I.L. will be opening for Speedy Ortiz at The Slowdown Nov. 17.

They were followed by the return of See Through Dresses, who haven’t played out in a few years. Drummer Nate Van Fleet even made a special trip to Omaha from his new home in LA just for the show. The entire band dressed in matching skeleton costumes a la Phoebe Bridgers’ band, which made it a sort of double costume. 

While the band sounded as good as ever playing music that’s a combination of shoegaze and Dinosaur Jr., the vocals by Matthew Carroll and Sara Bertuldo sounded naked on stage, pulled right out front of everything instead of being properly mixed with the rest of the instruments. I’ve never heard these two so loud and clear, like auctioneers fronting DIIV. Still, despite the poor mix, it was great seeing them on stage again.

In an era in Omaha when we’ve got ginormous new music venues popping up everywhere, here’s a small, well-made smaller alternative venue going mostly unused. It would be a shame if more bands weren’t booked 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 © 2023 Tim McMahan. All rights reserved.

by Tim McMahan, Lazy-i.com

By default, it’s Halloween weekend, at least as far as bars are concerned. So brush off your Taylor Swift/Kelce costumes and have a good time. It’s also another no-touring-indie-bands weekend. See what’s on the event horizon through next spring as far as touring indie acts in yesterday’s blog post. 

There are a few local shows happening this weekend, not the least of which is the long-awaited return of See Through Dresses. The band is playing a reunion gig tonight at Benson Theatre as part of the 2023 annual fundraiser for Omaha Girls Rock. They’ll be joined by a handful of OGR bands. Tickets are $25 and available at bensontheatre.org. Music starts at 7 p.m., and yes, costumes are encouraged.

No doubt costumes will also be all the rage tonight at fabulous O’Leaver’s as the club hosts a free punk rock show with The Scabby Ghouls, The Shidiots, DSM-5 and Blowing Chunks. The spooky fun starts at 9 p.m. 

Meanwhile, over at The Sydney in Benson, Thick Paint opens for singer/songwriter Anna McClellan. $10, 9 p.m.

Three local shows tomorrow night (Saturday):

Local rockers Garst are headlining at Reverb Lounge with Bad Self Portraits and The Moose & The Public. $12, 8 p.m. 

Las Cruxes is headlining The Down Under Lounge’s 8th annual Halloween show Saturday night. Joining them are Jar, Glue, and Grief Police. $8, 9:30 p.m. Again, costumes.

And finally, Pet Bun and Sputnik Kputnik are playing at Pageturners Lounge Saturday night. No cover but a $10 donation is suggested. Music starts at 8 p.m. 

And then Sunday night Grapefruit Records in the Old Market is hosting a rare Omaha performance by Simon Joyner and the Sirens. It’s a tour kick-off show for the band as they’re headed back on the road. David Nance will be playing a set of brand new material in his opening solo set at 8 p.m. $10. No mention of costumes, but every day is Halloween in the Old Market, right?

That’s it. If I missed your show, put it in the comments section. Have a wild and crazy Halloween 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

Super quiet weekend. Well, it is the holidays, after all. And considering we had no shows at all last year at this time, we shouldn’t be whining. At least there’s one.

See Through Dresses is playing their first show since 2019 Sunday evening at Reverb Lounge. And I mean early evening — Oquoa opens this show at 6 p.m. which means it’ll probably wrap up by 8 p.m.

Of note with this show: It’ll be their last performance for the foreseeable future, as drummer Nate Van Fleet is headed to Los Angeles next month. My understanding is the band isn’t breaking up and Nate ain’t leaving the band, but with members strewn across the country, well, who knows when they’ll play live here again.

So, 6 p.m., $10. Easy peasy.

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 © 2021 Tim McMahan. All rights reserved.

by Tim McMahan, Lazy-i.com

Red hot news before we get to the calendar, and it’s news of an unfortunate nature (for Omaha, anyway)…

This weekend’s shows are among the last times you’ll be able to see one of the area’s best drummers perform live. Nate Van Fleet, best known as the drummer for indie rock band See Through Dresses, is moving to Los Angeles after the first of the year. Nate confirmed the news last week: “I’m looking forward to meeting some new faces and making some new musical experiences. Hoping to be back in Omaha as often as possible, though,” he said.

Nate’s filled his calendar with a number of shows before he leaves, including two big ones this weekend with Matt Whipkey and See Through Dresses. But on top of that, Nate’s other band, Big Nope, will open for Criteria and Little Brazil at The Waiting Room Nov. 27 in what may be a tri-fecta for Van Fleet fans. Finally, Nate will be playing as part of Bug Heaven Nov. 28 at The Sydney.

Since he first emerged as a member of STD, Van Fleet has been been recognized as one of the city’s most versatile drummers, becoming the go-to guy for the area’s best rock bands. In fact, that Nov. 27 show could be very special, as Van Fleet drummed for Criteria and Little Brazil. Will he be on stage for all three sets? I don’t know for sure because I haven’t confirmed the bands’ line-ups, but I would not be surprised.

No doubt Van Fleet will become a sensation in La La Land. It’s just a matter of connections and getting seen by the right people. With all the other Omahans who have fled to the West Coast in the past few years — and his unmistakable talent — he’ll have no problems.

Congratulations Nate, and whoa to all of us back in Omaha, as the city’s Great Talent Migration continues…

. 0 0 0 .

So let’s start there. Tonight at The Jewell in the Capitol District Matt Whipkey is playing two shows with a massive band that includes Van Fleet, guitarists Korey Anderson and Corey Weber, keyboardist Scott Gaeta, bassist Glen Smith and percussionist Scott “Zip” Zimmerman. The event is the release of his new album, Hard (2021, Unusual), in vinyl format (which Whipkey will have on hand for sale). You read about the album here. Tickets to both the 6:30 and 8:30 shows are still available for $15.

Tomorrow night (Saturday) The Lemonheads return to The Waiting Room with Heyrocco. See Through Dresses opens this one at 8 p.m. Is the first STD show since the lock down (I think). Tickets are $30, show starts at 8 p.m.

Also Saturday night, Jeremy Mercy and the Rapture Orphans headline at The Sydney in Benson. Mercy has new music out, and what I heard of it is very good. Joining them is The Rare Candies. No price listed for this one but it’s probably around $10. Starts at 9.

Finally, BFF is hosting an event called Magic 8 Ball After Party (I don’t get the reference). That said, live performances include Cat Piss, Blood Cow and DJ Kobrakyle. The show is free if you’re a member of BFF (join!) and $10 for everyone else. Starts at 9.

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 © 2021 Tim McMahan. All rights reserved.

by Tim McMahan, Lazy-i.com

I don’t remember there being so many shows on the night before Thanksgiving. With (most) of us off work on turkey day, it makes sense (although who wants to be hungover at the family gathering? Everybody?).

Three shows are on my radar tonight:

Over at the Reverb Lounge, See Through Dresses returns with what I have to believe will be a set that includes a lot of new songs. Locals Hail Varsity opens at 9 p.m. $10.

Meanwhile, just around the corner at The Waiting Room, there’s a slew of tribute acts hitting the stage. Headlining is Control, a Joy Division tribute that features among its players guitarist Mike Saklar and bass player Randy Cotton. In fact, that duo will also be part of Stigmata Martyr, a Bauhaus tribute that comes on right before Control. The evening kicks off at 9 p.m. with 138, a Misfits tribute. $10.

Finally, down at Slowdown Jr. indie metal band Black Mountain headlines. Their new album, Destroyer, was released on Jagjaguwar, a label that’s been releasing their stuff since their self-titled debut back in 2005 — an album that’s still a regular on the ol’ stereo.

At the top of the mountain is Stephen McBean, who’s rock history goes back beyond his previous band, the more laid back Jerk with a Bomb, which merely hinted at the harder stuff to come. On Destroyer, McBean and Co. give us a modern take on Black Sabbath combined with something that’s a lot more funky. Check out “Boogie Lover” to hear what I’m talking about.

I tried getting McBean to do a 10 Questions survey but he wasn’t having it. Instead, here’s seven questions (sort of):

What is your favorite album?

Black Mountain’s Stephen McBean: Rudimentary Peni, Death Church

What is your least favorite song?

Thankfully, I can’t remember.

What do you enjoy most about being in a band?

Playing music with humans & machines.

What is your favorite substance (legal or illegal)?

Oysters.

In what city or town do you love to perform?

The one I’m currently performing in.

What one profession other than music would you like to attempt; what one profession would you absolutely hate to do?

I like the Philadelphia Flyers.

What are the stories you’ve heard about Omaha, Nebraska?

Camp Dump strike.

Opening for Black Mountain tonight is Ryler Walker. This is a Slowdown front room show; tickets are $20; showtime is 8 p.m.

Look for an update tomorrow.

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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

The folks who put on the Maha Music Festival are always trying something new, and this year is no exception. Tonight they’re kicking off the 11th annual festivities with a series of events taking place along the So. 13th Street corridor — a.k.a. Little Bohemia.

Rachel Grace, Maha’s marketing and communications manager, said this location was chosen because of the effort to expand Maha events to other areas of town. “In addition to Aksarben Village, Maha is also taking place at MCC’s Fort Omaha campus and The Waiting Room in Benson,” she said. “In addition, the high concentration of new and exciting area businesses and nonprofits makes Little Bohemia a great place for Opening Night.”

Among the events is a performance by See Through Dresses and And How at OutrSpaces, 1258 So. 13th St. starting at 8 p.m. This one costs $10 at the door.

The rest of the stuff is free, including a performance by Uh Oh at NOA Brides, 1419 So. 13th St., starting at 8 p.m.; and a performance by Bokr Tov at the Grain & Mortar Open House, 1414 So. 13th St., starting at 7 p.m.

More info and a full event schedule for tonight is available either at the Maha site, or on their Facebook event invitation.

So far, everything is clicking for Maha. There’s only one thing that could throw a wrench in this year’s festivities, and it involves the forecast…

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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

A month or so ago Django Greenblatt-Seay announced he was bringing back his Love Drunk video series, but this time, like Frank Sinatra, he was going to do it his way. And by that he meant his focus would now only be on bands he knows and/or loves.

If you don’t know the history of Love Drunk, read a very brief history here or check out the channel on YouTube. 

Django’s first new project is a video for See Through Dresses and their song “Catacombs,” shot in its entirety in Django’s camper van. You’ll not only be impressed by the performance but also by the van’s surprising spaciousness. 

“Catacombs” is off STD’s 2017 album Horse of the Other World. Here’s hoping the band is also working on new material (and a new album). 

 

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If you’re wondering what I’ve been up to the last couple of days, well tomorrow I’ll be posting a 2,000-word Q&A with Cursive’s Tim Kasher in anticipation of the band’s Saturday night show at Winchester.  I’ve also been working on the annual Reader Top-20 bands list and a column that looks back on the 2008 list in a where-are-the-now sort of fashion.  More to come… 

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Chicago indie band Ohmme (Joyful Noise Recordings) headlines tonight at Reverb Lounge. These folks have worked with Jeff Tweedy and Chance the Rapper, but by themselves they’re classified in the art rock category. Tracks off their 2017 release Parts are playful, fun. Our own Dirt House (tonight, Annie Dilocker solo) opens at 8 p.m. $10. 

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Read Tim McMahan’s blog daily at Lazy-i.com — an online music magazine that includes feature interviews, reviews and news. The focus is on the national indie music scene with a special emphasis on the best original bands in the Omaha area. Copyright © 2019 Tim McMahan. All rights reserved.

by Tim McMahan, Lazy-i.com

Before we get to it, tickets went on sale today for both the March 21 Better Oblivion Community Center (Conor Oberst/Phoebe Bridgers) show at The Slowdown and the two-night stand by The Faint at The Waiting Room May 24 & 25. Better get on it before tix are gone…

Now, on with the weekend…

Sub Pop recording artist King Tuff plays tonight at Slowdown Jr. King Tuff a.k.a. Kyle Thomas was a member of Ty Segall’s band The Muggers. The Reader‘s Houstin Wiltsey has an interview/feature with King Tuff online right here, which you should really check out before the show. Australian psych-rock band Stonefield opens at 9 p.m. $17.

Also tonight See Through Dresses kicks off its latest tour with a show at The Sydney in Benson. This is a big one that also includes Those Far Out Arrows, Lincoln’s Her Flyaway Manner and the always awesome Tyrone Storm. Music starts at 10 p.m and it’s the usual $5. Get there early and check out the multi-artist art opening that benefits the amazing Youth Emergency Services. More info here. It’s all part of Benson First Friday (#BFF).

Speaking of BFF, if you’re in Benson for the festivities, swing by The Little Gallery (my wife’s place) and check out this month’s opening featuring the art of Bob Matthews. The Little Gallery is at 5901 Maple St. in the east bay of the Masonic Lodge building. Stop in and say hello. We’re there from 6 to 9 p.m. More info here.

Tomorrow (Saturday) is the Almost Music Going Out of Business Music Festival, a stupendous line-up of bands that starts at 4 p.m. Get in on the music and leave with some bargains as the store will have deeply discounted vinyl available. It’s free, though donations are welcomed; it’s BYOB; and Nite Owl is preparing a “special punch” for the occasion. And it’ll be a good chance to say goodbye to Brad and thank him for all he’s done. Here’s the set times:

Bad Actors (first show): 4:15-5:00
Eric in Outerspace: 5:15-6:00
Kyle Jessen: 6:00-6:45
Putter & Co.: 6:45-7:30
Little Ripple: 7:30-8:15
Pagan Athletes: 8:15-9:00
Wagon Blasters: 9:00-9:45
Houma: 9:45-10:30
Conny Franko: 10:30-11:15
BIB: 11:15-midnight

Also Saturday night Matt Whipkey headlines at Reverb Lounge. Will Matt roll out a few new (punk) songs during his set? You’ll have to go and see. Hot new band Garst opens at 9 p.m. $8.

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

Another long weekend… of shows! All of them local acts, but great local acts. Here we go:

Tonight at Reverb Lounge it’s the return of See Through Dresses. It’s going on two years since Horse of the Other World came out on Tiny Engines. The band plans to unveil new material tonight. Come see what they’ve been up to. No Thanks opens at 9 p.m. $10.

Meanwhile across town tonight at fabulous O’Leaver’s y’all get another chance to see David Nance Group. Like I said a couple days ago, no two Nance sets are the same — expect some surprises. Joining them are Sucettes (Dave Goldberg and Co.) and CMB. $5, 10 p.m.

Tomorrow night (Saturday) Criteria returns to The Waiting Room. The band has been working on new material destined for a 2019 release (the scuttlebutt is it’ll be on 15 Passenger). Joining them is Little Brazil, whose 2018 release Send the Wolves (Max Trax Records) made it onto my list of favorite 2018 releases (which you’ll see in the January issue of The Reader or online here Monday). Bokr Tov opens at 9 p.m. $8.

Meanwhile, back over at O’Leaver’s Saturday night, Sean Pratt & the Sweats plays with And How and Stathi. $5, 10 p.m.

The marquee show Sunday night is Jake Bellows at Slowdown Jr. One assumes the Californian is back in town visiting family and figured ‘why not do a show while I’m here?‘ Why not indeed. Joining him is McCarthy Trenching. $8, 8 p.m.

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

I’ll be posting the annual Music Year in Review article on New Year’s Eve, which includes the usual list of favorite releases, favorite live shows, etc. Then on New Year’s Day look for my annual Predictions story. Both of these also will be in the January issue of The Reader (but who knows when that’ll hit the racks?…).

Have a great weekend.

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Read Tim McMahan’s blog daily at Lazy-i.com — an online music magazine that includes feature interviews, reviews and news. The focus is on the national indie music scene with a special emphasis on the best original bands in the Omaha area. Copyright © 2018 Tim McMahan. All rights reserved.