Indigo Girls circa the ’90s. The duo plays at The Astro tonight.

By Tim McMahan, Lazy-i.com

I was sitting on the side of a grassy hill somewhere in Philadelphia circa 1991 the last time I saw the Indigo Girls. It was shortly after the release of their breakthrough self-titled album – a record that carved their name into the zeitgeist of ‘90s pop culture and continues to be popular thanks to the film “Barbie” that used the track “Closer to Fine” in its soundtrack. It’s hard to underscore the album’s impact when it was first released, placing Indigo Girls alongside artists like Tracy Chapman, 10,000 Maniacs, The Sundays and Suzanne Vega. The style wasn’t folk as much as college rock and certainly not something you could hear on Omaha radio stations…

Anyway, The Indigo Girls play tonight at The Astro in La Vista. Joining them is singer/songwriter Annie Humphrey (whereas, when I saw the IGs in the ‘90s, a Lincoln kid named Matthew Sweet opened that show). Tickets range from $51 to $90 via Ticketmaster. Show starts at 7:30. 

Also tonight,  Irish electronic music group VNV Nation plays at The Slowdown in the main room. Joining them is Canadian cold wave duo TRAITRS. $37, 8 p.m. Bring your dance shoes.

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Here’s a glance at what’s on my radar through July. No doubt more shows will be added…

• April 18 – Self Evident @ The Sydney
• April 20 – Rosali @ O’Leaver’s
• April 24 – Sheer Mag @ Reverb
• April 25 – 9Million @ The Sydney
• April 27 – William Elliot Whitmore at Reverb
• April 28 – STRFKR @ The Admiral
• April 30 – Cindy Lee @ Pageturners
• May 1 – Jason Isbell and the 400 Unit @ The Astro
• May 2-3 – Ritual Device @ Reverb
• May 3-4 – Lincoln Calling
• May 7 – Ty Segall @ The Waiting Room
• May 7 – Wild Party @ Reverb
• May 12 – Horse Jumper of Love @ The Blindspot
• May 14 – Local Natives @ The Admiral
• May 19 – The Chats @ The Slowdown
• May 22 – Social Distortion at The Astro
• May 30 – Wednesday @ The Slowdown
• June 4 – Cloud Nothings @ Reverb
• June 5 – Dead Horses @ Reverb
• June 9 – Lucinda Williams @ The Admiral
• June 10 – The Mars Volta @ The Admiral
• June 25 – French Cassettes @ The Slowdown
• July 8 – The Baseball Project @ The Waiting Room
• July 15 – Etran de L’Air

What am I missing?

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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.