Mannequin Pussy plays at Middle Haüs Saturday night.

by Tim McMahan, Lazy-i.com

It should be another busy foot-traffic weekend in Benson as the Omaha Entertainment and Arts Awards (OEAA) showcases are happening throughout Maple St. tonight and Saturday night. Wristbands, which are $10 for one night or $15 for the whole weekend, get you into all participating venues: The Waiting Room, The Sydney, Barley Street Tavern, Burke’s Pub, PS Collective and 402 Collective.

I’m not familiar with most of the bands involved this year. One notable exception is The Big Deep, who plays at 10:45 Saturday night at The Waiting Room in what will be their last waltz before an “extended hiatus.”

“Basically, we’re calling a break and don’t have any plans right now to play again,” said Big Deep bassist Jared Bakewell. “There’s some burn out from creating our last album and a few people want to focus on other projects, both personal and musical, for a while.”

“Other projects” include drummer Trenton Albers work with The Sub-Vectors and a new unnamed project from Bakewell that includes Cody Rathman and Nate Fowler. Better catch them Saturday night because you may never get another chance.

The full OEAA showcase schedule is available at http://oea-awards.com/.

Also tonight, Lincoln dance-rock outfit Life Is Cool headlines at fabulous O’Leaver’s with The Doneofits (EP release show), The Baberaham and Bird Shuus. $5, 9 p.m.

Saturday night a band out of Kansas City called Yes You Are plays at Slowdown Jr. Among the mysterious band’s members is Tilly and the Wall vocalist Kianna Alarid. Also on the bill are Lawrence band Oils and Omaha’s own Derby Birds. $5, 9 p.m.

Saturday is Dundee Days in, well, Dundee.  Bands performing are a middle-of-the-road bunch except for something described on event posters at “Noahs Arch Was a Spaceship.” Assume they mean Noah’s Ark…?  Music starts at 5 p.m. and costs $5 to get in. More info here.

No word as to whether there will be a Dario’s Day this year (which is usually run in conjunction with Dundee Day). If anyone has any data, please post it in the comments section.

Finally, NYC/Philly punks Mannequin Pussy play at good ol’ Middle Haüs (you know, that duplex right across the street from The Brothers) Saturday night along with Manic Pixie Dream Girls and the infamous TBA. $5, 9 p.m.

If I missed anything, put it in the comments section. Have a red hot 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 © 2014 Tim McMahan. All rights reserved.

Big Harp at Slowdown Jr., July 8, 2011.

by Tim McMahan, Lazy-i.com

Just as one would expect at the local debut of the label’s latest signing, it was a virtual Saddle Creek homecoming at the Big Harp show Friday night at Slowdown Jr. Chris Senseney started the set all by himself with his guitar before being joined by wife Stefanie and a drummer who I’m told used to play with him in Baby Walrus.

You wouldn’t have known that this was only the second time The Senseneys performed under the Big Harp banner. They were completely at ease with the material, as if they’d been playing these songs for years (and who knows, maybe they have, in the privacy of their El Lay living room). On stage the more upbeat story songs had an extra dimension of assertive cool, an undisputed sinister swing and bounce. Chris’ voice glowed with a throaty brio, matched in swagger only by his fret-burning guitar work (lest we all had forgotten what a fantastic musician Mr. Senseney is on a variety of instruments). It’s a golden needle of a voice that could catch on with a larger crowd if only it were discovered in the 10,000-foot-high haystack we call the music industry. We’ll have to see what kind of publicity Saddle Creek can muster upon tBig Harp’s debut release Sept. 13. Someone get Pitchfork on the phone…

Dim Light at The Sydney, part of the OEAA Summer Showcase, July 9, 2011.

Saturday night was spent at the second evening of the OEAA Summer Showcase in Benson, the highlights of which included Dim Light at The Sydney and Blue Rosa at The Waiting Room.  I’m told the crowds in general were larger on Friday night. There were only 30 or so in The Sydney and only a few more than that at TWR. Burke’s Pub, where I saw Manny Coon, was the most crowded room of the evening, but still only had 30 or 40 people total.

Finally, this morning the MAHA organizers announced that the winner of the talent contest portion of the OEAA showcase was The Big Deep. The band, whose music I’ve never heard before, received the most public votes among all the acts performing, and has earned the opening slot at this year’s MAHA Music Festival. And with that, MAHA’s lineup is finally complete.

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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 © 2011 Tim McMahan. All rights reserved.