Live Review: Cowgirl Eastern, Velvet Velvet rock out at GoatFest 2025…

Category: Reviews — Tags: , , , — @ 10:47 am March 10, 2025
Cowgirl Eastern at GoatFest, Scriptown Brewery, March 8, 2025.

by Tim McMahan, Lazy-i.com

I know I say this every year, but GoatFest, the annual bacchanal that took place at Scriptown Brewing Company this past Saturday, should be held every week, or at least every month, or at least once a season. 

The brewery, located in the Blackstone District, was loud and packed at 3 p.m. with folks throwing back glasses of bock beer and yelling over the bands rocking out by the back exit. With their overhead doors wide open along Harney Street, the music could be heard blocks away by neighbors out soaking in the pre-spring warmth. 

It reminded me of another mainly outdoor event that’s taking place this week in Austin, Texas – the South By Southwest Festival day parties. There’s something special about day drinking at afternoon rock shows. And Scriptown booking  psych-rock garage bands only adds to the event’s allure. 

Cowgirl Eastern certainly fit right in. The Omaha-based five-piece boasts the classic “two-drummer configuration” – the kits set up facing each other – along with two guitars and bass. It was the loudest band I’ve ever heard at GoatFest (and I’ve been to all of them), but it didn’t kill the acid-colored vibe of their ultra-vivid, fuzzed-out sound. Very ‘60s, kind of bluesy, hippie but not in a jam-band sort of way. 

The goats of GoatFest.

Despite the crowd gathered around the band, people still managed to push their way through the throng to the back exit, where just outside a temporary livestock pen held three precocious goats. Two guys who I assumed were the the goats’ wranglers discussed livestock-related issues while sunglassed hipsters held pints in one hand while petting the goats with the other. 

Velvet Velvet at GoatFest, Scriptown Brewery, March 8, 2025.

Cowgirl Eastern was followed by another local act, Velvet Velvet, who ripped into an improvised version of “Sweet Home Alabama” as their ad hoc soundcheck, a hint of the southern-rock influenced material heard during the first part of their set, which was all I was able to stick around four, though I made a mental note to check out both bands the next time the play a proper venue. 

Scriptown was designed to be a beer tasting room, not a music venue, and it was evident by the blown-out stage-right PA speaker that fuzzed up the vocals. I doubt many people either noticed or cared as they were having such a good time. 

Which brings us back to the original statement – Scriptown should host GoatFest more than once a year. I mentioned this to one of the organizers, who told me the brewery does do special events during Blackstone’s “Second Saturday” efforts. Still, he wasn’t convinced they could draw such a large crowd on a weekly or monthly – or monthly – basis. He may be right, but we’ll never know unless they take the gamble, at least during the warm months…

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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 © 2025 Tim McMahan. All rights reserved.

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Finom, Brother Bird, #BFF, Stathi tonight; GoatFest (Velvet Velvet, Cowgirl Eastern) Saturday…

Category: Blog — Tags: , , , , , , — @ 10:31 am March 7, 2025
Finom plays tonight at The Sydney in Benson.

by Tim McMahan, Lazy-i.com

Onward to the weekend…

There’s a sneaky good show going on tonight (Friday) at The Sydney in Benson. Finom is the Chicago duo of Sima Cunningham and Macie Stewart. They used to go by the name OHMME, but changed their name for legal reasons in 2022. They’ve been releasing albums on respected mid-size indie label Joyful Noise since 2020; their latest is the soaring 2024 LP Not God. They usually have a drummer in tow, so expect a full sound. 

Also on the bill is Nashville-based project Brother Bird. Fronted by singer/songwriter Caroline Glaser, the band lists Mazzy Star, Cranberries and Big Thief among their influences. Their latest, Another Year, was released in 2024 on Easy Does It Records. 

Wedding, a.k.a. Anna Schulte, opens the show at The Sydney at 10 p.m. $15.

The work fo Josephine Langbehn whose first solo show opens tonight at Ming Toy Gallery.

That’s a late start time, probably to give folks time to enjoy the art during Benson First Friday (BFF)! Galleries and businesses up and down Maple Street are hosting art openings, including Ming Toy Gallery, 6066 Maple St. We’re hosting “The Space Between,” by artist Josephine Langbehn – large-scale interpretations painted in acrylic of cherished and forgotten images. The show runs from 5:30 to 9 p.m. Come by, see some great art, and have a drink on us!

Also tonight, Pageturners Lounge in Dundee is hosting former Nebraskan now New Yorker Stathi and Friends. Stathi’s latest album is Live at Bowery Ballroom, recorded last April when he opened for (and played with) Conor Oberst at the famous NYC venue. Show starts at 8 p.m. 

Saturday’s big event is the annual GoatFest celebration at Scriptown Brewery in the Blackstone District. In addition to tapping their Goatsmack seasonal beer, they host live music starting at 3 p.m. by bands Velvet Velvet and Cowgirl Eastern. Best of all, real live goats will be parked out back for your viewing and petting pleasure. Food by Lazy Buffalo BBQ. Runs from noon to 6 p.m. This is always a good time and, imho, should be hosted at Scriptown on a monthly (weekly?) basis. 

A scene from previous year’s Goatfest at Scriptown Brewery. Goatfest returns this Saturday.

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

PS: It’s Bandcamp Friday! If you’ve been hankering to buy some new music (like the fantastic new albums by Sharon Van Etten & The Attachment Theory or Horsegirl), now’s the best time as Bandcamp is passing along all proceeds to the bands and their labels (many of which also are passing the cash along to the bands). Get out there and buy some music!

Today is Bandcamp Friday.

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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 © 2025 Tim McMahan. All rights reserved.

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Dusk, Velvet Velvet, Visual Learner tonight at Reverb…

Category: Blog — Tags: , , — @ 1:16 pm November 11, 2024
Wisconsin band Dusk plays tonight at Reverb Lounge.

by Tim McMahan, Lazy-i.com

There’s a funky little ’60s-inspired almost alt-country show tonight at Reverb Lounge featuring Appleton, Wisconsin, band Dusk. Their latest, Glass Pastures, was released in 2023 by respectable indie label Don Giovanni, and has a sort of Flying Burrito Brothers vibe to it built on classic harmonies, twangy pedal steel and some rocking solos. 

Opening for Dusk is Velvet Velvet, the solo project of Omaha singer/songwriter Roman Constantino. (Garst). His latest is the self-released Why Try

UPDATE: As of an hour ago, One Percent posted that Minneapolis indie rock band Visual Learner has been added to this bill.

8 p.m. $12.

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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.

Lazy-i

Sophia Corinne, Velvet Velvet, Sutter Zachman tonight as part of Pageturners concert series…

Category: Blog — Tags: , , , — @ 7:52 am October 3, 2023

Sophia Corinne plays tonight at Pageturners Louge.

by TIm McMahan,Lazy-i.com

Pageturners Lounge, the sleepy little bar located on the edge of Dundee that’s partially owned by Conor Oberst, is really stepping up with its bookings.

Tonight they’ve got Nashville singer/songwriter Sophia Corinne, whose latest album, Isabel, was released this past June by Seattle’s Ghost Mountain Records, whose goal as a label is “to support incredible indie artists by releasing limited runs of physical media. We aim for transparency and an ethical pricing model that benefits the artist so they can create more music.” Now there’s a holy concept.

Isabel is a lush collection of beautiful songs that recall the quieter moments of artists like Neko Case and Katie Crutchfield. Just beautiful stuff. Joining her tonight at Pageturners is Omaha’s Velvet Velvet a.k.a. Roman Constantino, whose last album, 2022’s Moving On, was recorded by Bryce Hotz at Archetype Recordings.

Opening the show at 8 p.m. is singer/songwriter Sutter Zachman: “A Southern California native, Zachman more recently traded in the endless summer for the seasonal churn of the midwest (Omaha, Nebraska, to be specific), opting for a slower pace with his wife and daughter,” according to his Spotify bio. His latest, Loose Advantage, was released this past April and was produced by Zachman and Ben Brodin, who contributed along with bassist Eliana Athayde (Weyesblood, Waxahatchee). The record does have a So Cal peaceful, easy feeling about it. 

Like I said, 8 p.m. start time and this one’s free but they recommend a $10 donation, which is crazy cheap for this much entertainment. 

Pageturners’ upcoming shows are also impressive:

This Saturday (Oct. 7), Merge recording artist Rosali is playing a gig. You may remember her opening for Destroyer back in April 2022, with a support band that included David Nance, Jim Schroeder, Kevin Donahue and Colin Duckworth. She’s somewhat awesome. So is Sean Pratt, who opens this Saturday’s show.

Oct. 14 it’s David Nance with DJ Trolli & The Mighty Vitamins

Oct. 21 — Machete Archive and DJ Tyrone Storm (a.k.a. Roger Lewis).

Oct. 28 — Pet Bun and Sputnik Kputnik 

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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.

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