Sun June at Reverb Lounge, March 22, 2024.

By Tim McMahan, Lazy-i.com

What to say about last Friday night’s Sun June/Wild Pink show at Reverb Lounge? When the official 8 p.m. start time rolled around, only about 25 people were in the crowd. It’s safe to say after this and last week’s hour-late start at The Sydney, that we are officially back to pre-Covid-19 (late) start times. 

The venues’ former punctuality was likely due to self-imposed curfews to get people in and out as quickly as possible to control human contact/virus spread. But now that Covid has become a distant memory (to most people), shows are starting 30 minutes to an hour late again. Which is fine, as long as they’re consistent — no one wants to show up assuming a late start only to discover they missed the opener because the venue (or artist) decided to be punctual. That said, let’s not get back in the other pre-Covid habit of headliners taking the stage at midnight and wrapping up after 1 a.m…

Wild Pink at Reverb Lounge, March 22, 2024.

So, Wild Pink didn’t go on until a little past 8:30 – just long enough to double the crowd size. Playing as a four-piece, Wild Pink tore through a set of dense, gorgeous, mid-tempo indie rock songs led by singer/songwriter/guitarist John Ross that reminded me of Strand of Oaks or a more tuneful (better) version of The National. They sounded very much like what’s heard on their just-released EP, Strawberry Eraser (Fire Talk Records), but without that recording’s haunting Destroyer-esque saxophone parts. 

Beyond the first-rate rhythm section, the band’s secret weapon is lead guitarist Mike Brenner, who switched between pedal steel and standard electric guitar throughout the night. It was a dreamy, well-performed set that went end-to-end with few breaks and no chatter between songs – a contrast to what was to come.

Sun June – typically a five-piece and a collaboration between front-woman Laura Colwell and guitarist/co-songwriter Stephen Salisbury — played as a four-piece with drummer Sarah Schultz and lead guitarist Michael Bain. I’m not sure who was on bass, and to be honest with you, I have no idea what Stephen Salisbury looks like or if he’s even still in the band. I reached out to Run for Cover Records via Instagram to determine the band’s current touring line-up to no avail.

Regardless, who we saw Friday night was pretty terrific. Colwell suffered some initial technical difficulties which she trouble-shooted as being caused by her glass of white wine perched atop her guitar amp. After the first trepidatious number it was smooth sailing, with the band playing songs from their most recent album, 2023’s Bad Dream Jaguar. If you think Colwell has a whispery voice on her records, it’s nothing compared to the faint, soto voce in which she began her set. 

She didn’t hit her stride until about halfway through, with solid renditions of “Texas” and “Mixed Bag” that showcased her voice and clever songwriting. “Texas” is a personal favorite, and had I enough cash I would have bought one of their T-shirts with the song’s lyric, “Texas, you keep breaking my heart.” 

Live, Sun June’s music is more energetic and less somber than on recording. Throughout the set, four or five members of the crowd sang along with Colwell, one person demonstrably so. The band brought everything back down for their final song, a stirring rendition of album standout “John Prine,” so quiet in fact, that the thump-thump-thump from whoever was playing in The Waiting Room could be heard bleeding through the back of the stage, which Colwell acknowledged with a smile, saying “Hey, you can hear them next door.” You sure can, Laura. 

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And that’s it for touring indie shows in Omaha for the balance of the month. The next show on my radar is a couple Lawrence bands, Blanky and Virgo, making a trip to Reverb Lounge April 3 (with The Dirts and Garst)…

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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.

Sun June plays tonight at Reverb Lounge.

By Tim McMahan, Lazy-i.com

Only one touring indie show of note this weekend…

Austin-based Sun June call their sound “regret pop,” I guess because there’s an overhanging sense of ennui that permeates all their songs. At the creative heart of the matter is vocalist Laura Calwell and guitarist Stephen Salisbury, who (according to their record label – Run for Cover Records), are a “couple,” or at least were when the band’s second album, Somewhere, was released in 2021. However, according to Wiki, Calwell and Salisbury lived 1,300 miles apart when they created Bad Dream Jaguar (2023, Run for Cover) – another introspective, melancholy collection.

Playing at Reverb tonight with Sun June are New Yorkers Wild Pink. The band just released their new single, “Air Drumming Fix You,” on Fire Talk Records, but have spent most of their career on sturdy indie label Tiny Engines Records. Fronted by singer/songwriter John Ross, songs like “Amalfi” and “The Wind Was Like a Train” from 2021’s A Billion Little Lights are remiscent of acts like Destroyer and Strand of Oaks. A little more upbeat than Sun June for sure, but no less sentimental. 

This is really a double-headliner bill and a bargain at $25. Showtime at Reverb is 8 p.m. 

Also tonight, at The Waiting Room hosts local headliner Fontenelle for a show that also includes Wake Sessions and Ebba Rose. $12, 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 © 2024 Tim McMahan. All rights reserved.

by Tim McMahan, Lazy-i.com

My bit of advice to you, the indie music fan: If you have a chance to go to a show when it’s happening, you better go. It’s no secret that, despite having more music venues than ever, fewer indie rock tours are coming through Omaha these days. If you don’t go to one of them happening tonight, who knows when you’ll get another chance.

Tonight’s pretty loaded for shows. The best of the bunch is at The Waiting Room where The New Pornographers return. The band’s latest, Continue as a Guest, is their Merge Records debut and includes contributions from A.C. Newman, Neko Case, Kathryn Calder, John Collins, Todd Fancey and Joe Seiders. New Pornos regular Dan Bejar only provides “co-writes” on this one, which means you won’t be seeing Bejar on stage with the band tonight. 

Judging from Wednesday night’s setlist for their Oklahoma City show, expect a healthy dose of the new album along with some non-Bejar chestnuts from the catalog going back to 2005’s Twin Cinema.

Opening the show is dreamy NYC band Wild Pink, whose latest LP, ILYSM, was released last October on Royal Mountain. Really pretty stuff that reminds me of Nick Drake or early Iron & Wine. 8 p.m., $35.

Also tonight, Brooks Nielsen, former lead singer to So Cal indie band The Growlers, headlines tonight at The Slowdown. The Growlers was one of the surf bands caught up in the whole Burger Records controversy in 2020. Nielsen’s solo work is more synthy but still has some sunset California touches. No opener listed. Starts at 8 p.m. in the big room. $35.

Meanwhile, down at The Sydney in Benson tonight (Friday), Specter Poetics headlines a show that also includes New Obsessions and Jeff in Leather. $10, 9 p.m. 

As for the rest of the weekend, well, like I said, get it in tonight because who knows when you’ll get another chance to see a live indie music. 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

Wild Pink headlines tonight at Reverb Lounge.

The New York band’s latest, ILYSM (2022, Royal Mountain), was co-produced by Justin Pizzoferrato, whose credits include work with Pixies and Speedy Ortiz, and Peter Silberman of The Antlers, and includes guest spots from J Mascis, Julien Baker and Ryley Walker, among others. Pitchfork gave it a 7.0 and called it “a richly detailed and expectedly sentimental album that wrestles with all the life and death that exists in the midst of a cancer diagnosis.” Eek.

For the most part, it’s a quiet, meditative collection that reminded me of Nick Drake, with frontman John Roth’s quiet, breathy vocals. The album’s title track is among the highlights, rising to a blazing crescendo before coming back down.

Opening band Trace Mountains is a project led by Dave Benton formerly of Sub Pop band LVL UP. Their latest, House of Confusion (2021, Lame-O), has that dreamy early Jackson Browne lilt that goes down easy, especially on tracks like “If You Do.” This would be the perfect concert for a warm summer evening instead of a frostbitten last night of November. Early show: 7:30. $15.

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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.