Speed! Nebraska Records announced yesterday that it signed high-flying rock 'n' roll bands Techlepathy and Wagon Blasters to exclusive contracts.

Techlepathy features Lincoln Dickison (The Monroes, Bombardment Society, Putrescene), Eric Ernst (Fullblown, Sound of Rails, Aemon), and John Kestner (Fullblown, Sound of Rails, Coldsore). The band is described as "Black noise in a black room: a spiritual meltdown, a precognitive vision. Post humanistic, seeking a chemical bond with the circuitry." I describe it as noise punk. You make the call when their debut CD, Anthem for Future History, is released later this spring or early summer.

Wagon Blasters features Gary Dean Davis (The Monroes, D is for Dragster, Frontier Trust, Pioneer Disaster), William Thornton (Past Punchy and the Present, Low Rent Guilt, Frontier Trust), Robert Thornton (Now, Archimedes!, Past Punchy and the Present, Culture Fire, Clayface Regular) and Jesse Render (The Monroes, Lonny and the Lux-o-values, The Bullphrogs). When they first started playing around town late last year, they covered a few Frontier Trust classics, which will give you an idea what kind of sound they're after. Speed! says look for WB's new release sometime this summer.

Both bands are playing O'Leaver's April 17 -- put it in your dayplanner.

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Wonder who that guy was running around with a video camera during the last Conor Oberst and the Mystic Valley band tour? It was none other than Phil Schaffart, the band's guitar tech and now filmmaker. His documentary of the past year and a half touring with the band, titled One of My Kind, is slated for an Internet release on April 15 by Causecast.

"Footage from Tepoztlan, Mexico, where they recorded their first album, Conor Oberst, their worldwide tour in 2008, and the making of Outer South in El Paso, TX, takes viewers on a 60-minute musical journey around the world," says the press release. The film will be available as a free stream or HD download at Causecast.org, IFC.com, conoroberst.com, mergerecords.com and wichita-recordings.com.

Causecast is "a community of people and nonprofits that are actively involved in causes like child slavery, global warming, mentoring, animal rights and autism research, just to name a few," says the press release. Wonder if they'll be any footage from last September's Anchor Inn gig...

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Singer/songwriter Damien Jurado plays tonight at The Waiting Room with Laura Gibson. $10, 9 p.m.

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