There Are Giants in the Earth

I interviewed Dan Brennan and Ryan Fox of The '89 Cubs way back in August (I never had a chance to speak with drummer Matt Baum, who fills out the trio). We sat on the deck behind Brennan's house in Little Italy, under a huge oak tree in our T-shirts and shorts. Halfway through the interview it began to rain, but we stayed safe and dry under those branches. There was no Reader assignment in conjunction with our talk; I just wanted to find out the story behind their remarkable then-yet-to-be-released CD, There Are Giants in the Earth. What a lyrical name for a record, but what did it, and the CD, mean?

"It's about transition and death, which is more interesting than singing about girls," said the always quiet, always reserved Fox, whose beard, glasses and wry smile make him look like a grown-up choir boy.

Brennan, on the other hand, looks like that guy you remember from high school -- the one with the wild hair and crazy grin who was always getting sent to detention. "2002 was a good year for death for us," he said. "I lost my brother, and Ryan and Matt both lost grandmothers. Making this record helped each of us individually."

"The losses brought us together," Fox said. "We never talked about it directly."

Fox broke the heavy moment with this story: "I went to lunch with my grandma and played one of our songs for her in the car, and she said she liked it. Then "Benny and the Jets" came on the radio, and she said, 'You sing so much better than this guy.'" Big laughs.

Pretty somber stuff. Balance it by the fact that Brennan and Fox's fathers -- longtime friends and veteran musicians from such bands as The Chevrons, Marquee Review and Bozak and Morrissey -- played guitar on a number of the CD's songs. "It took them a little while to figure out what was going on," Fox said. Those tracks were recorded in a homemade studio at Fox's parent's house in the room next to his parent's bedroom -- which he aptly named Adjacent Magic Studio.

With Fox a member of The Good Life, Baum a member of Desaparecidos and Brennan the touring soundman for Cursive, the Cubs garnered immediate attention from record labels, specifically NYC's Arena Rock Records, who began courting the band way back in June 2003 with talk of a recording budget, profit splits, the usual record deal mumbo-jumbo.

To seal the deal, Baum and Fox flew out to Brooklyn on their own dime to meet with Arena Rock label executive Greg Glover while Brennan also was in town on a Cursive tour. Glover gave the band the run-around up until their last day in NYC. "Then he calls us and says to meet him at this bar," Fox recalled. "After 15 minutes of chitchat, he said, 'We'll figure it out. I'll come out to Omaha.' We didn't hear from him again for a couple weeks. I asked in an e-mail if we were 'still dating,' and he said the label had overextended itself and couldn't do anything with us."

It was a crippling set-back, but just when all hope seemed lost, along came Ezra Caraeff of Portland's Slowdance Records. The label ended up releasing the CD in October. One of the driving factors for signing them? "They can probably out drink any band on the label," Caraeff said, "a talent which will probably sell few records, but impresses me greatly."

With Caraeff's comments, I thought I had the story, but it wasn't until after the interview that I really came to understand the gravity of the CD's title. That's when I bumped into Brennan again at O'Leaver's and he added an important detail. Though each one of the band member's losses had been giant in its own way, it was Brennan's brother, Tim, who fit the description from a stature standpoint.

"Tim was a big person," Brennan said of his brother, who had suffered with health problems his entire life. Despite constant setbacks, he had always kept in good spirits and was a joy to be around. "Everyone who met him loved him. He was a funny guy, and he just loved life."

A giant indeed.

Check out The '89 Cubs Thursday night (Dec. 23) at The Ranch Bowl where they headline a show with Ted Stevens & Dan McCarthy and Mal Madrigal.

Notes, Reviews and Rumors...

Some notes and rumors picked up from a weekend of shows, starting with VHS or Beta Saturday night at Sokol Underground: I came expecting Duran Duran and left thinking The Cure and The Church, two other bands from a decade that VHS or Beta apparently would like to permanently be immersed in. I couldn't put my finger on it, but something about the sound mix screamed "single's bar cover band." Maybe it was the thump-thump-thump of the electronic drums or the shimmer of their glam-hair power chords. Comparing them to the latest cadre of electronic dance outfits, one guy I spoke to said they were better than Radio 4, but not as good as !!! I thought they fell somewhere below The Rapture on the list. The 130 or so on hand loved it, though, which makes me wonder if the re-emergence hair bands is in our future.

Fresh from a successful European tour, non-Creek Omaha supergroup Statistics opened the show with a new, stripped down line-up. No more fiddling with keyboards and sample tracks for frontman Denver Dalley. Instead it was just him on guitar, bassist Jon Tvrdik (Back When, Plosion), and drummer Corey Broman (Son, Ambulance; Kite Pilot), creating something harder than anything heard on Dalley's records. Without the keyboards, Statistics sounds even more like The Cure. Expect more of this style of tonal rock when Dalley and Co. enter Presto! Studios in January to record their new album with A.J. Mogis.

I received a certain amount of razzing throughout the evening about last week's column, where I erroneously reported that The River's new indie music show would launch on Sunday. In fact, New Day Rising, hosted by Eric Ziegler and Dave Leibowitz, will (probably) start this Sunday if they can get all the pre-recorded accoutrements (bumpers, promos, etc.) completed in time. Leibowitz pointed out that they will be playing some Saddle Creek music during the show after all, just not any on the River's regular rotation.

Other news from last weekend:

-- Neva Dinova has completed mastering their new CD, and has found a new label to release the album in February 2005. I guess that means the end of their relationship with Crank! Records.

-- Music goers at Austin's South By Southwest -- one of the industry's largest music festivals -- will have to wait another year for a Saddle Creek showcase. Label guy Jason Kubel says Creek was originally planning on hosting a showcase this year, but that the bands' conflicting schedules made it impossible.

-- If you're used to showing up at 1 Percent Production rock shows after 11 because they never start on time, you better change your plans. Marc Leibowitz and Jim Johnson -- the 1 Percent guys -- swear that shows will begin at 9 p.m. sharp beginning Jan. 1. The hope is to finish shows earlier in the evening -- a welcome change for all of us who have to get up the next morning. PS: I'll believe it when I see it.

-- Omaha Americana rock band Anonymous American is headed on a 10-day tour to the West Coast starting with a Jan. 1 gig at The Larimer Lounge in Denver, followed by gigs in Albuquerque, Phoenix, and three dates in L.A. before returning Jan. 9. Word has it that label execs may be audience at some LA dates.

-- Two-thirds of the boys in The Sons of… have formed a new band called The Third Men. Joining veteran guitarist Matt Rutledge, bassist Mike Tulis and drummer Mike Loftus is guitarist/vocalist Pat White of Iowa City's Bent Scepters. Check out their debut Thursday night at O'Leaver's.

I closed out last weekend by catching a set by Citizen's Band at O'Leaver's Sunday night. I reviewed the band's debut EP a couple years ago and always felt I was a bit, well, harsh, calling their music "watered down, relatively boring stuff that wanders and repeats more than it rocks." Despite those cruel words, the band invited me to check out their new set, saying it had a "1990s SST mentality." Well, I didn't notice any SST influence. Instead, their all-instrumental numbers sported a distinct Santana vibe, thanks to the guitar solos laced throughout their four-chord, progressive jams. Very '70s FM. It's still not my thing, but I can't deny that they're amazing musicians. Looks like I'm getting soft in my old age.

• Someone e-mailed me to say that Tim Kasher WILL NOT be playing Saturday night at O'Leaver's. The line-up will be Outlaw Con Bandana, McCarthy Trenching, and Jake Bellows (Neva Dinova). Still a quality show. Incidentally, O'Leaver's finally updated their calendar.
  
  
• Dave Leibowitz posted a message on the webboard saying that New Day Rising, the new indie music radio show that he's hosting with Eric Ziegler on The River starting Sunday, Dec. 19, will in fact include music from Saddle Creek bands -- just not Creek bands that are heard in The River's regular rotation. Perhaps we'll get to hear Son, Ambulance's new stuff on the airwaves after all.
  
  
• Someone on the webboard also mentioned that UNO has a local/indie music show, available on the Internet (from here). UNO always had a student-run station other than KVNO, even when I was earning my valuable degree. According to their site, they'll begin broadcasting again on 93.7 FM, but only on campus. The dream has been to figure out a way to get the station heard throughout the city and make it the equivalent of KRNU in Lincoln. It'll never happen.

New Day Rising: Indie Music Returns to Omaha's Air Waves

It always seemed somewhat ironic that Omaha has become this so-called "center of the indie music world," yet none of the music from that world can be heard on the radio waves within its borders. Important national touring indie bands come through town all the time and draw respectfully well without an ounce of radio support. The only way anyone finds out about these shows is through articles in The Reader, websites (lazy-i comes to mind), word of mouth and show posters and fliers.

All that will likely change Sunday, Dec. 19, at 11 p.m., when Omaha's only college rock station, 89.7 FM The River, launches a new, locally produced two-hour radio show whose focus will be, believe it or not, indie music.

Omaha's had indie radio shows before, most recently "Pirate Radio," hosted at the same 11 to 1 a.m. Sunday night timeslot on 93.3 KRCK -- the grunt-rock station that became The Dam and now spins "legendary American country." Hosted by Saddle Creek main man Robb Nansel and Good Life drummer Roger Lewis, Pirate Radio was a laid-back (some would say unstructured) two hours of indie rock, where you were bound to hear a couple songs by Cursive or Bright Eyes. My fondest memory of Pirate Radio was being a guest host and hearing callers requesting Korn, Metallica and Limp Bizkit songs throughout the entire two hours. Typical call: "Dude, something's wrong with your station. Turn this shit off and play 'Freak on a Leash!'").

Now comes "New Day Rising" (For you younguns, that's a tip o' the hat to Husker Du), hosted by Eric Ziegler, manager of Homer's Old Market store, and Dave Leibowitz, former head of Mafia Money Records out of Madison, Wisconsin, who just moved back to the Big O.

Ziegler says their show will plow similar ground as Pirate Radio, with a play list derived from the College Music Journal charts. CMJ has become the defacto bible of college radio stations all over the country, and indie music is at its very core. Just don't use the "I" word around Ziegler. Call it "College music" or "Underground" or even "Alternative" (though that word was bastardized long ago by the likes of Creed and Matchbox 20, who are about "alternative" as Britney Spears).

Ziegler says the term "Indie" turns people off. It's at once too broad (What is indie, anyway?) and too confining (Like "emo," no one wants the term applied to their music), with baggage that conjures images of pasty scenester kids squeezed into youth medium-sized T-shirts, with dyed-black hair and thick, clunky glasses.

Instead, the show's play list will be all over the map, even beyond CMJ. "We'll play anything from Bauhaus to The Replacements to My Life with the Thrill Kill Kult to The Smiths and Pavement."

Isn't that oldie indie? "The thing is to play newer music -- the stuff the kids are into -- and also keep listeners our age (i.e., in their 30s) intrigued. We want to throw in a couple gems to educate people. Half the kids today don't know who Joy Division is, but will listen to all the bands that were influenced by them."

The key, Ziegler said, is variety -- underground metal next to underground hip-hop, a Shins song followed by the new one from Mastodon. Expect local music, too, but no Saddle Creek artists. "We might stay away from Bright Eyes and The Faint," Ziegler said. "That stuff's already on The River's regular play list." They'll also avoid music heard on The River's local-music show, Planet O.

Could the show's success influence The River's regular play list? Ziegler hopes so. "I would suffer through Slipknot to hear TV on the Radio." But considering the success of the station's current goon-rock format, any change seems unlikely.

Stronger than Bombs: Willy Mason Blows Up All Over the Indie Scene

Why Willy Mason for a first column? He's not even from Nebraska let alone Omaha, and isn't the focus supposed to be on "local music with an indie slant"?

Well, Mason holds the austere honor of being the second act to have a CD released on the horribly named Team Love Records -- Saddle Creek Records' so-called "sister label" owned and operated by a pair of New Yorkers, one of which has Omaha ties. Maybe it's a bit presumptuous to call Conor Oberst a New Yorker, but it sure seems like he's been spending a lot of time in his Manhattan apartment these days, lots more than he's spending in his Omaha home. Heck, according to the OWH, he didn't even come home for Thanksgiving. What kind of no-good son is he, anyway?

Team Love appears to be the place where all the acts that couldn't get signed to Saddle Creek get a second life, at least if they know Conor. Jenny Lewis of Rilo Kiley fame -- that's the band that fled Saddle Creek for a posh deal with Warner Bros. disguised as their vanity Brute/Beaute label -- just announced that she's got a solo record coming out on Team Love. And everyone's favorite suburban white-boy rappers, Team Rigge (a.k.a. Ian McElroy and Clark Baechle), already have put tracks from their upcoming Team Love release on the label's website for free download (Eminem watch out!). But mystery man Willy Mason seems to be the exception to the rule. No one 'round these parts ever heard of the guy before his name showed up on the Team Love website, along with a handful of working man glamour shots.

That's because Mason made Oberst's acquaintance by sheer luck. Via a call from Chicago a few days after his recent Omaha gig, Mason told me the Hollywood movie version of how he fell into Conor's life (For reference, think of the shitty Cameron Crowe rock epic Almost Famous). Seems a friend of Mason's dad owned a local radio station on "the island" -- Mason's vernacular for his hometown of Martha's Vineyard -- and asked Willy if he would play a song on the air during his Friday night show. Turns out an associate of Oberst's, Sean Foley, who works in the production office at NYC's Irving Plaza, was driving through Cape Cod and heard the performance. He liked it enough to leave his phone number at the station.

"I thought it was cool that someone from New York had heard it," Mason said. "He started sending me CDs of bands he thought I'd like -- a lot of Saddle Creek stuff like Cursive, Rilo Kiley and Bright Eyes. It was like another scene of kids had popped up that I felt I could relate to even though they lived in a different part of the country."

Foley invited Mason to see Bright Eyes perform in Northampton, Mass. In no time, Mason, Oberst and the rest of his crew hit it off and presumably partied the night away. "I woke up on their tour bus in Vermont, and that night Conor, without warning, called me onto the stage. That was my first gig off of the island. The whole thing was surreal." Afterward, Mason, a high school student at the time, ended up hitching a ride with a fan headed back to the Berkshires, where he hopped a bus and made it back in time for his second-period class.

Foley soon began lining up shows for Mason, who would stay at Oberst's apartment whenever he was in Manhattan. "We were walking through the East Village one day, and Conor told me he was starting a record label and would love to do some stuff with me."

The rest, as they say, is history, or is becoming history. Mason's debut, Where the Humans Eat, was released in October and already has garnered praise on both sides of the Atlantic. The British newspaper The Independent called the track "Oxygen" (which just happens to be the song Foley heard on that fateful drive-by) "an anthem to generosity of spirit, a hymn to a better, buried America, 'stronger than bombs' and 'cooler than TV.'" Better watch your step, Conor. Your student could quickly become your master.

Cub Country – Dec. 1, 2004

Just placed online, a profile of Chapel Hill's Cub Country (read it here). The Cub in charge, Jeremy Chatelain, talks about being raised in the "cultural vacuum" of Salt Lake City as a Mormon and how it affected his future in music. Chatelain's been in a couple renowned bands -- metal/core band Handsome and indie band Jets to Brazil. He says he's played shows in Omaha eight times in the past -- four in Handsome and four in Jets. "First time through there was about 15 years ago," he said. "The kid we stayed with took us down to the Old Market to some really cool record store and a cool pizza place." Now what could he be talking about? He said both were gone last time he came through... He was quite excited when I told him about O'Leaver's. "I specified (to my booking agency) that I wanted to play small clubs. It's gonna make more sense. Cub Country is by no means a big band. We're a tiny band." But if his old Jets and Handsome fans come out next Monday night, something tells me O'Leaver's might get packed.

Come back later tonight (or tomorrow morning) when I post the first column for The Reader, which talks about how Willy Mason met Team Love.

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Live Review: The Arcade Fire, Kite Pilot – Nov. 30, 2004

Those Arcade Fire guys aren't a-holes after all, at least not their drummer, who chatted with me back by the soundboard before Kite Pilot took the stage last night at Sokol Underground in front of an impressive crowd of 300. Funny and kinetic, the Montrealean talked about Canada and America and how much he liked being here. It's not America that Canadians don't like, it's gee dubya, and who can blame them? And it's not smoky bars that they hate, it's... well, actually they do hate smoky bars, so much so that the band taped hand-made signs throughout Sokol asking patrons to please not smoke in the main hall "at the request of the band." The tactic was surprisingly effective, at least until they got on stage.

Those who arrived late missed what was Kite Pilot's finest live set. Playing songs off their EP, everything seemed lighter and quicker, on target and upbeat. All were on their best game, including substitute drummer Jeremy Stanosheck, who took Corey Broman's place while he's on tour with Statistics. For many, it was the first time seeing Kite Pilot, and judging by the people gravitating around their merch table during the set, they left a good impression. Bassist/backing vocalist Austin Britton said KP is headed back to the studio in early 2005 to record a new full-length, and then they'll fish it around to the labels to see if any will bite. Something tells me they will.

Then came Arcade Fire. The six-piece band crowded a stage lit with two Christmas-light lawn deer and assorted instruments. Win Butler towered front-and-center like a good frontman should, singing in his perfect David Byrnesian chirp. Live, their music was even more upbeat than on their smash CD (though I thought the sound was a little too bassy). This was the first band I've heard in a while where people in the crowd knew the record well enough to comment on every song -- this in spite of the fact that you'll never hear this band played on an Omaha radio station.

Arcade Fire ended their hour-long set with a three-song encore that included a rickshaw cover of Talking Heads' "This Must be the Place" as well as a brand-new song that Win introduced by saying "we're gonna try a new one, you can leave now if you like." Needless to say, no one did. A great show.

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A new column; the Arcade Fire tonight... – Nov. 29, 2004

Delays, delays... I spent the morning writing a feature on Cub Country as well as reworking the first installment of a new column that'll be appearing in The Reader and on Lazy-i, likely named after this very website. It'll focus on the local scene, with the first installment featuring an interview with Team Love badboy Willy Mason. That one, along with Cub Country, will be online and in print Wednesday.

The column will give me some breathing room at The Reader, allowing me to write about topics other than just features on upcoming bands touring through the area. Look for topics ranging from local radio, venues, trends and of course, bands including and beyond those signed to a certain Omaha-based record label. Hey, there's more to life than Saddle Creek. Lot's more. There also will be breaking news sprinkled among the text when space allows...

Anyway, tonight's big show is The Arcade Fire, a little band that's become a huge band virtually overnight. The fact that they're playing Sokol Underground at this stage in the game is somewhat amusing, considering their distaste for "dingy smoky bars." A glance at their website shows that they've been moving their shows to bigger venues in some cities to compensate for larger crowds. While that won't be necessary in Omaha, I think the promoter will be pleasantly surprised at the size of the turnout, that is if the buzz has made it to Omaha. Get there early for the opening act, a personal favorite of mine called Kite Pilot. This could be the biggest crowd this little local band has ever played in front of. Can you say "turning point"?

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Live Review: Mal Madrigal, Manishevitz, Edith Frost – Nov. 28, 2004

I go to a lot of shows. This is a fact. And often I see what I expect to see and little more. But every once in a while I get a surprise -- something I was completely not expecting. Such was the case with Manishevitz, the second band on the line-up last night. I gave these guys the best endorsement I can possibly give any band, and haven't done at a local show in a long, long time. I bought a copy of the latest CD -- a miracle of idiocy considering I have about 50 CDs piled at my feet at this very moment that I haven't listened to -- the last thing I need is another one. But I couldn't leave without picking up a copy. I had to hear if they sounded as good on CD as they sounded last night on stage. But I'll get to that in a moment.

First up was Mal Madrigal. The lineup for this version was frontman Steve Bartolomei, Mike Saklar on guitar, Ryan Fox on bass and keyboards, and Dan McCarthy on banjo and other assorted instruments. Judging by how the crowd waned as the night went on, most of the 75 to 100 that showed up were there to see Mal, and I doubt any of them left disappointed. Just like every other set I've seen Bartolomei and company play, the music was right on, introspective and always tuneful. Bartolomei has a clear, grainy voice that sounds like he's been doing this sort of thing for 20 years instead of 20 months. Saklar's guitar tones add stark shadows and bright colors on songs already lush with Bartolomei's own guitar and the skillful work of the other sidemen. Given a chance by a larger audience and an astute record label, only good will come of this band. Speaking of CDs for sale, Bartolomei bashfully said from the stage that he constructed 10 copies of his CDR for anyone who wanted one and if he ran out that he'd "figure something out" for anyone else. Sure enough, he sold all 10 right after his set. They're gonna be collector's items, I tell ya…

Then along came Manishevitz. I had no idea who they were, just some band from Chicago. The five-piece included two guitars, a bass, drums and a guy who alternated between baritone and tenor sax and flute. Musically they reminded me of a combination of The Feelies and The Wedding Present, while Adam Busch's vocals were the same clipped, hiccup of early David Byrne, Ric Ocasek and Lou Reed. And you could leave it there if not for Nate Lepine's saxophone and flute work, which threw everything out of whack in a good way. Lepine along with lead guitarist Via Nuon led counter-melodies that balanced the straight chop rock chords and locomotive rhythm parts. At times Lepine simply added more bottom with his bari-sax, at others he peppered songs with a contrite, upper-register flute counter, but most often he laid down a strange, throaty rock via the tenor. Some songs found a groove that the band was smart enough to draw out for extended jams that I would have been happy to hear for 20 minutes or more, all the time Lepine threw in colorful improvisations on his sax that never got in the way or were cheesy. Unfortunately, you only get a small taste of those Feelies-like jams on their latest CD, City Life, released on Jagjaguwar in 2003 (which I'm listening to as I write this) -- the recording being a more straight-forward approach than we saw on stage. Manishevitz is probably the best "discovery band" I've heard at the Underground this year, and discovering them makes up for all those smoky nights when I was treated to the usual predictability. Quite a find indeed.

Last up was Edith Frost, of course. I had a vague idea of what I was in for and pretty much got what I expected -- nice, folky tunes bordering on country singer-songwriter fare from a woman with a voice that lies somewhere between Mary Lou Lord and Kristin Hersh. She started alone, but as the night wore on, members of Manishevitz backed her up, most notably bassist Ryan Hembrey, who added some rich harmony vocals and guitarist Nuon, whose subtle touch brought on a whole new depth and edge to fairly typical folk songs. By the end of the evening, the Frost and the band were a full-throttle rock outfit a la Throwing Muses, rife with noise and distortion -- quite a contrast from where Frost starting things off.

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Mal Madrigal tonight with Edith Frost and Manishevitz... – Nov. 27, 2004

As the headline said, that's the show of the night, down at Sokol Underground. Get there early to see Mal Madrigal. It should be a relatively quiet, intimate evening of arty folk music, perfect for that after-Thanksgiving vibe. Kyle Harvey, Little Brazil and Anonymous American will be playing to a crammed 49'r tonight.

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The Arcade Fire online; Ointments (Kyle Harvey), LB and S,A (?) @ O'leaver's; Floating Opera/Shelterbelt at Sokol – Nov. 26, 2004

You might get a sense from reading my story that The Arcade Fire is less than interested in doing press these days (read it here). Why should they? They are, after all, the hottest band in the world, right? The phone pass-around scenario mentioned in my story was awkward, and instead of being funny ha-ha it came off funny asshole. But, hey, come on, they don't really need us little guys anymore, do they? Funeral probably will be the album of the year, whether you like these guys or not. As interviews go, Richard Parry was, uh, less than interesting. Since he didn't write the lyrics he didn't really know what the record was about, or at least that's what he implied. At least he pulled out the comments about Bowie and Byrne. Judging by what's online, it doesn't sound like Niz over at The Omaha World-Herald had a very good time with these Canadian lads either, but at least she got to talk to Win. Too bad he didn't want to talk to her (read Niz's story here).

Tonight's winding up to be one of the biggest show nights of the year. Top drawer is Kyle Harvey and the Ointments with Little Brazil and Son, Ambulance (probably) at O'Leaver's. Next drawer is Floating Opera, Shelter Belt, and Papers at Sokol (Luigi's on that one as well. Guess what, guys, Luigi was a clever novelty when The Faint had him opening for them. Now he's just boring). Then there's various shows at Mick's, The Ranch Bowl and elsewhere. If you miss Harvey, who's in town this week for the holidays, you can catch him tomorrow night at The 49'r with Little Brazil again.

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Mal Madrigal feature online; Anonymous American tonight… – Nov. 24, 2004

Just posted a profile of Mal Madrigal a.k.a. Omaha singer-songwriter Steve Bartolomei and friends (read it here). Steve talks about the making of his new, unavailable CD which you should ask him about at Sokol Saturday, when he and his band open for Edith Frost. He probably won't have one, but it's worth a shot. I've got one and I'm not giving it back -- I know that once he gets signed and discovered that this little baby is gonna be worth serious ka-ching on good ol' e-bay.

I'm tempted to drop by Mick's in Benson tonight to see Anonymous American with Springhill Mine Disaster, though I'm somewhat concerned that it'll be too packed to move in there (everyone has tomorrow off). If you haven't been to Mick's, it's a pretty sweet venue designed for acoustic performances. Whipkey tells me that AA will be the full Monty tonight -- not just him and a guitar -- which could mean it'll be unbelievably loud. Bring your earplugs. I was practically blown out of the place by a three-piece jazz combo one night. O'Leaver's is also rumored to be having a show tonight, though their online schedule doesn't mention it.

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They're trying to kill me; Faint Eyes; Planes Mistaken for Stars tonight – Nov. 23, 2004

Why no update yesterday? Because I was busy killing myself with stories and interviews. Yesterday morning before work I wrote features on both The Arcade Fire and Mal Madrigal, both of which will be online this week (Mal Madrigal tomorrow, Arcade Fire Thanksgiving morning). I'm also sitting on interviews with Cub Country, Dereck Higgins, Willy Mason, The '89 Cubs, and Dapose of the Faint, the goal of which is to have them all written up this week and placed online by next Tuesday. Probably won't happen, but dammit, I'm gonna try. Think about that when you're gorging on your Thanksgiving turkey. The Reader and that slavedriving prick at Lazy-i are trying to kill me. When I'm not working on those stories and watching football I'll be plowing through a ton of CD reviews, so keep an eye on the matrix.

Speaking of The Faint, our friends at Pitchfork reported yesterday (here) that Conor Oberst and The Faint will be touring together next summer, with The Faint acting as Bright Eyes (i.e., Oberst's backing band). I guess you could call the band Faint Eyes. I heard about this last week at the Willy Mason Sokol show, but never got around to confirming it with the Creek staff. The combination of these two indie powerhouses should make for one super-gigantic tour. Maybe they'll book it at The Qwest Center in Omaha? How weird would that be?

Tonight's big show is Planes Mistaken for Stars with the illustrious Race for Titles and one of Omaha's hottest bands, Ladyfinger. Planes continues to get grouped under the so-called "emo" banner, and I'm not sure why. They're music borders on angular screamo or noise more than whatever is passing as emo these days. The band is out supporting their July release, Up in the Guts on No Idea Records. Lots of scary growling. Lots of guitars.

I'll be digging up info to see what's going on tomorrow night and through the holiday, seeing as we all can sleep in for the next few days. Rumor has it that Kyle Harvey is in town…

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Live Review: Willy Mason – Nov. 19, 2004

So you ask yourself, what was Conor Oberst thinking when he signed Willy Mason as the second act on his new record label, Team Love? Putting out the Tilly and the Wall CD was a no-brainer -- Oberst knew most of the people in the band, in fact, played with most of them either in Park Ave. or Bright Eyes. And from a purely commercial standpoint, there's no denying that Tilly strikes a loud-and-clear chord with a young, eager, fanatical demographic that can't get enough of the band's whimsical, adolescent charm. And it doesn't hurt to have three attractive girls in the band.

But Willy Mason? Who is he? He's not from Nebraska. He doesn't have a following (at least none that I know of). His music is hardly ground-breaking.

It all made sense, though, after seeing him play last night, opening for Jay Farrar in front of 2/3rds of the 120 people who finally showed up by the time the headliner came on. Mason took the stage with guitar in hand, looking (as a guy standing next to me put it) like he just walked out of Mass Comm class, wearing jeans, a striped long-sleeved shirt and a pair of heavy-soled sneakers. He then preceded to play some of the best straight-forward folk that I've heard in a long time. Not touchy-feely emo-folk or creepy Tom May-style granola folk, but a roll-up-your sleeves, urban, working man's folk, punctuated by his crisp, sharp, pick-and-strum guitar playing.

In some ways, he's a Phil Ochs throw-back -- a young Ochs, before his music was devastated by overproduction -- with a natural story-teller assurance and a way with a clever phrase. His voice stands out -- loud and strong -- without a hint of affectation. Mason carries no stylistic vocal baggage. He sings in a straightforward manner atop his straightforward guitar licks playing catchy, straightforward songs about living a straightforward life. And he's only 19.

In that sense, his stripped-down, simple approach is a natural counter-weight to Tilly's style-bordering-on-novelty reputation. Tilly is Team Love's eye-catching show-stopper; Mason is the pure singer-songwriter with something to say. And in that regard, he more closely resembles Oberst, who, with this record label, is playing the role of mentor for Mason -- a role he's playing for the first time.

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Willy Mason tonight w/Jay Farrar; Bright Eyes tour starts in Omaha – Nov. 18, 2004

Something tells me there will be as many people at tonight's Sokol Underground show to see Willy Mason as headliner Jay Farrar. Mason is the second artist to release an album on sub-Saddle Creek label Team Love Records (The first was those sexy, toe-tapping wonders called Tilly and the Wall). The 19-year-old singer-songwriter with a jonze for Hank Williams-influenced coffee-house folk apparently is a buddy of Team Love coach Conor Oberst, who he first ran into backstage at a Northampton, MA show (or so his bio implies). Mason's voice and phrasing reminds me at times of an unvarnished version of British pop folkie John Wesley Harding on tunes designed to be played standing alone with a guitar. You can download his latest album for free off the Team Love website, that is if you're reading this in North America -- you foreigners are gonna have to shell out your hard-earned Euros. To my knowledge, this is Mason's first appearance in Omaha, and as a result, I foresee a large turnout of Creek disciples along with Uncle Tupelo/Son Volt fans there to see Jay Farrar. Better get there early.

Speaking of Mr. Oberst, seems Bright Eyes announced its first North American dates for '05, a warm-up for their opening slot on an upcoming R.E.M. tour in Australia. It all kicks off in Omaha, though there's some disagreement on the proper date. Pollstar said today in this article that the Omaha date is Jan. 15, while the Saddle Creek and 1 Percent Productions websites are saying Jan. 14 (The One Percent site also says Tilly and the Wall will be the opener for the Sokol Auditorium $12 show). Something tells me Pollstar got it wrong.

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Live Review: American Music Club, Will Johnson; Ryan Adams tonight; 1 Percent turns 300 – Nov. 16, 2004

The promoters of last night's American Music Club show have every reason to be disappointed with the turnout. Heck, I'm disappointed. There were maybe 70 or 80 people there total, very much below anyone's expectations. Maybe it was because it was a Monday night and Ryan Adams is tomorrow, though I doubt that Ryan Adams draws the same type of crowd as AMC. Add last night to the poor turnout for Matthew Sweet and Vic Chestnutt and you begin to see an unfortunate trend in terms of shows that target an older "heritage" crowd. Side note: AMC was officially 1 Percent Production's 300th show.

AMC fans who stayed home last night because they couldn't get a sitter or had to work this morning missed out on what could be the last AMC show they'll ever get to see. I overheard Eitzel talking to a fan while he was signing a couple albums. He said that touring was getting too expensive, too hard to do, and that this might be it. And though he sounded great last night, he looked a bit agitated on stage. He was in perfect voice, opening with a couple classics off Everclear before segueing into material from his amazing new album, Love Songs for Patriots. The mix, however, was poor -- too bassy, and there seemed to be a problem with the monitors. Eitzel fiddled with earplugs and looked exasperated. During one song, the bass rumbled like a bomb going off, some sort of weird effect that was distorted and strange. As the set wore on, Eitzel quit talking to the crowd and looked like he wanted to just get off stage, especially toward the end when his vocals seemed to fade and get lost in the ruckus. Still, it was a good set that at times transcended the technical glitches, especially when the band got to stretch out, and Vudi, looking like a indie version of Leonard Nimoy, leaned into a feedback-laden guitar solo.

Opener Will Johnson was remarkable. With the aid of one of his Centro-matic buddies on fiddle, he filled out a set of touching, tuneful acoustic songs that highlighted his rough American growl. A full band backed him on his last couple songs, creating a dramatic contrast to the rest of the set.

If the promoters are licking their wounds from last night's turnout, they should be all healed up after tonight's Ryan Adams show upstairs at Sokol, which is sure to be a great draw. Dunno why, but I've never liked Adams' music -- just a bit too simple for my tastes. Ah, but the kids love him. If you're at the show tonight, take a moment to raise a toast to Marc and Jim at 1 Percent, and to their next 300 shows. I don't know what we'd do without them.

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American Music Club, Will Johnson tonight… – Nov. 15, 2004

This is a don't-miss show. Why does it always have to be on a Monday night? Because we're in Omaha, that's why. Quit whining. American Music Club's new album is a stunner, and Mark Eitzel is one of indie's most notable showmen. Then there's Centro-matic's Will Johnson, who blew through Omaha last April for a one-man show at The Ranch Bowl with The Sleepy Jackson. About 20 people saw it. From the April 18 Lazy-i live review: "I'm more convinced than ever after the solo gig that Johnson has one of the most unique and interesting voices in rock today. As unique as Eddie Vedder or Neil Young -- a voice that's instantly recognizable." Johnson is punctual, by the way, which means he will be taking he stage at 9 p.m. even if the only one's there are me and the 1 Percent guys. And since there are only two bands on the bill, I wouldn't be surprised if this show wraps up by 11:30. Don't be late.

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Live Review: The Street Urchins – Nov. 14, 2004

The 49'r was packed with the leather people -- punk rocker black-T-shirt belt-chain motorcycle shop sorts that you'd see at a hot rod swap meet. Lots of guys with slicked back hair and sideburns. Lots of chicks with black-dye doos and too much makeup. Finding a place to stand was the usual challenge -- I settled on a stand-spot next to the fireplace in front of the shuffleboard table where I could get knocked around but still not be in the way, such is the situation at The 49'r on any given night when a decent band is playing.

The guys in The Street Urchins played right along with the vibe, but with a glamorous twist: spiked dog collar, flying V guitar, bald head vs. Marc Bolen curly locks, open-chest spandex shirt a la Paul Stanley, and lots of make-up -- raccoon eye shadow, eye-liner and lipstick. It was glam punk meets '70s arena rock (as in KISS) done up by a band that should be playing at The Roxy or the Troubadour moreso than CBs or Max's KC -- Sunset Strip Hollywood glam meets NY Dolls pomp.

Their sound melds power-chord hair rock (not '80s schmaltz) with high-NRG throb that's full-on fast thanks to a rhythm section that knows what it's doing. I kept thinking about bands like Sweet and KISS and Ram Jam and Thin Lizzy -- i.e., all the bands I grew up loving back in the '70s -- but couldn't keep my mind off acts like The Stooges or The Cramps or The Gories known for their campy theatrics. And in the end, the music is way too fast for either group -- too frenetic and jittery, mixed with simple rock moves and a light show that featured a rack of blaring floods pointed straight at the crowd alternated with floor spots that lit from the bottom up.

Typical numbers grind a fast-and-furious guitar riff with pump bass and white-knuckle drums. The vocals, which leaned more toward punk, were too low in the mix to really hear, but you got the picture. What little I could decipher pointed to lyrics about getting laid one way or another, culminating in crowd favorite "I Need a Whore," which is destined to become their anthem. Amidst the chaos and hooks they always found room for a guitar solo -- something that, along with a set a balls, is missing from most of today's indie rock. These guys had balls and were eager to rub them into the nearest faux-punk's welcoming face. For those among you who have missed straight-out rock, this is what you've been looking for. Street Urchins is the best band that I've seen drummer Dave Goldberg play in, and that's saying a lot considering his other projects, not the least of which are Full Blown and The Carsinogents. Unlike those outfits, which seemed to doddle with nostalgic genres, The Street Urchins just want to burn everything up with pure, simple American rock, and there's nothing wrong with that.

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Little Brazil EP (not LP) release show; Street Urchins at the Niner – Nov. 13, 2004

I was told in no uncertain terms by their publicist that tonight's Little Brazil CD release show does not celebrate the release of their new LP, You and Me, but the release of the band's new self-titled debut EP. The new LP won't be out until Feb. 15 on Mt. Fuji Records, who also is releasing the EP. Regardless, the press for this show has focused mostly on the LP, probably because writers such as myself received promo copies of the LP but not copies of the EP. That said, I have one of the early demo versions of the EP which I picked up at one of the early LB shows with the old line-up. I think the songs were rerecorded for the new EP, this is unclear. I can tell you that the versions of the songs from the EP that are on the 9-song LP are different than those heard on the original EP. Confused? Don't be. Just go to the show tonight at Sokol, where you'll also get a chance to hear Someday Stories and Latitude Longitude. I haven't heard any of these bands, including this version of Little Brazil with guitarist Greg Edds (who replaced Austin Britton, who, btw, will be playing a solo set tonight at O'Leaver's with The Outlaw) and drummer Oliver Morgan (former frontman of The Quiet Type who replaced Corey Browman). The original band was featured on Lazy-i earlier this year (read it here). I've been told that this new lineup brings a whole different swing to Landon's songs.

On the other hand, there's the Street Urchins tonight at The 49'r. Here's another band that I've failed to see for one reason or another. Always wanted to. The trio is sparked by ex-Carsinogents now-Terminals member Dave Goldberg behind the drums. I'm told they're quite theatrical -- complete with green foaming spit, with music that would be right at home in NYC or Detroit in the late '70s when America was inventing its own form of glam punk. Local punkers The Rundowns also are on the bill. I'll be at one show or the other -- or both.

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The Holy Ghost, Lepers tonight; assorted web news... – Nov. 11, 2004

Not much on the news front today except for a mess o' rumors (which I ain't gonna publish). Tonight's hot ticket isn't New Found Glory at Sokol Aud, which sold out weeks and weeks ago. No, it's The Holy Ghost and Lepers at O'Leaver's with Chris McFarland and the Moment Band. Real rock wins again.

For further reading: Those funny chaps at Pitchfork are not pleased with Bright Eyes' Billboard singles chart achievement, saying that it shows promise for "a world smeared in shit and horsegore." Play nice, kids! Sounds like someone wants to be the new Buddyhead. For the eight or so of us who still wonder about Nine Inch Nails, Reznor says he's pushing back the new album again until next year, according to this Billboard item. Will it ever see the light of day and does anyone care? And personal writing mentor Robert Christgau has posted the latest edition of Consumer Guide here in the Village Voice -- where he gives the Dud of the Month award to the new Leonard Cohen album (but still gives it a B).

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American Music Club; what's next for Slowdown? – Nov. 10, 2004

Just put online, a brief profile/interview with Mark Eitzel of American Music Club (read it here). The interview took place almost two months ago, way before the election, back when Kerry looked like he might actually win. I wonder if Eitzel still has such a rosy view of things. Something tells me he does. On a side note, the new AMC record is mind-blowingly good. And the Nov. 15 AMC show at Sokol Underground is a must-see (why why why do they always have to be on Monday nights?).

Anyone who turned on the Channel 23 recap of yesterday's City Council meeting (and who doesn't watch that pulse-pounding program every week?) saw Saddle Creek Records' Jason Kulbul read a brief statement to the council, officially withdrawing Creek's liquor license request and effectively burying the Slowdown project, for now at least. Kulbul looked down and read from the written statement, recapping how excited he and Robb Nansel were at the prospects of Slowdown being built on the small inlet of Saddle Creek Road right behind The Homy Inn. About how they underestimated the neighborhood uproar. About how the project details have ballooned way over and above the its original budget. About how Slowdown was just another attempt to support the Omaha music scene as it continues to struggle, scratching and clawing, to move forward to national prominence. When he announced the withdrawal, a smattering of neighbors applauded and was quickly told to stop by the council president. This was no cause for celebration.

And then Jason added that he and Robb are meeting with Councilman Mark Craft and the city planner today at 4 p.m. to go over ideas for where to put the office/bar/venue now. I have this vision of Kraft in his office, rolling out a huge map of the city with empty lots and failed businesses highlighted in fluorescent yellow, most of them located next to junk yards, abandoned buildings, and crack-infested neighborhoods, or right alongside prime real estate priced at ungodly amounts. It's hard to believe that Robb and Jason haven't already combed every square foot of available land around mid-town, but who knows? Maybe Kraft and the council can pull something from their sleeve that no one's already considered. The fact that they're going through this exercise is a good sign that this recent episode hasn't broken their spirit, and that instead of a map of Omaha Robb and Jason haven't spread out maps of upper New York, the North Carolina triangle, Athens proper or Seattle on their overcrowded desks in their overcrowded Benson offices.

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Slowdown is no-down and the spectre of NIMBY – Nov. 9, 2004

They had a dream of building a club in a neighborhood that simply wasn't gonna have it, even if it was built. The neighbors were going to make their lives a living hell, whether it be writing down the number of every license plate that parked on their street or calling the police every night when the club let out or, generally, just talking. Talking to anyone who would listen about 'those goddamn kids who built that rock 'n' roll club in the middle of my neighborhood.' The neighbors would create allies again and again and again from every middle-aged or older person who would sympathize with their plight and praise Jesus that the club wasn't built in their neighborhood. In short, the neighbors would hate them a lot from the beginning, and hate them a little more every time some hopped-up kids leaned on their horns at midnight on the way back to wherever it is they came from, away from their neighborhood.

You can't blame the Creek guys if, as the Omaha World-Herald reported last night (here), they pull their liquor license application from consideration at this afternoon's City Council meeting. Jason and Robb thought they were doing the neighborhood a solid, that they were beautifying a piece of Omaha that they've seen slowly decay over the past few years, a piece of Omaha they grew up in, that they love. Silly rabbits. For them to understand the neighbors' concerns, the Creek crew would have to get married, have a couple kids, get steady cube-farm jobs, watch a lot of TV, and slowly slowly slowly begin to resent anyone who is young, hopeful and having a better time then they are. You see, guys, once property is in hand, everything changes. And no one with a $100k mortgage and two kids in grade school wants to have a club/music venue built a stone's throw from their driveway.

It brings up a bigger problem, not only for Saddle Creek Records, but for a city that's supposedly trying to re-energize portions of Omaha that have been neglected while the majority of the city's population slowly moves closer and closer to Lincoln. Destination Midtown is, to some extent, a joke. If organizations like Saddle Creek Records -- a label with fans who are maybe the meekest of any concertgoer you will ever meet -- can't build in one of those areas targeted for revitalization, then why would anyone? The neighbors would prefer a nice, quiet grocery store be built where the Slowdown compound was proposed. Nice idea, except that there used to be a grocery store there that went out of business and lay vacant for years before being demolished, and the fact that there's three more grocery stores currently strung along Saddle Creek, including a soon-to-open brand new Hy-Vee at 50th and Center.

Developers call it a NIMBY issue -- Not In My Back Yard. It's a thorn in the side of anyone trying to lead a "Destination Midtown"-style campaign. Because no matter what commercial enterprise goes into the location where Slowdown was proposed, there's going to be a portion of the neighborhood who will oppose it. That brings up the question of zoning, and how much consideration the City Council should give to neighbors who knew they were buying a house next to an area that was zoned commercial -- that's one of the reasons why those homes were cheaper than ones built in the heart of Country Club, where all the surrounding property is zoned residential.

All that said, few people I talked to thought the proposed Slowdown location was a good one. It really did come down to parking -- there wasn't enough, no matter how you added it up. The streets would have been lined with cars for a half-mile around the venue on a big-show night. And just because "that's the way it is at Sokol" doesn't mean that that's the way it's supposed to be. But, quite frankly, their proposed site may be the last and only reasonable place to build the facility. There is no affordable property along Saddle Creek that has the space for the building and the necessary parking. Venture outside of Saddle Creek and you'll find that there aren't any places in mid-town, either. The cost of development makes a downtown location an impossibility, and who wants to be down there, anyway? Talk about bad parking. That leaves west of 72nd to 108th (forget any place further west than that), where there are a number of faceless, empty stripmall locations that are in the first stages of blight as Omaha's great western migration continues (and it's only going to get worse as the 114th St. overpass makes commuting that much easier for the 30-minute commuters).

Today at the City Council meeting, a small parade of neighbors will saunter up to Robb and Jason and tell them how brave and smart they were to withdraw their proposal and how "we really support your idea." But none of them will have any suggestions as to where to put it now. Nor will they really care, as long as it ain't going to be in their neighborhood.

I would say the future of Slowdown is somewhat bleak. Add this defeat with the recent election results and suddenly the idea of Creek moving out of Nebraska isn't so crazy.

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BE tops Billboard? Minus the Bear tonight – Nov. 8, 2004

No update this morning because I was busy pounding out a feature on American Music Club that'll go online Wednesday. In fact, I promised an update this weekend (but never got around to it) because I've got all this content waiting to go online, not the least of which is a 2,500-word Q&A with Dapose of The Faint, which will be going live most likely tonight or tomorrow.

This is probably very old news to Creek fans, but Reuters is reporting that Bright Eyes had the two highest debuts on Billboard's Hot 100 Singles Sales chart last week. "This week, those two singles, 'Lua' and 'Take It Easy (Love Nothing)' move 18-1 and 7-2, respectively, to take over the top two spots on the survey. It is the first time in seven years that one artist owns the top two positions on this list. In August 1997, Puff Daddy was No. 1 with Faith Evans on 'I'll Be Missing You' and was featured with Mase at No. 2 on the Notorious B.I.G.'s 'Mo Money MO Problems.'" the article says. (read the whole thing here).

This seems very odd, especially when you compare the amount of radio play, MTV play and Entertainment Weekly facetime P-Diddy gets compared to Bright Eyes (which, uh, is almost nil). How can the arch enemy of Clear Channel possibly have the No. 1 and 2 singles on a Billboard chart? In fact, try as I might, I can't find Bright Eyes mentioned in the online version of Billboard's Hot 100 singles chart. Am I looking in the wrong place? All's I'm seeing is Usher and Snoop.

Tonight's show: Minus the Bear w/ Detachment Kit, Askeleton, & The Firebird Band at Sokol Underground. Minus the Bear came through here a couple years ago, opening for The Good Life again at Sokol. Some comments from the Lazy-i live review of that show: "Don't get me wrong, I like 'mathy' music, and these guys certainly have all the requirements for that label -- intricate time signatures, dollops of syncopated rhythms, multiple time changes within songs, and so on. The crème de la crème is the band's guitarist -- a dead ringer for a young Nick Nolte, he plays using the 'touch' method, where he fingers his chords with his left hand and pokes the strings with his right, a la Eddie Van Halen (but not nearly as fast or flamboyant). His guitar mimics what you've heard on later King Crimson albums -- repeated, almost piano-like tonal circles that add as much rhythm-wise as musicwise. Unfortunately, really good math demands strong melodies to remain interesting. About four songs into their set, their music began to blur and get a bit tiresome." You can read the full review in the blog archive, at the entry dated July 31, 2003.

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Live Review: Matthew Sweet; Whitmore tonight – Nov. 5, 2004

So I show up at 10 o'clock to Matthew Sweet last night, figuring I'd catch the last half of Velvet Crush, a band I've never heard before, and as I walk down the stairs I hear the familiar strains of "The Ugly Truth." How long has he been playing? I yell to the promoter. Since 9:30 or so. Seems on this tour Velvet Crush is Sweet's backup band, and to mix things up they combine their sets, starting with a few Sweet songs, then playing the Velvet Crush set, and finishing off with another Sweet set - a good idea, actually, especially if the opening band is the headliner's backup.

So I caught the last couple Sweet songs and VC took the stage. I was surprised at the turnout - somewhere around 150, way fewer than anyone expected. I figured at least 300 - it's Matthew Sweet for god's sake, he had some huge hits in the '90s, and though he hasn't done anything other than The Thorns for the past five years, you still occasionally hear a Sweet song on your typical CD105-type FM station. But the make-up of the crowd indicated that Sweet isn't getting the radio support he once got - most people were in their 30s or late 20s (a few in their 40s). Sweet's parents were there, sitting in the back by the merch table.

Soundwise, I thought the mix was very muddy, almost chunky. And Velvet Crush only added to that atmosphere. Their sound is very similar to Sweet's, but they lack the central melodies that make Sweet's stuff so memorable. Very jammy, and it was obvious that they were still getting used to having Sweet play with them, as one song was so off that it wound down to nothing, followed by laughter and apologies. The next song didn't sound much better. After the lack-luster and somewhat jammy set, Sweet took center stage again, apologizing for "ruining Velvet Crush's best song."

Sweet went on to play another half-dozen or so tunes, including a couple from his new CDs along with the usual chestnuts. He was in good voice, and with three guitarists sharing the load, the rock songs had plenty of rock. Unfortunately, he never brought the energy down for a few quieter acoustic moments (hey, I wanted to hear "Winona" or "Your Sweet Voice"). He finished with a two-song encore that included "Girlfriend" and "Superdeformed" before calling it a night at around 11:15 or so, an early evening for a Sokol show.

Also unlike the typical Sokol rock show, T-shirts were arena-priced at $20. Sweet took advantage of his tour by not only selling clothes and CDs, but also his hand-made pottery -- small amateurish pieces nicely glazed, running around $50 each. For a minute I thought it would be cool to come home with a signed Matthew Sweet hand-thrown dish-thing -- I couldn't tell what the pottery was suppose to be other than maybe a dish to throw your keys when you got home. Hopefully next time he comes through he'll also be offering an assortment of coffee mugs and windchimes.

Tonight's live offering is the twangy, throaty folk of William Elliott Whitmore w/ The Vets & The Spring Hill Mine Disaster at O'Leaver's. Yee-haw.

Look for some weekend updates at Lazy-i as I have a few suprises to throw online...

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Matthew Sweet, The Close tonight…; What in Tarnation? – Nov. 4, 2004

Tonight, in the intimate, smoky environs of Sokol Underground, 1% Productions brings us Matthew Sweet. The Lincoln native sets off on a tour of smaller venues, I suppose as part of a process of reinvention or reintroduction to a fan base he's had since the '90s. The tour began last night in Denver and goes to Minneapolis tomorrow before heading east. Absolutely no word on who's in his band this time around. Velvet Crush opens and tickets are $12. Meanwhile, The Close and The Mariannes are lighting it up at O'Leaver's for a mere $5. I plan on attending one or the other… probably the other.

A side note… I was clicking around the web last night, trying to find the trailer to a new film that NPR has been hyping called Tarnation, a documentary that took 20 years and $800 to make. I was immediately taken by the soundtrack, music by a guy named Max Avery Lichtenstein which is utterly beautiful. The overall soundtrack (which apparently won't be released) also includes music by Low, Iron & Wine, Lisa Germano, Cocteau Twins, Red House Painters and Marianne Faithful, among others. But it was Lichtenstein's stuff that caught my ear -- simple acoustic guitar, piano and cello music. Turns out, a lot of the tracks are online at Lichtenstein's record label web site, Tin Drum. Check out the main theme (mp3'd here) and go to his site if you want more. Too bad the movie probably won't make it to Omaha...

Check-in: Little Brazil, The Donnas, Mike Ferraro, Bermuda Triangle Service, The Original Mark Edwards, Shesus, Guitar Wolf, The Minus 5, Osgoods, Grandaddy Artist's Choice, UWP, 5 Story Fall, P. Jones

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It's not the end of the world (is it?); Nightmare on Saddle Creek? Vic Chestnutt tonight… – Nov. 3, 2004

Believe it or not, there are a lot of people who are even more disappointed than you are right now. Find one of them and tell them that it's not the end of the world. It may seem like it. But if you dwell on the negative, you will never be able change anything.

. . .

A predetermined nightmare. That's what one melodramatic neighbor called Slowdown, the proposed Saddle Creek bar/office/concert space, at yesterday afternoon's City Council meeting where a Class C liquor license was being considered for the venue. Unlike last week's neighborhood brouhaha, where old women were yelling angry epithets and grown men were on the verge of fisticuffs, this meeting was a rather somber affair. But maybe that's because I watched the rerun on Cox 23 last night instead of seeing it live.

I'm not going into details about proceedings because the whole thing was boring. Needless to say, the opposing neighbors put up a good argument against the plan (i.e., lack of parking, noise, street congestion, etc.) while the Creek boys did their best to deflect attacks by promising they'll figure out a way to make it all work. At the center of the discussion was the council itself, a group of good old boys who've never heard of indie rock, Saddle Creek Records or Bright Eyes before yesterday.

That said, the council went out of its way to tell Robb and Jason how much they respected them, their ideas and their business (even though neither of them wore a necktie again). They even like the idea of the venue, but not necessarily in the middle of the Metcalfe Park neighborhood. I think the council pretty much ignored all the complaints of potential noise, riff-raff and *gasp* drinking of alcoholic beverages (one lady sounded like she was arguing for a reinstatement of prohibition). What they didn't and can't ignore is the parking question. 180 + 60 doesn't equal enough parking for 500. The city planner pointed out something that I've been telling people all week -- the alternative parking at Kelley's Hilltop ain't a block away -- it's more like three or four blocks away. If they can't figure out some sort of solution to the parking, the council will have a hard time approving the license request no matter how much they love the idea.

Councilman Marc Kraft moved that the decision be delayed for a week while the council and city planner take a closer look at the plan, talk to the neighbors and see if they can work something out to make everyone happy. I still say, regardless of whether the council gives its recommendation or not, that the license will be granted by the State liquor commission and the building will go up. And then Robb and Jason will have to figure out how they're going to operate a facility nestled in center of a bee's nest of angry neighbors who will make it their life's work to get them out of their neighborhood. More to come.

. . .

Legendary Athens folk artist Vic Chestnutt will be at Sokol Underground tonight (though I don't know how they're going to get him down a flight of stairs). Last time I saw him perform was at the old Capitol Bar, accompanied by legendary Omaha singer-songwriter Alex McManus. Wonder if Alex will be sit in on a few songs tonight? Find out with me, and tell me that it's not the end of the world.

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Vote – Nov. 2, 2004

Vote, it's not only your right, it's your duty, it's your blah blah blah. Jesus Christ, just fucking do it. How hard can it be to go to a freakin' polling place and vote? We have to be the laziest country in the goddamn world when we have to beg our own citizens to vote in what most people believe is this country's most important election since the Viet Nam War. Sad. Just go. Get out there. Vote. And it won't kill you to meet a few of your neighbors while you're doing it.

Enough diatribe…

Today's also a chance to see another, albeit smaller, political process in action as Saddle Creek Records goes before the Omaha City Council to ask for a liquor license for a new music venue/bar/office to be constructed at 1528 No. Saddle Creek Road (right behind The Homy Inn). According to the Slowdown license application, the new construction is slated to be completed by April 2005 -- that's just six months from now.

Expect a replay of the Metcalfe Neighborhood Association meeting from last Wednesday, complete with angry local neighbors outlining how the facility's lack of parking will result in kids peeing on their lawns (scroll down to the Oct. 28 blog for a full description of that meeting's mayhem). According to the City Council agenda, the meeting starts in the legislative chamber at 2 p.m. The Slowdown license is the 14th agenda item, so expect it to be heard within the first hour of the meeting. I won't be there, but intend to TiVo the televised replay if I can figure out what channel of Cox Cable will be broadcasting it on.

Enough. Now vote, dammit.

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A brief glance backwards… – Nov. 1, 2004

Catching up on a few shows from last week.

Damien Jurado and Richard Buckner drew around 125 last Friday night at Sokol Underground. Buckner's set featured a lot more guitar histrionics than you hear on his recent Merge release, Dents & Shells. Someone told me that night that it's Buckner's song that's played on the VW Toureg commercial (you know the one, where the young yuppie couple drives their SUV up a mountain to take a picture for an old women instead of just letting her ride along and take the picture herself). Buckner's style is more mainstream than that of Mark Eitzel or Will Oldham or Bill Callahan -- three guys he's compared to who's writing styles are more gritty and naked than Buckner's. Jurado's a different story. Like Pedro the Lion, his songs are modern-day fables that linger like dread at the heart of his vision of morality without rubbing anyone's nose in his beliefs. Live, he jumped between quiet solo acoustic and the noisy, emotional mayhem of a full band. Great voice. Still, I watched as lot of people who came to see Buckner left during Jurado's more haunting set. Most, I'm sure, were driving away in VW's.

Last Thursday I dropped in at O'Leaver's, where 50 or 60 others showed up for The Coast of Nebraska and Zykos. I've never seen The Coast before, and after what I heard, they deserve further study. A high energy, angular band, the sound had the vocals upfront, right in your face, overpowering the rhythm section. A patron at the show turned to me during the set and asked if I recognized what they were playing. It was a rare cover of a Cursive song. Apparently he didn't recognize it, either. Zykos' set was much more stripped down from what can be heard on their latest Post-Parlo release. As a result, they sounded like a lite version of Spoon, which isn't necessarily a bad thing, though not terribly interesting.

I had a hard time focusing on the music both nights, as I was flung from one conversation to another about the Saddle Creek Records music complex -- everyone was buzzing about last week's neighborhood meeting and tomorrow's City Council hearing. The conventional wisdom now is that the council will pass their liquor license and that Robb Nansel, despite everyone's advice, will refuse to wear a tie to the proceedings. For those of you going tomorrow, I'll be posting a copy of the agenda in the blog. And because I have a real job, I'll be catching the rerun on Cox Cable between the election coverage.

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Another music venue (the Ranch Bowl) in the news; Damien Jurado tonight… – Oct. 29, 2004

Those looking for info on the new Saddle Creek Records office/venue, scroll down to yesterday's blog entry…

For the rest of you…. Saddle Creek's proposed new venue isn't the only club that's been in the news lately. Seems every time I ventured into the Ranch Bowl in the past few weeks, I would get attacked by people asking when I was gonna "blow the lid off" what's going on at The Bowl. The floodgate of rumors included word that former owner Matt Markel was about to somehow sell the joint out from under the Bowl's owner/operators Mike Brannan and Dan Crowell. That the IRS raided the place during the recent Little Feat show. That the duo were out of money and bouncing checks all over town.

For as long as I've been following local music, there have been rumors that the Ranch Bowl was going out of business and about to be knocked down and turned into a WalMart/Home Depot/Dr. John's Warehouse Outlet. This latest round seemed no different, except… well, the sheer volume of rumors was strangely high and coming from some well-placed sources.

So I e-mailed Mike Brannan and asked him for the straight poop. Here's what I asked:

And here's his answer, edited to include little things like capitol letters, commas and periods…

This would seem to indicate that we could begin to see improvements at the ol' Bowl in the very near future. Will Brannan and Crowell finally make good on the dream they spun about the place way back in January 2003 (read it here)? I hope so. Because as I've always said, I have a lot of fond memories of nights spent at The Ranch Bowl, and no one would like to see it return to its past glory more than me, if for the sheer reason that I like the set-up, I like the location, and I like the guys that run the place. It's reemergence as an important venue in the Omaha music scene would only add more competition in an already strong environment that includes Sokol Underground (or more specifically 1 Percent Productions) O'Leaver's, The 49'r and now maybe even Slowdown. Has Omaha music lovers ever had it so good?

Speaking of Sokol, tonight's show is a must-see: Damien Jurado with Richard Buckner and Dolorean. I'm a fan of Jurado's caustic-yet-poppy acoustic folk from way back when he was on Sub Pop. Like Pedro the Lion, Jurado's music has Christian overtones, but he doesn't rub your nose in his beliefs, he merely shows you that your actions can come back to haunt you, either down here or up there.

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Slowdown: An uphill battle? Zykos tonight... – Oct. 28, 2004

The first thing that comes to mind after being at last night's Metcalfe Neighborhood Association meeting was "Where are the torches?" (hint: think townspeople and Frankenstein).

Click on the thumbnails above to see larger images of the Slowdown blueprints.

City Councilman Marc Kraft said the crowd stuffed into the library at Harrison Elementary School was the largest neighborhood gathering he'd ever seen on any issue in his seven years on the council. It was packed, standing room only, people fanning themselves with information packets, sort of like a Creek show at O'Leaver's minus the smoke. But instead of half-drunk happy hipsters, this crowd was filled with angry neighbors come to vent their spleens about Saddle Creek's proposed office/bar/entertainment complex located right where I wash my car at 1528 N. Saddle Creek Road.

Creek kingpins Robb Nansel, Jason Kubel and Matt Maginn and their attorney, Mike Kelley, began the meeting by explaining the proposed project after handing packets that included blueprints of the property and national press clippings of Saddle Creek acts. The lawyer was the only one in a suit and tie. Robb wore the usual uniform of a Saddle Creek employee -- an untucked, unironed long-sleeve shirt. Very indie. The crowd was relatively well-behaved until Kraft showed up and explained that granting a liquor license to Slowdown was a matter that would be in front of the City next Tuesday -- election night, and that Kraft's motivation was to do "what was best for the neighborhood."

Then the sparks began to fly as neighbors hurled angry questions and comments at our doe-eyed heroes who had to be expecting this kind of clench-fisted reaction from property owners frightened that this $1.5 million den of iniquity was going to be built right in the heart of their nest of Tudor-style homes.

Some points of clarity: The OWH reported yesterday that Creek already purchased the property -- Kubel said that wasn't true, that the acquisition would be contingent upon Slowdown (apparently the name of the new complex) getting a Class C liquor license (which would allow for package sales as well as bar booze sales). After the reaction I saw last night, the odds aren't in their favor of getting the City Council's recommendation, but the state will ultimately be the body that grants the license.

Standing in the back, I was surrounded by angry people afraid that their property values would plummet, that drunks would be stumbling up and down their sidewalks, that litter would be strewn all over their streets. But their No. 1 concern was parking. Once a month, Nansel said, Slowdown would host a show that could attract 350-400 people (the number "500" was thrown out at one time). Unfortunately, their plans only call for parking for around 60. Jason and Robb tried to calm their fears by saying that they're trying to cut a deal with the fine folks at Kelley's Hilltop bowling alley to use some of their spaces, adding maybe 180 more. Judging from the looks on the neighbors' faces, that ain't gonna be near enough. The last thing they want is a bunch of kids parking in their front yards, making all kinds of noise at 1 a.m. when the bar lets out (though Jason told them shows would not run past midnight).

The loudest, most hostile opponent was the guy who owns Sgt. Peffers, who was convinced that the proposal would hurt his business, though I'm still not sure how -- show-goers such as myself eat pizza, after all. The good Sergeant said he already suffered through the construction of the dreaded "peanut" -- the kidney-shaped roundabout that replaced a 5-way stop right in front his place. And now this. At one point, two guys standing right in front of me almost started throwing fists -- a younger homeowner for the proposal, an older guy convinced that "these kids don't know what they're doing." It was amusing to hear Robb and Co. be referred to as "kids" throughout the evening -- all three are pushing 30, which I guess makes me a kid as well.

Though they had materials, Creek and their lawyer seemed ill-prepared for the questions. Someone asked how they'd keep minors away from the drinkers in the club, and they replied, "We'll figure it out." Not what a concerned parent wants to hear. Someone else asked how they expected patrons to park over at Kelley's Hilltop. "You'll have to help us train them." That brought laughter. At times, it was a mystery whose side their lawyer was on -- he seemed to be siding with the neighbors on a lot of arguments, most prominently when they asked "why haven't you looked someplace else where there's more room?" Kelley replied with something like "I've asked them the same thing. They say they've looked elsewhere." It was like watching a roomful of angry parents argue over the future of their three delinquent children. People were bellowing out comments from the crowd. I halfway expected someone to yell "Crucify them! Crucify them!"

Next Tuesday's City Council meeting should be a replay, that is if anyone shows up, it being election night. In the end, does the attitude of a neighborhood association or the seal of approval from the City Council really matter if the state is the one that grants the liquor license? A couple veterans from similar wars I've spoken to said, in the end, no. But obviously Creek isn't eager to proceed with their plan without neighborhood support, especially since a facility that size is going to mean tearing the hell out of the streets, probably taking out the beloved "peanut," and disrupting local businesses for a year or more. It's an area that's already smarting from ongoing sewage issues as well as the closing of a relatively new Osco (you can bet that more than one person wants them to buy that property) and other local business. One poor old woman summed up their sentiments, "Why can't you just leave us alone?"

FYI... Zykos with Coast of Nebraska tonight at O'Leaver's. Grab a torch and come on down.

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Matthew Sweet Q&A; the Saddle Creek compound?; a brush with fame – Oct. 27, 2004

Uh, I didn't make the show last night. I fell asleep. Anyway, anyone who was there who remembers how it went, please post your impressions on the webboard (please?!).

Just posted, a nice, long Q&A with Matthew Sweet (read it here). Our interview lasted about an hour, and all the high points made it into the story, including candid comments about his Lincoln roots (and why he left), his new CDs (and his new approach toward music), Van Dyke Parks and Brian Wilson, being on an indie label (his own) and escaping the shadow of Girlfriend.

What didn't make it in was a brief discussion about Saddle Creek Records. Sweet knew of the label but hadn't heard any of their catalog except for a couple Bright Eyes songs. "What struck me with the Bright Eyes track was how English it sounded, the guy sounded English to me," he said. Sweet wanted to know how Creek did what they did, and was impressed with their business ethics -- specifically the 50/50 concept. He thought it was a breakthrough idea until I mentioned that Factory Records had a similar program with their artists, in which Sweet replied, "Sure... Factory was very strong in Lincoln, very strong, the way they did artwork… I always felt that was the biggest influence for bands like For Against." I mentioned that For Against had recently reunited with Harry Dingman and Jeff Runnings (who Sweet called an old friend) and he was mildly surprised. "More proof that music never dies," he quipped.

He also commented about what happened to The Thorns, the side project he did with Pete Droge and Shawn Mullins. "They're kind of done," he said. "In our minds, it was always supposed to be a side project. But Columbia went crazy over it so we felt obligated to support it. We made no money on it. Had it sold millions, we would have made another record at some point. If anything, we sold more records than we thought we would. We Soundscanned 200,000, which is a failure in today's music business. The live shows were magic, but we all felt like, 'Okay we're done.'"

And in a real turn, he was quite pleased to be playing at Sokol Underground instead of Sokol Auditorium, a room he played when he opened for the Jayhawks during one of their many Omaha gigs. He didn't like the acoustics up there, apparently, and I have to admit seeing Sweet downstairs should be a real treat.

Onward…

News of the proposed Saddle Creek entertainment complex made it into the Omaha World-Herald yesterday. This is the info I hinted at in my Oct. 19 blog entry. The brief story (here) talks about tonight's Metcalfe Park neighborhood meeting to discuss the proposal. According to the Herald, Creek's new bar and concert hall would be built at 1528 N. Saddle Creek Road, the current site of the carwash (where I wash my car) and an adjoining vacant lot (where I dry my car). It would apparently be right next to The Homy Inn. The biggest question that comes to mind is where anyone would park. Nansel even admits in the story that the plan calls for 60 parking spaces -- enough for a bar but not a concert hall. I've been to The Homy on weekend evenings where even they didn't even have enough parking. Now that this meeting is out in the public, it'll be interesting to see who shows up beyond the media and parties involved. It could be a real circus. Look for a recap here tomorrow -- Hey! I can attend! It is my neighborhood, after all…

Afterward, I'll probably be headed down to O'Leaver's where the Don't Care Bears -- the city's best-kept folk-punk secret (they even wear costumes) -- will be opening for Nintendo cover band The Advantage. On second thought, I might be leaving after the guys in the bear costumes are done…

Oh yeah, my brush with fame: I got home late last night so I didn't feel like cooking. Instead, we went to the Venice Inn for dinner. Sitting in the main room, I couldn't help overhearing the Scottish-voiced guys at the table next to ours as they were telling the waiter how much they liked the restaurant. "We're in a band, so we need to load up before we go on stage," the main guy said, sounding like Scotty from Star Trek. The waiter asked what band they're in. "It's a band called The Average White Band," he said. Seems they were playing at The Ranch Bowl last night. I was too shy to ask for an autograph...

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