It's True! Whoop-Di-Doo

Last Sunday I had the chance to stop by the Barley Street Tavern for It's True!'s Big Whoop-Di-Doo. This party was put together by the boys in It's True!, along with The Reader, as a way to celebrate before heading down to Austin for SXSW. It was meant to be a listening party for the new album before it was actually released. Also, John P. Campbell showed some of his work-in-progress footage for the It's True! documentary he's been working on. Finally, the night concluded with a performance by the band. Tickets for the event were $15 (a lot for most of the shows in Benson, BST especially), but that price included the documentary viewing, a preview of the new album, a live performance, and an advanced copy of the new album once it's completed, delivered to a place of your choosing.

Let me just say, the price was well worth it. If all went according to plan, they only sold about 65 tickets to the event. When I arrived around 8:30, the place was already pretty full. People mingled while the new album played in the background. The back room of the Barley was arranged so people could sit and listen and chat and take in the music. Though I thought the album sounded great, I can't wait to get a copy so I can listen to it at home.

Next came John Campbell's documentary. He reminded us that he still had a few kinks to be worked out (since he didn't have the proper video editing software) and that it wasn't really a trailer for the documentary as much as it was a few things he'd cut together to give folks a good idea about what he'd been shooting with the band. Even though what Campbell showed was unfinished I was happy with what I saw. The 'film' included intimate footage of the band on tour; in the van and on the road, inside homes performing after hours shows, in the studio and on stage. Also included were some great interviews from the boys from It's True! - Adam, Kyle, Andrew, Karl, and Matt. There was also some great stuff from the band The Haunted Windchimes, who will be playing at the It's True! CD release next month.


(video by Beck Lowri)

Finally, there was the performance. The band was great, as usual. That being said, I think Kyle said it best when he said that it felt like they were playing a corporate event. Even though the boys put on a great show, the energy in the crowd seemed low. It could have been the fact that it was a Sunday night show, or that they'd already played the entire album, or that the band was preoccupied with the looming prospect of the road and their upcoming SXSW performances, but something seemed a bit off. I'm hoping that once the boys have Austin behind them, and everything has been finished with the album pressing, things should be back to full energy level in time for the CD release at the Waiting Room on April 30th.



If you haven't seen The Haunted Windchimes, I'd say they're reason enough to go out to the show that night. They're a great band with a unique sound. I saw them play Brad Hoshaw's CD release last year and they nearly stole the show.

All in all, it was a great night of music with great friends and a great band. The It's True! boys are headed down to Austin today for a few shows and should be back early next week. If you'd like to check it out, the band was featured on NPR's Austin 100 Mix (out of over 1,500 bands performing) and they're on the list with some pretty heavy-hitters (Sharon Jones, Raphael Saadiq, Broken Social Scene, Spoon, and She & Him, just to name a few). The stream plays the bands in alphabetical order and what I heard of the rest of the list was pretty solid. You should check it out here if you have a chance. I wish It's True! the best of luck in Austin and hope this trip means great things for them in the future.

Change is Good

Last night was the grand opening for the new and improved Waiting Room. I am extremely impressed at what they did with the place. I only stuck around for part of Ground Tyrants (who remind me heavily of moe.) due to the fact the place was so jam packed full of people. Next time I go in, I promise my faithful readers to try and get a few more pictures.

I think Zach summed it up perfectly with "Its going to be weird going to a show with only 40 people here."

The Envy Corps

I guess I've been posting a lot about upcoming shows lately, but I can't say it's a bad thing. The Envy Corps are coming to the Waiting Room at the end of the month. They'll be playing on the 29th and tickets are $8. This band is really fun to see in action, and they've got some really great stuff. And they're from Iowa! Go support local music.

Music News

I just found out that It's True got accepted to play at SXSW this year! Add this to the list of reasons I wish I had enough money to go. I am so proud of this band.
Also, this Friday will be the grand re-opening of The Waiting Room - since they've been closed for the remodels the past couple of weeks - and there's a free show with Kyle Harvey, Little Black Stereo, and Little Brazil. Yes, free. You should probably go.



Also, this Saturday at the Barley Street Tavern Kyle Harvey, Kick Narl and the Boys (Nick Carl), and All Young Girls Are Machine Guns will be playing. Starts at 9, $5. Should be a solid show. If you haven't seen Nick Carl before, you should definitely come out. Also, you can check out AYGAMG YouTube channel here for her original music as well as some local and classic covers.

Soul So New

During most of last spring I went through this weird ska/reggae/dancehall phase, where it was pretty much all I wanted to listen to. A friend of mine told me about Rude Radio (a program that had just about everything I wanted to listen to) on Radio K, a student-run radio station from Minnesota. I listened to Rude Radio pretty regularly after I found out about it, but it wasn't until I discovered their program On the Corner that I became a faithful weekly listener.

On the Corner has it all. DJ Phizzy and crew are there every Tuesday from 8-10, playing nothing but the best in soul, hip-hop, jazz, funk, and R&B. I was hooked after the first show I heard. Other than the stellar track list each week, the guys at OTC bring something special to the show with the personal attention paid to the fans and regular listeners. I'd been listening to the show for a few months and thought I'd put in a request and see what happened. Within an hour, I got a reply to my e-mail saying they'd love to play my song (Syreeta Wright's 'Cause We've Ended Now as Lovers' - not exactly a well-known track) and actually got a shout-out on the show after they played my track. These guys know what they're doing and they know how to keep fans of the show happy, which is something you can't expect from larger stations. OTC is also where I first heard about Mayer Hawthorne, the newest artist on the Stone's Throw label.















I had a chance to see MH, along with his band - The County, last night at The Waiting Room. Hawthorne has so much soul, it's hard to control. One of the things I love about MH is his persona. When he steps onto the stage in his Lacoste dress shirt and blazer, wearing those dark-rimmed glasses, holding his bottle of Hennessy, you get the impression that he's all gentleman. The truth is, he's there to get down, and that's exactly what he does. Good hip-hop shows in Omaha are few and far between, and good soul is even more scarce. I expected the crowd at the show to be...well, me and the few friends I'd insisted go with me, but I was pleasantly surprised with the turn out. With tambourine in hand, he got the entire crowd moving.


MH and The County, barbershop quartet style.

He played most of the songs from his new record, A Strange Arrangement, as well as an amazing cover of Mr Blue Sky. This show was everything I hoped it would be and more and I even got my red heart-shaped single for It Just Ain't Gonna Work Out signed by Mayer himself, with a note that reads Dearest Megan, all my love, MH. Priceless.


A live performance of Green-Eyed Love.

The album's got it all, from the slow soul jams like A Strange Arrangement and I Wish it Would Rain to the more uptempo numbers like Your Easy Lovin' Ain't Pleasin' Nothin' and The Ills. There's a little something for everyone. What Mayer brings to the stage isn't just hip-hop or neo-soul, nor is it simply a throwback to the old sixties soul sound; it's a mixture of all of these things...with a new flavor.