TiVo Alert: Spoon on Fallon TONIGHT

Set those DVRs, folks! Spoon will be appearing tonight on Late Night with Jimmy Fallon. The band is in New York for two nights at Madison Square Garden opening for Arcade Fire (whose new album, The Suburbs, comes out today).

Recap: Superchunk at MAHA

I had a fantastic time at yesterday's MAHA Music Festival on the Missouri River in downtown Omaha. I got there a little late, and missed It's True and Old 97s, but was able to catch a decent set by Ben Kweller before the band I came to see came on...Superchunk.

This was the first time Superchunk has played Omaha in its 21 year career (an accidental oversight, I'm sure), and they made up for the lack of shows with a powerful set that spanned their entire career. I saw the band a number of times in the 90s, but it has been 14-15 years since I last saw them (if memory serves it was at Marquette University in Milwaukee). I wondered how they would hold up all these years later. Fortunately, they held up amazingly well.

When Superchunk hit the stage, the sun was glaring right behind them, so if you didn't have some shades, you were fucked. Fortunately, my camera was able to compensate.

Guitarist/singer Mac McCaughan had his shades.

Jim Wilbur, on the other hand, rocked out shade-less. A bold move.

The set included Superchunk classics like "The First Part," "Skip Steps 1 & 3," "Like a Fool," and "Slack Motherfucker," but also included rare singles like "Cool" and "Baxter." The 'Chunk also performed its newest single, "Digging For Something."

After a while, the sun might have started getting to Mac, as he lost his place in the setlist a couple of times.

The sun was going down, but the energy level remained.

Bassist Laura Ballance spent the entire set on the opposite side of the stage from where I staked out my spot. Unfortunate. Yet, with the power of a cheap camera lens, I was still able to snap this pic.

Look very closely at who is rocking out on the side of the stage...Britt Daniels of Spoon!

As the sun finally went down, Superchunk ended its set. Amazing show.

I was pretty spent after the set, so I decided to check out the view of the show from next door at Rick's Boatyard (a seafood restaurant). I spent the rest of the night there and caught The Faint and Spoon from the restaurant's balcony. It was hard to beat good food, a waitress, and an actual restroom (only the portable type on show grounds) when compared to the craziness of a Faint crowd. Music festivals are for the young, and I'm not as young as I used to be. At least, I'm honest about it. No shame in my game.

Tomorrow Is MAHA!

Tomorrow is the second annual MAHA Music Festival in Omaha. It will be one helluva show this year. I didn't attend the first annual fest due to the overwhelming suckiness of the line-up. This year, that problem has been seriously rectified.

I am most excited about seeing Superchunk. I've been a fan for 20 years, but haven't seen them play since the mid-90s. The headliner is Spoon, who I love, but haven't seen in a few years. Also of interest is The Faint, who are sort of broken up, but sort of still together.

Also on the main stage are Old 97s, Ben Kweller, and It's True (who are breaking up after the festival). There are some decent acts on the second stage, but I think I'll just be focusing on the main stage.

Tickets are still available at $33, but if you wait until tomorrow, the price goes up to $38. See you there.

Colossal Stupidity: It's True is Breaking Up

Tim at Lazy-I reported it, and I confirmed it with 1% Productions. It's True is breaking up. The outstanding Omaha band is calling it quits after its performance on July 24 at the MAHA Music Festival. The band is performing on the main stage along with Spoon, The Faint, Superchunk, Old 97s, and Ben Kweller. It is an amazing opportunity for exposure, but sadly, all anyone will be exposed to is a band playing its last gig.

This is colossally stupid. It's True is the best Omaha band to come along since the mighty three of the late 90s/early 2000s: Bright Eyes, Cursive, and The Faint.

This, officially, sucks.

The New Spoon Is Dominating My Ipod!

Been listening a lot to the new album from Spoon, Transference. So far, so good. It's weird. I've been listening to this band for over 14 years, and this is Spoon's seventh album. Yet, for some reason, whenever a new Spoon record comes out, I assume I won't like it. I can't think of another group I like where that is the case. And I've ended up liking all of their albums!

I plan on having a more thorough review in the near future. On my next radio show on Sunday (streaming live from 9-11 pm central), I will be playing a couple of different cuts from Transference. Tune in!

Spoon! (and the New Pornographers)

If you forgot your iPod on your way to work - have no fear - NPR's 'All Songs Considered' has two great concerts on their Podcast and Web site: Spoon at the 9:30 Club and the New Pornographers at the 9:30 Club. The New Pornographers are worth the full listen, if not for Neko Case's vocals is their inability to play "The New Face of Zero and One":
http://www.npr.org/templates/story/story.php?storyId=15681603

TiVo Alert: Interpol and Spoon on Letterman

This week is a pretty good one for indie rock on television. Tonight (Tuesday) Interpol will play on Letterman in their first promotional appearance in support of their new album, Our Love To Admire, which was just released today. Tomorrow night on the same show, Spoon will appear to promote their just-released new album, Ga Ga Ga Ga Ga. Pretty great week for bands on TV!