Autumn is often seen as a time of transition. The days start to get shorter, the weather much more mild, the leaves change color and drop from their branches. Often like nature, so does the hardcore scene change. This fall, two era's in Nebraska hardcore are coming to an end. The first being the Nebraska hardcore ambassadors; Hercules, after being a band for a solid six years are planning one final East coast tour before breaking up. This will be a huge hole to fill in the scene once they are gone. The other is the Ghost House in Lincoln, NE who have been doing shows steadily for 4+ years will be having their final shows in November. However, the kids at the Ghost House have found a new showspace dubbed Mad Ave and will be putting on shows soon. Just as things come to an end, new ones begin, guitar extraordinaire Brock from Hercules along with hardcore bros in Lincoln have formed a new modern styled hardcore band called Bent Life that is showing some promise. Other new(er) bands that have been popping up in Lincoln: Vandal Eyes have been playing shows for a few months now and bring a tough, modern sounding brand of hardcore to the masses. Hardcore punk band Discourse have been playing shows here and there as well. Here in Omaha, the dark Feral Hands have been playing out a little bit and should have a 2nd demo ready soon. I'm super excited to hear what they come up with next. A brand new Omaha band has come about via the dudes in Opus Noir called Trenchdigger that is similar to their previous bands sound but with more blasting elements. I saw them last night, and they are killer. Also check out the newest wanna be Minutemen band Palaver who feature Fuchsia Minutiae members.
In other scene news, the almighty Wasteoid have been busy recording their first songs as a 2-piece and will have a few of the songs featured in the new Short Fast & Loud anniversary compilation that is coming out soon. The last couple shows they have been playing some new material and it sounds awesome. Keep your ears on the ground level for when the comp drops. I'd also like to mention that Lincoln native Violator X has returned and has been hosting some of the most unique and mixed shows in the local scene. I'm really excited to see who he'll bring into town next. Gimmie noise! Shifting gears to Council Bluffs, IA, the melodic hardcore shred freaks Ties have been continually playing lots of local shows. They are great, so check em' out. Expect to see a new cd from these guys soon(?). Also expect to read a new Local Spotlight from Ties in the near future (I'm calling you guys out, get that shit back to me). In final scene news, The Hole in Omaha is moving from downtown to a new spot in the Benson neighborhood and it looks promising. The skateshop WILL remain intact, so be sure to check out the shop for all your skate gear needs. Expect to see more news on the new space soon.
Nebraska Hardcore Showcase - Review
This fest was the brainchild of the Miller brothers in Lincoln to bring together local hardcore acts together and send off High Dive who was playing their last show. The showcase was originally booked at The Hole, but due to lease complications, the show was moved to The Commons. This allowed for more mosh space, and also more places for merch and vegan snacks to be set up and sold. It ended up working out well. Three of the local bands dropped off unexpectedly so the show started an hour later. Lockjaw opened the set with their brand of fast hardcore, and for a young band, these kids are getting better each show. They played their best show to date had a demo ready for the show that sounds pretty good. I'm expecting some good things from these kids in the future if they can keep it rolling. Trenchdigger played next and blasted through a solid set. Where was the 2nd vocalist at? They seemed to have smoothed out their songs from the first show. I'd like to hear more material, good stuff. I can't remember the exact band order but I think Dead Shred played next and they brought the skate punk vibes. For never playing shows, they sounded pretty good. Ties played next, and damn they sounded perfect. These guys always put on a good show, but I've never seen them play as hard as they did this time. Feral Hands played after wards and after some gear problems they got things rolling. These guys are easily the loudest band in the scene. I love these dudes. I shot these guys with my Holga, so I'm pretty excited to see how the pics turn out. A band I've never heard or seen before called Hollow Bomb played next. They played mid-90's styled emo rock pretty well. Dudes, play more shows. Vandal Eyes played next, and vocalist John is getting better each show I see them. Even after some gear issues they still managed to pull off a descent set. Lots of moshing. Bent Life followed next. This appears to be a very ambitious band with demo cd-r's and tee shirt for sale at the first show. This was also their tour kickoff. They sound a lot like Climate Of Fear era Bitter End, so peep them out if you are into that. Fun JUDGE cover to boot. High Dive played last, and the Nebraska hardcore scene sent them off in style with moshing and sing-a-longs throughout. They ended the set on a humorous note covering Party Hard. All in all it was a pretty good show. The turnout was pretty good, and all the bands played well. Hopefully sometime in the near future another show like this can happen soon.
This fest was the brainchild of the Miller brothers in Lincoln to bring together local hardcore acts together and send off High Dive who was playing their last show. The showcase was originally booked at The Hole, but due to lease complications, the show was moved to The Commons. This allowed for more mosh space, and also more places for merch and vegan snacks to be set up and sold. It ended up working out well. Three of the local bands dropped off unexpectedly so the show started an hour later. Lockjaw opened the set with their brand of fast hardcore, and for a young band, these kids are getting better each show. They played their best show to date had a demo ready for the show that sounds pretty good. I'm expecting some good things from these kids in the future if they can keep it rolling. Trenchdigger played next and blasted through a solid set. Where was the 2nd vocalist at? They seemed to have smoothed out their songs from the first show. I'd like to hear more material, good stuff. I can't remember the exact band order but I think Dead Shred played next and they brought the skate punk vibes. For never playing shows, they sounded pretty good. Ties played next, and damn they sounded perfect. These guys always put on a good show, but I've never seen them play as hard as they did this time. Feral Hands played after wards and after some gear problems they got things rolling. These guys are easily the loudest band in the scene. I love these dudes. I shot these guys with my Holga, so I'm pretty excited to see how the pics turn out. A band I've never heard or seen before called Hollow Bomb played next. They played mid-90's styled emo rock pretty well. Dudes, play more shows. Vandal Eyes played next, and vocalist John is getting better each show I see them. Even after some gear issues they still managed to pull off a descent set. Lots of moshing. Bent Life followed next. This appears to be a very ambitious band with demo cd-r's and tee shirt for sale at the first show. This was also their tour kickoff. They sound a lot like Climate Of Fear era Bitter End, so peep them out if you are into that. Fun JUDGE cover to boot. High Dive played last, and the Nebraska hardcore scene sent them off in style with moshing and sing-a-longs throughout. They ended the set on a humorous note covering Party Hard. All in all it was a pretty good show. The turnout was pretty good, and all the bands played well. Hopefully sometime in the near future another show like this can happen soon.
In Crucial Changes news, Scenes was ready to go for the NEHC Showcase and sold well. Thanks to everyone who bought a copy. I left the show with only 2 copies left and they are now sold. Expect to see a 2nd printing very soon. I should also have a nice photo update here soon in a week or so featuring all the remaining photos from the shows I attended in the summer up to the NEHC Showcase. As mentioned earlier in this post, Ties is going to be the next Local Spotlight. I've been waiting forever for them to send the interview back, so I'm call you guys out now. Get that shit in pronto. Very soon, I am going to do a big spotlight on all the local noise artist that have been up and coming in the local scene as of late. There are quite a few of them, so this should be a fun spotlight to put together. That is all I have going right now, see you at the next show.
Peace.
-Keith
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