A new blues festival will hit Omaha’s Old Market this weekend with an eye toward growing the city’s downtown blues scene.
Hector Anchondo Band will headline the inaugural In The Market For Blues Festival this Saturday at Harney Street Tavern. The Hive will also host live music that evening, featuring Fayetteville, Ark., artist Amanda Rey, Omaha’s 40 Sinners and more. The day-long festival will begin at 3 p.m. with Omaha country/folk artist Matt Cox, and culminate in a “Grand Slam” jam session at Harney Street Tavern.
Anchondo, an accomplished blues player and multi-Omaha Entertainment and Arts Award winner, is the festival founder and curator, in conjunction with E3 Music Management. He says In The Market For Blues was inspired by Memphis’s International Blues Challenge and South By Southwest in Austin, Texas.
“I love the idea of a multiple venue set up and the way you can bop around to different clubs up and down a legendary street with elements of adventure and discovery wafting through the air.” Anchondo says.
He hopes to see In The Market For Blues grow beyond the two venues into a multi-location event.
“In the years to come, I see a positive weekend family-friendly event for our community, revolving around Blues and The Old Market, while keeping close ties to the local blues scene and doing our part in helping to nourish great music in Nebraska,” Anchondo says.
See the full schedule for In The Market For Blues below. Entry to the festival is $5 and gets wristband holders into both venues. RSVP here.
Harney Street Tavern
3-4:30 p.m. – Matt Cox
5-6:30 p.m. – Cleveland Blue
7-8:30 p.m. – Nita and The Pipe Smokin’ Charlies
9-10:30 p.m. – Swamp Boy
11 p.m.-12:30 a.m. – Hector Anchondo Band
12:30 a.m. – Grand Slam Jam!
The Hive
4:30-6pm – Amanda Rey
6:30-8pm – 40 Sinners
8:30-10pm – Lauren Anderson
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We start our coverage from the weekend in Omaha’s Blackstone district, where Digital Leather, M34n Str33t, Oquoa, Huge Fucking Waves and DJ Kethro played Farnam Festival. Rebranded after a three-year hiatus, Farnam Festival encompassed the alley behind 40th and Farnam, and featured the aforementioned slate of Omaha bands, as well as local vendors, brewers and food trucks. The atmosphere was pleasant and family friendly (at least until M34n Str33t went on), with a few hundred in attendance and perfect fall weather. With Blackstone in the midst of redevelopment, we’re already looking forward to another block party next year.
See photos below from HN visual editor Nickolai Hammar and contributor Bridget McQuillan:
— photos by Bridget McQuillan
Huge Fucking Waves
Oquoa
M34n Str33t
Digital Leather
— photos by Nickolai Hammar
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Before catching Farnam Fest, Hammar was at Vega Friday night to shoot photos of Idaho indie band Built To Spill with Clarke & the Himselfs and Universe Contest. Built To Spill released its eighth studio album, Untethered Moon, earlier this summer on Warner Bros. Records. See Hammar’s photos below:
Built To Spill
Clarke & the Himselfs
(Editor’s note: sorry we missed you, Universe Contest. We’ll meet again.)
— photos by Nickolai Hammar
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Former Nebraska resident and current Brooklyn-based DJ/producer Darren Keen made his return to the Cornhusker State over the weekend, on tour in support of his recent LP He’s Not Real. Thursday night, HN contributor James Dean caught photos of Keen with labelmate Giant Claw, Kansas City producer Sigrah and Lincoln deejay Beren One. See Dean’s photos below:
Darren Keen
Giant Claw
Sigrah
Beren One
— photos by James Dean
Then, HN visual editor Chris Dinan captured Keen and Giant Claw at O’Leaver’s last night with Channel Pressure, a project from The Faint’s Todd Fink and Reptar’s Graham Ulicny. See Dinan’s photos below:
Channel Pressure
Giant Claw
Darren Keen
— photos by Chris Dinan
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And Saturday, HN contributor Teylor Bruno attended night one of Warzone 2015 at The Waiting Room. Omaha bands Devil In The Details, Narcotic Self, Die to Exist and Live & Obey played with Kansas City, Mo., band Houdini Light Machine. The annual event, presented by Midwest Elite Concerts, showcases some of the area’s best in hardcore and heavy rock music. This year, it is held over two nights, the second of which is this coming Saturday (RSVP here). See some of Bruno’s photos of night one below:
Die To Exist
Devil In The Details
Houdini Light Machine
Live & Obey
— photos by Teylor Bruno
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It’s Monday, which means add-day on HN Radio. We’re rolling with new music from Pro Magnum, Anonymous Henchmen, Laughing Falcon and The Whiskey Drinkers Union, all of which we’ve seen over the last few weeks. Plus, tracks from artists with shows this week, including homecomings for The Mynabirds’ and Bonehart Flannigan.
We’re always looking for new music to spin for HN Radio, as well as our weekly KZUM radio show Hear Nebraska FM (Mondays from 8 to 10 p.m.). To submit a track for HN Radio consideration, email news@hearnebraska.org.
Tonight on HN FM, I will be joined in-studio by All Young Girls Are Machine Guns’ Rebecca Lowry. Listen in to our Nebraska music playlist (and probably some banter) via 89.3 KZUM or KZUM.org.
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As always, head to our statewide calendar at hearnebraska.org/events for a fuller listing of shows. If you do not see your show or one you plan to attend, email us at news@hearnebraska.org, or add it yourself. And keep those song submissions, story ideas and news tips coming.