Back Beat

Kids In Concert relays a big “thank you” to the charitable Omahans who donated musical instruments to the Omaha Public Schools’ Musical Instrument Department. OPS will rehab the instruments for deserving students to use. So what did Omaha have to give? The final tally was 96 used musical instruments and additional accessories, including: 18 violins, 25 clarinets, one double bass, four guitars, 9 trombones, 11 trumpets, three drums, four saxophones, 10 flutes, one banjo, two flugles and bells, one oboe, one French horn, one coronet, three tubas, one sousaphone and one xylophone. Lincoln’s Bourbon Theatre has been bringing in an abundance of quality music since the relocation of what was conceptually previously burgeoning at Box Awesome. Names like Taj Mahal, Jamie Lidell, Deer Tick and The Hold Steady, along with a hub for the fabulous Lincoln Calling, are enough to make an Omahan pine for an Omaha-Lincoln light-rail. (Seriously, powers-that-be, let’s make this happen. It’s cheaper, safer, better for the environment … think of all the music fans, Husker fans and daily commuters!) Now the Bourbon has a shiny new website to match its top-tier calendar. Organizers promise an easier-to-access schedule and featured shows. Visit bourbontheatre.com for the goods. Rockers After The Fall triumphed in Coheed and Cambria’s Facebook contest to pick a local opener for their Oct. 11 show at Sokol Auditorium. Coheed and Cambria ran the same contest in 15 other cities on their October tour schedule, which also includes opener Fang Island. The tour supports Coheed’s fifth studio album Year of the Black Rainbow. The band conceived the contest in an admirable effort to support local music scenes along its tour path. “When we first started touring, local bands were a very important part of the process,” said vocalist Claudio Sanchez in a press release. “Almost every tour had local openers on each show, but now it’s much more common to have a set national package of bands touring through all the cities. While that can be easier at times, it makes it tough on local bands, and local scenes haven’t flourished like they once did. Hopefully this helps bring awareness to some good up-and-coming music.” Local runners up Sheridan Breakdown and A Different Breed didn’t walk away empty handed, winning free tickets to the show. Backbeat takes you behind the scenes of the local music scene. Send tips, comments and questions to backbeat@thereader.com.