Oh Omaha..

<><><> Written 7/12 <><><>

News from the state that looks like a fish:

After driving all night from Minneapolis, we arrived in Omaha around 9 in the morning and grabbed a greasy, greasty breakfast at the 11-Worth Diner. With full bellies, we found a golf course which provided a scenic venue for some much-needed naptime.

Omaha generally seemed rather run-down, but it was sprinkled with a certain vibrancy in some areas. Through the ever-amazing couchsurfing.com, we found the dozen-or-so lovely guys and gals at Hotel Frank. The house boasts a non-stop rotation of Omaha's best and brightest (and friendliest) musicians, artists, students, short-order cooks, and other ne'er-do-well-ers. Hell, Bright Eyes even lived at Hotel Frank for a while.

Some of the best touring bands frequently stop in Omaha, but the locals complain that the ticket prices are rising rapidly. One Omahanian complained fervently about having to pay ten bucks! for a show recently. In fact, many of the bigger aritsts that used to sell out shows are having a hard time filling up even very small venues because the Omaha kids will boycott shows that cost more than a couple dollars.

Another alternative to the rising ticket prices is to DIY. As we saw in Detroit, warehouse spaces in Omaha are being appropriated by young, creative people for use as art/music/party zone spaces. This makes us very happy. To a degree, these venues seem to embody Hakim Bey's concept of the Temporary Autonomous Zone. The loft party in Detroit was overflowing with spontaneity, conviviality, and immediacy that is rarely seen since the so-called death of the festival. "The [freely organized loft party in a post-industrial city] is already 'the seed of the new society taking shape within the shell of the old' [...] these are already 'liberated zones' of a sort... the party is always 'open' because it is not 'ordered'; it may be planned, but unless it 'happens' it's a failure. The element of spontaneity is crucial."

Also, shout out to the house dogs, two of the most lovable animals we've seen on the trip so far.

Up Next: Austin, TX. (!)

Detroit and Ann Arbor, MI

Detroit, burn my heart out.

Showed up to Detroit Cityfest on a whim to see Yo La Tengo for free and Dan Deacon later in the evening at Scrummage University. Inhibitions existed at first, I guess some of Detroit's reputation precedes itself as being extremely racially segregated, dangerous, and likely to catch fire.

At Cityfest, it was apparent that there was a much larger presence of a non-white middle and upper class, which is much different from Albany. Segregation appearing along lines of class appears more readily traveling from different cities seeing the common practices of the higher and lower and recognizing these lines of division are not along race or sex, (which play roles also), but along class.

Interviewees said that at Cityfest you're more likely to see the middle class than the poor. People called Detroit "THE 'D'", one man told us about his gig giving tours of abandoned buildings in Detroit, we met an opera singing hotdog salesman, and we slept in an inflated bouncy castle in Scrummage.

Stop the Detroit Devil's Night Arsons!!

This was a sign that we saw when driving through Detroit. The city was truly so different from what we expected - absolutely a beautiful, spirited, strange city. More to come on Detroit.