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Incredible Indie Influence: Tim Kasher

What comes to mind when you think of Omaha, Nebraska? More than likely the image of a small, cattle town comes into your head; a place with little to offer in the area of musical development. And if you would have said this about 15 years ago, you would have been right, essentially. However, these days if you ask someone familiar with the indie rock scene you would get a completely different answer. You would be informed of Saddle Creek Records, one of the most influential independent records labels in the country. You would also undoubtedly hear about two individuals who were extremely significant within this label and forming a thriving music scene in Omaha, Conor Oberst and Tim Kasher. Although Oberst and his brother were the original founders of Saddle Creek, Kasher's influence concerning Saddle Creek, the Omaha music scene, and music everywhere is undeniable.
Saddle Creek Records was established in 1993 and currently boasts bands Azure Ray, Beep Beep, Bright Eyes, Broken Spindles, Criteria, Cursive, The Faint, Son, Ambulance, Desaparecidos, Orenda Fink, Now It's Overhead, Commander Venus, The Good Life, Maria Taylor, Two Gallants, Mayday, Sorry About Dresden and Son, ambulance. The label is named after Saddle Creek Road, a street that cuts through the east side of midtown Omaha. Saddle Creek's first release came in 1993 by Conor Oberst under the name Lumberjack Records. Since then Saddle Creek has released numerous albums and had been continuously adding new talent to the bill (Saddle Creek Records).The impact of this label is undeniable as it placed an essentially unknown area on the map as far as the independent music scene is concerned. Saddle Creek is unique as far as records labels go given they do not have an active A & R (artists and repertory) department. That is, they do not actively seek new talent to add to the label (McMahan). They also do not vigorously promote their albums the way other labels do. They leave much of the promotional aspect up to...