Monthly Archives: June 2010

[photo by nyctaper]

Talent is an amazing thing to behold up close. When it comes to professional athletes, when you see them in person their amazing physicality is intimidating. Television does not do them justice. Its the same with musical performers. On Saturday, we were invited to capture a private performance at a “backyard brunch” series being presented weekly this summer. Nicole Atkins is a performer of some renowned, as Neptune City her 2007 release on Columbia Records reached number 20 in the Billboard “heatseeker” chart. But from five feet away in a relaxed backyard setting, Nicole’s talent is breathtaking. The Backyard Brunch series is unamplified, and yet even without the benefit of a sound system, her sweet yet powerful voice carried through all the ambient noise of a Saturday afternoon in Williamsburg to thoroughly entertain the intimate crowd. Nicole set included two songs from Neptune City and several songs that we anticipate will appear on her forthcoming album. Nicole Atkins performs again in NYC at the City Winery on August 7, when she returns from an extensive European tour.

I recorded this set with four microphones placed within a few feet of the artist. Other than a few moments of wind and some outside noise, this is quite an exceptional capture. Enjoy!

Stream “Call Me The Witch”:
[audio:http://www.nyctaper.com/N1906NicoleAtkins1020/3%20NicoleAtkins2010-06-19_nyctaper_t03.mp3]

This Recording is now available for Download in FLAC and MP3 at Archive.org [HERE].

Nicole Atkins
2010-06-19
Private Backyard Barbeque
Brooklyn, NY USA

Four-Track Digital Master Recording
Recorded from Onstage

Neumann KM-150s + DPA 4021’s > Edirol R-44 (Oade Concert Mod) > 2x 24bit 48kHz wav files > Soundforge (level adjustments, mixdown, set fades) > CDWave 1.95 (tracking) > Flac Frontend (level 7, align sector boundaries) > flac

Recorded and Produced
by nyctaper
2010-06-20

Setlist:
[Total Time 34:50]
01 The Way It Is
02 Cry Cry Cry
03 Call Me The Witch
04 [tuning/banter]
05 Monterey Honey
06 Baby Don’t Lie
07 Hotel Plaster
08 The Tower
09 Neptune City

If you email nyctaper for access to this recording, we expect that you will PLEASE SUPPORT Nicole Atkins, visit her website, and purchase her official releases and other merch [HERE].

[acidjack is getting a new iPhone soon, and with it, he hopes to take at least somewhat better photos]

You may have noticed that we don’t post recordings by bands that we don’t like.  Therefore, our reviews are almost uniformly positive – which may make it difficult at times to tell the bands we think are really good, and the ones we think are, well, just good.  I hope to clear up any confusion about how I feel about Tidal Arms – these guys, who have been around for less than a year, kick ass. Maybe it was the fact that this show at Cake Shop had lots of good music, but no other heavy bands, and Tidal Arms filled an important void.  It could be that, but I attribute my instantly positive reaction to this band to their musical style and the quality of their playing.  They are heavy, for sure – loud guitars, pounding drums and driving bass – but they don’t fall into the all-too-common trap of one-song-after-another of what sounds like the same song.   Each of their songs, from the slower dirges to the faster numbers, has its own feel, and vocalist/guitarist Tom Tierney mixes up the vocal styles too, with some songs sung and others belted in a metal-ish growl.  Tierney is also a studio guy, so the house sound was particularly dialed in for Tidal Arms’ loud set.

Although Tidal Arms are a new band, their members have a varied history going back several years.  Tierney and bassist Patrick Southern are friends from college, where they studied jazz and played in an electric blues band.  The final piece of the puzzle was drummer Francis Mark, who met Tierney when he stepped in as replacement guitarist for Mark’s previous band, the much-loved stoner metal band Warship.  Over time, the band members have played almost everything: folk, blues, hardcore, metal, and indie pop.  According to Tierney, Tidal Arms now represents the music these guys truly want to make.

Tidal Arms have two shows coming up:  July 24 at Vibe Lounge in Rockville Center, NY and August 14 at The Studio at Webster Hall.  You can also download their new single, “Flooded Meadows” for free (temporarily) on bandcamp.

This set was recorded in the same manner as the Miracles of Modern Science recording, with ceiling-mounted DPA omnidirectional mics and DPA cardioid mics in the audience.  Due in large part to the strong house mix, this recording is even better than the MOMS recording.  You can stream “Flooded Meadows” from this show below, and the MP3 downloads are properly tagged for importing into iTunes.  Enjoy!

Stream “Flooded Meadows”:
[audio:http://www.nyctaper.com/T7601TidalArms2010/TidalArms_FloodedMeadows.mp3]

Direct download of MP3 files (HERE)

Download the Complete show in FLAC [HERE].

Tidal Arms
2010-06-17
Cake Shop
New York, NY  USA

An acidjack master recording
Recorded and produced by acidjack for nyctaper.com

Equipment: DPA 4021+DPA 4061>Edirol R-44 (Oade Concert Mod) (24/44.1)
Position: 4021s 6ft from right stack, A-B; 4061s mounted at 3? split above stage
Mastering: 2×24bit/44.1kHz WAV>Audacity (mixdown, set fades, tracking, amplify/balance channels, downsample to 16bit)>FLAC Level 8

01 Several Circles
02 Wooly Pictures
03 Flooded Meadows
04 The Sun Exploding
05 [tuning]
06 Social Landlord
07 Hair and Teeth

If you download this recording from NYCTaper, we expect that you will PLEASE SUPPORT Tidal Arms, attend their shows, visit their MySpace page, and check out their new single, “Flooded Meadows” which will shortly be available as a 7? and is currently available for free download to the first 500 people who get there on the band’s bandcamp site.

[iPhone photo by acidjack]

As our founder noted in our first post about this band, Miracles of Modern Science have mastered the tough challenge of making original music that stays within the indie rock/pop realm.  The always-excellent booking crew at Cake Shop have recognized that by giving MOMS a monthlong residence, which features them and an excellent, rotating cast of other acts every Thursday night in June.  The band consists of a cello, violin, stand-up bass, mandolin and drums, and it played surprisingly well in what can be a tough room, thanks in part to the virtuosity of the band members on their instruments.  Along with material from their several EPs, the band played two very different covers – first, Wilco’s “Jesus, Etc.” which you can stream below, and Prince’s “I Would Die 4 U”.  The crowd was so into it that, in a rare move for a Cake Shop show that had run late into the night, the band played a two-song encore, which included “I Would Die 4 U” and one of the band’s oldest songs, “Bossa Supernova”.  The band is working on a full-length record at the moment, and based on the quality of these performances, it should be a success.

I recorded this set using a new method which I hope compensates for the challenges of capturing sound at Cake Shop.  Tiny DPA omnidirectional mics were taped at a 3 foot split on the ceiling directly at the stage lip (you can see them in the picture if you look closely) while DPA cardiod microphones were placed about 6 feet back from the right stack.  The result is a capture that provides both the feeling of being in the crowd as well as clean, direct sound from the stage.  The MP3s and FLACs have been tagged for easy importing into iTunes or your favorite music system.  Enjoy!

Stream “Jesus, Etc.”:
[audio:http://www.nyctaper.com/M7016MOMS9922/MOMS-JesusEtc.mp3]

Stream the entire show:
[audio:http://www.nyctaper.com/M7016MOMS9922/moms2010-06-17cakeshop_acidjack.mp3]

Direct download of MP3 files (HERE)

Download the Complete show in FLAC [HERE].

Miracles of Modern Science
2010-06-17
Cake Shop
New York, NY  USA

An acidjack master recording
Recorded and produced by acidjack for nyctaper.com

Equipment: DPA 4021+DPA 4061>Edirol R-44 (Oade Concert Mod) (24/44.1)
Position: 4021s 6ft from right stack, A-B; 4061s mounted at 3? split above stage
Mastering: 2×24bit/44.1kHz WAV>Audacity (mixdown, set fades, tracking, amplify/balance channels, downsample to 16bit)>FLAC Level 8

Tracks [Total Time 49:48]
01 MR2
02 TYPO GYGO
03 Friend of the Animals
04 Eating Me Alive
05 Space Chopper
06 Jesus, Etc. [Wilco]
07 I Found Space
08 Luminol
09 [encore break]
10 I Would Die 4 U [Prince]
11 Bossa Supernova

If you download this recording from NYCTaper, we expect that you will PLEASE SUPPORT Miracles of Modern Science, attend their gigs, visit their MySpace page, and download their music from their bandcamp site (free downloads available); their EPs can also be purchased from iTunes.

[photo by nyctaper]

Wild Nothing is a band who we have been hearing much about lately. They are scheduled to play one of the free Governor’s Island shows tomorrow (Saturday June 19), after having played a “secret show” last night at Death By Audio. We had the opportunity to catch this current buzz band twice during the winter, and left impressed by their skillful presentation of 80’s influenced dream pop. After Wild Nothing was discovered and signed by Captured Tracks’ Mike Sniper, Jack Tatum’s Virginia-based bedroom songs formed a four-piece live band and came to NYC in February to play two shows at Monster Island. The second night lineup including sets previously featured at nyctaper by Frankie Rose and So Cow. These two debut NYC shows were in conjunction with the release of their single “Summer Holiday”, which closed the set. A month later, we saw Wild Nothing at a much larger venue, opening for Woods and Real Estate (also previously featured on nyctaper) at Music Hall of Williamsburg. In June, the band’s debut full length was released and received “best new music” from Pitchfork, and glowing reviews elsewhere. These two recordings were captured at divergent sized and sounding venues, but give an excellent indication that Wild Nothing is worthy of such neat praise.

The Monster Island set was recorded with microphones mounted ten feet from the stage and a direct soundboard line. The four-track mixdown enhances the strengths of both feeds. The Music Hall set was recorded with four microphones at the front corner of the soundboard. Both recordings, although quite different in feel, have outstanding sound quality. Enjoy!

Streaming Samples of Wild Nothing:
“O Lilac” at Monster Island
[audio:http://www.nyctaper.com/W1302WildNothing1020/5%20WildNothing2010-02-13_nyctaper_t05.mp3]
“Summer Holiday” at Music Hall
[audio:http://www.nyctaper.com/W1302WildNothing1020/6%20WildNothing2010-03-12_nyctaper_t06.mp3]

Direct download of MP3 files:
Monster Island (HERE)
Music Hall (HERE)

Download the Complete show in FLAC:
Monster Island [HERE]
Music Hall [HERE]

Wild Nothing
2010-02-13
Monster Island Basement
Brooklyn, NY USA

Digital Master Recording
Soundboard + Audience Matrix

Soundboard + Neumann KM-150s > Edirol R-44 (Oade Concert Mod) > 2x 16bit 44.1kHz wav files > Soundforge (level adjustments, mixdown, set fades) > CDWave 1.95 (tracking) > Flac Frontend (level 7, align sector boundaries) > flac

Recorded and Produced by nyctaper
2010-06-13

Setlist:
[Total Time 30:22]
01 Confirmation
02 Live In Dreams
03 Nothing’s Wrong
04 The Witching Hour
05 O Lilac
06 Gemini
07 Summer Holiday

*******

Wild Nothing
2010-03-12
Music Hall of Williamsburg
Brooklyn, NY USA

Four-Track Digital Master Recording
Recorded from Front of Soundboard Booth

Neumann KM-150s + DPA 4021’s > Edirol R-44 (Oade Concert Mod) > 2x 24bit 48kHz wav files > Soundforge (level adjustments, mixdown, set fades) > CDWave 1.95 (tracking) > Flac Frontend (level 7, align sector boundaries) > flac

Recorded and Produced
by nyctaper
2010-06-13

Setlist:
[Total Time 26:53]
01 Nothing’s Wrong
02 The Witching Hour
03
04 O Lilac
05 Gemini
06 Summer Holiday

If you email nyctaper for access to this recording, we expect that you will PLEASE SUPPORT Wild Nothing, visit their MySpace page, and purchase their debut album Gemini from the Captured Tracks website [HERE].

[photo courtesy of Patrice Jackson]

I rectified two major oversights last night when I caught JEFF The Brotherhood at Santos Party House. Although we’ve both been around for a few years now, nyctaper had not previously recorded a show at Santos. Which is a shame, because the venue was extremely courteous and accommodating to me and the sound system is terrific. And although JEFF previously appeared on nyctaper in December, acidjack captured that show and so I had also never seen JEFF. The show began with an extended solo by Jake and a dramatic entrance by Jamin to begin the the first number. Midway through the too-short set, Jake took a leap from the stage to the bar and worked his way briefly along the bar. Later, he would work through the crowd from front to back while performing the outstanding extended jam to end the set. These antics did not detract from the show, but rather enhanced the two-brothers-just-playing-rock-and-having-fun vibe that permeates JEFF’s live performances. While the middle-bill thirty-five minute set was over far too quickly, we expect to see JEFF playing longer sets in larger venues in the near future. The size and enthusiasm of the Santos crowd would agree.

I recorded this set with a simple two-channel plug-in to the side-stage inputs. As a straight soundboard feed, the sound quality is crystal clear, if a bit “in your face”. One caveat: there is some crackling in the guitar near the end of the first song. Enjoy!

Stream “U Got The Look”:
[audio:http://www.nyctaper.com/J6012JEFF9922/02%20JEFF2010-06-13_nyctaper_t02.mp3]
Stream “Bone Jam”:
[audio:http://www.nyctaper.com/J6012JEFF9922/09%20JEFF2010-06-13_nyctaper_t09.mp3]

Direct download of MP3 files (HERE)

Download the Complete show in FLAC [HERE].

JEFF The Brotherhood
2010-06-13
Santos Party House
New York, NY USA

Digital Stereo Soundboard Master Recording

Digital Soundboard > XLR Cables > Edirol R-44 > 24bit 48kHz wav file > Soundforge (level adjustments, set fades, downsample) > CD Wave (tracking) > Flac Frontend (level 7, align sector boundaries) > flac

Recorded and Produced
by nyctaper
2010-06-14

Setlist:
[Total Time 35:06]
01
02 U Got the Look
03 [tuning/banter]
04 Mind Ride
05 [tuning/banter]
06
07
08 [tuning/banter]
09 Bone Jam
10

If you email nyctaper for access to this recording, we expect that you will PLEASE SUPPORT JEFF the Brotherhood, visit their website, visit their MySpace page, and purchase their new album Heavy Days from the Infinity Cat Records website [HERE].

[Photo courtesy of Sam?]

Gothenburg, Sweden’s The Embassy arrived in NYC off of a long overnight flight, and had to prepare in short order to close out the NYC Popfest 2010 with the last set of the night at Littlefield.  The organizers were particularly proud of the coup of bringing the band over for this show, and the band returned the favor.  Despite a vocal mix that was a bit high at times, The Embassy delivered a fun, upbeat set of pop-driven electronica, joking with the audience and keeping the energy up.  Although they are long overdue for a new record (Tacking was released in 2006) they played material from all over their catalog, including the 2008 single “State08? and the 2009 single, “You Tend to Forget”.

I recorded this set from the same location as the other NYC Popfest recordings, with a stereo soundboard feed and the DPA microphones.  As the vocals were a bit higher in the mix on this feed, I have emphasized a bit more of the audience recording to make a more balanced mix.  You can now stream this entire show direct from nyctaper.com, so we hope you will take advantage of this fun new option.  Enjoy!

Stream the entire show:
[audio:http://www.nyctaper.com/E2305Embassy0210/embassy2010-05-23littlefield_acidjack.mp3]

Direct download of MP3 files (HERE)

Download the Complete show in FLAC [HERE].

The Embassy
2010-05-23
NYC Popfest 2010
Littlefield
Brooklyn, NY  USA

An acidjack master recording
Recorded and produced by acidjack for nyctaper.com

Equipment: Stereo soundboard feed + DPA 4021>Edirol R-44 (Oade Concert Mod) (24/44.1)
Position: ROC, left wall of SBD cage, mics at 8?
Mastering: 2×24bit/44.1kHz WAV>Audacity (set fades, mixdown, EQ, tracking, amplify channels)>FLAC Level 8

Tracks [Total time 32:55]
01 The Pointer
02 It Pays To Belong
03 Stage Persona
04 State08
05 [unknown]
06 Lurking
07 You Tend to Forget
08 Some Indulgence

If you download this recording from NYCTaper, we expect that you will PLEASE SUPPORT The Embassy, visit their MySpace page, and purchase their records from your favorite online retailers (unfortunately, they are not that easy to come by, but there are some links on Amazon here).

[Bunnygrunt live on tour.  Photo courtesy of Rob Severson]

Hailing from St. Louis, MO, Bunnygrunt may not be a household name to most on the East Coast, but core band members Matt Harnish and Karen Ried have been making fan-beloved, often humorous pop music under this moniker since 1993.  The band’s style is all about uncomplicated lo-fi pop, with few songs clocking in above the two-minute mark.  Despite a Sunday daytime slot at the NYC Popfest 2010 at Littlefield, the band brought one of the biggest crowds of any of the day’s acts, and deservedly so, as they gave the Brooklyn crowd a rapid-fire dose of 13 songs (in 32 minutes!) of pure Midwestern power pop.  The set closed out with “Southtown Famous” and it’s simple mantra – “Gonna get drunk tonight, tonight / gonna get drunk tonight!”  On a hungover Sunday afternoon, sometimes light, economical pop is the perfect antidote (even if the song is about drinking more).

I recorded this set in the same manner as the other NYC Popfest sets, with the DPA microphones and an excellent soundboard feed.  Please help out with the setlist if you can.

Stream “Southtown Famous”:
[audio:http://www.nyctaper.com/B2305Bunnygrunt0210/13%20Southtown%20Famous.mp3]

Direct download of MP3 files (HERE)

Download the Complete show in FLAC [HERE].

Bunnygrunt
2010-05-23
NYC Popfest 2010
Littlefield
Brooklyn, NY  USA

An acidjack master recording
Recorded and produced by acidjack for nyctaper.com

Equipment: Stereo soundboard feed + DPA 4021>Edirol R-44 (Oade Concert Mod) (24/44.1)
Position: ROC, left wall of SBD cage, mics at 8?
Mastering: 2×24bit/44.1kHz WAV>Audacity (set fades, mixdown, tracking, amplify channels)>FLAC ( level 8 )

Tracks [Total time 32min]
01
02
03
04 S. Kings Highway Bubblegum Factory
05
06
07 Frankie Is A Killer
08
09
10 Let It Out
11
12
13 Southtown Famous

If you email nyctaper for access to this recording, we expect that you will PLEASE SUPPORT Bunnygrunt, visit their MySpace page, and purchase their records from HHBTM Records here.

[photo courtesy of Aquarium Drunkard]

As one of the most accomplished songwriters of the last two decades, including his work with Uncle Tupelo, Son Volt, the recent collaboration with indie-darling Ben Gibbard, and his solo career, Jay Farrar has cached enough cred to deserve abundant respect. Last Friday at Maxwell’s, that was sadly not the case. As this recording unfortunately details, the superb music emanating from the stage was seemingly mere background music to a social event. The unabashed high volume chatter at this show is simply an outrage — thoroughly disrespectful to this excellent artist and also to one of the metro area’s greatest venues. If you can’t shut up for 90 minutes, stay home.

In terms of the performance, for this tour Jay has been accompanied by multi-instrument virtuoso Mark Spencer. While the setlist is quite similar to the Son Volt show featured on nyctaper in September, Jay added a few more of the Big Sur numbers, performed a very special rare Uncle Tupelo number (“Still Be Around”), and encored a rocking Townes Van Zandt cover.

This show was recorded with acidjack’s new Schoeps microphones at the front corner of the soundboard. While we often mix four channels of audience and soundboard at this venue, Jay’s taping policy does not permit board feeds, so this is a straight audience recording that suffers from the obvious persistent and rude crowd chatter. There is also one brief battery-change splice in “Still Be Around”. With those caveats, enjoy!

Stream Jay Farrar “Cocaine and Ashes” live at Maxwell’s:
[audio:http://www.nyctaper.com/S1790SonVolt9290/JayFarrar_Cocaine&Ashes_2010-06-04.mp3]

Direct download of MP3 files (HERE)

Download the Complete show in FLAC [HERE].

Jay Farrar
2010-06-04
Maxwell’s
Hoboken, NJ USA

Digital Master Audience Recording
Recorded from Front and Center of Soundboard

Schoeps CMC6/MK41 > Naiant Littlebox > Sony PCM-M10 > 24bit 44.1kHz wav file > Soundforge (level adjustments, close clapping reduction, mixdown, set fades) > CDWave 1.95 (tracking) > Flac Frontend (level 7, align sector boundaries) > flac

Recorded by acidjack
Produced by nyctaper
2010-06-08

Setlist:
[Total Time 1:31:05]
01 Down To The Wire
02 The Picture
03 Feel Free
04 When The Wheels Don’t Move
05 Cocaine and Ashes
06 Dust of Daylight
07 Pushed Too Far
08 No Turning Back
09 Big Sur
10 Methamphetamine
11 Strength and Doubt
12 San Francisco
13 Dynamite
14 Bandages & Scars
15 Breathe Our Iodine
16 Tear Stained Eye
17 Damn Shame
18 Still Be Around
19 Windfall
20 Afterglow 61
21 [encore break]
22 White Freightliner Blues (Townes Van Zandt)

If you email nyctaper for access to this recording, we expect that you will PLEASE SUPPORT Jay Farrar, visit his website, and purchase his official releases directly from the Jay Farrar Official Store [HERE].

[photo credit]

For good or bad, Brooklyn Bowl is the perfect venue for a Les Claypool show in NYC. First, the good. The superior sound system at The Bowl presented all the intricacies of the band — bass, electric cello, xylophone, drums — with superb clarity. Every plucked and slapped note on Claypool’s bass was pristine. The venue’s odd juxtaposition of music and sport also provided Les with comedic fodder. Finally, the room seemed to be the perfect size for this crowd. While the show was sold out, it was also not so packed as to be uncomfortable. Then, there was the bad. Brooklyn Bowl has an outstanding beer selection, primarily from their neighbors the Brooklyn Brewery and Red Hook’s craft beer wizards at Six Point. The potency of some of these fine beers though was too much for a good portion of the crowd. The end result was puddles of beer and broken glass on the floor and some seriously strange behavior (somewhat noticeable on the recording). Les actually stopped playing in the middle of “Duchess” to chide “Mr. Bald Headed Guy” who was harassing women up front. However, the set itself was a seriously outstanding Claypool show, which touched on his Primus work and his various solo incarnations. “Makalaster > Pachyderm > Makalaster” was an extended exercise in true collaborative improvisation, and the “One Better” medley featured Les at his best. Ever the cut-up, he introduced the Rush cover encore as a “Sly and the Family Stone tune” that takes him back to the “Oakland soul” citing as his “only true source of information” — Wikipedia.

I recorded this set with the Neumann microphones pointed directly up at the stacks at about 30 feet from the stage. The sound quality in the venue was superb and this recording reflects that quality, along with the boisterous crowd. Enjoy!

Stream Les Claypool’s cover of “The Spirit Of Radio” (Rush) Live at Brooklyn Bowl:
[audio:http://www.nyctaper.com/C1006Claypool2110/14%20LesClaypool2010-06-08_nyctaper_t14.mp3]

Direct download of MP3 files (HERE)

Download the Complete show in FLAC [HERE].

Les Claypool
2010-06-08
Brooklyn Bowl
Brooklyn, NY USA

Digital Master Recording
Recorded Upfront 30 Feet from Stage

Neumann KM-150s > Edirol R-44 (Oade Concert Mod) > 24bit 48kHz wav file > Soundforge (level adjustments, set fades) > CDWave 1.95 (tracking) > Flac Frontend (level 7, align sector boundaries) > flac

Recorded and Produced by nyctaper
2010-06-09

Setlist:
[Total Time 1:45:04]
01 Highball with the Devil
02 Duchess And The Proverbial Mind Spread
03 Amanitas
04 David Makalaster I
05 Southbound Pachyderm
06 David Makalaster I
07 Red State Girl
08 Precipitation
09 Jam/Drums
10 Booneville Stomp
11 One Better / The Awakening / One Better
12 Riddles Are Abound Tonight
13 [encore break]
14 The Spirit Of Radio (Rush)

If you email nyctaper for access to this recording, we expect that you will PLEASE SUPPORT Les Claypool, visit his website, and purchase his official releases directly from Club Bastardo [HERE].

[Ghastly City Sleep. All photos courtesy of Jonny Leather]

Our good friend Jonny Leather has been going above and beyond to give the already-teeming Brooklyn scene access to exciting new music through his semi-regular concert series.  We were fortunate enough to capture this excellent bill, featuring Brooklyn’s Ghastly City Sleep, garage rock duo Royal Chains and Austin’s Royal Forest (along with Brick + Mortar, whose set we unfortunately missed) at Glasslands, which is a perfect place to absorb yourself in some new music.  Each act was striking in it own way, but perhaps none so much as Ghastly City Sleep, whose music takes a sharp turn from current trends with dark, sometimes lengthy songs that are not afraid to challenge listeners’ expectations.  Jonny Leather compares them to Radiohead, and I can see the resemblance in the rhythmic variations,  sharp, angular vocals, and the aforementioned dark overall tone. For a young band, these guys have a fully developed sound that is poised for bigger things. Check out their debut album at Robotic Empire Records and see for yourself.

[Royal Forest]

Royal Forest could be called “The Band Formerly Known As Loxsly”, but they probably made the right choice with the wholesale name change to avoid any association with the somewhat weak act by a very similar former name.  Apparently in their former incarnation the band earned a lot of comparisons to Grandaddy, which I still hear echoes of, along with occasional hints of my favorites Polvo.  Currently the band is promoting a self-titled EP, with a full-length on the way.

[Royal Chains]

Being a garage-rock duo, Royal Chains needed to do everything right to impress me – and they did.  Too often, I find these setups aren’t musical enough (or are just too wasted), or seem to treat the whole thing as a joke.  Royal Chains came out and played their asses off.  With two EPs under their belt, these guys have shown they are serious about songwriting, and they seem determined not to fall into the lame “we’re two drunk guys playing half-assed songs” trap at all.  Instead, band members Adam and Dan bring real musicianship and feeling.  And, in a perfect ending, they managed to show they don’t take themselves too seriously by playing a cover of Tom Petty’s “Won’t Back Down.”

Please support Jonny Leather and the shows he promotes.  One good way to learn more is to be his friend on Facebook. Thanks to Jonny for inviting us to this excellent show.  It took us a month to get it posted, but I think it will be worth the wait!

I recorded this set from the balcony with the DPA microphones in an “XY” pattern.  The recordings are generally excellent, with a small caveat – during Royal Forest’s set, the mics were clamped to the balcony rail, which was vibrating due to a fan clamped to it nearby.  Therefore, during quiet parts of the music, you can hear these vibrations.  The band thought it sounded good despite this flaw, so I think it is still very worth your time.  For listeners’ convenience, and to provide maximum exposure to all three bands, the music of all three bands is included in one ZIP file of MP3s.  The MP3s are properly tagged for easy importing into iTunes, including artwork!

Direct download of MP3 files [HERE]

Download the Complete shows in FLAC [GHASTLY CITY SLEEP] / [ROYAL FOREST] / [ROYAL CHAINS]

Ghastly City Sleep
2010-05-03
Glasslands
Brooklyn, NY USA

An acidjack master recording
Recorded and produced by acidjack for nyctaper.com

Equipment: DPA 4021>Naiant littlebox>Sony PCM-M10 (24/44.1)
Position: Clamp to balcony rail, XY
Mastering: 24bit/44.1kHz WAV>Audacity (set fades, EQ, tracking, amplify)>FLAC ( level 8 )

Tracks
01 I Never Left My Head
02 Farewell My Friend
03 [banter]
04 Foreboding Shapes
05 1994 (it’s a weird world)
06 Subtle Disaster

Royal Forest
(same source info)
Tracks
1. Civilwarland
2. Battalions
3. Spines Came Unglued
4. Anagrams
5. The Manual That You Wrote
6. Save the Ghost
7. Courtesy in Decline
8. Borrowed Tune (Neil Young)

Royal Chains
(same source info)
Tracks (please help with the setlist)
01
02 Feedback
03 Lucy Takes the Dare
04 [banter]
05
06
07
08
09 Won’t Back Down [Tom Petty]

Please support all of these excellent bands by visiting their websites and buying their music and merchandise (or in some cases, downloading it for free), as follows:
Websites/MySpace:
Ghastly City Sleep
Royal Forest
Royal Chains

Records/Merchandise:
Ghastly City Sleep
Royal Forest Bandcamp Site (Free Download)
The Royal Chains (EPs are $5)