Blog Archives

Sunwatchers: August 23, 2015 St. Paul’s Church

August 26, 2015
By

Sunwatchers

Merely a few days ago, if you had asked me to write a book report on the electric phin you would have gotten a blank stare. Turns out it’s an oddly-shaped, three-stringed Laotian lute and sounds pretty much like you’d imagine a Laotian lute would. My newfound knowledge is courtesy of Wikipedia and local psych-jazzers Sunwatchers, for whom the phin is only one aspect of their ambitious instrumentation. Besides the core of guitar-bass-drums the band also incorporates the alto sax and vibraphone. Combine all that together and you’ve got some pretty unique sounds. Fans of the instrumental and rhythmic experimentation of bands like Rhyton and Horse Lords should look no further for their new favorite up-and-coming Brooklyn band.

Sunwatchers are hot off recording their first LP, which is due out on Castle Face Records later this year, and sounds pretty damn great. The band has been playing together for a couple years now but Sunday marked their first show since the recording sessions. They put together an excellent showcase upstairs at St. Paul’s Church in South Williamsburg, drawing a sizeable and eager crowd for a sweaty Sunday night. But all left satisfied, and were rewarded for their diligence with an intimate, blistering set full of songs off the forthcoming LP.

I recorded this set from the stage lip where the mics picked up the bass, drums, guitar, and phin, while a feed from the mixer supplied most of the saxophone and vibraphone. The results are outstanding. Enjoy!

Downloads available at the Live Music Archive

Sunwatchers
2015-08-23
St. Paul’s Church
Brooklyn, NY

Exclusive download hosted at nyctaper.com
Recorded and produced by Eric PH

Soundboard + AKG C480B/CK61 (stage lip) > Roland R-26 > 2xWAV (24/48) > Adobe Audition CC (align, compression, mixdown, normalize) > Izotope Ozone 5 (EQ, exciter) > Audacity 2.0.5 (fades, downsample, dither, tracking, tagging) > FLAC

Tracks [33:29]
01. For Sonny
02. There Are Weapons You Can Bring to School
03. Moonchanges
04. Moroner
05. Ape Phases

Support Sunwatchers: Bandcamp

Chain and the Gang: August 6, 2015 The Bowery Ballroom – FLAC/MP3/Streaming

August 18, 2015
By

Chain and the Gang
[Photo from Portsmouth by Tim Bugbee/tinnitus photography]

Chain and the Gang is the latest from provocateur and frenetic frontman Ian Svenonius (ex- Nation of Ulysses, The Make-Up, Weird War). Since 2009’s Down With Liberty… Up With Chains through last year’s Minimum Rock N Roll, Svenonius and co. have been laying down heavy grooves, lampooning late capitalism, and doing it all with irresistible style. I mean, this band oozes cool—just check out those suits! Their opening set at the Bowery Ballroom a couple weeks back will give you a taste of what Chain and the Gang is all about and no doubt have you joining their crusade. But until then, I’m violating “Mum’s the Word” ’s plea for secrecy by even mentioning this performance—so let’s just keep that between ourselves, okay?

I recorded this set from our usual location in the venue with a board feed from Bowery FOH Kenny. The sound quality is excellent. Enjoy!

Download the complete show: [MP3] | [FLAC]

Stream the complete show:

Chain and the Gang
2015-08-06
The Bowery Ballroom
New York, NY

Exclusive download hosted at nyctaper.com
Recorded and produced by Eric PH

Soundboard (engineer: Kenny) + AKG C480B/CK63 (FOB, LOC, PAS) > Roland R-26 > 2xWAV (24/48) > Adobe Audition CC (align, compression, mixdown, normalize, fades) > Izotope Ozone 5 (EQ) > Audacity 2.0.5 (downsample, dither, tracking, tagging) > FLAC (16/44.1, level 8)

Tracks [43:33]
01. Chain Gang Theme (I See Progress)
02. Free Will
03. Certain Kinds of Trash
04. Why Not
05. Devitalize
06. Logic of Night
07. Mum’s the Word
08. ‘Nuff Said
09. What is a Dollar?
10. Livin’ Rough

Support Chain and the Gang: Bandcamp | Facebook | Buy Chain and the Gang records via Dischord

Thurston Moore Band: August 6, 2015 The Bowery Ballroom – FLAC/MP3/Streaming

August 9, 2015
By

Thurston Moore Band
[Photo from Portsmouth by Tim Bugbee/tinnitus photography]

Since the dissolution of Sonic Youth in 2011, Thurston Moore has kept pretty busy, between solo records, various one-offs, and noise records. Last year’s The Best Day finds Moore flirting with stretched out jams similar to Sonic Youth’s 2002 return to form, Murray Street. We caught up with Moore touring the new album last year at Saint Vitus, and while this set similarly covers most of The Best Day material, the band adds three new songs—“Turn On,” “Cease Fire,” and “Aphrodite”—scheduled to appear on the next album, which Moore says is titled Rock and Roll Consciousness and due out next year. By far the highlight of the entire hour-and-a-half show is “Turn On,” a ten-minute slow build that achieves liftoff in the back half. If this is what we can expect from the Thurston Moore Band’s second record together, I think we’re in for something that will surpass even the highest expectations.

I recorded this set from our usual location in the venue with a board feed from Thurston’s FOH. The sound quality is excellent. Enjoy!

Thurston Moore band will return to the area on September 17, at Monty Hall in Jersey City. I mean, if there was ever a reason to go to Jersey, this is it. Tickets on sale.

And if you’re in search of more live Thurston Moore, the upcoming Parallelogram box set from Three Lobed Recordings features Thurston Moore and John Maloney playing live as Caught on Tape— and it’s recorded by our very own Acidjack. Preorder here.

Download the complete show: [MP3] | [FLAC]

Stream the complete show:

Thurston Moore Band
2015-08-06
The Bowery Ballroom
New York, NY

Exclusive download hosted at nyctaper.com
Recorded and produced by Eric PH

Soundboard + AKG C480B/CK63 (FOB, PAS) > Roland R-26 > 2xWAV (24/48) > Adobe Audition CC (align, compression, mixdown, normalize, fades) > Izotope Ozone 5 (EQ) > Audacity 2.0.5 (downsample, dither, tracking, tagging) > FLAC (16/44.1, level 8)

Tracks [01:27:20]
01. [Intro]
02. Forevermore
03. Speak to the Wild
04. [banter]
05. Germs Burn
06. Turn On
07. Detonation
08. [banter]
09. The Best Day
10. [banter]
11. Grace Lake
12. [encore break]
13. Cease Fire
14. [encore break]
15. Aphrodite

Support Thurston Moore: Website | Buy The Best Day from Matador

75 Dollar Bill: June 28, 2015 Trans-Pecos – FLAC/MP3/Streaming

August 5, 2015
By

75 Dollar Bill

75 Dollar Bill is quickly becoming a staple in New York’s rich improvised and experimental music scene. They’ve got one proper LP, Wooden Bag (out on Other Music Recording Co.), and a few self-released tapes to their name, but it’s their live performances that are creating a splash that even the New York Times is picking up on. Though they’ve been known to incorporate other musicians in their live shows, 75 Dollar Bill proper is a duo, with Che Chen on guitar and Rick Brown on homemade percussion and horns. While that description may give you the notion that the band trades in minimalism, the rich textures of Chen’s guitar played through a small practice amp combined in complex rhythms with Brown’s improvised and homemade percussion will set you straight. This set from Trans-Pecos, opening for the equally mighty Bill Orcutt and Tom Carter, finds the duo exploring some material off their first release, the simply titled cassette (“Every Last Coffee or Tea” and “Water in the Lock”),  along with a shorter improvisation and a finale of “I Was Real,” which doesn’t appear to have yet seen release. Though the technique to the music is intricate, it’s not fussy in the least bit—what’s clear is that Chen and Brown are having infectious fun and it’s sure to rub off on you.

I recorded this set with the AKGs at the stage lip and a soundboard feed from Trans-Pecos FOH Max. The sound quality is excellent. Enjoy!

Catch 75 Dollar Bill later this month at this can’t-miss show also featuring Eleventh Dream Day and Antietam at Mercury Lounge, August 21. Tickets on sale.

Download the complete show: [MP3] | [FLAC]

Stream the complete show:

75 Dollar Bill
2015-06-28
Trans-Pecos
Queens, NY

Exclusive download hosted at nyctaper.com
Recorded and produced by Eric PH

Soundboard (engineer: Max) + AKG C480B/CK61 (stage lip) > Roland R-26 > 2xWAV (24/48) > Adobe Audition CC (align, compression, mixdown, normalize) > Izotope Ozone 5 (EQ, imaging) > Audacity 2.0.5 (fades, downsample, dither, tracking, tagging) > FLAC (16/44.1, level 8)

Tracks [34:38]
01. Intro / Every Last Coffee or Tea
02. Water in the Lock
03. [banter]
04. [untitled improvisation]
05. I Was Real

Support 75 Dollar Bill: Bandcamp | Buy Wooden Bag from Other Music Recording Co.

Chris Forsyth & The Solar Motel Band: June 11, 2015 McCarren Park (Northside Festival)

July 23, 2015
By

chris-forsythe-and-the-solar-motel-band-2
[photos by PSquared Photography]

Last month, we were pleasantly surprised by the addition of Chris Forsyth & The Solar Motel Band to the Northside Festival‘s premier event: Luna’s first NYC show in a decade. Our love for the Moteliers is no secret by now and their late breaking appearance in McCarren Park gave us the chance to soak in some sun and suds with our favorite Philadelphians. Though all the tunes here will be familiar if you’ve been following along this year, the latter three-fourths of the set—”The Rarity of Experience, Parts 1-2,” “High Castle Rock,” and “Harmonious Dance”—is all new material that will appear on the next Solar Motel record due out on No Quarter in 2016.

NYCTaper recorded this set in the same manner as Luna’s set from the same day. There are a couple spots of wind, but none mar the recording and the sound is excellent. Enjoy!

Forsyth also has an upcoming collaboration with Koen Holtkamp of Mountains called The Island and due out on Trouble in Mind this fall.

Downloads are available at the Live Music Archive

Chris Forsyth & The Solar Motel Band
2015-06-11
Northside Festival
McCarren Park
Brooklyn, NY

Exclusive download hosted at nyctaper.com
Recorded by NYCTaper
Produced by Eric PH

Soundboard + Schoeps CCM4u Cardioids > Sound Devices 744t > 2xWAV (24/48) > Izotope Ozone 5 (EQ, exciter) > Adobe Audition CC (align, mixdown, normalize, fades, tracking, downsample, dither) > FLAC (16/44.1, level 8)

Tracks [40:26]
01. The Ballad of Freer Hollow
02. [banter]
03. The Rarity of Experience, Parts 1-2
04. High Castle Rock
05. [banter]
06. Harmonious Dance

Support Chris Forsyth & The Solar Motel Band: Website | Facebook | Buy Intensity Ghost from No Quarter

Tom Carter: June 28, 2015 Trans-Pecos – FLAC/MP3/Stream

July 13, 2015
By

Tom Carter

The last time we caught up with Tom Carter, he was playing as a duo with Barry Weisblat at the small South Slope bar, Freddy’s. That was a particularly out set that I’m still trying to wrap my head around, so I wasn’t quite sure what to expect when Carter took the stage a couple weeks ago at Trans-Pecos, heading a bill that featured guitar savant Bill Orcutt (his set here) and the percussion/guitar duo 75 Dollar Bill. Carter’s improvised set is a spacey, thirty-eight minute guitar journey of three to four distinct but linked movements punctuated by quiet, meditative transitions. Carter is a master of this craft and I highly recommend turning up the volume and letting yourself go with this one.

I recorded this set with the AKGs at the stage lip and a soundboard feed from Trans-Pecos FOH Max. The sound and performance are entirely in the zone. Enjoy!

Catch Tom Carter tomorrow night in a duo with Pat Murano at Trans-Pecos! Facebook event here.

I would also be remiss not to mention some new music from Tom Carter coming soon via Three Lobed: the solo double-LP, Long Time Underground. Preorder details should be available soon.

Download the complete show: [MP3] | [FLAC]

Stream the complete show:

Tom Carter
2015-06-28
Trans-Pecos
Queens, NY

Exclusive download hosted at nyctaper.com
Recorded and produced by Eric PH

Soundboard (engineer: Max) + AKG C480B/CK61 (stage lip) > Roland R-26 > 2xWAV (24/48) > Adobe Audition CC (align, compression, mixdown, normalize) > Izotope Ozone 5 (EQ) > Audacity 2.0.5 (fades, downsample, dither, tagging) > FLAC (16/44.1, level 8)

Tracks [38:36]
01. untitled

Support Tom Carter: Website | Twitter | Purchase records from Tom Carter via Discogs

Ignatz: May 24, 2015 Union Pool – FLAC/MP3/Streaming

July 7, 2015
By

Ignatz

Ignatz—named after Krazy Kat’s comic strip nemesis—is the solo folk guitar project of Belgium’s Bram Devens. Acoustic guitars and vocals are cloaked in distortion by an array of effects pedals, recalling the lo-fi sounds of AM radio. More than once during Ignatz’s set, I recalled the quieter moments in the Hush Arbors catalog—both share an affection for distorted acoustic guitars and the higher registers of the voice. Half of his Union Pool set is comprised of newer, as-yet-untitled songs, while “Drinking Tea and Bloody Maries,” “Japan is Romantic,” and “I Need a Good Night’s Sleep” are off Ignatz’s first record with De Stervende Honden (The Dying Dogs), Teenage Boys, released last year on Ultra Eczema. While the album features the full band, here Ignatz is accompanied only by his guitar and the result is an outstanding, delicate reimagining of American folk through through the lens of a Belgian guitarist.

I recorded this set with the AKGs clamped to the balcony and a board feed from Union Pool FOH, Kevin. There’s a little bit of ambient noise from the bar here, but the guitar and vocals are loud and clear. Enjoy!

Thanks to Jeff for organizing the event and inviting us down to record it. Avant Ghetto will presenting another show full of guitar worship at Union Pool on August 2 with PG Six, Chuck Johnson, Alan Licht, and Anthony Pasquarosa.

Download the complete show: [MP3] | [FLAC]

Stream the complete show:

Note: All of the material on this site is offered with artist permission, free to fans, at our expense. The only thing we ask is that you download the material directly from this site, rather than re-posting the direct links or the files on other sites without our permission. Please respect our request.

Ignatz
2015-05-24
Union Pool
Brooklyn, NY

Exclusive download hosted at nyctaper.com
Recorded and produced by Eric PH

Soundboard (engineer: Kevin) + AKG C480B/CK63 (FOB, LOC, PAS) > Roland R-26 > 2xWAV (24/48) > Adobe Audition CC (align, balance, compression, mixdown) > Izotope Ozone 5 (EQ) > Audacity 2.0.5 (amplify, fades, downsample, dither, tracking, tagging) > FLAC (16/44.1, level 8)

Tracks [35:41]
01. Untitled
02. Drinking Tea and Bloody Maries
03. Untitled
04. Untitled
05. Japan is Romantic
06. I Need a Good Night’s Sleep

Support Ignatz: Website | MySpace | Buy Ignatz & De Stervende Honden – Teenage Boys from Ultra Eczema

Bill Orcutt: June 28, 2015 Trans-Pecos – FLAC/MP3/Streaming

July 6, 2015
By

Bill Orcutt

Bill Orcutt is unlike any guitarist I’ve ever heard. He manages to conjure something primal out of the instrument that defies any normal comprehension of music. It’s at once grating and beautiful and each time I see him play, I’m simply awestruck. I most recently caught Orcutt last week playing a Sunday night set at Trans-Pecos along with Tom Carter and 75 Dollar Bill. The first track I’ve left untitled, though it likely picks up on motifs and phrasing from recorded songs. The second is Orcutt’s rendition of Ornette Coleman’s “Lonely Woman” (thanks to @boxwalla for that). The third track is, as Orcutt calls it, a “cluster” of three songs you may know well but not like he plays them. My best guesses for those are all from his 2013 Editions Mego LP, A History of Every One: interpretations of “Black Betty,” “White Christmas,” and “Solidarity Forever” (though it’s entirely possible I’m wrong on each count).

I recorded this set with the AKGs at the stage lip and a soundboard feed from Trans-Pecos FOH Max. The mix leans mostly on the board feed as the guitar was miked directly. The guitar is loud and clear; the overall sound and performance are excellent.  Enjoy!

Bill Orcutt has a couple of upcoming releases. First is a collaboration with drummer Jacob Felix Heule called Colonial Donuts. It’s out October 16 on Orcutt’s own Palilalia Records. Second is a collaboration with Alan Bishop and Chris Corsano, recorded live by our very own acidjack and due out soon on Three Lobed Recordings’ Parallelogram Box Set.

Download the complete show: [MP3] | [FLAC]

Stream the complete show:

Note: All of the material on this site is offered with artist permission, free to fans, at our expense. The only thing we ask is that you download the material directly from this site, rather than re-posting the direct links or the files on other sites without our permission. Please respect our request.

Bill Orcutt
2015-06-28
Trans-Pecos
Queens, NY

Exclusive download hosted at nyctaper.com
Recorded and produced by Eric PH

Soundboard (engineer: Max) + AKG C480B/CK61 (stage lip) > Roland R-26 > 2xWAV (24/48) > Adobe Audition CC (align, balance, compression, mixdown) > Izotope Ozone 5 (EQ) > Audacity 2.0.5 (amplify, fades, downsample, dither, tracking, tagging) > FLAC (16/44.1, level 8)

Tracks [29:52]
01. Untitled
02. Lonely Woman [Ornette Coleman]
03. Untitled

Support Bill Orcutt: Facebook | Palilalia Records

Mission of Burma: June 26, 2015 The Bell House – FLAC/MP3/Streaming

June 28, 2015
By

Mission of Burma

It’s hard to believe that after a twenty-year hiatus, Mission of Burma have been back for thirteen years. Ever late to the party(y), I didn’t see the band live until 2009 at one of Jelly’s Pool Parties at the Williamsburg Waterfront. (Remember those!) Early the next year, I did my second Burma show right, traveling up to Boston to see them on their home turf at the Paradise. And I swear there’s an extra special energy in the air when they play that venue. Now, five years later I’ve just seen my sixth Burma show, though honestly it feels like my sixteenth. What keeps me coming back—besides always being a damn good time—is the setlists. Each time you get a slightly different picture of the band depending on song choices which appear to change nightly. Their most recent show from The Bell House covers nearly their entire career and looks forward as well with two new songs that have premiered within the last year: “Panic is No Option” and “Buzz My Soul.” The band also plays nearly all of Signals, Calls, and Marches, balanced with a few off their first full-length Vs., one each off of The Obliterati and The Sound, The Speed, The Light, and a few from last year’s Unsound. Add a couple of the post-Vs. 80’s songs (“He Is/She Is” and “Nu Disco”), plus the crowd favorite anthem, “Academy Fight Song,” and you’ve got a Burma gig for the ages.

I recorded this set with the AKGs clamped to the soundboard railing. The sound quality is excellent. Enjoy!

Special thanks to The Bell House team for being instrumental in making this recording happen.

Download the complete show at the Live Music Archive.

Stream the complete show:

Mission of Burma
2015-06-26
The Bell House
Brooklyn, NY

Recorded and produced by dynamicalories

AKG C480B/CK63 (FOB, ROC, PAS) > Roland R-26 > WAV (24/48) > Adobe Audition CC (balance) > Izotope Ozone 5 (EQ, exciter) > Audacity 2.0.5 (amplify, fades, downsample, dither, tracking, tagging) > FLAC (16/44.1, level 8)

Tracks [01:12:14]
01. Secrets
02. 2wice
03. Let Yourself Go
04. Panic is No Option
05. Buzz My Soul
06. Nu Disco
07. Mica
08. Outlaw
09. This is Hi-fi
10. Sectionals in Mourning
11. Feed
12. He Is/She Is
13. 7’s
14. This is Not a Photograph
15. Red
16. That’s How I Escaped My Certain Fate
17. [Encore Break/Tape Loops]
18. The Ballad of Johnny Burma
19. Academy Fight Song
20. All World Cowboy Romance

Support Mission of Burma: Website | Facebook | Buy records and merch through their online store

Daniel Bachman: May 24, 2015 Union Pool – FLAC/MP3/Streaming

June 16, 2015
By

Daniel Bachman

So far, 2015 has been a banner year for solo guitar records, with new releases from Daniel Bachman and Tashi Dorji plus the upcoming new Chuck Johnson record—just to name a few that I’m excited about. With the recently-released River, Daniel Bachman has somehow managed to out-do last year’s incredible Orange Co. Serenade. It’s no accident the North Carolina transplant has released those two records on a couple of the state’s most prestigious labels—River on Three Lobed and Orange Co. Serenade on Bathetic. (And indeed no accident that Chuck Johnson’s Crows in the Basilica came out on Three Lobed and Tashi Dorji’s Appa came out on Bathetic, to further the connection to like-minded guitarists and labels.)

Bachman headlined an incredible bill of solo folk guitarists at Union Pool a few weeks back—the show, organized by Jeff Conklin/Avant Ghetto, also featured North Carolina songstress Sarah Louise, L.A.’s Itasca (Kayla Cohen), and Belgium’s Ignatz (Bram Devens). Bachman’s set treats us to songs off both River and Orange Co. Serenade, including two covers: “Levee” by Jack Rose and “Old Country Rock” by William Moore, giving us a good idea of who he sees as his forebears. Bachman may be young among the crowd of solo guitarists, but already can be counted among the genre’s greats. I have no doubt we’ll be seeing more great things from him.

I recorded this set with the AKGs clamped to the balcony and a board feed from Union Pool FOH, Kevin. There’s a little bit of ambient noise from the crowd and bar here—including one very exuberant fan—but Bachman’s guitar is loud and crystal clear. Enjoy!

Thanks to Jeff for organizing the event and inviting us down to record it. Avant Ghetto will presenting another show full of guitar worship at Union Pool on August 2 with PG Six, Chuck Johnson, Alan Licht, and Anthony Pasquarosa.

Download the complete show: [MP3] | [FLAC]

Stream the complete show:

Note: All of the material on this site is offered with artist permission, free to fans, at our expense. The only thing we ask is that you download the material directly from this site, rather than re-posting the direct links or the files on other sites without our permission. Please respect our request.

Daniel Bachman
2015-05-24
Union Pool
Brooklyn, NY

Exclusive download hosted at nyctaper.com
Recorded and produced by Eric PH

Soundboard (engineer: Kevin) + AKG C480B/CK63 (FOB, LOC, PAS) > Roland R-26 > 2xWAV (24/48) > Adobe Audition CC (align, balance, compression, mixdown) > Izotope Ozone 5 (EQ) > Audacity 2.0.5 (amplify, fades, downsample, dither, tracking, tagging) > FLAC (16/44.1, level 8)

Tracks [45:34]
01. Won’t You Cross Over to That Other Shore
02. Levee [Jack Rose]
03. Sarah Anne
04. Orange Co. Serenade
05. Old Country Rock [William Moore]
06. Song For the Setting Sun II
07. Coming Home

Support Daniel Bachman: Website | Facebook | Buy River from Three Lobed | Buy Orange Co. Serenade from Bathetic

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