nyctaper Recordings

[photo by kittykowalski]

After more than a decade of inactivity, in 2008 That Petrol Emotion returned to live performance with several Festival appearances. In 2009, the band continued their return and played their first NYC show in fifteen years at the Bell House in December. While the fifteen-song setlist consisted primarily of material from their final two albums, Chemicrazy and Fireproof, TPE did reach back for two numbers from their 1986 debut Manic Pop Thrill. The performance was remarkable not only for the tight musical play, but also the energy the band brought to the stage — lead singer Steve Mack in particular exhibited the physical energy of a man half his age. The set closed with a manic version of “Scumsurfin'” which the band stretched out to an intense seven minutes.

This set was recorded with a soundboard feed mixed with the Neumann microphones from our usual location in this venue. The sound quality is quite good. Enjoy!

Direct download of MP3 files (HERE)

Download the Complete show in FLAC [HERE].

That Petrol Emotion
2009-12-12
Bell House
Brooklyn, NY USA

Digital Master Recording
Soundboard + Audience Matrix

Soundboard + Neumann KM-150s > Edirol R-44 (Oade Concert Mod) > 2 x 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
2009-12-31

Setlist:
[Total Time 1:14:33]
01 [introduction]
02 Blue to Black
03 Last of the True Believers
04 Gnaw Mark
05 Big Decision
06 [banter]
07 Its A Good Thing
08 Catch A Fire
09 Tingle
10 Hey Venus
11 Infinite Thrill
12 Sensitize
13 Lifeblood
14 Abandon
15 Too Late Blues
16 [encore break]
17 Mouth Crazy
18 [banter]
19 Scumsurfin’

If you email nyctaper for access to this recording, we expect that you will PLEASE SUPPORT That Petrol Emotion, visit their website, and purchase their official releases from links at the music link at their website [here].

[still from this video]

Acidjack Reports:
“After bursting onto the scene in 2004 with their first full-length, Now Here is Nowhere, things quieted down somewhat for The Secret Machines in the latter part of the aughts, with their stellar-but-underappreciated Ten Silver Drops failing to garner the critical attention of their first record. In 2007, guitarist Benjamin Curtis left the band to focus full-time on his new project, School of Seven Bells. Since Curtis’ departure, TSM have carried on, bringing on new guitarist Phil Karnats and releasing their self-titled album Secret Machines in 2008, which they have been touring on ever since.

This night at the Knitting Factory found the band responding to another kind of personnel change – due to heavy snow in the Midwest, Karnats could not make his flight to the gig. Drummer Josh Garza and vocalist/bassist Brandon Curtis responded by giving fans an hour-long set of TSM songs with Curtis playing guitar and singing backed only by Garza’s on the kit. Several songs such as the epic “First Wave Intact” were reworked to the new two-man format, and the band performed an even-more extended version of “The Fire Is Waiting” from their latest record. Ultimately, the two-man setup accentuated how huge this band can sound with only a handful of members; even stripped back from an already-scant three band members to two, TSM’s music carries the room-filling weight of a five-piece, thanks in no small part to Garza’s intensity on the drums.

I recorded this set from a raised pole clamped to the center of the soundboard cage. Some post-production was done to raise the volume level of the vocals, which are still a bit low in the mix due to the house sound and the enormity of the drum sound. There is also a bit of distracting crowd chatter during the two quieter songs.

Thanks to The Secret Machines and the Knitting Factory for permitting this recording. Enjoy!”

This recording is now available as a direct download in FLAC or MP3 at Archive.org [HERE].

Secret Machines
2009-12-23
Knitting Factory
Brooklyn, NY

An ACIDJACK master recording

Recorded and produced by acidjack
Hosted by nyctaper

Equipment: DPA 4021>Marantz PMD660 (Oade Concert Mod)
Position: Clamp to SBD cage, center, 9′ pole
Mastering: 16bit/44.1kHz WAV>Audacity (set fades, slight EQ, tracking, amplify each channel)>FLAC ( level 8 )

Vocals: Brandon Curtis (and guitar)
Drums: Josh Garza

Tracks
01 Dreaming of Dreaming
02 Terrible Light
03 Atomic Heels
04 The Fire is Waiting
05 I Never Thought To Ask
06 The Leaves Are Gone
07 Like I Can
08 First Wave Intact
09 The Road Leads Where It’s Led

If you email nyctaper for access to this recording, we expect that you will PLEASE SUPPORT The Secret Machines, visit their website, visit their MySpace page, and purchase the latest TSM self-released CD by visiting the links at their website [here].

[photo by nyctaper]

Larkin Grimm is the subject of one of my favorite artist descriptions. Michael Gira, founder of The Swans, and with whose Young God Records Larkin is signed, described her as follows: “Larkin is a magic woman. She lives in the mountains in north Georgia. She collects bones, smooth stones, & she casts spells. She worships the moon. She is very beautiful, & her voice is like the passionate cry of a beast heard echoing across the mountains just after a tremendous thunder storm, when the air is alive with electricity. I don’t consider her folk though – she is pre folk, even pre- music. She is the sound of the eternal mother & the wrath of all women. She wears jewels, glitter, & glistening insects in her hair.”

Last night at Knitting Factory, Larkin was just a singer, albeit a special one. The Sunday night crowd was larger than expected for an early post-holiday off-night, and Larkin entertained us with stories and songs anchored by her deeply rich voice. The band included the legendary producer Tony Visconti (Bowie, TRex, Morrissey) on bass guitar. Larkin performed primarily new songs, and just one number from her most recent release Parplar.

We recorded this set with the four-microphone rig set up directly in front of the soundboard, and other than some venue sounds during quieter moments of the recording, the sound quality is quite excellent. Enjoy!

Direct download of MP3 files (HERE)

Download the Complete show in FLAC [HERE].

Larkin Grimm
2009-12-27
Knitting Factory
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
2009-12-28

Setlist:
[Total Time 46:08]
01 [introduction]
02 Paradise
03 Blond and Golden Johns
04 [banter]
05 Pool of Milk
06 [tuning/banter]
07 Paved With Leaves
08 [tuning/intro]
09 Flash and Thunder
10 [banter]
11 The Butcher
12 Dirty Mind
13 The Burglar
14 [outro/band]

If you email nyctaper for access to this recording, we expect that you will PLEASE SUPPORT Larkin Grimm, visit her website, visit her MySpace page, and purchase her latest CD Parplar directly from the Young God Records website [here].

[photos taken for nyctaper by Kate Ehle – more here]

In her set opening for the Antlers at Bowery Ballroom, Sharon Van Etten exhibited her playful side. As she becomes more comfortable playing before larger crowds, Sharon has allowed her charming personality to amplify the quality of her songs. At Bowery, the fan gift of a tiny paper crane became the object of a wonderful performer-audience interplay that Sharon then incorporated into her terrific brand new song “Heart in the Ground”.

This set was recorded from the same location as the Antlers and Uninhabitable Mansions sets and the sound quality is excellent. Enjoy!

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

Sharon Van Etten
2009-12-15
Bowery Ballroom
New York, NY USA

Four-Track Digital Master Recording
Recorded Behind 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 by nyctaper and acidjack
Produced by nyctaper
2009-12-26

Setlist:
[Total Time 35:30]
01 Give Out
02 Much More Than That
03 Oooh Love (Blaze Foley)
04 Consolation Prize
05 [banter – paper crane]
06 Heart in the Ground
07 Call It A Joke
08 [new song]

If you email nyctaper for access to this recording, we expect that you will PLEASE SUPPORT Sharon Van Etten, visit her website, visit her MySpace page, and purchase her new CD Because I Was In Love from InSound [here] or Amazon [here] or directly from the Language of Stone website [here].

[photo courtesy of Jessica Amaya and Stereogum]

Twice in a two-week period this Fall, we saw Crystal Stilts in two very varied venues. On Halloween, the band was part of an excellent bill at 171 Lombardy co-produced by ToddP and Sacred Bones Records that included the psychedelic sludge of Wooden Ships in a classic Todd-style DIY venue. Two Saturdays later, Crystal Stilts was the final band in the marathon Slumberland Records anniversary show at the excellent Bell House. Three of the bands members backed Amy Linton’s return to performance, and then Stilts began their set at 2 a.m. and worked through thirty minutes of their deeply reverbed psych-garage before all parties collapsed in exhaustion.

We recorded both of these set with a soundboard feed mixed together with the Neumann room microphones. The Bell House is a better recording in large part because of the superior sound system (beware of track 02 on the Halloween recording), but both shows are excellent listening experiences. Enjoy!

Direct download of Halloween MP3 files (HERE) and Bell House (HERE).

Download the Complete shows in FLAC: [Halloween] / [Bell House].

Crystal Stilts
2009-10-31
171 Lombardy
Brooklyn, NY USA

Digital Master Recording
Soundboard + Audience Matrix

Soundboard + Neumann KM-150s > 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
2009-12-24

Setlist:
[Total Time 30:26]
01 12 String
02
03 Black Hole
04 Seeds
05
06 For The Love Of Ivy (Gun Club)
07 Love Is A Wave
08 New Grave

************

Crystal Stilts
2009-11-14
Slumberland Records 20th Anniversary Concert
Bell House
Brooklyn, NY USA

Digital Master Recording
Soundboard + Audience Matrix

Soundboard + Neumann KM-150s > Edirol R-44 (Oade Concert Mod) > 2 x 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
2009-12-24

Setlist:
[Total Time 27:22]
01 Love Is A Wave
02 [tuning – banter]
03 Black Hole
04 Shattered Shine
05 Seeds
06 Prismatic Room
07 New Grave
08 Through the Floor

If you email nyctaper for access to this recording, we expect that you will PLEASE SUPPORT Crystal Stilts, visit their MySpace page, and purchase their latest album Alight of Night and other releases directly from Slumberland Records [HERE].

[photos taken for nyctaper by Kate Ehle – more here]

At Bowery last Saturday, the Brooklyn art and music collective Uninhabitable Mansions opened for the Antlers and provided the packed house with abundance of talent and songcraft. Drawing members from the bands Au Revoir Simone, Clap Your Hands and Say Yeah, and the late lamented Dirty on Purpose, UM performed a thirty-five minute set of material from their excellent new release Nature Is A Taker. The songs combine elements of indie-pop and shoegaze and highlight the vocal harmonies of Annie Hart and Robbie Guertin, while focusing on the interplay between melodic guitar lines, keyboards and Doug Marvin’s driving drums.

We recorded this set from the same location and with the same equipment as the Antlers recording, and the sound quality is quite excellent. Enjoy!

Direct download of MP3 files (HERE)

Download the Complete show in FLAC [HERE].

Uninhabitable Mansions
2009-12-15
Bowery Ballroom
New York, NY USA

Four-Track Digital Master Recording
Recorded Behind 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 by nyctaper and acidjack
Produced by nyctaper
2009-12-22

Setlist:
[Total Time 35:34]
01 [introduction]
02 The Speed Is Deceiving
03 This Drift
04 [banter]
05 Static State
06 The Brain Is a Slow Wave
07 Big Kick
08 Ex-Explorers
09 We Already Know
10 Do You Have A Strategy?

If you email nyctaper for access to this recording, we expect that you will PLEASE SUPPORT Uninhabitable Mansions, visit their website, visit their MySpace page, and purchase their releases from the Shop at their website [HERE].

[photo courtesy of SPFlannigan]

Acidjack reports:
“Although the NYCTaper team was on hand at Cameo Gallery last Thursday night, Grandchildren was not originally the focus of the evening. In fact, the Philly-based band had slipped under our radar completely- which was our mistake. Sandwiched in the middle of a bill that featured avant-garde instrumentalists Dangeroo, the ethereal vocalist Julianna Barwick, our hosts Dinosaur Feathers, and the mighty Pterodactyl (all of whose sets are or will be made available here), Grandchildren still stood out among extremely eclectic New York-based bill.

The spare, pseudo-“speakeasy” Cameo Gallery, with its high ceilings and minimal HVAC system, did little to keep out the December cold, and most of the audience stayed bundled up throughout the various sets. That didn’t stop the crowd from responding to Grandchildren and their multi-instrumental approach. With multiple percussionists, keyboards, horns, guitars, bass and vocals, Grandchildren’s sound is large and expansive. With lengthy instrumental stretches with complex, often propulsive percussion and arrangements, as well as the folk-influenced vocal style popular in many quarters these days, Grandchildren sound a little bit like several different bands, but cannot be shoe-horned into any current subgenre. Compared to their current full-length, the excellent Quilts, and their newly-released Cold Warrior EP (from which several of the night’s songs were drawn) the band’s live presentation is wilder and more exuberant. When you share a room with Grandchildren, you quickly understand how accomplished and passionate the artists in this band are. Of the many bands I have had the chance to record and to see this year, Grandchildren were one of the most impressive, and one of the most delightful surprises.

I recorded this and the other sets with the DPA 4021 microphones set up on a stand slightly to the left side of the room in the band, with the microphones about 10 feet up. According to the members of Grandchildren, this is the best recording of them yet!

Thanks to Dinosaur Feathers for inviting and hosting NYCTaper, and to Grandchildren for permitting us to post this recording. Enjoy! ”

Direct download of Grandchildren MP3 files (HERE)

MP3 files of the Julianna Barwick, Dangeroo and Pterodactyl sets are available here [link], here [link] and here [link]. The Dinosaur Feathers set will be a featured download on the site in the next few days.

Download the Complete Grandchildren set in FLAC [HERE].

Grandchildren
2009-12-17
Cameo Gallery
Brooklyn, NY USA

An ACIDJACK master recording

Recorded and produced by acidjack
Hosted at nyctaper.com

Equipment: DPA 4021>Marantz PMD660 (Oade Concert Mod) (16/44.1)
Position: Slightly LOC, stand at 11′, DIN
Mastering: 16/44.1kHz WAV>Audacity (tracking, smooth peaks, amplify each channel, set fades)>FLAC ( level 8 )

I apologize in advance for any tracking errors. Many songs flowed seamlessly and it was at times difficult to discern song breaks.

Setlist:
01 Cold Warrior
02 [crowd]
03 Winterlude
04 Heartbreaker
05 Saturn Returns
06 OK I’m Waiting
07 When You’re Not Looking
08 Anthill
09 Toss and Turn

If you email nyctaper for access to this recording, we expect that you will PLEASE SUPPORT Grandchildren, visit their MySpace page, and purchase their EP when it is released by Green Owl Records [HERE].

[photo by nyctaper]

On the Saturday night of the Great Blizzard of 2009, Grant Hart performed before a fairly modest crowd at the 92Y Tribeca. Ever gregarious, Grant chatted with the diehards before, during and after the show. His inspired set drew equally from the three phases of his career, with seven Husker Du numbers scattered among a twenty-one song set that also included Nova Mob and solo material. Grant is currently on tour in support of his latest album Hot Wax. Grant Hart returns to NYC next month for gigs at Cake Shop on January 14, Knitting Factory on January 15, and also an as yet unconfirmed date at either Bell House or Union Hall.

We recorded this set with a soundboard feed supplemented with the Neumann microphones mounted fifteen feet from the stage. The sound quality is superb. Enjoy!

Direct download of MP3 files (HERE)

Download the Complete show in FLAC [HERE].

Grant Hart
2009-12-19
92Y Tribeca
New York, NY USA

Digital Master Recording
Soundboard + Audience Matrix

Soundboard + Neumann KM-150s > 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
2009-12-20

Setlist:
[Total Time 1:16:38]
01 You’re the Reflection of the Moon on the Water
02 [banter]
03 Please Don’t Ask
04 Little Miss Information
05 [banter]
06 Don’t Want to Know If You Are Lonely
07 No One Cares for Me
08 Remains To Be Seen
09 Books About UFOs
10 Narcissus Narcissus
11 [banter]
12 Barbara
13 Green Eyes
14 California Zephyr
15 2541
16 Terms of Psychic Warfare
17 [banter]
18 [new song]
19 Turn on the News
20 The Girl Who Lives on Heaven Hill
21 My Regrets
22 Admiral of the Sea
23 The Last Days of Pompeii
24 [encore break]
25 Pink Turns to Blue
26 Shoot Your Way To Freedom

If you email nyctaper for access to this recording, we expect that you will PLEASE SUPPORT Grant Hart, visit his website, and purchase his new album Hot Wax from the links at his website [HERE].

[photo courtesy of Jeremy Arambulo]

Acidjack reports:
“JEFF the Brotherhood (yes, that is the proper capitalization) is a throwback to the nights when you rode around in your buddy’s Camaro, getting mellow on that patented combination of High Life and bong hits, listening to a brand of rock and roll that didn’t pretend to be more than it was – the soundtrack to a good time. As artrocker.com put it, “if Queens of the Stone Age were cooler, less annoyingly precise and more punk rock then they’d probably sound like The Brotherhood. There are monstrous riffs, gnarly solos, metal fuzz, sing along choruses. And then there’s PIL style atonal tunery and Misfits mosh parts.”

Opening for Ted Leo and the Pharmacists on a Sunday night is probably not the ideal way to experience JtB, a Nashville two piece that executes the well-received two-man-party-jam formula with great success. These are Friday night songs, and indeed, JtB rocked the house as if that were the case. From the Sabbath-inspired chords of “Mind Ride” straight through, JtB’s set was light on filler, heavy on fun and inflected with a sense of humor that is sometimes missing from bands on the NYC scene. Don’t miss them the next time they come through. No Camaro required.”

This set was recorded under the same circumstances as the Ted Leo recording and the sound quality is excellent. Enjoy!

Direct download of MP3 files (HERE)

Download the Complete show in FLAC [HERE].

JEFF the Brotherhood
2009-12-06
Bowery Ballroom
New York, NY USA

An ACIDJACK master recording

Recorded and produced by acidjack
Hosted at nyctaper.com

Equipment: DPA 4021>Marantz PMD660 (16/44.1)
Position: Clamp to left side of soundboard, 8′ height, DIN
Mastering: 16/44.1kHz WAV>Audacity (set fades, tracking, amplify each channel)>FLAC ( level 8 )

Tracks (some setlist help needed)
01 Mind Ride
02 U Got the Look
03 Heavy Damage
04 crowd
05
06 Bone Jam
07 Dreamscape
08 crowd
09
10
11

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 Tim Griffin – posted originally at brooklynvegan]

Fanfarlo play NYC again tomorrow night, December 18 at Webster Hall. Tickets are still available.

On the opening night of CMJ 2009, Fanfarlo headlined the Brooklynvegan CMJ show at Music Hall to a packed house. Earlier in the day, we literally struggled with the crowd to get into the main room of Pianos to see Fanfarlo at the Music Slut party. On the heels of their outstanding debut album Reservoir, Fanfarlo quickly became a worthy CMJ “buzz band”. Their music combines traditional folk instruments (violin, mandolin, accordian) with indie-pop and adds a lead trumpet to attain a fairly unique mix of styles. The band members hail from England, Sweden and Belgium. The set from this particular show focused primarily on the album material, and closed the set with an excellent verion of the early single “The Few Outsiders”.

We recorded this set in the same location and with the same equipment as the Antlers recording from the same night, but this set contains more audience chatter. With that caveat, enjoy!

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

Fanfarlo
2009-10-20
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

Premiere Download offered at
http://www.nyctaper.com
[email protected]

Recorded and Produced
by nyctaper
2009-12-17

Setlist:
[Total Time 48:30]
01 Drowning Men
02 I’m A Pilot
03 [banter]
04 Finish Line
05 Harold T. Wilkins
06 [new song]
07 The Walls Are Coming Down
08 Comets
09 Luna
10 [encore break]
11 Ghosts
12 You Are One Of The Few Outsiders Who Really Understands Us

If you email nyctaper for access to this recording, we expect that you will PLEASE SUPPORT Fanfarlo, visit their website, and purchase Reservoir directly from Store at their website [HERE].