nyctaper Recordings

[photo by Matt]

This is another one of those recordings that sounds a lot better than we originally thought. The process of recording Sharon Van Etten is always subject to the room noise, and during this particular night at Pianos there was much — including what sounded like a reconstruction of the soundboard booth directly behind us. Fortunately, the directional microphones avoided a good amount of the noise so that this is definitely a very listenable capture. In terms of a review of the performance, we will defer to Matt from The Music Slut blog, who wrote an excellent piece on this Sharon show the day after the event. Read it [HERE].

Sharon Van Etten will perform quite a bit this month. Tomorrow night, she appears at Cake Shop with The Antlers and Pet Ghost Project. And on January 11, she will open the NYCTaper Presents show at Pianos with members of Camper Van Beethoven. Sharon will also perform this month at Zebulon, Glasslands, Secret Project Robot and Joe’s Pub. Complete information is at her MySpace page.

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

Sharon Van Etten
2008-12-08
Pianos
New York, NY USA

Digital Master Recording
Recorded from Front of Board
30 Feet from Stage

Neumann KM-150s (AK-50 Hypercardiod Capsules) > Monster XLR cables > Apogee Minime > digital coaxial > M-Audio Microtrack > 24bit 48kHz wav file > Soundforge 8.0 (set fades, slight level boost, resample 16/44) > CD Wave 1.95 > Flac Frontend (level 7, align sector boundaries) > flac

Recorded and Produced by
nyctaper
nyctaper@nyctaper.com
2009-01-01

Setlist:
[total time 43:15]
01 Consolation Prize
02 Strong (false start/tech problems)
03 Strong
04 I Fold
05 I Am Giving Up On You
06 Call It a Joke
07 You Didn’t Really Do That
08 Picking Up Rocks
09
10 I Wish I Knew
11 Damn Right

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, purchase one of her custom-made self-released CDs directly from her website, and purchase her new CD Because I Was In Love when it is released in 2009.

[ Best Friends Forever in Philly this summer: photo credit]

We became big fans of Best Friends Forever this year. We saw them live four times in 2008, including this opening set of the NYCTaper CMJ show. The band had three shows scheduled that day, but still agreed to do our show, for which we are eternally grateful. The downstairs of Cake Shop quickly filled for their 3:30 set and BFF delivered a burst of their energetic pop to start off the day. Expect to hear more from BFF in 2009, as they have gathered some major label interest.

This recording was a surprise holiday present. We were going through some old wav files, including the soundboard feed that we ran for this CMJ show — a recording we originally thought was unusable. Fortunately, while the rest of the downstairs sets have problems, the BFF set is actually quite well mixed soundboard recording and has very little of the peak distortion that plagues the others. Enjoy!

The nyctaper recordings of Best Friends Forever in August and at another CMJ show are [here] and [here].

Direct download of MP3 files (HERE)

Download the Complete show in FLAC [HERE].

Best Friends Forever
2008-10-23
NYCTaper CMJ Show
Cake Shop
New York, NY USA

Digital Soundboard Master Recording

Soundboard > Edirol UA-5 (Oade Digimod) > digital coaxial > M-Audio Microtrack > 16bit 44.1kHz wav > Soundforge 8.0 (level adjustments, set fades) > CD Wave > Flac Frontend (level 7, align sector boundaries) > flac

Recorded and Produced by nyctaper
2008-12-31

Setlist:
[Total time 18:42]
01 Eisenhower is the Father
02 HWF
03 Circus
04 Handpocket
05 Twins in Love
06 Disaster

If you email nyctaper for access to this recording, we expect that you will PLEASE SUPPORT Best Friends Forever, visit their MySpace page, and purchase their official releases at the Plan-It-X Records Website [HERE].

[photo by nyctaper]

As a lead up to their annual New Year’s run in NYC, Gov’t Mule offered their fans a pair of intimate semi-acoustic shows at the Orensanz Center — a beautiful renovated 150 year old former synagogue on Norfolk Street. On Sunday night, we were witness to an extraordinary display of multifaceted musicianship appropriate to the concert setting. Warren Haynes began the show with a series of solo acoustic numbers, as each band member joined gradually throughout the set. As the first set concluded, what had began as a mellow display evolved into full-fledged Mule music with a rocking “Kind of Bird”. The second set carried on in a similar vein, and featured classic blues, hard rock, and even a Nirvana cover (“All Apologies”). At the end of the evening, the crowd offered its respect for nearly three hours of outstanding music, as the closer “Goin’ Out West” was finished with the voices of “choir”.

Gov’t Mule will perform this evening and on New Year’s Eve at the much larger Hammerstein Ballroom — tickets are still available.

We recorded this set from directly in front of the soundboard on the floor, in the center aisle. The acoustics on the venue were outstanding in our location, as the hyper directional microphones avoided any of the echo or boom from the high ceilings and accentuated the warm feel of sound in the seated area. Enjoy this outstanding capture of a memorable evening!

The nyctaper recording of Govt Mule on December 28, 2007 is still available [here].

Direct download of MP3 files (HERE)

Download the Complete show in FLAC [HERE].

Govt Mule
2008-12-28
Angel Orensanz Center
New York, NY USA

Digital Audience Master Recording
Recorded from Front Corner of Sound Desk
Center Aisle, approximately 50 feet from the Stage

Neumann KM-150’s (AK-50 Hypercardiod Capsules) > Monster XLR Cables > Apogee Minime > digital coaxial > M-Audio Microtrack > 24bit 48kHz wav file > Soundforge (set fades, slight level adjustments, downsample) > CD Wave 1.95 (tracking) > Flac Frontend (level 7, align sector boundaries) > flac

Recorded and Produced by
nyctaper
2008-12-29

Setlist:
Set 1:
[total time 1:16:48]
01 Loves Open Door
02 The Real Thing
03 In My Life
04 Dolphineus
05 Painted Silver Light
06 Beautifully Broken
07 Patchwork Quilt
08 Wild Horses
09 One
10 Long Distance Call
11 So Weak, So Strong
12 Kind of Bird

Set 2:
[total time 1:17:57]
01 John The Revelator*
02 Change Is Gonna Come
03 Fallen Down
04 The Other One Jam
05 Drums
06 All Apologies
07 Endless Parade
08 You’ve Got to Hide Your Love Away
09 Soulshine
10 [encore break]
11 Hallelujah Boulevard
12 Goin’ Out West
*with one verse of When The Levee Breaks

If you email nyctaper for access to this recording, we expect that you will PLEASE SUPPORT Gov’t Mule, visit their website, and purchase the official releases and merch from the store at their website [HERE]. Purchase official live recordings at Mule Tracks [HERE].

At the second night of his Festival of Light shows, Matisyahu came bearing gifts — nearly two and half hours of music, a rock solid performance, and several key guests. We were particularly thankful for the appearance of guitar virtuoso Yosi Piamenta, who completely shredded in his two extended performances. The set featured several numbers from Matisyahu’s upcoming long-anticipated CD Light, due for release in early 2009. At the close of the show, each member of the band left the stage one by one during Yosi’s solo, leaving him the spotlight to finish the set. It was an appropriate respectful gesture that acknowledged his outstanding performance.

We recorded this set from inside the soundboard area on the floor. In what was perhaps the youngest, roudiest, drunkest and least attentive crowd within which we have ever recorded, the microphones could only filter so much of the crowd noise. Additionally, Matis’ microphone was saturated on numerous occasions. With those caveats, enjoy what should have been a much better recording.

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

Matisyahu
2008-12-22
Webster Hall
New York, NY USA

Digital Audience Master Recording
Recorded from Front of Soundboard Booth
Dead Center, approximately 50 feet from the PA

Neumann KM-150’s (AK-50 Hypercardiod Capsules) > Monster XLR Cables > Apogee Minime > digital coaxial > M-Audio Microtrack > 24bit 48kHz wav files > Soundforge (set fades, slight level adjustments, downsample) > CD Wave 1.95 (tracking) > Flac Frontend (level 7, align sector boundaries) > flac

Recorded and Produced by
nyctaper
2008-12-27

Setlist:
[Total Time 2:18:54]
01 Heights
02 Youth
03 Thunder
04 Jerusalem
05 Chop ‘Em Down
06 Close My Eyes*
07 So Hi So Lo
08 Beatbox
09 Altar Of Earth
10 We Will Walk
11 [menorah lighting]
12 King Without A Crown
13 [encore break]
14 Smash Lies
15 Struggla
16 Motivate*

*with Yosi Piamenta on guitar
Also with Oud player and other guests.

If you email nyctaper for access to this recording, we expect that you will PLEASE SUPPORT Matisyahu, visit his website, visit his MySpace page, and purchase the official releases from the store at his website [HERE].

[photo from Ira’s Hanukkah Diary]

At night seven of the Hanukkah celebration, Yo La Tengo displayed the most compelling characteristics of the band — their versatility and encyclopedic knowledge of popular music. As the band took the stage with an aggressive “Sugarcube”, the expectation was that the set would feature the rocking YLT. In a neat flip, the band followed the opener with 45 minutes of their most mellow music. The quiet set was accompanied by the outstanding contributions of David Mansfield on violin and pedal steel. As if a switch was hit, Yo La Tengo then completely changed gears for the second half of the set and raged through a noisy medley of their punk-tinged material, highlighted by a wild “Mushroom Cloud of Hiss”.

The encore set featured guest vocalist Willie Alexander, whose Boom Boom Band had opened the night. Following three thoroughly obscure garage rock numbers, the night closed with two familiar classics — the Boom Boom version of “You’ve Lost that Lovin’ Feeling” and a cringeworthy take on Lulu’s “To Sir With Love” with David Cross on vocals.

We recorded from the identical location as night two, and the quality is equally outstanding. Enjoy!

Direct download of MP3 files (HERE)

Download the Complete show in FLAC [HERE].

Yo La Tengo
2008-12-27
Maxwell’s
Hoboken, NJ USA

Digital Audience Master Recording
Recorded from Front Corner of Sound Desk
Dead Center, approximately 30 feet from the PA

Neumann KM-150’s (AK-50 Hypercardiod Capsules) > Monster XLR Cables > Apogee Minime > digital coaxial > M-Audio Microtrack > 24bit 48kHz wav file > Soundforge (set fades, slight level adjustments, downsample) > CD Wave 1.95 (tracking) > Flac Frontend (level 7, align sector boundaries) > flac

Recorded and Produced by
nyctaper
2007-12-28

Setlist:
[Total Time 1:46:08]
01 Sugarcube
02 Let’s Be Still
03 She May Call You Up Tonight (Left Banke)
04 Cone Of Silence
05 One PM Again
06 Pablo And Andrea
07 Griselda (Peter Stampfel)
08 The Crying of Lot G
09 I Feel Like Going Home
10 Nowhere Near
11 Off and Running (Mindbenders)
12 Barnaby, Hardly Working
13 Big Day Coming
14 Watch Out For Me, Ronnie
15 Mushroom Cloud of Hiss
16 [encore break]
17 Long Gone (false start)
18 Long Gone (The Customs)
19 Walk Away, Rene (Left Banke)
20 Maybe More Than You (The Lost)
21 You’ve Lost That Lovin’ Feeling
22 To Sir, With Love

02-15, 19-20 with David Mansfield (violin, pedal steel guitar, electric/acoustic guitar)
19-21 with Willie Alexander vocals
22 with David Cross vocals

If you email nyctaper for access to this recording, we expect that you will PLEASE SUPPORT Yo La Tengo, visit their website, visit their MySpace page, and purchase their official releases from the store at their website [HERE].

review by neild
On Wednesday, the fourth night of Yo La Tengo‘s Hanukkah celebration, the band performed an odd show — no special guests at all, just the usual trio for the entire set. What made it special was the setlist, which went deep into the band’s catalog to dig up such rarely heard gems as “Tiny Birds,” “Paul Is Dead,” “Upside Down,” and “Detouring America With Horns,” as well as covers of Sparks and the Velvet Underground, and exceptional versions of “Autumn Sweater” and “Blue Line Swinger.” There were technical problems all around – James’ bass was way too loud at first, one of Georgia’s drum mics was on the fritz, there was a steady stream of water drizzling onto the stage from a ceiling vent, and my recording setup generated some odd pops at random places – but all in all a very good YLT show, and a nice complement to some of the more star-studded nights of Hanukkah.

nyctaper: For the post-production on this recording, I boosted levels overall and more for the quieter numbers. With the loose cable static problem (“odd pops”), I could not fix the problem, so I just deleted the sections of noise, which were strategically placed outside the music except for two short sections of “Drug Test”. Overall though, another terrific job by neild.

Direct download of MP3 files (HERE)

Download the Complete show in FLAC [HERE].

Yo La Tengo
2008-12-24
Maxwell’s
Hoboken, NJ USA

Digital Audience Master Recording
Recorded from Front of Board

CoreSound Cardioids > MM-EBM-1 battery box (with bass roll-off) > Sony MZ-NH900 > Audiophile 2496 > Sound Studio > 16bit 44.1 wav > Soundforge (set fades, level boost, edit close clapping, edit loose cable clicks/ticks) > CDWave 1.95 (tracking) > Flac Frontend (level 7, align sector boundaries) > flac

Recorded by neild
Produced by nyctaper
2008-12-25

Setlist:
[Total Time 1:37:58]
01 Big Day Coming
02 Beanbag Chair
03 Pass the Hatchet, I Think I’m Goodkind
04 Drug Test
05 The Weakest Part
06 Mr. Tough
07 Tiny Birds
08 Paul Is Dead
09 Shadows
10 Angst In My Pants (Sparks)
11 Upside Down
12 Autumn Sweater
13 I Heard Her Call My Name (Velvets)
14 Blue Line Swinger
15 [encore break]
16 I Gotta Dream On (Herman’s Hermits)
17 Detouring America With Horns
18 Cherry Chapstick
19 Rock and Roll Santa (Jan Terri)

If you email nyctaper for access to this recording, we expect that you will PLEASE SUPPORT Yo La Tengo, visit their website, visit their MySpace page, and purchase their official releases from the store at their website [HERE].

[photo from Ira’s Hanukkah Diary]

If the third night of Yo La Tengo‘s annual Hanukkah celebration at Maxwell’s did not have the big name guests as in previous nights and years, our hosts more than made up for the deficit with a smoking ninety-minute set that alternated between quiet lithe numbers and absolute shredding. Yo La Tengo were joined for the entire set by the superb guitarist Smokey Hormel. His contributions to the set were tasty and appropriate. The highlights of the set (there were many) include the Dylan cover of “I Wanna Be Your Lover”, Neil Diamond’s (via the Monkees) classic “A Little Bit Me, A Little Bit You” and the closer — a fourteen minute maniacal version of “I Heard You Looking”.

The sound quality in the venue was mixed to perfection. We recorded from the prime location in this venue, and the quality of this recording is really excellent. We could not be happier with this capture. Enjoy!

News: We learned last night that Antietam will open for YLT at the December 25th show, and that the actor Tim Roth will also appear (for a spoken word piece) later in the week — likely on Saturday December 27. We will return to record on Saturday.

Direct download of MP3 files (HERE)

Download the Complete show in FLAC [HERE].

Yo La Tengo
2008-12-23
Maxwell’s
Hoboken, NJ USA

Digital Audience Master Recording
Recorded from Front Corner of Sound Desk
Dead Center, approximately 30 feet from the PA

Neumann KM-150’s (AK-50 Hypercardiod Capsules) > Monster XLR Cables > Apogee Minime > digital coaxial > M-Audio Microtrack > 24bit 48kHz wav file > Soundforge (set fades, slight level adjustments, downsample) > CD Wave 1.95 (tracking) > Flac Frontend (level 7, align sector boundaries) > flac

Recorded and Produced by
nyctaper
2008-12-24

Setlist:
[Total Time 1:31:35]
01 Old Joy
02 We’re An American Band
03 Little Eyes
04 I Wanna Be Your Lover (Dylan)
05 A Little Bit Me, A Little Bit You (Monkees)
06 The Race Is On Again
07 Damage
08 Can’t Forget
09 Don’t Say A Word
10 Our Way To Fall
11 Out The Window
12 Styles Of The Times
13 Tom Courtenay
14 I Heard You Looking
15 [encore break]
16 Stay With Me (The Dictators)
17 Center of Gravity

If you email nyctaper for access to this recording, we expect that you will PLEASE SUPPORT Yo La Tengo, visit their website, visit their MySpace page, and purchase their official releases from the store at their website [HERE].

[photo courtesy of Diana.Wong]

Last night at Music Hall of Williamsburg, we decided to get among the crazy throngs on the floor at the Of Montreal show. While it was certainly comfortable up in the balcony at Roseland, we must admit to a bit of envy when the crowd on the floor erupted in unison at various points of the amazing Of Montreal show in October. The Brooklyn crowd did not let us down — bumping and dancing throughout the first half of the two-hour show. As the twenty-seven song set worked into its second hour, the floor began to empty a bit, so that by the set-closing “Kongsvinger”, all that remained were the diehards, most of whom by then were covered in red paint. As in October, we were treated to a cover song as the show-closing number, this time the more sedate Tom Petty classic “American Girl”. In terms of the stage show, this was a bit of a scaled-down affair (no horse or hanging), but the ninja crew were very active and Kevin still made countless costume changes.

As we recorded with our mobile unit from the floor, this recording has an “authentic” in-the-crowd feel to it. Additionally, the sound in the venue was at times saturated and muddy. With those caveats, we are nevertheless pleased with the results. Enjoy!

Direct download of MP3 files (HERE)

Download the Complete show in FLAC [HERE].

Of Montreal
2008-12-16
Music Hall of Williamsburg
Brooklyn, NY USA

Digital Master Recording
Recorded from FOB
Dead Center 30 Feet from PA

DPA 4021’s > Marantz PMD-660 (Oade BCM) > 16bit 44.1 wav > Soundforge (set fades, level boost, slight eq) > CDWave 1.95 (tracking) > Flac Frontend (level 7, align sector boundaries) > flac

Recorded and Produced by nyctaper
2008-12-17

Setlist:
[Total Time 1:53:07]
01 Introduction
02 Id Engager
03 So Begins Our Alabee
04 Triphallus, To Punctuate!
05 She’s a Rejecter
06 For Our Elegant Caste
07 Touched Something’s Hollow
08 An Eluardian Instance
09 Heimdalsgate Like a Promethean Curse
10 Gallery Piece
11 Wraith Pinned To The Mist (And Other Games)
12 Women’s Studies Victims
13 St. Exquisite Confessions
14 Eros’ Entropic Tundra
15 [interlude – carrots]
16 Nonpareil Of Favor
17 October is Eternal
18 Wicked Wisdom
19 Bunny Ain’t No Kind Of Rider
20 Knight Rider
21 And I’ve Seen A Bloody Shadow
22 Plastis Wafers
23 Beware Our Nubile Miscreants
24 Mingusings
25 All Na Wayo
26 A Sentence Of Sorts In Kongsvinger
27 [encore break]
28 Gronlandic Edit
29 Oslo In The Summertime
30 American Girl (Tom Petty)

If you email nyctaper for access to this recording, we expect that you will PLEASE SUPPORT Of Montreal, visit their website, visit their MySpace page, and purchase their new CD Skeletal Lamping at the Polyvinyl website [HERE].

[photo courtesy of Merry Swankster blog]

A year ago we were both excited and impressed by Pylon’s performance at Mercury Lounge. Last night, the Athens legends returned to NYC and performed a looser but equally impressive set. Pylon have performed only a few times this year, but retain their signature sound, quirky energy, and most importantly a unique sense of rhythm. The Knitting Factory offered the band a more intimate setting, and with the crowd consisting of mostly WNYU deejays young and old — a crowd of knowledgeable and attentive fans — Pylon thrived on the vibe.

We recorded from the center riser of the balcony, and as the house board was mixed by Pylon’s veteran local sound tech, the mix in the room was superb. We are very pleased with the sound quality of this recording. Enjoy!

Direct download of MP3 files (HERE)

Download the Complete show in FLAC [HERE].

Pylon
2008-12-15
Knitting Factory
New York, NY USA

Digital Master Audience Recording
Recorded from Balcony Riser – Dead Center

Neumann KM-150’s (AK-50 Hypercardiod Capsules) > Monster XLR Cables > Apogee Minime > digital coaxial > M-Audio Microtrack > 24bit 48kHz wav file > Soundforge (set fades, downsample 16/44, slight level boost) > CD Wave 1.95 (tracking) > Flac Frontend (level 7, align sector boundaries) > flac

Recorded and Produced
by nyctaper
2008-12-15

Setlist:
[Total Time 1:06:35]
01 Cool
02 Dub
03 K
04 No Clocks
05 Weather
06 The Human Body
07 Gravity
08 Danger
09 3×3
10 Working is No Problem
11 Volume
12 Sugarpop
13 Crazy
14 Beep
15 Feast On My Heart
16 [encore break]
17 M Train
18 Stop It

If you email nyctaper for access to this recording, we expect that you will PLEASE SUPPORT Pylon, visit their website, visit their MySpace page, and purchase their official releases and merch from the links at their MySpace page and from the Athens Music site [HERE].