Fergus & Geronimo: February 23, 2011 285 Kent – Flac and MP3 Downloads + Streaming Song

March 7, 2011
By


[concert poster by Olivia Hu]

They hail from Denton, Texas and their label is based in Seattle, but on Wednesday last, Fergus & Geronimo seemed perfectly at home in a DIY warehouse in Brooklyn. Their eclectic and multi-influenced album Unlearn (Hardly Art) comprised about half their set, but the songs took a decidedly more garage-rock sound in the live setting. This was appropriate, considering that they anchored a five-band late night set at a classic ToddP event. Fergus & Geronimo are currently tour out West, but will play a handful of shows at SXSW before returning to the East coast. They will appear at Death By Audio on April 2.

I recorded this set with with hypercardioid Neumann microphones mixed with a feed from the board. The sound in the warehouse was quite boomy and the board feed was vocal heavy, but the overall mix provides a fine listening experience. Enjoy!

Stream “Never Satisfied”:

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Direct download of complete show in MP3 files (HERE)

Download the Complete show in FLAC [HERE].

Fergus & Geronimo
2011-02-23
285 Kent
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
2011-02-28

Setlist:
[Total Time 31:55]
01 World Never Stops
02 [banter]
03 Blind Muslim Girl
04 Girl U Want (Devo)
05 [banter2]
06 Where The Walls Are Made of Grass
07 [banter3]
08 Wanna Know What I Would Do
09 [banter4]
10 Baby Don’t You Cry
11 Girls With English Accents
12 Never Satisfied

If you email nyctaper for access to this recording, we expect that you will PLEASE SUPPORT Fergus & Geronimo, visit their website, and purchase Unlearn from the Hardly Art Records website [HERE].

Mr. Dream: March 4, 2011 Glasslands – FLAC and MP3 Downloads + Streaming Songs

March 7, 2011
By


[Photo by Johnny Fried Chicken Boy and acidjack]

The Brooklyn band Mr. Dream gives the lie to the adage about writers, and critics in particular: That those who cannot actually do something become critics instead. In Mr. Dream’s particular case, the former Pitchfork writers Nick Sylvester and Adam Moerder joined with bassist Matt Morello to make the kind of rock music that made them become critics in the first place. Which is to say, rock music from the days when independent rock music wasn’t just the go-to tuneage for car commercials – when it was more often brash, loud, angular – and let’s be honest, had some fucking balls.

This show at Glasslands (and presented by PopGun Booking, who have been putting up one killer lineup after another at the venue recently) celebrated the release of the band’s first full-length, the 33-minute adrenaline burst Trash Hit. The record’s most evident influences are a who’s-who of critical favorites – early Pixies, Nirvana, Shellac, Fugazi, and a decent-sized portion of the SST canon. Stylistically, Mr. Dream’s songs embrace empty air in the manner most often associated with the legendary engineer Steve Albini – with each instrument clearly separated and clear, giving the music a dry, spare, propulsive quality. Joined by current Pitchfork contributor Matt LeMay (who produced three of the songs on Trash Hit) to bolster their guitar assault, the band hurtled through a half-hour of mostly Trash Hit songs whose intensity never flagged. The first notes of “Knuckle Sandwich” kicked in before the house music had even been turned off, and the show was balls-out from there. The musical erudition of the players shows through in their songs, which wear their influences well without being overwhelmed by them; the title track, “Trash Hit”, for example, could have held its own with the Pixies in their Surfer Rosa days. By the time they left the stage after “Unfinished Business,” Mr. Dream didn’t need an encore – they had cemented themselves as yet another band to watch in 2011. The band will be joining Sleigh Bells and CSS for their East Coast tour, with dates in DC, Philly and Boston, and a May 11 show at Webster Hall in NYC (tickets here).

I recorded this set with the DPA microphones mounted on the balcony, combined with an outstanding house mix from the Glasslands engineers. The quality is outstanding. Enjoy!

Stream “Trash Hit”:

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Stream “Unfinished Business”:

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Direct download of MP3 files [HERE]

Download the Complete Show in FLAC [HERE].

Mr. Dream
2011-03-04
Glasslands
Brooklyn, NY USA

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

Equipment: DPA 4021+Soundboard>Edirol R-44 [Oade Concert Mod]
Position: ROC, balcony, ~ORTF
Mastering: 2x24bit/48kHz WAV>Audacity (guitar-enhancing compression on soundboard track, smooth peaks, mixdown, adjust levels, smooth peaks, amplify and balance, downsample)>FLAC ( level 8 )

Tracks [Total Time 30:20]
01 Knuckle Sandwich
02 Crime
03 Scarred For Life
04 Holy Name
05 Trash Hit
06 [banter]
07 Winners
08 Knick Knack
09 Croquet
10 King Klutz
11 [banter]
12 Unfinished Business

If you download this recording from NYCTaper, we expect that you will PLEASE SUPPORT Mr. Dream, visit their MySpace page, and purchase Trash Hit from Amazon or your favorite record store.

Tennis: March 2, 2011 Bowery Ballroom – FLAC and MP3 Downloads + Streaming Songs

March 4, 2011
By


[Photos courtesy of Geoffrey Dicker for According to G]

Just eight months into its existence, Tennis is a success story. Many bands toil in obscurity for years hoping to break it big (in the NYC scene at least) by headlining Bowery Ballroom; Tennis have already accomplished that feat with a full-on sellout as the icing. This unlikely story of a band born out of husband and wife Patrick Riley and Alaina Moore taking a seven-month sailing trip down the Atlantic coast, and deciding to turn it into a record, has resonated big-time in the indie world. People are paying attention undoubtedly because the nautical, retro conceit of their debut album, Cape Dory, is so unusual, but the band has got the songs to keep people interested. The band’s breezy sound, equal parts girl group and surf rock, is easy to like, an effortless-sounding sort of country club indiepop that the kids can get into, but is probably safe for the parents, too.

Tennis’ live performance is confident and unselfconscious as well (one advantage of being in a band with your spouse, perhaps). Moore introduced many songs by name, some with a bit of charming backstory. Of the new song, “Robin”: “Patrick doesn’t like me to say what it’s about – it’s too cute-seeming – but it’s about a baby bird that we saved last month.” Like the hilariously retro album cover for Cape Dory (Moore in a tight aqua jumpsuit with the band’s name etched in a hair metal font above her), Tennis are nothing if not cute. Although the show was notably brief at almost exactly 42 minutes, the band packed in a lot of music, including their signature number “Marathon” featuring Katy Goodman, lately of the excellent La Sera (whose opening set was also recorded and to be posted soon) and more famously of the Vivian Girls, and Molly Hamilton of the stellar new band Widowspeak on backing vocals. With spring and summer approaching, Tennis should be a fixture on indie fans’ playlists for the next few seasons (and of course, should be a staple on any sailing trips they may be taking).

I recorded this set from our usual spot in the venue with a combination of the Microtech-Gefell hypercardioid microphones and DPA omnidirectional microphones for room ambiance. Although there is some audible buzzing from the PA between songs (caused by the band’s instruments) the sound is crystal clear and a great listen. Enjoy!

Stream “South Carolina”:

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Stream “Marathon”:

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Direct download of MP3 files [HERE]

Download the Complete show in FLAC [HERE].

Tennis
2011-03-02
Bowery Ballroom
New York, NY USA

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

Equipment: Microtech-Gefell M210+DPA 4061>Edirol R-44 [Oade Concert Mod] (24/48)
Position: LOC, at soundboard, mics on extension arm at eye level with sound staff, 210s pointed at stacks, 4061s mounted on a 1.5ft split
Mastering: 2x24bit/48kHz WAV>Audacity (mixdown, downsample, set fades, limit peaks, amplify and balance)>FLAC ( level 8 )

Tracks [Total Time 43:48]
01 Seafarer
02 Take Me Somewhere
03 banter
04 Cape Dory
05 banter
06 Robin
07 banter
08 Baltimore
09 Bimini Bay
10 banter
11 Long Boat Pass
12 [unknown]
13 banter
14 Marathon [with Katy from La Sera and Molly from Widowspeak]
15 Pigeon
16 Waterbirds
17 South Carolina
18 banter
19 Hard Times

If you download this recording from NYCTaper, we expect that you will PLEASE SUPPORT Tennis, visit their bandcamp page, and purchase Cape Dory directly from Fat Possum Records here.

Drive-By Truckers: February 15, 2011 Bowery Ballroom – FLAC / MP3 Downloads + Streaming Songs

March 2, 2011
By


[photos by Johnny]

Being the standard-bearers for Southern rock can’t be an easy job and Drive-By Truckers not only do it well, but manage it with a smile on their faces.  Constant touring and marathon concerts that would hospitalize lesser people appear to make this group thrive and get better every time I’ve seen them perform.  Billed as the release show for their new album that had officially hit stores that day, the beautifully dark ‘Go-Go Boots‘, the band played nearly all the tracks from it during the course of this two and a half hour gig.  Both the disc and the night served as somewhat of a tribute to late songwriter/musician (and Patterson Hood family friend) Eddie Hinton who was honored not only with two covers of his songs, but also a beautiful take on the seldom-played “Sandwiches for the Road”.  In addition to a few acoustic spots, DBT filled out the set with tracks from all of their albums.  It made for an impressive night showcasing their outstanding and diverse talents.

Set up in our usual spot next to the soundboard in the balcony, the mix on this night was exceptional.  And in the Bowery Ballroom where it’s usually great, that’s saying something.  The resultant recording is excellent and ranks as one of the best I’ve personally ever pulled.  Enjoy!

Stream “Dancin’ Ricky”:

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Stream “Gravity’s Gone”:

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Download the FLAC/MP3 files and stream this entire show on the Live Music Archive [HERE]

Drive-By Truckers
Tuesday, February 15, 2011
Bowery Ballroom
New York, NY, USA

Source: AUD > AKG C 414 B-XLS’s + DPA 4021’s > Edirol R-44 (WAV @ 24-bit/48kHz)
Lineage: R-44 > USB > PC > Adobe Audition (mixdown, adjust levels, downsample, dither, tracking) > WAV (16-bit/44.1kHz) > Trader’s Little Helper (check/fix SBE’s, FLAC) > FLAC Level 8
Recorded and produced by: Johnny Fried Chicken Boy

SETLIST:
[Total time: 2:39:27]
01. intro [Heavy Makes You Happy (Sha-Na-Boom-Boom)]
02. I Do Believe
03. Go-Go Boots
04. Marry Me
05. Puttin’ People on the Moon
06. Cartoon Gold
07. I Hear You Hummin’
08. The Thanksgiving Filter
09. 3 Dimes Down
10. [banter]
11. Tales Facing Up
12. Dancin’ Ricky
13. The Weakest Man
14. [banter]
15. The Deeper In
16. Pulaski
17. [banter]
18. Sandwiches for the Road
19. Women Without Whiskey
20. Santa Fe
21. A Ghost To Most
22. Where’s Eddie [*]
23. Everybody Needs Love [*]
24. Birthday Boy
25. Sink Hole
26. Gravity’s Gone
27. Ray’s Automatic Weapon
28. Zip City
29. Lookout Mountain
30. [encore break / banter]
31. Used To Be A Cop
32. Get Downtown
33. (It’s Gonna Be) I Told You So
34. Mercy Buckets
35. Shut Up and Get on the Plane

* Eddie Hinton song

If you download this recording, we expect that you will PLEASE SUPPORT Drive-By Truckers, visit their website, visit their MySpace page, and purchase their new album, ‘Go-Go Boots‘, and their other official releases and merchandise.

Buke and Gass: January 29, 2011 Bell House – FLAC and MP3 Downloads + Streaming Song

March 2, 2011
By


[photo by Amanda Hatfield]

Buke and Gass (that’s pronounced byeewk and gayse, in case you were wondering) are the exciting new Brooklyn duo of Arone Dyer, on vocals and the buke (a self-modified six-string ukelele) and Aron Sanchez on the gass (a guitar-bass hybrid), all of it blown through homemade amps. The band uses this unorthodox instrumentation to make similarly unorthodox and unexpected rock music, with rapidly shifting tempos and lyrics that range from the lovelorn to the whimsical. The effect, in the live setting, is magical, as you wonder, first, how the hell they are making this music with these instruments and, second, where Dyer perfected her vocal delivery, which has a plaintive punk edge tempered with sweetness. This 35-minute performance at the Bell House saw the band play the bulk of their 2010 record, Riposte (voted one of NPR’s 50 Favorite Albums of 2010), and left the crowd (already packing the venue in anticipation of Mission of Burma’s set (which we also recorded)) wanting more. The band just wrapped up a once-in-a-lifetime show on February 15 with Lou Reed and Laurie Anderson at The Stone, and they should have many more exciting moments in their future.

I recorded this set in the same manner as the Mission of Burma recording. Although there is some audible hiss caused by the analog preamp used, the sound quality is nonetheless quite good. Enjoy!

Stream “Sleep Gets Your Ghost”:

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Direct download of MP3 files [HERE]

Download the Complete show in FLAC [HERE].

Buke & Gass
2011-01-29
Bell House
Brooklyn, NY USA

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

Equipment: DPA 4021>Oade M248>Edirol R-44 [Oade Concert Mod] (24/48)
Position: ROC, at soundboard, mics at 9ft pointed at stacks
Mastering: 24bit/48kHz WAV>Audacity (set fades, tracking, EQ, amplify and balance, downsample)>FLAC ( level 8 )

Tracks
01 Medicina
02 Medulla Oblongata
03 Sleep Gets Your Ghost
04 Naked Cities
05 [unknown]
06 Revel In Contempt
07 Page Break
08 Your Face Left Before You
09 Red Hood Came Home

If you download this recording from NYCTaper, we expect that you will PLEASE SUPPORT Buke and Gass, visit their website, and purchase Riposte directly from Brasslands records here or at your favorite retailer.

Futurebirds: February 26, 2011 Union Pool – FLAC and MP3 Downloads + Streaming Songs

March 1, 2011
By

All Southern rock is drinking music to some extent, and that was certainly the case this past Saturday night at Union Pool in Brooklyn as Athens, GA’s Futurebirds played to a packed, rowdy house. The band came on the scene in 2009 with a self-titled debut EP that showed significant promise, following that up in 2010 with their full-length debut, Hampton’s Lullaby and a visit to SXSW. Keeping company with bands like Drive-By Truckers (as well as Brooklyn favorites Motel Motel), Futurebirds play music that incorporates classic country elements but reaches a broader audience, partly on the strength of their songwriting, but also by signaling that they are more than simple nostaglists. Futurebirds songs serve up heavy doses of pedal steel and banjo (see “Johny Utah” for example) but they also reference the broader songwriting of artists like Neil Young and even the psychedelic scene for which their hometown of Athens is rightly famous. This show came on the heels of what was no doubt a wild Friday night at Mercury Lounge, and the band seemed ready for another big weekend night, giving us a high-energy hour of singalong-worthy songs from the album and the EP, as well as an exuberant cover of Stevie Nick’s “Wild Heart.” The last two songs of the main set were the longer, slower-building “Ski Chalet” which flowed right into the all-out rocker “Yur Not Ded.” In relative rarity for a Union Pool show, the band seemed to actually respond to the howls for an encore (one didn’t seem planned) with the rocker “Americle.”

I recorded this set with a soundboard feed from the Union Pool engineer coupled with the Schoeps microphones on the balcony. Because the acoustics of the room can be challenging, the recording leans more heavily on the soundboard feed, which was nicely balanced. All files are tagged for easy importing into iTunes. Enjoy!

Stream “Dirty D”:

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Stream “Wild Heart”:

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Download the FLAC and MP3 files and stream the entire show on the Live Music Archive [HERE]

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Futurebirds
2011-02-26
Union Pool
Brooklyn, NY USA

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

Equipment: Soundboard+Schoeps CMC6/Mk41>Edirol R-44 [Oade Concert Mod] (24/48)
Position: LOC, on balcony, pointed at stacks
Mastering: 2x24bit/48kHz WAV>Audacity (mixdown, downsample, set fades, tracking, light compression, smooth peaks, amplify and balance)>FLAC ( level 8 )

Tracks [Total Time: 1:04:02]
01 Battle For Rome
02 banter
03 Johnny Utah
04 banter
05 APO
06 banter
07 Dirty D
08 Sam Jones
09 banter
10 Wild Heart [Stevie Nicks]
11 banter
12 The Dog
13 Red Top Girl
14 Ski Chalet
15 Yur Not Ded
16 encore break
17 Americle

If you download this recording from NYCTaper, we expect that you will PLEASE SUPPORT Futurebirds, visit their Facebook page, and purchase Hampton’s Lullaby directly from Autumn Tone records (on CD or in any download format) here.

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