Posts Tagged ‘ brooklyn ’

Sleepies: June 16, 2011 Northside Festival, Glasslands – FLAC and MP3 Downloads + Streaming Song

June 20, 2011
By

sleepies
[Photo from Sleepies Facebook page]

Sleepies are a Brooklyn punk band that I have now had the pleasure of seeing twice, both times on bills shared with their friends Mr. Dream. This Northside Festival show found them in fine form, delivering their raw brand of punk rock to a crowd that was hungering for it. The band’s sound takes several cues from the Sex Pistols, such as on the ragged “Summer Bummer.” Sleepies already have some solid recorded output, including two songs on bandcamp that are produced by Mr. Dream’s Nick Sylvester, and an LP available here. Check them out the next time you can!

Stream “Feelers”:
[audio:http://www.nyctaper.com/S0616Sleepies2011/Feelers.mp3]

Direct download of MP3 files [HERE]

Download the Complete show in FLAC [HERE].

Follow acidjack on Twitter

Sleepies
2011-06-16
Northside Festival
Glasslands Gallery
Brooklyn, NY USA

An acidjack master recording
Recorded by acidjack and hi and lo
Produced by acidjack

Equipment: Schoeps Mk5 (omni)>EAA PSP2 + Soundboard >> Edirol R-44 [Oade Concert Mod] (24/48)
Position: Clamp to center post, about 7.5ft up, 30cm split
Mastering: 2x24bit/48kHz WAV>Audacity (mixdown, set fades, tracking, amplify and balance)>FLAC ( level 8 )

Tracks
01 Hypochondriac Blues
02 Summer Bummer
03 Combat
04 Cool Boy
05 Feelers
06 Temporary Setback
07 Sludge River Mouth

If you download this recording from NYCTaper, we expect that you will PLEASE SUPPORT Sleepies, like them on Facebook, and purchase their official releases from the links above.

Woods: June 17, 2011 Northside Festival, St. Cecilia’s RCC – FLAC and MP3 Downloads + Streaming Songs

June 19, 2011
By

woods northside
[still from this video]

Having already seen Woods perform in front of the Joshua Light Show last year at Abrons Arts Center (possibly the best show I saw that year), I wasn’t sure Woods could top the unique setting or outstanding performance. But then they announced that their Northside Festival performance would be held at St. Cecilia’s Roman Catholic Church, an impressive old-style cathedral nestled on a quiet block of East Williamsburg, and I knew they would have the opportunity to do both. Set against an imposing backdrop of religious icons and an American flag, Woods played a majestic set that, yes, could probably be called a religious experience. Although the band was celebrating the release of their well-received new record, Sun and Shade, rather than playing through the new record, they took the journey in a different direction reminiscent of the Abrons Arts Center show. All the qualities that led me to call them the “preeminent indie rock jam band” after that show were on full display on this night, as they wove deep psychedelic experimentation throughout some of their best-known songs. Combined with the cavernous room, the effect was magical, spiritual and satisfying. The set kicked off with “Pushing Onlys” from the new record, followed by a string of favorites – “Blood Dries Darker”, a typically extended “Bend Beyond” and “Rain On,” before taking a mellow interlude with “Be All Be Easy” and “Say Goodbye” from Sun and Shade. Things picked up after that with a mix of old and new material, with the set climaxing with a trippy, mind-blowing twelve-minute version of “I Was Gone” that rivaled the incredible “Bend Beyond” from the Abrons show. The band also played a new song, “Mind Them Empty,” which will be out next month on a 7″ on Sacred Bones Records. This is why Woods shows are always exciting experiences, and why I continue to believe they could very well be Brooklyn’s best live band right now. The band will hosting the upcoming Woodsist Festival in Big Sur, which will feature some natural beauty that Northside perhaps lacks. But for man-made incredible shows in equally grand surroundings, this show at St. Cecilia’s will be a very, very difficult one to top.

I recorded this set with a well-mixed soundboard feed from the house engineer Chris (who like many of the hardworking engineers at Northside, seemed to be inundated with late-breaking requests for board feeds), combined with Schoeps supercardiod microphones that picked up the natural sound of the room. The results are excellent. Enjoy!

Today is the final day of the Northside Festival, and there are still many great evening shows to go to – including ours! Please check out our showcase, co-sponsored with Pop Tarts Suck Toasted, at Public Assembly, starting at 8pm, featuring eleven incredible up-and-coming bands!

Stream “Be All Be Easy”:
[audio:http://www.nyctaper.com/W2206Woods2990/06 Be All Be Easy.mp3]

Stream “I Was Gone”:
[audio:http://www.nyctaper.com/W2206Woods2990/12 I Was Gone.mp3]

Direct download of MP3 files [MP3]

Direct download of FLAC files [FLAC]

PLEASE DO NOT REPOST THE DIRECT LINKS – IT WILL CRASH OUR SERVER

Follow acidjack on Twitter

Woods
2011-06-17
Northside Festival
St. Cecilia’s Roman Catholic Church
Brooklyn, NY USA

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

Equipment: Soundboard + Schoeps Mk41>CMC6 >> Edirol R-44 [Oade Concert Mod] (24/48)
Position: At soundboard, slightly LOC, mics at 7.5ft PAS
Mastering: 2x24bit/48kHz WAV>Audacity (smooth peaks of SBD source, Dyson compression on SBD source, envelope on SBD source, mixdown, tracking, amplify)>FLAC ( level 8 )

Tracks [Total Time: 1:01:03]
01 Pushing Onlys
02 Suffering Season
03 Blood Dries Darker
04 Bend Beyond
05 Rain On
06 Be All Be Easy
07 Say Goodbye
08 Find Them Empty
09 To Have In the Home
10 To Clean
11 Get Back
12 I Was Gone

If you download this recording from nyctaper, we expect that you will PLEASE SUPPORT Woods, visit their website, and purchase their official releases, including Sun and Shade, from Woodist Records [HERE].

Mr. Dream: June 16, 2011 [Northside Festival] Glasslands, Brooklyn, NY – FLAC and MP3 Downloads + Streaming Songs

June 17, 2011
By

mr dream northside
[Photo courtesy of L Magazine]

This is the first in what will be a series of NYCTaper recordings from the Northside Festival 2011. Please check out Northside’s website for complete show listings, and especially check out the NYCTaper/Pop Tarts Suck Toasted Showcase on Sunday, 6/19 at Public Assembly!

Now seems like as good a time as any to address the old knock on New York audiences – that they tend to spend the entire show with their arms crossed, listless, distracted and bored. But let’s face it – we see a lot of bands here in New York City, and most of them don’t provide us any reason to do anything else. Not so the rapidly rising Mr. Dream. With their clean, crisp Pixies-inspired delivery, Mr. Dream manage to capture the energy of punk while making it clear that they actually care how they sound as they deliver their inspired head-banging tunes. The songs from their almost-debut record, Trash Hit, are a one-after-another string of great rock songs, and the title track “Trash Hit” in particular has that ability to lodge itself in your brain and not leave. This set on the kickoff night of the Northside Festival found the band playing to a friendly and familiar crowd that they rewarded by debuting three new songs, “Believing and Shitting,” “Moneybags” and “Suggested Plowing.” The band has been raising its profile of late, including with a video for the song “Croquet,” which they killed on this night, followed by the balls-to-the-wall “Winners.” In the short span since we saw them last, the band have gotten more confident and tighter, and drummer Nick Sylvester has emerged as the band’s true anchor with his massive work behind the kit. Hell, Mr. Dream may just be one of the best live bands in New York right now. So uncross those arms and turn off those iPhones, ladies and gentlemen, and get your ass ready for Mr. Dream.

hi and lo and I recorded this set from a central location in the venue with Schoeps omnidirectional mics to capture the maximum feel of the room. Although there is some faint buzzing at times in the left channel due to some wiring issues, the sound is overall excellent. Enjoy!

Stream “Croquet”:
[audio:http://www.nyctaper.com/M3400MrDream2011/09 Croquet.mp3]

Stream “Moneybags”:
[audio:http://www.nyctaper.com/M3400MrDream2011/06 Moneybags.mp3]

Direct download of MP3 files [HERE]

Download the Complete show in FLAC [HERE].

Follow acidjack on Twitter

Mr. Dream
2011-06-16
Northside Festival
Glasslands Gallery
Brooklyn, NY USA

An acidjack master recording
Recorded by acidjack and hi and lo
Produced by acidjack

Equipment: Schoeps Mk5 (omni)>EAA PSP2 + Soundboard >> Edirol R-44 [Oade Concert Mod] (24/48)
Position: Clamp to center post, about 7.5ft up, 30cm split
Mastering: 2x24bit/48kHz WAV>Audacity (mixdown, set fades, tracking, amplify and balance)>FLAC ( level 8 )

Tracks
01 Knuckle Sandwich
02 Crime
03 Believing and Shitting
04 [banter]
05 Scarred For Life
06 Moneybags
07 Trash Hit
08 Suggested Plowing
09 Croquet
10 Winners
11 [banter]
12 Learn the Language
13 Knick Knack

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.

The Babies: May 27, 2011 Knitting Factory – FLAC and MP3 Downloads + Streaming Song

June 17, 2011
By

babies acidjack
[Photo by acidjack]

When we first saw The Babies at the beginning of last year (that recording here), they were a brand-new band mostly known as a side project of Cassie Ramone of the Vivian Girls and Kevin Morby of Woods. They rocked the hell out of Glasslands that night and left us wanting more – especially a new record. More than a year later, they gave us what we had hoped for in the form of a delightfully just-polished-enough eponymous debut album on the Shrimper imprint. This Knitting Factory show, opening for Times New Viking, found them working through many of the album tracks as well as some new and unfamiliar numbers. While the band’s sound owes more to Ramone’s Vivians than to Woods, the Babies have developed a solid identity of their own, marrying some of the surf vibe of the Vivians with a slightly harder-edged sound. We expect many more good things from the Babies – but in the meantime, just don’t call them a “Brooklyn Supergroup”.

I recorded this set from the same location as the Times New Viking recording, with the AKG large diaphragm mics set to a tighter pattern to reject more reflections from the room, as well as a soundboard feed. This one is probably the best recording of the night. Enjoy!

The Babies will be playing the Northside Festival this Saturday at McCarren Park with Guided By Voices. NYCTaper will be recording all sets at that show, and many other sets throughout the festival. Check out The Babies as well our NYCTaper/Pop Tarts Suck Toasted Showcase at Public Assembly on Sunday the 19th.

Stream “Here Comes Trouble”:
[audio:http://www.nyctaper.com/B2750Babies0211/09 Here Comes Trouble.mp3]

Direct download of MP3 files [MP3]

Download the Complete show in FLAC [HERE].

Follow acidjack on Twitter

The Babies
2011-05-27
Knitting Factory
Brooklyn, NY USA

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

Equipment: AKG C 414 B-XLS (hypercardiod)>Sound Devices USBpre2 + Soundboard>>Edirol R-44 [Oade Concert Mod] (24/48)
Position: At soundboard, slightly ROC, mics at 7ft, PAS
Mastering: 2x24bit/48kHz WAV>Audacity (mixdown, set fades, tracking, amplify and balance)>FLAC ( level 8 )

Tracks
01 Run Me Over
02 Sunset
03 Breakin’ the Law
04 [unknown]
05 Sick Kid
06 Wild 2
07 All Things Come To Pass>Meet Me In the City
08 [unknown]
09 Here Comes Trouble
10 Caroline

If you email nyctaper for access to this recording, we expect that you will PLEASE SUPPORT The Babies, visit their MySpace page, and purchase their debut album [HERE].

Melvins: June 7, 2011 Music Hall of Williamsburg – FLAC / MP3 Downloads + Streaming Songs

June 15, 2011
By


[Photos courtesy of Dana (distortion) Yavin.  See more of her excellent work HERE.]

After the previous night’s epic tooth-rattling concert featuring the ‘Eggnog‘, ‘Lysol‘ and ‘Houdini‘ albums, I was wondering what the response would be to this nights playing of ‘Bullhead‘ and ‘Stoner Witch‘.  Two great records that bookend the other three, they are generally lesser known by the masses but equally crucial to the Melvins catalog.  I needn’t have worried as the crowd seemed to build on the intensity that began the night before.  The band’s no nonsense approach didn’t stray from the track listings of the two discs, but their intense live renditions will never be mistaken for the studio versions.  Anything but workman-like, the Melvins imbued new life and twists into these songs.  Among others, this included the set-enders: extended opus, “Boris”, and the night’s closer, “Shevil”, which gave Dale Crover and Coady Willis a jumping off point for a 12 minute drum workout.  Joined by skinsman Vinny Signorelli from Brooklyn-based Unsane, thunder pealed through the venue and left many attendees with their ears pleasantly ringing.

Set up in the dead-center spot on the balcony, the resultant recording is excellent and surprisingly clear considering the sheer volume in the venue; a testament to the engineer’s skills and how good the P.A. is in the Music Hall of Williamsburg.  That said, if you like heavy low-end, this recording is for you.  Enjoy and PLAY IT LOUD!!

Stream “It’s Shoved”:
[audio:http://www.nyctaper.com/M1806Melvins0210/Melvins_-_It’s_Shoved.mp3]
Stream “Queen”:
[audio:http://www.nyctaper.com/M1806Melvins0210/Melvins_-_Queen.mp3]

Direct download of the complete show in MP3 [HERE]
Direct download of the complete show in FLAC [HERE]

If either of the links are no longer working, email nyctaper with a request for the download location of the files.

Melvins
Tuesday, June 7, 2011
Music Hall of Williamsburg
Brooklyn, NY, USA

Source: AUD > AKG C 414 B-XLS’s + Audio-Technica AT3031’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) > TLH (check/fix SBE’s, FLAC conversion) > FLAC ( level 8 )
Recorded and produced by: Johnny Fried Chicken Boy

1st SET: ‘Bullhead
[Total time: 37:11]
01. intro (Blazing Saddles theme)
02. Ligature
03. It’s Shoved
04. If I Had an Exorcism
05. Zodiac
06. Anaconda
07. Cow
08. Your Blessened
09. Boris

2nd SET: ‘Stoner Witch
[Total time: 58:16]
10. intro (The Great Escape theme)
11. Lividity
12. Skweetis
13. Sweet Willy Rollbar
14. Revolve
15. June Bug
16. Roadbull
17. Goose Freight Train
18. Queen
19. At the Stake
20. Magic Pig Detective
21. Shevil > drums

If you download this recording, we expect that you will PLEASE SUPPORT Melvins, visit their website, visit their MySpace and Facebook pages, and purchase their official releases and merchandise [HERE].

Real Estate: May 20, 2011 Bell House – FLAC and MP3 Downloads + Streaming Songs

June 14, 2011
By


[Photos courtesy of Jill of fortheloveofbrooklyn photoblog]

Our friends Real Estate have spent the past few years doing it “the right way” – garnering critical attention for the debut LP and building off of that with varied, exciting and packed live shows. Their hard work has paid off in the form of an exciting new deal that finds them leaving one of our absolute favorite boutique labels – Woodsist – for one of the best-curated international indie labels, Domino Records. Per Domino’s press release, a new record is expected in October of 2011. Giving a treat to a Friday night crowd that the band said was one of their best NYC crowds in years, the band played a bunch of new material, including a number of songs we had not heard before. The new songs do not deviate wildly from the old material – call them evolutionary rather than revolutionary – but demonstrate their continuing overall improvement as a band and as songwriters. Ridgewood’s finest will no doubt play some local shows before that new record comes out, and we expect to enjoy hearing more of the new material between now and then.

hi and lo recorded this set with the Schoeps microphones in our usual location in the venue. As with the Julian Lynch recording, these accurate microphones picked up a lot of natural reverberance of the wide room. However, the house mix was stronger, and the crowd a bit less chatty, so with additional mastering efforts, this recording is the much better of the two. Enjoy!

Stream “Easy” [new song]:
[audio:http://www.nyctaper.com/R2410RealEstate9229/04 Easy.mp3]

Stream “Younger Than Yesterday”:
[audio:http://www.nyctaper.com/R2410RealEstate9229/07 Younger Than Yesterday.mp3]

Direct download of MP3 files [MP3]

Download the Complete show in FLAC [HERE]

Follow acidjack on Twitter

Real Estate
2011-05-20
Bell House
Brooklyn, NY USA

Digital Master Audience Recording
Recorded by hi and lo for nyctaper.com
Produced by acidjack

Equipment: Schoeps Mk5 (cardiod)>NBox+>Sony PCM-M10 (24/44.1)
Position: Clamp to soundboard, mics DINa
Mastering: 24bit/44.1kHz WAV>Audacity (set fades, tracking, EQ, amplify and balance)>FLAC ( level 8 )

Tracks [Total Time 1:15:54]
01 instrumental
02 Suburban Beverage
03 [banter/tuning]
04 Easy [new]
05 Pool Swimmers
06 [unknown]
07 Younger Than Yesterday
08 [unknown] – new
09 [banter]
10 Fake Blues
11 [banter]
12 [unknown-new]
13 [banter]
14 [unknown]
15 All The Same
16 [unknown]
17 Atlantic City
18 Beach Comber
19 [encore break]
20 Black Lake
21 Out of Tune

If you download this recording from NYCTaper, we expect that you will PLEASE SUPPORT Real Estate, visit their MySpace page, and purchase their releases from Woodist RecordsHalf Machine Records, and Underwater Peoples, plus check out their forthcoming release this October on Domino Records.

Julian Lynch: May 20, 2011 Bell House – FLAC and MP3 Downloads + Streaming Song

June 12, 2011
By


[Photo by Jill of fortheloveofbrooklyn photoblog]

We last caught Julian Lynch at Music Hall on a freezing cold January night, where he showed off some new songs from his then-forthcoming record, Terra. Since then, Terra has been released and proven another unqualified success, and Julian has had more time to develop the material in the live setting. This show found him opening for fellow Ridgewood, NJ natives Real Estate at the Bell House, a somewhat more cavernous space than the tight-sounding Music Hall. The set followed that January set relatively closely, with a few twists (and without the full 16-minute presentation of this night’s closer, “Travelers”) and included what appeared to be a new song (correct me if I’m wrong) that showed a more rocking side of Lynch. His current plans include some summer tour dates, as well as a planned EP for early 2012. Until then, we hope this live recording will tide you over.

hi and lo recorded this set from our usual spot in the venue with Schoeps cardiod microphones. The wider pattern of these mics picked up more of the room reverberations of the venue, and the Friday night crowd, than are optimal, but after some fairly heavy editing, I think it sounds quite good. Enjoy!

Real Estate was also recorded and will be posted shortly.

Stream the new song:
[audio:http://www.nyctaper.com/J7100JulianLynch0211/lynch.mp3]

Direct download of MP3 files [MP3]

Download the Complete show in FLAC [HERE].

Julian Lynch
2011-05-20
Bell House
Brooklyn, NY USA

Digital Master Audience Recording
Recorded by hi and lo for nyctaper.com
Produced by acidjack

Equipment: Schoeps Mk5 (cardiod)>NBox+>Sony PCM-M10 (24/44.1)
Position: Clamp to soundboard, mics DINa
Mastering: 24bit/44.1kHz WAV>Audacity (set fades, tracking, EQ, amplify and balance)>FLAC ( level 8 )

Tracks [Total Time 37:48]
01 Terra
02 Just Enough
03 Nen Vole
04 Stomper
05 Rivers
06 [tuning]
07 [unknown]
08 Rancher
09 Back
10 Travelers

If you download this recording from NYCTaper, we expect that you will PLEASE SUPPORT Julian Lynch, visit his website and bandcamp page and purchase his official releases from Olde English Spelling Bee.

Melvins: June 6, 2011 Music Hall of Williamsburg – FLAC and MP3 Downloads + Streaming Songs

June 10, 2011
By


[Photos by Greg Cristman.  Used with permission.  All rights reserved]

My last Melvins show had nothing on the epic 25th anniversary show that we also recorded (both recordings available here), where the band did a full run-through of their most famous album, Houdini, and a gaggle of other songs in a two and a half hour set.  So naturally, I was anxious to see them again at these shows at Music Hall of Williamsburg, where the band promised run-throughs of multiple albums per night.  On this first of the two nights, the band played material from three of their records, the classic Lysol, the somewhat less-known Eggnog, and finally, Houdini.  The venue’s sound system – arguably the best in tri-state area – was a highlight in and of itself as it pumped out the bone-rattling levels of sound from the band.  Unlike the 25th anniversary show, this show was all business, with the band doing a first set consisting of a mix of Eggnog and Lysol tracks that closed with an epic “Sacrifice” without a single second of banter.  This set of longer, sludgier songs set a (relatively) mellow tone to preface the blistering second set, consisting entirely of tracks from Houdini.  By the end of the kickoff track of the second set, “Hag Me,” the floor was a sea of bodies, and it stayed that way through the very last song, “Spread Eagle Beagle,” which closed out, appropriately, with the band’s dual drummers pounding the skins alone onstage.  Once again, the Melvins brought the epic noise… leaving us hungry for night two.

I recorded this set with the Schoeps microphones on the center of the balcony, running into a custom analog preamp to provide more detail and warmth to the recording.  The results are outstanding and reflect the incredible sound in the room.

Night two was also recorded and will be posted soon.

Stream “Second Coming>The Ballad of Dwight Frye [Alice Cooper]”
[audio:http://www.nyctaper.com/M1806Melvins0210/09 Second Coming_The Ballad of Dwight Frye.mp3]

Stream “Going Blind”
[audio:http://www.nyctaper.com/M1806Melvins0210/18 Going Blind.mp3]

Direct download of the MP3 files: [MP3]

Direct download of the lossless FLAC files: [FLAC]
PLEASE DO NOT REPOST THE DIRECT LINKS TO EITHER FILESET – IT WILL CRASH OUR SERVER

Follow acidjack on Twitter

Melvins
2011-06-06
Music Hall of Williamsburg
Brooklyn, NY USA

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

Equipment: Schoeps Mk41>CMC6>Oade M248>Edirol R-44 [Oade Concert Mod] (24/48)
Position: Balcony, DFC, mics on extension arm aimed down PAS
Mastering: 24bit/48kHz WAV>Audacity (set fades, tracking, light EQ on set II only (-1dB below ~250Hz)

SET I: Eggnog and Lysol [57:44]
01 [Set I Intro]
02 Charmicarmicat: Bastards
03 Lysol (aka Hung Bunny)>
04 Roman Dog Bird
05 Hog Leg: Like Stee, Moanin Ludlow
06 Antioxidote: Pigs Don’t Let It
07 Wispy: I Don’t Know But I Don’t Feel So Good
08 With Teeth
09 Second Coming>The Ballad of Dwight Frye [Alice Cooper]
10 Sacrifice

SET II: Houdini [56:27]
11 [Set II Intro]
12 Hag Me
13 Pearl Bomb
14 Hooch
15 Honey Bucket
16 Night Goat
17 Lizzy
18 Goin’ Blind
19 Joan of Arc
20 Set Me Straight
21 Sky Pup
22 Teet
23 Copache
24 Spread Eagle Beagle

If you download this recording from NYCTaper, we expect that you will PLEASE SUPPORT Melvins, visit their website, and buy their records from Ipecac records here.

Cary Ann Hearst & Michael Trent (Shovels & Rope): May 18, 2011 The Bell House – FLAC & MP3 Downloads + Streaming Songs

June 7, 2011
By

shovels
[still shot from this video]

The Charleston, South Carolina musicians Cary Ann Hearst and Michael Trent recently teamed up to combine several disparate recording ideas into a collaboration they call “Shovels & Rope“, which resulted in a record by the same name and a nationwide tour that included a number of dates with The Felice Brothers. This show at the Bell House was one of such opening sets (you can get the Felice Brothers set here), but Shovels & Rope were given a headliner-length set, and deservedly so. The duo, with nothing but a couple of guitars and a junkyard drum kit (literally salvaged from the trash) played by Trent, gave the already-packed house an outstanding set that combined Shovels & Rope material with standout tracks from their latest releases, including Hearst’s new record Lions and Lambs. In an era where what passes on the Billboard charts as “country” is little more than bubblegum pop with a Southern accent, it’s not surprising that real country music has found an audience with the rock and indie rock sets. Hearst and Trent may not be household names for a lot of NYC fans, but they are both formidable songwriters and breathtakingly authentic musicians, whose songs offer up sharp lyrical narratives as well as memorable hooks and melodies. Songs like “Hollowpoint Blues” highlight the new project’s appeal, with its rock n’ roll churn punctuated by Hearst’s spine-tingling vocals. Hopefully this current record is only the beginning for Hearst and Trent’s collaborations – Shovels & Rope is truly greater than the sum of its parts.

I recorded this set in the same manner as the Felice Brothers recording, with more emphasis given to the soundboard portion of the recording. The sound quality is outstanding, and I think it is even better than the Felice Brothers recording. Enjoy!

Stream “Hollowpoint Blues”:
[audio:http://www.nyctaper.com/S1805ShovelsRope0211/11 Hollowpoint Blues.mp3]

Stream “The Winner [Michael Trent]”:
[audio:http://www.nyctaper.com/S1805ShovelsRope0211/09 The Winner.mp3]

Direct download of MP3 files [HERE]

Download the Complete show in FLAC [HERE].

Follow acidjack on Twitter

Shovels & Rope (Cary Ann Hearst & Michael Trent)
2011-05-18
The Bell House
Brooklyn, NY USA

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

Equipment: Soundboard+Schoeps Mk41>CMC6>Sound Devices USBpre2>>Edirol R-44 [Oade Concert Mod] (24/48)
Position: Clamp to soundboard, about 9ft up, PAS
Mastering: 2x24bit/48kHz WAV>Audacity (mixdown, downsample to 44.1kHz, set fades, tracking, amplify and balance, smooth peaks, downsample to 16bit)>FLAC ( level 8 )

Tracks
01 Gasoline
02 [unknown]
03 The Thread
04 Boxcar
05 [unknown]
06 [unknown]
07 [banter]
08 Complicated Type
09 The Winner
10 The Hardest Thing
11 Hollowpoint Blues
12 All or Nuthin’
13 Bad Luck

If you download this recording from NYCTaper, we expect that you will PLEASE SUPPORT Shovels & Rope, “like” them on Facebook, and purchase the record from your favorite retailer, such as [HERE]

Grails: April 24, 2011 The Knitting Factory – FLAC and MP3 Downloads + Streaming Song

June 6, 2011
By

grails
[Grails at the Knitting Factory in 2008. Photos courtesy of davebgimp. See his Flickr stream here]

Portland’s Grails have been making genre-defying, intense, experimental and satisfying instrumental music for the better part of the last decade, but with 2011’s Deep Politics, their recent release on Temporary Residence Limited, they have hit the top of their game. Many of their past records have a deep psychedelic groove to them, drawing clear Eastern inspiration, but Deep Politics is an entirely different beast, focusing a bit more on pianist/bassist Bill Slater’s keyboard work and working with more varied textures. In the live setting, the band’s sound comes across as a good bit jazzier than one would expect, especially compared to some of the other bands they probably share a fan base with. This set at the Knitting Factory was one of the best performances I have seen this year and easily the strongest display of pure musicianship. This show was a special treat, as Grails’ tours tend to focus more heavily on Europe, and the band members have a variety of commitments. In fact, the members of Grails play in several other bands from time to time, and they also trade in-show duties depending on the demands of the specific song. Their technical virtuosity never falters, and they absolutely fill the room with sound. This set drew on a range of the band’s records, not drawing too heavily from Deep Politics but still showing off its live charms, including the epic show opener, “Almost Grew My Hair.” In fact, the set was so compelling that the Knit’s sound engineer Rob – who sees an awful lot of shows in a month from behind the board – was prompted to exclaim “Wow, I sure hope you got a good recording of that. Those guys were amazing.” I have to agree, and I hope he and everyone else is satisfied with the recording!

I recorded this set from our usual location in the Knit, using a combination of Schoeps Mk41 supercardiods pointed at the stacks and AKG 414 large diaphragm microphones in wide cardiod mode to capture the full feel of the room. The sound is excellent. Enjoy!

Thanks to the commenters to the corrections to three of the tracks.

Stream “Almost Grew My Hair”:
[audio:http://www.nyctaper.com/G0424Grails2011/02 Almost Grew My Hair.mp3]

Direct download of MP3 files [HERE]

Download the Complete show in FLAC [HERE].

Follow acidjack on Twitter

Grails
2011-04-24
Knitting Factory
Brooklyn, NY  USA

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

Equipment: Schoeps Mk41>CMC6 +AKG C414 B-XLS (wide cardiod)>Oade M248 >> Edirol R-44 [Oade Concert Mod] (24/44.1)
Position: At soundboard, slightly ROC, mics at 8.5 ft
Mastering: 2x24bit/44.1kHz WAV>Audacity (EQ AKGs, mixdown, EQ combined source, tracking, set fades, amplify and balance)>FLAC ( level 8 )

Tracks [Total Time 1:03:31]
01 [intro]
02 Almost Grew My Hair
03 [tuning]
04 All the Colors of the Dark
05 Immediate Mate
06 Back to the Monastery
07 Acid Rain
08 Take Refuge
09 Burning Off Impurities
10 [encore break]
11 Reincarnation Blues

If you download this recording from NYCTaper, we expect that you will PLEASE SUPPORT Grails, visit their website, and purchase Deep Politics directly from Temporary Residence Limited [HERE]

SUPPORT NYCTaper




DISCLAIMER and LEGAL NOTICE

nyctaper.com is a live music blog that offers a new paradigm of music distribution on the web. The recordings are offered for free on this site as are the music posts, reviews and links to artist sites. All recordings are posted with artist permission or artists with an existing pro-taping policy.

All recordings and original content posted on this site are @nyctaper.com as live recordings pursuant to 17 U.S.C. Section 106, et. seq. Redistribution of nyctaper recordings without consent of nyctaper.com is strictly prohibited.

nyctaper.com hereby waives all copyright claims to any and all recordings posted on this site to THE PERFORMERS ONLY. If any artist posted on this site requests that recordings be removed, those recordings will be removed forthwith.