Posts Tagged ‘ Chaz’s Bull City Records ’

William Tyler: May 5, 2015 Bowery Ballroom & April 18, 2015 Chaz’s Bull City Records (Durham, NC) – FLAC/MP3/Streaming

May 14, 2015
By

william-tyler-13
[Possibly the coolest photo of Willy T I have seen, courtesy of P Squared Photography]

William Tyler is a force. “That was a tragic song, in case you guys couldn’t pick up on that, because the lyrics are so clear” he laughed at Bowery Ballroom, where we caught him last week opening for Mikal Cronin. But Tyler might be wrong there. His playing is of such emotional heft that you can feel what he’s trying to say with his guitar, both wielded with grace and experimental verve. These two very different sets covered both some of the Lambchop guitarist’s newest solo material (the outstanding “Highway Anxiety”) along with tracks from his first solo outing, Deseret Canyon. That release saw its initial Merge reissue on Record Store Day show at Chaz’s Bull City Records, so it was appropriate that Tyler brought out two of its most treasured gems, “The Waltz of the Circassian Beauties” and “Crystal Palace, Sea of Glass” at that show. If you missed Deseret on Record Store Day, fear not: Merge will be bringing it out in wider release come early June.

It’s a testament to Tyler’s abilities as a player and storyteller that he kept the crowd whisper-quiet at Bowery, where the new track found itself nestled along nicely next to beloved songs from Impossible Truth and 2010’s Behold the Spirit. People may have been there to witness Cronin’s power-pop headlining affair, but they were smart enough to pay attention as Tyler played “Hotel Catatonia” — preceded by a typically Tyleresque introduction involving being locked in a TCBY freezer. (For the New Yorkers in the audience, that’d be The Country’s Best Yogurt). Likewise, the affair in North Carolina felt more like a gathering of friends that a proper concert, and that was just right for the afternoon vibe outside of Chaz’s. It was a great day to be outside, and a great day to be a music fan. It’s always a great day to see William Tyler, which is a good thing — Northeast crowds will get plenty of opportunities when he tours in June with Real Estate and Ty Segall.

I recorded the Bowery set with a soundboard feed from the legendary Kenny, together with Schoeps MK41V supercardiod microphones. The Bull City show was primarily a board feed from John Koelle, plus Schoeps MK4V microphones in front of the stage. The sound quality it outstanding. Enjoy!

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

Download the Bull City Records show: [MP3] | [FLAC]

Stream the NYC set:

Stream the Bull City Records set:

William Tyler
2015-05-05
Bowery Ballroom
New York, NY USA

Exclusive download hosted at nyctaper.com
Recorded and produced by acidjack

Soundboard (engineer: Kenny) + Schoeps MK41V (LOC, PAS)>KCY>Z-PFA>Aerco MP-2>>Edirol R-44 [oCM]>2x24bit/48kHz WAV>Adobe Audition CS 5.5 (align, mix down, fades)>Izotope Ozone 5 (effects, EQ)>Audacity 2.0.3 (track, amplify, balance, downsample, dither)>FLAC ( level 8 )

Tracks
01 Missionary Ridge
02 [banter2]
03 A Portrait of Sarah
04 [banter2]
05 Highway Anxiety
06 [banter3]
07 Hotel Catatonia>
08 Tears and Saints

__________________________________
William Tyler
2015-04-18
Chaz’s Bull City Records
Durham, NC USA

Exclusive download hosted at nyctaper.com
Recorded and produced by acidjack

Soundboard (engineer: John Koelle) + Schoeps MK4V (stage lip)>KC5>CMC6>Edirol R-44 [OCM]>2x24bit/48kHz WAV>Adobe Audition CS 5.5 (align, mix down, fades)>Izotope Ozone 5 (effects, EQ)>Audacity 2.0.3 (track, amplify, balance, downsample, dither)>FLAC ( level 8

Tracks [Total Time 35:17]
01 Tears and Saints
02 [banter1]
03 A Portrait of Sarah
04 Missionary Ridge
05 The Waltz of the Circassian Beauties
06 [banter2]
07 Crystal Palace, Sea of Glass

If you enjoyed these recordings, PLEASE SUPPORT William Tyler, visit his website, and grab his records from Merge.

photo by PJ Sykes

photo by PJ Sykes

Mac McCaughan: April 18, 2015 Chaz’s Bull City Records (Durham, NC) – FLAC/MP3/Streaming

May 8, 2015
By
photo by PJ Sykes

photo by PJ Sykes courtesy of Merge Records

What you first notice when you hear Mac McCaughan play Superchunk and other material of his solo is how it puts the band’s most vital characteristic front and center: lyrics. It’s not that you wouldn’t like to also hear the surge and kick of a backbeat to go with that plaintive voice that still sounds like a 22-year old; it’s just that, without as much racket, you finally get a chance to hear and feel what Mac (and by extension, his band) had to say. What you find are keenly-observed images — data piling up like magazines,  alligator clips on glasses, dancing on a propane tank, somewhere deep in the country — that curdle a certain kind of nostalgia, for places you may or may not have been, people you probably don’t know. People say that Superchunk, as a band, has gotten older with grace, and a listen to Mac’s words, and his style, proves that out. He wears his older words well, even as they sidle up to the new.

Mac (not to mention his co-owned label Merge) was a huge part of the success of this Record Store Day show at Chaz’s Bull City Records in Durham, NC. Serving as the leadoff for the three Merge bands on the bill, Mac drew in an instant crowd, many of them no-doubt hungry to hear tunes from his brand-new Merge release, Non-Believers. Indeed, we got three songs’ worth here, plus a mix of old and new Superchunk. But one of my biggest favorites was the lone Portastatic number, “Drill Me”, from the newly-reissued 2003 LP, The Summer of the Shark, a song that takes aim at existential doubt with some of Mac’s best lyrics yet. Just before tearing into “Digging For Something” to close out his set, Mac exhorted us to all to support our local record stores every day of the year. Over his own career, Mac has given us plenty of excuses to do so.

I recorded this set with a soundboard feed from NC engineer John Koelle, plus Schoeps MK4V cardiod microphones at the stage lip. The sound quality is outstanding. Enjoy!

Direct download of the complete set: [MP3] | [FLAC]

Stream the entire set:

Mac McCaughan
2015-04-18
Chaz’s Bull City Records
Durham, NC USA

Exclusive download hosted at nyctaper.com
Recorded and produced by acidjack

Soundboard (engineer: John Koelle) + Schoeps MK4V (stage lip)>KC5>CMC6>Edirol R-44 [OCM]>2x24bit/48kHz WAV>Adobe Audition CS 5.5 (align, mix down, fades)>Izotope Ozone 5 (effects, EQ)>Audacity 2.0.3 (track, amplify, balance, downsample, dither)>FLAC ( level 8 )

Tracks [Total Time 31:04]
01 Lost Again
02 Hello Hawk [Superchunk]
03 Overflows [Superchunk]
04 Only Do
05 Box Batteries
06 Home at Dawn [Superchunk]
07 Drill Me [Portastatic]
08 Detroit Has A Skyline [Superchunk]
09 Digging For Something

If you enjoyed this recording, PLEASE SUPPORT Mac McCaughan by visiting Merge Records and buying Non-Believers and his other releases there.

Ex Hex: April 18, 2015 Chaz’s Bull City Records (Durham, NC) – FLAC/MP3/Streaming

April 22, 2015
By

photo by PJ Sykes
[photos courtesy of PJ Sykes via Merge Records]

Yeah, I’ve heard the dings on Record Store Day. That it detracts from the record-buying impulse of the other 363 days of the year (since there are two RSDs). That it’s just record companies creating fake scarcity to move often second-tier product. That it’s overly dominated by corporate artists and Jack White hawking his latest gimmick releases, and that those big artists gum up the pressing plants for everyone else. That the no-returns system and opaque distribution system hurt the record stores more than they can help.

To which all I can say is, come out on RSD to a store like Chaz’s Bull City Records in Durham, NC, and leave your politics and preconceptions at home. Here’s what I saw: a line down the street to get into a small, independent record store on an unassuming block of Durham. Shelves stuffed to the max with RSD releases and other material half-empty by five hours in. Oh, and then there was the matter of the Merge Records show held in the parking lot, with Lagunitas providing beer-by-donation in the parking lot, NYCTaper recording the live sound, and our friends at WXDU streaming the site’s live mix. Maybe Record Store Day isn’t the only day of the year when a small independent record store ought to have a line out the door and three killer bands playing to hundreds of people in its parking lot. But it sure was a good excuse for it.

The day’s biggest draw, the Ex Hex, came out absolutely on fire. Out in front, Mary Timony and Betsy Wright fully committed to the band’s garage-rock aesthetic, making that modest parking lot stage feel like something much more. The 40-minute set covered most of the band’s very-well-regarded 2014 Merge release Rips, as well as a new song. Ex Hex made for the perfect draw for the day, with a sound that looks to vinyl’s 70s heyday without remaining mired in it. Almost every single one of the Rips songs is an upbeat earworm, from the bouncy leadoff to the set, “Don’t Wanna Lose” to the pop-rock of “Radio On”. But if the set showed off the band’s skill at the three-minute song, it also gave the ladies at least one opportunity to really shred, as “Beast” exploded the album version into a long-form rocker with a formidable guitar jam. Whether you were at Chaz’s for the records, or just for the live music, it was a hell of a day to celebrate music.

I recorded this set with a soundboard feed from engineer John Koelle combined with Schoeps MK4V cardiod microphones at the stage lip. The sound quality is outstanding. Enjoy!

Huge thanks to Ex Hex, Merge Records, Chaz’s Bull City Records, WXDU, Lagunitas, and everyone who came out for this event.

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

Stream the complete show: 

Ex Hex
2015-04-18
Chaz’s Bull City Records
Durham, NC USA

Exclusive download hosted at nyctaper.com
Recorded and produced by acidjack

Soundboard (engineer: John Koelle) + Schoeps MK4V (stage lip)>KC5>CMC6>Edirol R-44 [OCM]>2x24bit/48kHz WAV>Adobe Audition CS 5.5 (align, mix down, fades)>Izotope Ozone 5 (effects, EQ)>Audacity 2.0.3 (track, amplify, balance, downsample, dither)>FLAC ( level 8 )

Tracks [Total Time 39:34]
01 Don’t Wanna Lose
02 Waterfall
03 [new song]
04 Waste Your Time
05 How You Got That Girl
06 New Kid
07 Hot and Cold
08 Beast
09 Radio On
10 You Fell Apart
11 Outro
12 Everywhere

If you enjoyed this recording, PLEASE SUPPORT Ex Hex, visit their website, and buy Rips directly from Merge.

photo by PJ Sykes

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