Posts Tagged ‘ heartless bastards ’

Heartless Bastards: May 10, 2016 Music Hall of Williamsburg

May 20, 2016
By

IMG_0210

Our journey with the Heartless Bastards continued this year with this show at Music Hall of Williamsburg, part of a dual-headlining tour with the Old 97’s (unfortunately, not taped). Since we first started covering their shows seven years ago, the Bastards have proven over and over to be a consistent, happy go lucky gang of road warriors, churning out one high energy show after another. It’s a credit to them that over a career that spans numerous albums and more than a decade, there’s not a dud among the bunch. Like another Cincinnati band we like to gush about, this band trades flash for grit, quality for quackery. For this show, the second of theirs we’ve covered at this venue, there wasn’t a brand-new album to promote (Restless Ones came out last year) so we were treated to a hit parade of sorts, from “Blue Day” from All This Time, to some of my favorites from Arrow like “Down in the Canyon” and “Skin and Bone,” to the new stuff, including obvious road winner “Gates of Dawn.” As both bands played essentially headliner-length sets, this clocked in a touch shorter than some of the recent sets we’ve seen (though still well past an hour) but nobody left complaining. The band went on to swap places with the Old 97’s a couple nights later at Irving Plaza, but I have to believe the Music Hall crowd got the better end of the bargain. As Erika said, the band loves this club, and for good reason. Like the band themselves, it’s something familiar, and something good.

I recorded this set with Schoeps MK5 cardiod microphones in our usual spot, plus an Aeta PSP-3 preamp to provide optimum clarity. The sound quality is excellent. Enjoy!

Download the complete show: [MP3/FLAC]

Stream the complete show:

Heartless Bastards
2016-05-10
Music Hall of Williamsburg
Brooklyn, NY USA

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

Live engineer: Ryan McHugh

Schoeps MK5c (at SBD, DFC, PAS bar)>KCY>Z-PFA>Aeta PSP-3>Zoom F8>24bit/48kHz WAV>Adobe Audition CS 5.5 (fades, light compression)>Izotope Ozone 5
(EQ, effects)>Audacity 2.0.5 (track, amplify, balance, downsample, dither)>FLAC ( level 8 )

Tracks
01 The Mountain
02 Gates of Dawn
03 Got To Have Rock N’ Roll
04 Black Cloud
05 Into the Light
06 Skin and Bone
07 Blue Day
08 Hold Your Head High
09 Hi-Line
10 Down In the Canyon
11 Gray
12 Only For You
13 Parted Ways
14 Sway
15 [encore break]
16 Low Low Low
17 Nothing Seems the Same

If you enjoyed this recording, PLEASE SUPPORT the Heartless Bastards, visit their website, and buy Restless Ones from Partisan Records.

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Heartless Bastards: June 15, 2015 Webster Hall – FLAC/MP3/Streaming

June 18, 2015
By

pierfrancescobaccaro
[photo by Pierfrancesco Baccaro from Instagram]

After more than a decade of music, the Heartless Bastards continue to keep things fresh. Erika Wennerstrom, the group’s frontwoman, heart, and soul, continues to refine what has proven to be one of the great rock voices of the early 21st century, defining a sound that is contemporary and classic. Those of us who heard the show’s opening intro now know where it comes from — Erika’s grandmother, who had quite the pipes of her own.

At this juncture, the Bastards are past the point of being either a hot new thing or a flash in the pan. Rolling into their fifth proper album — their second for Partisan Records — the band sounds like the experienced travelers they are, with a honed sound and a stable of fans who follow it. This show at Webster Hall served as the night-before release show for Restless Ones, and became the first exposure to several of the new songs for most of us. This was the band’s longest show we’ve seen yet, and one that let them try on a number of different sonic textures from song to song. The new songs veer a bit further afield from the bluesy barroom sound of the band’s earlier efforts, as on “Gates of Dawn.” That song’s placement at the front of this set, between the very straightforward “Simple Feeling” and “Gotta Have Rock N’ Roll,” underscored the point. As is often the case, the band let things stretch out for its epic, Sabbath-inspired “Down In the Canyon,” which followed the new album’s “Into the Light,” one of several decidedly downbeat songs on the new record. If the printed setlist was to be believed, our encore had “All This Time” planned, but was dropped in favor of “Only For You,” which was followed by one of the new record’s most stylistically adventurous songs yet, the noise-dirge “Tristessa.” Even without one of our all-time favorite Bastards songs, this was easily one of the strongest sets we’ve seen yet from this band.

I recorded this set with Schoeps MK41V supercardiod microphones mounted inside the soundboard cage combined with a stereo feed from the band’s touring FOH, Reggie. While most of one encore song (“Only For You”) was lost due to technical problems, the sound of the remainder is outstanding. Enjoy!

Thanks to Partisan Records and Paul from Webster Hall for making this happen on short notice!

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

Stream the complete show:

Heartless Bastards
2015-06-15
Webster Hall
New York, NY USA

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

Schoeps MK41V (DFC, PAS)>CMC6 + Soundboard (engineer: Reggie)>Roland R-26>2x24bit/44.1kHz WAV>Adobe Audition CS 5.5 (align, mix down, compression)>Izotope Ozone 5 (EQ, effects, imaging)>Audacity 2.0.5 (fades, tracking, amplify, balance, dither)>FLAC ( level 8 )

Tracks [Total Time 1:33:39]
01 Simple Feeling
02 Gates of Dawn
03 Gotta Have Rock N Roll
04 Black Cloud
05 Journey
06 Hi-Line
07 Skin and Bone
08 Pocket Full of Thirst
09 The Fool
10 The Mountain
11 Into the Light
12 Down In the Canyon
13 Late In the Night
14 Gray
15 Wind Up Bird
16 Only For You
17 Parted Ways
18 [encore break]
19 Only For You [mostly cut]
20 Tristessa

If you enjoyed this recording, PLEASE SUPPORT the Heartless Bastards, visit their website, and buy Restless Ones from Partisan Records.

Heartless Bastards: October 27, 2012 Irving Plaza – FLAC/MP3/Streaming

October 31, 2012
By


[Photos by acidjack]

On what was sure to be one of the year’s biggest “amateur nights” nightlife-wise, Heartless Bastards showed up at Irving Plaza and did what they do best – play the hell out of material new and old – without costumes, gimmicks or bullshit. As I mentioned back in February when they sold out Webster Hall (that recording here), Heartless Bastards have hit the big time, playing to the broader audiences that their classic blues-driven rock deserves. Even with a thousand costumed pub crawls and theme parties competing for one’s entertainment dollar on this night, the Bastards packed the place and gave us 90 minutes of unadorned rock n’ roll joy.  As in February, the addition of touring guitarist Mark Nathan added considerable meat to the band’s sound, giving them a guitar attack that is equal to the bigger spaces they’ve been playing. This set of 16 songs was slightly shorter than that in February, but no less powerful; songs from the band’s latest, Arrow are sounding better at each go round, as that record’s longer numbers like “Down In the Canyon” give the band opportunities for exploration. The crowd (mostly not costumed!), in turn, gave the band the level of enthusiasm they deserved. It doesn’t matter what night of the week or day of the year it might be; you can always count on the Heartless Bastards.

I recorded this set with my new MBHO KA200N cardiod microphones from the center of the floor.  The sound is excellent.  Enjoy!

Stream “Down In the Canyon”

Direct download of MP3 files [HERE] | Direct download of FLAC files [HERE]

If the FLAC link is no longer working, email nyctaper for the FLAC files

Follow acidjack on twitter

Note: All of the material on this site is offered with artist permission, free to fans, at our expense. The only thing we ask is that you download the material directly from this site, rather than re-posting the direct links or the files on other sites without our permission. Please respect our request.

Heartless Bastards
2012-10-27
Irving Plaza
New York, NY USA

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

MBHO KA200N (FOB, DFC, PAS)>MBP 603a>Aerco MP-2>Sony PCM-M10>24bit/44.1kHz WAV>Izotope Ozone 5 (EQ, exciter)>Audacity 3.0 (set fades, tracking, light DR compression on peaks, amplify, balance, downsample to 16bit)>FLAC ( level 8 )

Tracks [Total Time: 1:29:40]
01 The Mountain
02 Out At Sea
03 Witchy Poo
04 Simple Feeling
05 Got To Have Rock N’ Roll
06 Only For You
07 Skin and Bone
08 The Arrow Killed the Beast
09 Down In the Canyon
10 Late In the Night
11 [banter]
12 Hold Your Head High
13 Parted Ways
14 Nothing Seems the Same
15 All This Time
16 [encore break]
17 Be So Happy
18 Gray

If you enjoyed this recording, PLEASE SUPPORT Heartless Bastards, like them on facebook, and buy Arrow and their other records from their online store [HERE]

Wussy: August 11, 2012 Mercury Lounge – FLAC / MP3 / Streaming

August 21, 2012
By


[Photos by acidjack]

Wussy, like their Cincinnati brethren and fellow NYCTaper favorites Heartless Bastards, are one of those hardworking, unpretentious, straight-up-rocking bands that real music fans should always pull for. Unlike the unabshed classic rock of the Bastards, Wussy’s sound is more reminiscent of early-80s indie acts like the Bongos, with a rawer sound and accented with a light country twang. Despite being what no lesser critic than Robert Christgau called “the best band in America”, they remain an open secret among music fans. Meaning, when they throw a Sunday night early show at Mercury Lounge like this one, they’ve got a line snaking down the block before doors. And half the people in that line were wondering aloud at why the band isn’t more popular. There’s no getting past it, Wussy aren’t an act built around image or gimmicks; I don’t know this for a fact, but I’m betting their t-shirt sales aren’t what they could be (being a dude wearing a shirt that says “Wussy” may not be a winner). What Wussy is about is delivering the best show possible, having a fan-first attitude, and writing song after song with what Christgau himself called “Beatles/Stones consistency”.  This band suffered and sweated to make it to this Mercury Lounge show, in a van without A/C, which on this particular day, coming from just about anywhere, was enough torture to make you question their sanity, but not their rock n’ roll bona fides. (You can hear the story at the beginning of “Funeral Dress”, streaming below).  What we got was a set that spanned their records, kicking off with the title track from Funeral Dress, the album that started it all. Vocalists Chuck Cleaver and Lisa Walker sounded raw and right on this night, and despite a trying day, they gave the packed early evening house a hell of a time.

I recorded this set with Schoeps MK41 microphones and a soundboard feed provided by Kevin, the head engineer at Mercury.  As with most of our recordings from the venue, this one is outstanding. Enjoy!

Stream “Funeral Dress”
[audio:http://www.nyctaper.com/W1604Wussy2211/01 Funeral Dress.mp3]

Stream “Pizza King”
[audio:http://www.nyctaper.com/W1604Wussy2211/05 Pizza King.mp3]

Direct download of MP3 files [HERE] | Direct Download of FLAC files [HERE]

Follow acidjack on twitter

Note: All of the material on this site is offered with artist permission, free to fans, at our expense. The only thing we ask is that you download the material directly from this site, rather than re-posting the direct links or the files on other sites without our permission. Please respect our request.

Wussy
2012-08-11
Mercury Lounge
New York, NY USA

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

Schoeps MK41>KC5>CMC6>Aerco MP-2 + Soundboard >> Edirol R-44 [OCM]>2x24bit/48kHz WAV>Adobe Audition CS 5.5 (align, mixdown)>Izotope Ozone 5 (light EQ)>Audacity (set fades, tracking, amplify, balance, downsample)>FLAC ( level 8 )

Tracks [Total Time 44:27]
01 Funeral Dress
02 Pulverized
03 Maglite
04 Death by Misadventure
05 Pizza King
06 Happiness Bleeds
07 Motorcycle
08 [banter]
09 Grand Champion Steer
10 Airborne
11 Rigor Mortis

If you download this recording from NYCTaper we expect that you will PLEASE SUPPORT Wussy, visit their website, and purchase their official releases including Strawberry directly from the Music section of their website [HERE]

Heartless Bastards: March 17, 2012 SXSW at Hotel Vegan Austin TX – Flac and MP3 Downloads + Streaming Song

April 9, 2012
By


[photo courtesy of Amanda Hatfield]

We are all big fans of Heartless Bastards over here at nyctaper, as well we’re quite fond of Partisan Records. When the two got together earlier this year and released HB’s strongest record to date, Arrow, acidjack and John got to celebrate with the band at their sold out Webster Hall show in February. That triumphant 90+ minute show was a watershed moment of sorts, but it was not too long before we were able to catch them again. This time it was the packed bill of Hotel Vegan’s final day. Playing after Lucero and before Diamond Rugs (coming soon), Heartless Bastards delivered a powerful forty-minute set that began with a stunning version of epic song of the year candidate “Down In The Canyon”, and never let up. The new songs were primarily featured, but we’re streaming an HB classic “Nothing Seems the Same” which ended the show on a high note.

I recorded this set in the same manner as the Lucero set with the Sennheiser cards mixed with a board feed, and the sound quality is excellent despite the many distractions the setting contained. Enjoy!

Stream “Nothing Seems the Same”:
[audio:http://www.nyctaper.com/H6602HB9922/07.%20Nothing%20Seems%20the%20Same.mp3]

Direct download of complete show in MP3 files (HERE)

Download the Complete show in FLAC [HERE].

Note: All of the material on this site is offered with artist permission, free to fans, at our expense. The only thing we ask is that you download the material directly from this site, rather than re-posting the direct links or the files on other sites without our permission. Please respect our request.

Heartless Bastards
2012-03-17
Hotel Vegan – SXSW
Austin, TX USA

Digital Master Recording
Soundboard + Audience Matrix

Soundboard + Sennheiser MKH-8040 Cardioids > Edirol R-44 (Oade Concert Mod) > 2 x 24bit 48kHz wav files > Soundforge (level adjustments, mixdown, set fades) > CDWave 1.95 (tracking) > TLH > flac (320 MP3 and tagging via Foobar)

Recorded and Produced
by nyctaper 2012-04-06

Setlist:
[Total Time 37:50]
01 Down In The Canyon
02 Late In The Night
03 Parted Ways
04 Got To Have Rock And Roll
05 Simple Feeling
06 Hold Your Head High
07 Nothing Seems the Same

If you download this recording, we expect that you will PLEASE SUPPORT Heartless Bastards, visit their website, and purchase Arrow from Partisan Records [HERE]

Heartless Bastards: February 24, 2012 Webster Hall – FLAC and MP3 Downloads + Streaming Songs

February 27, 2012
By


[photos by acidjack]

When their debut album Stairs and Elevators dropped seven years ago, Rolling Stone described the Heartless Bastards, accurately, as a small town (well, Cincinnati, anyway) band that was ready for the big time.  In 2012, with three more records under their belt, and their latest release, Arrow garnering solid-to-great reviews (The Onion’s A.V. Club called it the band’s best to date), I think it’s safe to say that the big time has been hit.  This show at Webster Hall sold out handily, and even this Friday night crowd was mostly hanging on every word.  Brooklyn-based Partisan Records is no doubt proud of their latest signing and the album they’ve put out for them, which was produced by Spoon drummer Jim Eno in Austin.

Arrow, like the band’s previous efforts, is a work of direct, honest American rock n’ roll songcraft, but it is also a more focused one, stripped of some of the production flourishes of The Mountain and letting lyricist and frontwoman Erika Wennerstrom’s voice and songwriting carry the load once again.  Arrow is obviously the product of a working, touring songwriter, and that gives it some instantly appealing thematic material to work with.  Also, as with a lot of the Bastards’ work, the songs are just good.  The melancholy “Skin and Bone” was a favorite of mine when the band debuted it for New York audiences in two semi-acoustic shows last July at Mercury Lounge, and I’m pleased to say that the final album version was equally fantastic as a full-band number at Webster Hall.  As it deserved to, most of Arrow received some attention during the show, with songs like “Parted Ways,  “Only For You” and “Down In the Canyon” standing shoulder to shoulder with band classics like “Sway” and “All This Time” (whose live version always gets an extended drum intro from the band’s underrated drummer Dave Colvin).  As Erika so aptly sings on “Low Low Low”, “my future is bright”.  We certainly agree.

I recorded this set with a soundboard mix provided by the band’s engineer, Jack, and Schoeps MK5 cardiod microphones mounted at the corner of the soundboard booth in the balcony.  The results are truly outstanding.  Enjoy!

Thanks to Heartless Bastards, Partisan Records, and Bowery Presents for their hospitality.

Stream “Only For You”
[audio:http://www.nyctaper.com/H6602HB9922/07 Only For You.mp3]

Stream “Sway”
[audio:http://www.nyctaper.com/H6602HB9922/13 Sway.mp3]

Stream “Low Low Low”
[audio:http://www.nyctaper.com/H6602HB9922/11 Low Low Low.mp3]

Direct download of MP3 files [HERE] | Direct download of FLAC files [HERE]
If the FLAC link is no longer working, email nyctaper directly.

Follow acidjack on twitter

Note: All of the material on this site is offered with artist permission, free to fans, at our expense.  The only thing we ask is that you download the material directly from this site, rather than re-posting the direct links or the files on other sites without our permission. Please respect our request.

Heartless Bastards
2012-02-24
Webster Hall
New York, NY USA

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

Schoeps MK5c>KC5>CMC6>Sound Devices USBPre2 + Soundboard >> Edirol R-44 [Oade Concert Mod]>2x24bit/48kHz WAV>Audition (various effects, EQ, resample to 44.1kHz)>Audacity (tracking, amplify and balance, downsample to 16bit)>FLAC ( level 8 )

Tracks [Total Time 1:35:20]
01 Marathon
02 Out At Sea
03 Parted Ways
04 Got To Have Rock N’ Roll
05 [banter – intro Heidi Johnson]
06 Blue Day*
07 Only For You
08 Skin and Bone
09 Simple Feeling
10 The Arrow Killed the Beast
11 Low Low Low
12 The Mountain
13 Sway
14 Hold Your Head High*
15 Late In the Night
16 Down In the Canyon
17 [encore break]
18 All This Time
19 Nothing Seems the Same

If you enjoyed this recording, PLEASE SUPPORT Heartless Bastards, visit their website, and purchase Arrow from Partisan Records [HERE]

Heartless Bastards: July 24, 2011 Mercury Lounge – FLAC and MP3 Downloads + Streaming Songs

August 1, 2011
By

HB ML
[Photo by acidjack]

It’s hard not to like the Heartless Bastards.  They’re one of those bands that never lets you down performance-wise, that’s always on their game, that always gives their fans something special.  This pair of shows at Mercury Lounge (our recording of night 1 here) certainly qualifies as that, as the band played these sets in “acoustic” (but really just sans-drummer) mode, and showed off considerable new material.  The most immediate effect of going drummerless was to focus even more attention on lead vocalist Erika Wennerstrom’s old-soul voice.  The opening lines of one of my Bastards favorites, “Done Got Old” proved she can carry a show without any accompaniment at all, and she remained note-perfect throughout a 90-minute set that was a bit longer than Saturday’s performance.  Most of this group stood respectfully as Erika, Jesse and Mark debuted new numbers like “Skin and Bones,” and the Western-tinged “The Arrow Killed the Beast.”  While the new record will not be acoustic, and some of the material was so new it didn’t even have names, what we heard on this night showed the level of promise we’ve come to expect from this band.  As Johnny mentioned in his review of the Saturday show, this only ups the anticipation for the new record.

I recorded this set from the same spot that Johnny used for the Saturday recording, focusing the sound a bit more toward the perfectly balanced soundboard feed from Kevin at the Mercury Lounge.  As with Saturday’s recording, the sound quality is outstanding.  Enjoy!

Stream “Skin & Bone”:
[audio:http://www.nyctaper.com/H6602HB9922/07 Skin & Bone.mp3]

Stream “You Ain’t Goin’ Nowhere [Bob Dylan]”:
[audio:http://www.nyctaper.com/H6602HB9922/13 You Ain’t Goin’ Nowhere.mp3]

Direct download of MP3 files [HERE]

Direct download of FLAC files [HERE]

If the FLAC link is no longer working, email nyctaper for the FLAC files

Follow acidjack on Twitter

Heartless Bastards
2011-07-24
Mercury Lounge
New York, NY USA

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

Equipment: Schoeps Mk41>CMC6>Sound Devices USBpre2 + Soundboard >> Edirol R-44 [Oade Concert Mod] (24/48)
Position: At soundboard, DFC, mics at 7.5′, PAS
Mastering: 2x24bit/48kHz WAV>Audition (mixdown, effects)>Audacity (set fades, tracking, amplify and balance)>FLAC ( level 8 )

Tracks [Total time: 89:29]
01 Done Got Old
02 [new song]
03 Sway
04 Hold Your Head High
05 [banter]
06 The Will Song
07 Skin & Bone [new]
08 The Arrow Killed the Beast [new]
09 Blue Day
10 [new song]
11 [banter]
12 Searching for the Ghost
13 You Ain’t Goin’ Nowhere [Bob Dylan]
14 Runnin’
15 Be So Happy
16 [encore break]
17 [new song]
18 The Mountain

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

Heartless Bastards: July 23, 2011 Mercury Lounge – FLAC / MP3 Downloads + Streaming Samples

July 29, 2011
By


[Photo by Johnny]

Having become a fan of Heartless Bastards only in the past few years, I’ve been treated better by them in that short time than any devotee could ask for.  After catching several of their brilliant concerts, including the MHoW and Bowery gigs last year, we were graced by a pair of acoustic performances at the intimate Mercury Lounge this time around.  Sans a drummer, Erika, Jesse and Mark gave us captivating, pared down renditions of their work including several new songs, a Bob Dylan cover (one of my personal favorites of his) and brought out singer Heidi Johnson for the majority of the set to harmonize on the vocals.  And once again, when the night ended, I found myself already expectant for their next set of shows.  If the new material is an indication of what’s to come on the next Heartless Bastards album, I’m sure to find myself even more impatient in the interim.

As a compliment to our microphones, the most excellent and gracious house engineer, Kevin, gave us a patch out of the soundboard.  Combined with the dead-center location of our mics, the result is a superb recording and indicative of the outstanding sound in this venue.  Enjoy!

Night two was also recorded and will be posted soon.

Stream “Sway”:
[audio:http://www.nyctaper.com/H6602HB9922/Heartless Bastards – Sway.mp3]
Stream “Could Be So Happy“:
[audio:http://www.nyctaper.com/H6602HB9922/Heartless Bastards – Could Be So Happy.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.

Heartless Bastards
Saturday, July 23, 2011
Mercury Lounge
New York, NY, USA

Source: SBD + AKG C 414 B-XLS’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 )
Mercury Lounge house engineer: Kevin
Recorded and produced by: Johnny Fried Chicken Boy

SETLIST:
[Total time: 1:11:10]
01. Marathon  [new song]
02. Sway
03. Hold Your Head High
04. The Will Song
05. Skin and Bone  [new song]
06. The Arrow Killed the Beast  [new song]
07. Searching for the Ghost
08. [new song]
09. You Ain’t Goin’ Nowhere  [Bob Dylan]
10. Runnin
11. Could Be So Happy
12. [encore break]
13. The Mountain

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

Heartless Bastards: July 15, 2010 Bowery Ballroom – FLAC / MP3 Downloads + Streaming Samples

July 23, 2010
By


[photo by Johnny]

I first saw Heartless Bastards about a year and a half ago when they opened for The Black Keys and was pretty blown away.  Since then, I’ve been waiting (somewhat impatiently, I’ll admit) for them to return to NYC with their indie-garage rock-blues amalgam and headline their own show.  My wish was granted when Erika, Dave, Mark and Jesse played not just one, but two back-to-back concerts at Music Hall of Williamsburg and Bowery Ballroom.  Suffice to say, I wasn’t disappointed: acidjack and I caught the first night at MHoW and by the time the house lights came up, I couldn’t wait to go to the second night.  The setlist included songs culled from their three albums, a short acoustic interlude, violinist Zy Orange Lyn joining the band for a handful of songs and Peter Pisano of Peter Wolf Crier sitting in for the encore’s “Could Be So Happy” (the Peter Wolf Crier and The Builders and the Butchers sets will be coming soon).  While the setlists were essentially the same both nights, there was the surprise addition of “Searching For the Ghost” during the encore at Bowery.  Adding to the milieu, someone in the crowd inflated a few condoms that bounced around the venue (which Jesse makes reference to) for a good part of the show and can be heard occasionally popping throughout the recording.  On a personal note, I had the pleasure of meeting Ms. Wennerstrom after one of the gigs and she is an absolute and gracious sweetheart.  Yeah, I’m smitten.

We were in our regular spot on the balcony next to the soundboard and, aside from the occasional rumble of being under an a/c vent and a group that preferred to chat loudly rather than enjoy the music, we came out with an excellent recording.  Hope you like what you hear as much as we did.  Enjoy!

Stream “Out at Sea”:
[audio:http://www.nyctaper.com/H6602HB9922/hb2010-07-15-Out_at_Sea.mp3]
Stream “Searching for the Ghost”:
[audio:http://www.nyctaper.com/H6602HB9922/hb2010-07-15-Searching for_the_Ghost.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.

Heartless Bastards
Thursday, July 15, 2010
Bowery Ballroom
New York, NY, USA
(opening bands: The Builders and the Butchers / Peter Wolf Crier)

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 conversion) > FLAC (level 8 )
Recorded and produced by: Johnny Fried Chicken Boy

SETLIST:
[Total time: 1:41:21]
01. Done Got Old
02. Out at Sea
03. Onions
04. Witchypoo
05. Blue Day
06. [banter]
07. Into the Open
08. I Swallowed a Dragonfly [*]
09. So Quiet [*]
10. Had to Go [*]
11. All This Time [*]
12. The Mountain
13. Sway
14. Hold Your Head High
15. Swamp Song
16. Nothing Seems the Same
17. Early in the Morning
18. [encore break / banter]
19. Could Be So Happy [#]
20. Searching for the Ghost [*]
21. Gray
22. Runnin

* Zy Orange Lyn on violin
# Peter Pisano (of Peter Wolf Crier) on additional vocals

If you download this recording, we expect that you will PLEASE SUPPORT Heartless Bastards, visit their website, visit their MySpace page, and purchase their official releases and merchandise.

Heartless Bastards: February 6, 2009 Terminal 5 – FLAC and MP3 Downloads

February 19, 2009
By


[photo by Johnny for nyctaper]

Review by Johnny:
Why this band isn’t hugely popular, I have no idea. Truth be told, I had only gotten into Heartless Bastards recently and had really liked what I’d heard. I was further intrigued when I realized that raspy voice coming out of the speakers belonged to a woman. The lucky (and smart) part of the crowd that showed up at Terminal 5 early was treated to an amazing set by Erika Wennerstrom and company. Blending a tight mix of indie rock, garage punk, roots and blues, the band captured the attention of the audience during their too-short half-hour set. I could go on and wax poetic about Heartless Bastards, the strength and depth of their songs, comparisons to other bands, etc… but I don’t need to. Their music speaks for itself.

Our recording position in the venue was the same as for the Black Keys and Lucero. Aside from the chatter during the low-volume parts and the house adjusting levels (particularly vocals) during the first song, the mix is spot-on and the recording sounds really good. Enjoy!

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.

Heartless Bastards
February 6, 2009
Terminal 5
New York, NY, USA
(Opened for The Black Keys / Lucero)

Location: 2nd level, directly behind soundboard, DFC
Source: AUD > AKG C 414 B-XLS > Edirol R-44 (WAV @ 24-bit/48kHz)
Lineage: R-44 (WAV @ 24-bit/48kHz) > USB > PC > Adobe Audition (adjust levels, downsample, dither, tracking) > WAV (16-bit/44.1kHz) > Trader’s Little Helper (check/fix SB’s) > FLAC Frontend > FLAC ( level 8 )
Recorded and produced by: Johnny Fried Chicken Boy

SETLIST:
[Total time: 31:08]
01. Early in the Morning
02. Done Got Old
03. Came a Long Way
04. The Mountain
05. Sway
06. Nothing Seems the Same

If you download this recording, we expect that you will PLEASE SUPPORT Heartless Bastards, visit their website, visit their MySpace page, and purchase their official releases and merch from the store at their website [HERE].

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