Posts Tagged ‘ sound devices ’

OPTO S: February 9, 2024 Rubulad

February 22, 2024
By
Photo by Claire Hewer

Brooklyn’s OPTO S remind me of filthy subway cars, John Carpenter’s Escape From New York, and streets at nighttime shiny with recent rainfall. Musically, they sound indebted to Suicide and the No Wave bands of the early 80s. Which is appropriate considering their name refers MTA subway nomenclature specifying a type of train operation—they’re a New York band through and through.

We caught OPTO S earlier this month opening for the mighty Oneida at Bushwick venue Rubulad. The band are no strangers to live recordings, having released Human Indictive / Live on ESP Disk (also available on vinyl at Forced Exposure), recorded before the pandemic but released as things shut down. A few years later now, the band are playing some promising new material, including “Dead Skunk,” “Lucy 2,” and “Going Down the Wrong Path.” You heard them here first! Meanwhile, the band is in the midst of doing some live dates. Catch them soon in Philadelphia on March 1st at Century Bar and back in NYC on March 29th at Berlin. Check their Facebook for details.

Stream and download at Archive.org

OPTO S
2024-02-09
Rubulad
Brooklyn, NY

Recorded and produced by Eric PH for nyctaper.com

MBHO KA200N/603A > Naiant PFA >> Sound Devices MixPre-6 > WAV (24/48) > Adobe Audition CC + Izotope Ozone 5 > Audacity 2.4.2 > FLAC

Tracks [33:11]
01. Carmine Street
02. Before My Eyes
03. Dead Skunk
04. Lucy 2
05. Spinning Gears
06. Going Down the Wrong Path
07. Something Crazy

SAVAK: December 1, 2023 Tubby’s

February 1, 2024
By

I’m appreciating more and more that the bands I love who I would regularly see in Brooklyn have made Tubby’s a regular spot. It’s like Union Pool north and you just might spot someone you recognize. We saw SAVAK there last year with Chris Brokaw and again in December with New Wet Kojak. This time the band showed up augmented with a second drummer, SAVAK-regular Matt Schulz joined by Jeff Gensterblum set up in the center of the Tubby’s floor. The two pounded away for a really unique set. The more drummers the better I always say!

This set features a few songs I hadn’t heard live from SAVAK, like “Oddsmaker” off their last album Human Error/Human Delight which I was glad to finally hear. No new songs in the set but SAVAK do have a new album out soon: Flavors of Paradise, which can be preordered over at Bandcamp.

If the regular Union Pool is still you’re spot, you have a couple upcoming chances to catch SAVAK. The first is a free show on February 20th with J. Robbins of Jawbox fame. You couldn’t possibly go wrong there. Claim your free ticket here. Next up, on March 7th, SAVAK will play a record release show for Flavors Of Paradise. Grab those tickets here.

I recorded this from our usual spot at Tubby’s. Will provided a perfectly-mixed board feed and Sohrab Habibion sweetened things up with his mastering. The sound is killer. Enjoy!

Stream and Download at the Live Music Archive

SAVAK
2023-12-01
Tubby's
Kingston, NY

Recorded and produced by Eric PH for nyctaper.com

Soundboard (engineer: Will) + MBHO KA200N/603A > Naiant PFA >> Sound Devices MixPre-6 > WAV (24/48) > Adobe Audition CC + Izotope Ozone 5 > Audacity 2.4.2 > FLAC

Tracks [40:10]
01. Sick of War
02. No Blues No Jazz
03. Reaction
04. I Don't Want To Be Defended
05. This Currency Exchanged
06. What is Compassion?
07. Dead Dick
08. Christo's Peers
09. Oddsmaker
10. How Many Duchesses
11. Trashing the Ghost
12. Cold Ocean 

Sohrab Habibion - vocals, guitar
Michael Jaworski - vocals, guitar
Matt Hunter - bass
Matt Schulz - drums
Jeff Gensterblum - drums

Ryley Walker: June 5, 2021 Private Backyard, Flushing, NY

June 7, 2021
By

“I don’t think Steve Gunn forgets his lyrics,” Ryley Walker wondered aloud midway though “The Roundabout” this past Saturday. He was performing in front of a small backyard audience in Flushing, Queens. We’re all a little rusty, performers and audiences alike, as live music returns to New York. But as we experienced this weekend, everyone’s quick to rediscover the well-worn grooves. In this hour and a half set, Ryley touches on his entire catalog, from Primrose Green to his outstanding new album, Course in Fable. A few covers complete the afternoon, including a lovely take on “There’s Hell in Hello, But More in Goodbye” from Jim O’Rourke’s Bad Timing record.

I recorded this show with a pair of MBHO omnidirectional mics positioned up front and overhead. Despite the windy day, the sound is superb. Enjoy!

Thanks to Ryley Walker for playing; and to Mark and Kim for hosting. You can purchase all of Ryley Walker’s albums, including Course in Fable, at Bandcamp. He’ll be on tour this fall with a full band opening for Dinosaur Jr. That tour wraps up November 20 at Brooklyn Steel. More immediately, Ryley will be joined by Stuart Bogie, Spencer Zahn, and Kevin Raczka for a sesh at Nublu 151 this coming Thursday, June 10. See you there!

Stream and download the show at the Live Music Archive.

Ryley Walker
2021-06-05
Private Backyard
Flushing, NY

Recorded and produced by Eric PH for nyctaper.com

MBHO KA100DK/603A (on stage) > Naiant PFA >> Sound Devices MixPre-6 > WAV (24/48) > Adobe Audition CC + Izotope Ozone 5 > Audacity 3.0.2 > FLAC

Tracks [1:34:05]
01. On the Banks of the Old Kishwaukee
02. The Roundabout
03. Rang Dizzy
04. Promise Me
05. Telluride Speed
06. Shaking Like the Others
07. The Halfwit in Me
08. If I Were a Carpenter [Tim Hardin]
09. Improvisation
10. Primrose Green
11. Summer Dress
12. Over the Hill [John Martyn]
13. There’s Hell in Hello, But More in Goodbye [Jim O’Rourke]
14. Fair Play [Van Morrison]
15. The Grand Old Trout [Bill MacKay]

The War on Drugs: September 4, 2014 Hopscotch Music Festival, Lincoln Theatre, Raleigh, NC (FLAC/MP3/Streaming)

September 8, 2014
By



IMG_7640
[photos by acidjack]

The Hopscotch Music Festival, held in Raleigh, North Carolina, has made it five years — not quite an eternity in a world of corporate music festivals like SXSW and Lollapalooza, but a rare achievement for an organically grown festival in a “midsize market” that has proven over and over that they are willing to take chances. Hopscotch is the festival willing to put a heavy metal band on its largest, outdoor, downtown stage on its Saturday night, rather than a more accessible mainstream act.  Hopscotch dedicates entire venues, at various times, to genres like experimental noise, ambient, thrash, black metal, and indie hip-hop. It is hosted in a city whose good humor and kindness borders upon unreal, sprawled across a fast-growing downtown, and unlike the best-known festival that attempts to use an entire city’s music venues as part of its sprawl, it opens everything to everyone, not reserving entry to “the big stuff” for the connected and the corporate.

Hopscotch, then, has much in common with The War on Drugs. I’ll make this bold claim now: they are the best rock act who has released an album this year. They didn’t get to that point quickly, or with flash, or with marketing, or even at times with buzz, though we did our best over here at this site. Three years ago, we caught them opening at Bowery Ballroom for Sharon Van Etten, another artist whose acclaim grew slowly on the back of honesty and hard work. This band grew on the back of the validity of their mission, the honesty of their approach, and their hard, hard work. Just like Hopscotch.

Adam Granduciel’s herculean writing and arranging on Lost In the Dream is well documented. He has applied that same intensity to the expanded live show for this tour, which we first caught on back to back dates in March, including the band’s rather hyped cover of “Mind Games”. Not every band’s play for the big time might include a bunch of double-radio-length songs, but not every band is The War on Drugs. What we got here at Raleigh’s Lincoln Theatre was a set that resembled some of what we heard back in March, including the expanded band that includes Jon Natchez on keyboards. A packed and somewhat chatty room got to see the band joined by local music maven Brad Cook of Megafaun on “Ocean” followed by a searing rendition of “Red Eyes” and closing the main set on the album’s title track. The highlight of the encore was another rare cover, Bill Fay’s “I Hear You Calling”, which ended my first night of Hopscotch in exactly the right way. If you don’t see another act this year, go see The War on Drugs, a band whose heart matches their massive sound, bound for the arenas they deserve.

I recorded this set with Schoeps MK41 supercardiod microphones at the soundboard rather than our preferred spot in Lincoln Theatre that is a bit closer. Due to technical issues a soundboard feed was not available, and there is some enthusiastic audience chatter on this that makes the sound inferior to the two recordings from March, though still quite good. Plenty more Hopscotch recordings will be coming 0ver the next month or so as well. Keep your eyes on this space.

This recording is now hosted on the Live Music Archive.  Download the complete show via these links: [MP3] | [FLAC]

Stream “I Hear You Calling” [Bill Fay]

Stream the full set:

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.

IMG_7634

The War on Drugs
2014-09-04
Hopscotch Music Festival
Lincoln Theater
Raleigh, NC USA

Hosted at nyctaper.com
Recorded and produced by acidjack

Schoeps MK41 (DINa, at SBD)>KCY>Z-PFA>Sound Devices USBPre2>Edirol R-44 [OCM]>24bit/48kHz WAV>Izotope Ozone 5 (effects)>Audacity 2.0.3 (fades, mix down, tracking, amplify, balance, downsample, dither)>FLAC ( level 8 )

Tracks [Total Time 1:32:48]
01 Burning
02 Comin’ Through
03 Eyes to the Wind
04 Under the Pressure
05 In Reverse>
06 An Ocean In Between the Waves
07 [banter]
08 Brothers [with Brad Cook of Megafaun]
09 Baby Missiles>
10 Suffering
11 [banter2]
12 Red Eyes
13 Lost in the Dream
14 [encore break and segue music]
15 Disappearing
16 Your Love Is Calling My Name
17 I Hear You Calling [Bill Fay]

If you enjoyed this recording, PLEASE SUPPORT The War on Drugs, visit their website, and buy Lost In the Dream from Secretly Canadian

Night Beats: August 6, 2012 Knitting Factory – FLAC / MP3 / Streaming

August 14, 2012
By

night beats
[photo by acidjack]

Seattle’s Night Beats keep it simple. With a sound whose most obvious reference points are Roky Erickson-style Texas psych and garage rock, the three piece’s no-bullshit live show has gained an ever-increasing following. A look at who they’ve toured with – bands like the Black Lips, Black Angels, the Strange Boys and even Roky himself – tells their story pretty accurately. This show at Knitting Factory may have been on a Monday, but that didn’t slow down the dancing or thin out the crowd, who got to enjoy a very strong bill all night long (openers MMoss and K-Holes similarly killed it). The band continue to tour behind their 2011 self-titled debut LP on Trouble In Mind records, and this set featured a lot of it, including their current single, “Puppet On A String”.  Luckily, the band also delved into what there is of a “back catalog”, in this case the 2010 H-Bomb EP, including that track as well as one of my favorites “They Came In Through the Window”. I’m pretty sure I heard some new songs (or at least, ones I couldn’t identify from the EP and album) as well. Though similar in sound, Night Beats eschewed the onstage antics some of their brethren like the Black Lips, which made for fewer flying bodies and beer cans, but one hell of a show.

I recorded this set with Schoeps MK5 microphones and a soundboard feed from Rob, the engineer at the Knitting Factory.  In true garage band form, the sound is raw, but an excellent representation of the night and a great listen. Enjoy!

Stream “They Came In Through the Window”
[audio:http://www.nyctaper.com/N8006NightBeats0212/04 They Came In Through the Window.mp3]

Stream “Puppet On A String”
[audio:http://www.nyctaper.com/N8006NightBeats0212/01 Puppet On A String.mp3]

Direct download of MP3 files [HERE] | Direct Download of the 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.

Night Beats
2012-08-06
Knitting Factory
Brooklyn, NY USA

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

Schoeps MK5 (cardiod, ROB, PAS)>KCY>Z-PFA>Sound Devices USBPre2 + Soundboard >> Adobe Audition CS 5.5 (mixdown, adjust levels)>Izotope Ozone 5 (light EQ, exciter)>Audacity (set fades, tracking, amplify, balance, downsample)>FLAC ( level 8 )

Tracks [Total Time 39:06]
01 Puppet On A String
02 Ain’t Dumbo
03 Shadows in the Night
04 They Came In Through the Window
05 The Other Side
06 War Games
07 [unknown1]
08 H-Bomb
09 [unknown2]
10 [unknown3]
11 Little War in the Midwest

If you enjoyed this recording, PLEASE SUPPORT Night Beats, like them on Facebook, and purchase their record directly from Trouble In Mind Records [HERE]

Sean Rowe: July 21, 2012 Mercury Lounge – FLAC / MP3 / Streaming

August 10, 2012
By


[Photos by acidjack]

Sean Rowe has that kind of deep, bone-shaking voice that sticks with you; the dark, harrowing type that gives voice to a thousand souls. Born and raised in upstate New York, Rowe has been kicking around there for awhile, doing his thing in local bars and clubs, playing to whoever will listen. In a welcome development, ANTI Records picked him up a few years ago and re-released his first solo album, Magic.  Since then, he has enjoyed a wider audience, and this show at Mercury Lounge found Sean on the cusp of his second ANTI release, The Salesman and the Shark, which drops at the end of this month. Joined onstage by Sarah Pedinotti from Railbird on keys, Rowe showcased several new songs from Salesman as well as some truly classic covers.

Magic reflected Rowe’s other main passion, being a naturalist, and was the result of 24 days spent foraging in the wilderness. Based on what we were previewed at this show, Salesman will be another dramatic artistic statement, with songs like “Joe’s Cult” evoking some of rock and folk’s most cherished vocalists. You can imagine Rowe sharing the stage with any number of great artists: Tom Waits, Bob Dylan, Steve Earle, Johnny Cash, were he still with us. Rowe’s baritone has a timeless, evocative quality, and that made his covers at this show as memorable and true as his originals.  Because everything has to have a label to hang it on, PR people have taken to calling this “alt-folk”, and maybe, as the work of an accomplished woodsman with a love and respect for the outdoors, that makes some sense. But I don’t think Rowe is trying to be the “alternative” to anything; his music is classic, as well as relevant. Although, in fairness to the “alt” tag, he had a bit of fun with us at the end with his cover of the Violent Femmes’ “Gone Daddy Gone” – an 80s staple that, like Rowe’s own music, wears awfully well.

Rowe will be performing two NYC shows in September – on the 19th at Mercury Lounge, and on the 20th at Brooklyn Bowl.

I recorded this set with Schoeps MK41 microphones and an excellent soundboard feed from Kevin, the head engineer at Mercury.  Like the Field Report recording from this same night, it is outstanding in quality.  Enjoy!

Stream “Joe’s Cult”
[audio:http://www.nyctaper.com/S2107SeanRowe2120/04 Joe’s Cult.mp3]

Stream “Jesus Gonna Be Here [Tom Waits]”
[audio:http://www.nyctaper.com/S2107SeanRowe2120/07 Jesus Gonna Be Here.mp3]

Direct download of MP3 files [HERE] | Direct Download of the 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.

Sean Rowe
2012-07-21
Mercury Lounge
New York, NY USA

Exclusive download hosted at nyctaper.com
Recorded by acidjack and Johnny Fried Chicken Boy
Produced by acidjack

Soundboard + Schoeps MK41>CMC6>Sound Devices USBPre2 >> Edirol R-44 [OCM]>2x24bit/48kHz WAV>Audacity (mixdown)>Izotope Ozone 5 (various)>Audacity (set fades, tracking, amplify, balance, downsample)>FLAC ( level 8 )

Tracks
01 Flying
02 Bird On A Wire [Leonard Cohen]
03 [banter]
04 Joe’s Cult
05 [banter]
06 The Walker
07 Jesus Gonna Be Here [Tom Waits]
08 To Leave Something Behind
09 Gone Daddy Gone [Violent Femmes]

If you enjoyed this recording, please support Sean, visit his website, and pre-order The Salesman and the Shark from ANTI Records [HERE].

Family Band: August 1, 2012 Union Pool and April 5, 2012 Bell House – FLAC/MP3/Streaming

August 7, 2012
By

family band feast of music
[Photo courtesy of Feast of Music]

To see pure love personified as rock n’ roll, witness Jonny Ollsin, playing guitar in the thick of the Union Pool crowd last Wednesday as he looked up at his wife, Kim Krans, singing “Grace & Lies” to close out Family Band‘s set (see blurry image below). There were no corny faces or swooning poses from either; Krans, eyes cast down toward her husband as she sang, barely acknowledged him as he played. She didn’t need to; Krans and Ollsin’s bond is their music. This “Family Band” is nothing like the Osmonds or Jackson 5, but that turns out to be the perfect name for a band led by a family for whom music is its language, love its glue.

I first came across Ollsin and Krans at a Backyard Brunch Session last year (recording [HERE]). Then, they played as a three-piece with Scott Hirsch on pedal steel, sans drums, and despite being in the blazing July heat, the band had an obvious nocturnal vibe. Krans’ dusky, haunting vocals come against a downtempo backdrop of moody guitar and pedal steel. They joked then that their style was “death prom”, and while Family Band’s sound is dark, it is also beautiful.

The band’s second album, Grace & Lies, released this week on one of my favorite Brooklyn labels, No Quarter, represents the fullest realization to date of the band’s sound. The album contains contemplative love songs like “Moonbeams” and slow burners like “Lace”, as well as more chilling fare like “Again” and “Night Song”. This show was styled as an album release party, and there is already much for Krans, Ollsin and Hirsch to celebrate, including a favorable Pitchfork review and positive notice from around the blogosphere. This set – this time with a drummer in tow – took us through much of the album, with perhaps its standout sequence coming in the middle as an extended version of “Night Song” segued into “Rest”. While Krans, an accomplished visual artist, had never written a song prior to this band, Ollsin is a lifelong musician and composer whose prior bands included the thrash bands S.T.R.E.E.T.S. and Children. Ollsin’s metal influences come through a bit in the brooding riff that anchors “Night Song”; even at its slower tempo, there is an edge to his playing that is unmistakable. As the band closed the show with that lovely rendition of “Grace & Lies”, I thought about how many “family bands”, based on lies and manipulation, have failed throughout pop music history. Ollsin and Krans’ graceful, honest effort seems sure to shatter that mold.

I recorded this set with Schoeps MK41 microphones and a customized board feed from the Union Pool house engineer Bob.  As a bonus, we are also offering nyctaper’s recording of Family Band back in April at the Bell House ‘for the Brain Cave Festival, where they previewed many of these songs. Both recordings are of excellent quality. Enjoy!

Stream “Moonbeams” from Union Pool:
[audio:http://www.nyctaper.com/F0723FamilyBand0211/02 Moonbeams.mp3]

Stream “Rest” from the Brain Cave Festival:
[audio:http://www.nyctaper.com/F0723FamilyBand0211/06 Rest.mp3]

Stream “Night Song” from Union Pool:
[audio:http://www.nyctaper.com/F0723FamilyBand0211/05 Night Song.mp3]

Download the MP3 files: [Union Pool] | [Brain Cave Festival]

Download the FLAC files: [Union Pool] | [Brain Cave Festival]

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.

Family Band
2012-08-01
Union Pool
Brooklyn, NY USA

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

Schoeps MK41 (DFC, DINa)>KC5>CMC6>Sound Devices USBPre2 + Soundboard >> Edirol R-44 [OCM]>2x24bit/48kHz WAV>Audition (Compression on SBD, align)>Izotope Ozone 5 (EQ and effects)>Audition (parallel compression)>Audacity (set fades, tracking, amplify, balance, downsample)>FLAC ( level 8 )

Tracks
01 Again
02 Moonbeams
03 Ride
04 [banter]
05 Night Song>
06 Rest
07 Your Name
08 Lace
09 Grace & Lies
________________________
Family Band
2012-04-05
Brain Cave Festival
Bell House
Brooklyn, NY USA

Recorded by nyctaper
Produced by acidjack

Soundboard + Sennheiser MKH-8040>Edirol R-44 [Oade Concert Mod]>2x24bit/48kHz WAV>Audition (DR compression on soundboard, mixdown)>Izotope Ozone 5 (EQ, effects)>Audacity (set fades, mixdown, tracking, amplify, balance, downsample)>FLAC ( level 8 )

Tracks
01 [Brain Cave intro]
02 Again
03 Ride
04 Moonbeams
05 Your Name
06 Rest
07 Night Song

If you enjoyed this recording, PLEASE SUPPORT Family Band, visit their website, and purchase Grace & Lies from No Quarter Records [HERE]

Natureboy: March 30, 2012 Union Pool – FLAC and MP3 Downloads + Streaming Songs

April 4, 2012
By


[Photos by acidjack and Johnny Fried Chicken Boy]

Natureboy ranks high among bands that we have been pulling for on this site.  While we have hosted shows that featured the band before, we were thrilled to have the chance to co-sponsor this show at Union Pool with Kevchino.  We are pleased to report that the band we saw was more mature and even sharper musically than before.  Since we last saw the band, they have added a drummer and keyboardist to give their Dylan-inspired folk-rock sound more muscle and rock n’ roll presence.  Founder and frontwoman Sara Kermanshahi and the band have recorded a new, as-yet-untitled release at fellow bandmember Cedar Apffel’s studio, and they served up a generous portion of that record with this set, including a favorite we had seen before and craved seeing again, “A Flame”.  The band’s newly-found live energy was palpable, and the five players easily filled the room with sound as Sara’s voice remained, as it should be, the centerpiece.

Natureboy is exploring options for the release of this new record, and we expect a label to snap this up before they miss the chance. As they closed this set with the Smiths’ “Back to the Old House” – one of many great covers we have heard from them – it was evident how Kermanshahi’s unique singing style and vision is a perfect compliment to the band’s now-classic sound.

I recorded this set with an excellent soundboard feed from the Union Pool FOH, plus Schoeps MK22 open cardiod mics.  The results are excellent.  Enjoy!

Thanks to Union Pool for their hospitality and to Kevchino for co-hosting the show and developing this great bill. 

Stream “Head to Toe”
[audio:http://www.nyctaper.com/N1107Natureboy2299/08 Head to Toe.mp3]

Stream “Back to the Old House”
[audio:http://www.nyctaper.com/N1107Natureboy2299/12 Back to the Old House.mp3]

Direct download of MP3 files [HERE] | Direct Download of the 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.

Natureboy
2012-03-30
Union Pool
Brooklyn, NY USA

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

Schoeps MK22 (ORTF, DFC, at SBD)>KCY>PFA>Sound Devices USBPre2 + Soundboard >> Edirol R-44 [Oade Concert Mod]>Audacity (mixdown, downsample, set fades, adjust levels, light EQ, tracking)>FLAC ( level 8 )

Tracks
01 Pariah
02 A Flame
03 [tuning]
04 Lexies
05 [banter/tuning]
06 Blow To the Head
07 Don’t Worry
08 Head to Toe
09 Sight to See
10 Heart to Fool
11 [encore break]
12 Back to the Old House [The Smiths]

If you enjoyed this recording, PLEASE SUPPORT Natureboy, visit their MySpace page, and purchase their debut album from Bleek 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]

Eternal Tapestry: October 14, 2011 Glasslands – FLAC and MP3 Downloads + Streaming Song

October 18, 2011
By


[Photo by acidjack]

Portland’s Eternal Tapestry brought their heavy left coast psych rock to Glasslands this past Friday night, performing three long-form compositions of their densely layered guitar, bass, and saxophone (an instrument that seems to be making a big comeback lately!). The first two numbers came from the band’s latest record, Beyond the 4th Door, but the final track, “Doing Your Own Being”, was my personal highlight. With its eastern-inflected sax melody, the song is not only compelling, but rare. Released only on the very-limited-edition box set, Not the Spaces You Know, But Between Them on North Carolina imprint Three Lobed Recordings, this was likely many audience members’ first exposure to this incredible tune. Eternal Tapestry have reportedly made several records by essentially culling down live in-studio sessions, so unsurprisingly, the actual live show is a thing of beauty, as the band reworks and expands upon their songs on the fly. They don’t make it out east as often as we would like, so don’t miss them on the next go round.

I recorded this set with the DPA microphones mixed with an excellent board feed from Josh at Glasslands. As usual for this venue, the sound is excellent!

Thanks to PopGun Booking for hosting us.

Stream the complete set and download individual tracks:

Direct download of MP3 files [HERE]

Download the Complete show in FLAC [HERE].

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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.

Eternal Tapestry
2011-10-14
Glasslands
Brooklyn, NY USA

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

DPA 4021>Sound Devices USBpre2 + Soundboard>>Edirol R-44 [Oade Concert Mod] (24/48)>2x24bit/48kHz WAV>Audition (EQ, mixdown, amplify)>Audacity (set fades, tracking)>FLAC ( level 8 )

Tracks
01 Cosmic Manhunt
02 Wave Without A Shore
03 [banter]
04 Doing Your Own Being

If you enjoyed this recording, PLEASE SUPPORT Eternal Tapestry, visit their MySpace page, and purchase their latest record, Beyond the 4th Door, directly from Thrill Jockey [HERE]

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