[Screenshots provided by West Egg Productions]
Until recently, ARMS was the solo project of Brooklyn’s Todd Goldstein, who until last year was the guitarist in the now-defunct band Harlem Shakes. Now, Goldstein has assembled a full band to help him realize his vision. Goldstein’s songs are emotional, melodic parables of heartbreak and longing, framed around his distinctive vocals. Goldstein’s music has a verifiable emo bent, and he doesn’t shy from the type of melodramatic vocal turns that are uncommon in today’s present shoegaze revival. The result is songs that are surprisingly soundtrack-ready (any rom-com would be lucky to have these tunes), and if not out of step with the current moment, certainly not overly concerned with it. This performance, as part of the “Brunch After Dark” show by our friends at the Backyard Brunch Sessions, was a fine introduction to the band, with ARMS covering a range of their material, including from their self-titled EP available for free download right now on their MySpace page. These songs were well suited to the big chaotic room – they force you to pay attention. That was important on this particular night, as ARMS had the unenviable task of closing out the show at the end of a five-act bill on a Tuesday night. The crowd that stayed were more than fairly rewarded.
ARMS are currently in the studio recording their second full length, Summer Skills, which they promise to deliver later this month.
I recorded this set with a high-quality soundboard feed from the Brooklyn Bowl staff, as well as the Schoeps microphones. The recording heavily emphasizes the board feed due to the distance of the mics from the stage and my desire to minimize the sounds of talking, bowling and the other non-music activities going on during the show. The sound quality is excellent, albeit with a bit less room ambiance than I personally prefer. Enjoy!
Stream “Fleeced”:
[audio:http://www.nyctaper.com/A0811ARMS0210/ARMS-Fleeced2010-11-08.mp3]
Direct download of MP3 files [HERE]
Download the Complete show in FLAC [HERE].
ARMS
2010-11-08
Brunch After Dark
Brooklyn Bowl
Brooklyn, NY USA
An acidjack master recording
Recorded and produced by acidjack for nyctaper.com
Equipment: Soundboard+Schoeps CMC641>Edirol R-44 (Oade Concert Mod) (24/48)
Position: At soundboard, slightly ROC, 12? up
Mastering: 2×24bit/48kHz WAV>Audacity (EQ, mixdown, set fades, limit peaks, tracking, amplify and balance, downsample to 16bit/44.1kHz)>FLAC (level 8 )
Tracks
01 Tiger Tamer
02 Dog Days
03 Fleeced
04 High Heels
05 Floaters
06 banter
07 Emily Sue, Cont’d
08 Sore
09 banter
10 Face Gravity
11 banter
12 Heat & Hot Water
If you download this recording from NYCTaper, we expect that you will PLEASE SUPPORT ARMS, visit their website (where you can download their EP for free), and purchase their music from your preferred retailer.
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