Blog Archives

[screencap by Ian Perlman]

A day that would end with an excellent set at Maxwell’s did not start out so well for Cap’n Jazz and their fans. We arrived for the JellyNYC Pool Party at Williamsburg Waterfront while the dark clouds were closing in, and a few short minutes later the skies opened up. The move of the rained-out show to Brooklyn Bowl has been well documented and discussed elsewhere, but suffice to say that despite the anecdotal instances of misfortune, the move of this show to the spacious and close-by Bowl saved the day. By the time we arrived at the venue, the house sound crew had nearly completed setting up for the bands. After an incendiary set from No Age (also recorded, coming soon), Cap’n Jazz ripped through fifty minutes of their original material in front of an absolutely insane crowd — the front half of the Bowl’s floor was a total anarchy of bodies and objects. Perhaps due to the nature of the crowd or the craziness of the day, this set is not as tight as the Maxwell’s show, but shares the same energy and enthusiasm from the bands — an excellent bookend to an unforgettable day.

This set was recorded with the Neumann’s mounted at the soundboard area and mixed with a feed from the board. Fortunately, the bowling lanes were empty during this set and the volume of the music drowned out any ambient noise from the venue. The result is another superb capture. Enjoy!

Much thanks to JellyNYC and Tell All Your Friends PR for their many courtesies throughout this hectic day.

Stream “Ooh Do I Love You”:
[audio:https://www.nyctaper.com/C7025CapnJazz2221/15%20CapnJazz2010-07-25_Early_nyctaper_t15.mp3]

Direct download of complete show in MP3 files (HERE)

Download the Complete show in FLAC [HERE].

Cap’n Jazz
2010-07-25
Brooklyn Bowl
Brooklyn, NY USA

Digital Master Recording
Soundboard + Audience Matrix

Soundboard + Neumann KM-150s > Edirol R-44 (Oade Concert Mod) > 2x 24bit 48kHz wav files > Soundforge (level adjustments, mixdown, set fades) > CDWave 1.95 (tracking) > Flac Frontend (level 7, align sector boundaries) > flac

Recorded and Produced by nyctaper
2010-07-29

Setlist:
[Total Time 52:18]
01 Basil’s Kite
02 [banter]
03 In The Clear
04 Planet Shhh
05 We Are Scientists!
06 Puddle Splashers
07 [banter]
08 Olerud
09 Forget Who We Are
10 [banter]
11 The Sands Have Turned Purple
12 Little League
13 Oh Messy Life
14 Tokyo
15 Ooh Do I Love You
16 [banter]
17 Take On Me
18 [banter]
19 Que Suerte!

If you email nyctaper for access to this recording, we expect that you will PLEASE SUPPORT Cap’n Jazz, visit their website, and purchase their complete discography compilation Analphabetapolothology from the Jade Tree Records site [HERE].

[photo by acidjack]

Its hard to believe that its been almost four years since The Flaming Lips have performed within the borders of NYC. That September 2006 concert at Hammerstein Ballroom had Deerhoof as the opening band, and featured much of the then-new At War with the Mystics album. While Monday night’s show at Summerstage featured a new band member and new material from 2009’s Embryonic, many of the same stage props and antics remain from years past. But the band’s willingness to dedicate themselves to providing an incredible night of entertainment night in and night out is what continues to make this band’s live show perhaps the most enjoyable of all similar bands touring today. And while Wayne does tend to speechify, its abundantly clear that the man’s heart is in the right place. The band’s setlist is the same as the other shows on this tour, but the wonderful night weather gave an added celebratory air to this show that made it special.

I recorded this set with my best mobile unit from literally within the first fifteen feet of the crowd — great for atmosphere, but not so good for avoiding much crowd participation. I was so close as to literally be underneath Wayne’s bubble during “Fear”. The listener should understand that this recording was captured from a prime experience location at this show. With that caveat, enjoy!

Stream “In The Morning of the Magicians”:
[audio:https://www.nyctaper.com/F2607FlamingLips1020/11%20FlamingLips2010-07-26_nyctaper_t11.mp3]

Direct download of complete show in MP3 files (HERE)

Download the Complete show in FLAC [HERE].

Flaming Lips
2010-07-26
Rumsey Playfield
Central Park
New York, NY USA

Digital Master Recording
Recorded from Front of Board Center
15 Feet From Stage

DPA 4021’s > Marantz PMD-660 (Oade BCM) > 16bit 44.1 wav > Soundforge (set fades, level adjustment, slight eq) > CDWave 1.95 (tracking) > Flac Frontend (level 7, align sector boundaries) > flac

Recorded and Produced by
nyctaper 2010-07-28

Setlist:
[total time 1:40:55]
01 [introduction]
02 Enthusiasm for Life Defeats Existential Fear
03 Worm Mountain
04 [banter]
05 Silver Trembling Hands
06 She Don’t Use Jelly
07 [banter]
08 The Yeah Yeah Yeah Song
09 The Sparrow Looks Up At The Machine
10 [banter]
11 In The Morning of the Magicians
12 [banter – Frog intro]
13 I Can Be A Frog
14 Yoshimi Battles the Pink Robots, Pt. 1
15 [banter]
16 See The Leaves
17 Pompeii Am Gotterdammerung
18 [banter]
19 Taps
20 The W.A.N.D.
21 [encore break]
22 Do You Realize??

If you email nyctaper for access to this recording, we expect that you will PLEASE SUPPORT Flaming Lips, visit their website, and purchase their official releases from the Store at their site [HERE].

[screencap by Ian Perlman]

The Cap’n Jazz reunion tour came to NYC on Sunday and the band rewarded their patient fans by playing two shows in a matter of about six hours. The late show at Maxwell’s began at about 11 p.m., at the end of a day where their early show planned for the afternoon was moved because of rain and eventually took place at Brooklyn Bowl at 6:30 (also recorded, coming soon). Despite the crazy and hectic day, the late performance was neither ragged nor tired — Cap’n Jazz clearly brought their A-game across the river to New Jersey and in this intimate venue, the energy was palpable. Tim took time between many of the songs to interact with the crowd, who spent much of the show in a euphoric state — the stage jumping and moshing that took place in Brooklyn was toned down as this crowd was there more to see the music than the scene. For a band that basically produced one album and one compilation, the setlist consisted of about half their entire catalog.

I recorded this set as I do all shows at this venue — Neumann’s at the cage mixed with a board feed. On this particular night, the band’s FOH and Maxwell’s superb house soundman worked in perfect unison and the venue sound was mixed to perfection. I am amazed at how good this recording sounds. Enjoy!

Stream “Oh Messy Life”:
[audio:https://www.nyctaper.com/C7025CapnJazz2221/08%20CapnJazz2010-07-25_Late_nyctaper_t08.mp3]

Direct download of complete show in MP3 files (HERE)

Download the Complete show in FLAC [HERE].

Cap’n Jazz
2010-07-25
Maxwell’s
Hoboken, NJ USA

Digital Master Recording
Soundboard + Audience Matrix

Soundboard + Neumann KM-150s > Edirol R-44 (Oade Concert Mod) > 2x 24bit 48kHz wav files > Soundforge (level adjustments, mixdown, set fades) > CDWave 1.95 (tracking) > Flac Frontend (level 7, align sector boundaries) > flac

Recorded and Produced by nyctaper
2010-07-27

Setlist:
[Total Time 56:52]
01 Yes, I Am Talking To You
02 Que Suerte!
03 [banter]
04 The Sands Have Turned Purple
05 [banter]
06 Basil’s Kite
07 Little League
08 Oh Messy Life
09 [banter]
10 Tokyo
11 [banter]
12 In The Clear
13 Planet Shhh
14 [banter]
15 Puddle Splashers
16 [banter]
17 Olerud
18 Forget Who We Are
19 [encore break]
20 Precious
21 Take On Me
22 [banter]
23 Ooh Do I Love You

If you email nyctaper for access to this recording, we expect that you will PLEASE SUPPORT Cap’n Jazz, visit their website, and purchase their complete discography compilation Analphabetapolothology from the Jade Tree Records site [HERE].

[screencap by Eric Horn]

The third session of the Backyard Brunch series moved indoors and began with an opening set by Courtesy Tier (here). The featured band was Person L, which is the newest musical project from Kenny Vasoli, who spent ten years as the lead singer of the popular major label pop-punk band The Starting Line. While Person L definitely is a departure for Vasoli, the band still relies heavily on his powerful vocals and meticulous songcraft. From ten feet away in a cozy living room, Kenny’s compelling presence demanded attention as the band worked through a short set of their best songs in an acoustic format. The highlights of the performance included “Goodness Gracious” (streaming below) and set closer “Untitled”, both tracks from their excellent 2009 release The Positives.

We recorded this set with four microphones placed strategically among the band members and the sound quality is outstanding. Enjoy!

Stream “Goodness Gracious”:
[audio:https://www.nyctaper.com/P1070PersonL2010/05%20PersonL2010-07-10_nyctaper_t05.mp3]

Direct download of complete show in MP3 files (HERE)

Download the Complete show in FLAC [HERE].

Person L
2010-07-10
Backyard Brunch Sessions
Brooklyn, NY USA

Four-Track Digital Master Recording
Recorded from Onstage

Neumann KM-150s + DPA 4021’s > Edirol R-44 (Oade Concert Mod) > 2x 24bit 48kHz wav files > Soundforge (level adjustments, mixdown, set fades) > CDWave 1.95 (tracking) > Flac Frontend (level 7, align sector boundaries) > flac

Recorded and Produced
by nyctaper
2010-07-22

Setlist:
[Total Time 35:04]
01 [introduction]
02 House Sounds
03 New Sensation
04 Good Days
05 Goodness Gracious
06 [banter]
07 Sit Tight
08 [banter/equipment]
09 Storms
10 [banter/thanks]
11 Untitled

If you email nyctaper for access to this recording, we expect that you will PLEASE SUPPORT Person L, visit their MySpace page, and purchase The Positives from the Academy Fight Song Records website [HERE].

[photo by Abby Resko – more here]

In 2008, Deer Tick appeared three times on nyctaper. As the leader of the trio, John McCauley was always an engaging presence and it was hard not to both root for Deer Tick’s success and predict its inevitable realization. Now two years down the road, Deer Tick has weathered a few personnel changes, released three excellent albums, sold out mid-major venues, appeared on Letterman, and chuckled at the folly of web backlash. At a sold out Maxwell’s on Monday night, the current quintet rocked harder and longer than the early years, but Deer Tick has lost absolutely none of its charm or its authenticity. The set picked equally from each of the three albums, but also featured several new numbers, the strongest of which (“Make Believe” and “Bury Deep”) represent a continued migration from americana-folk to honky-tonk in the band’s sound. To conclude the set, the band pulled out all the bar-band stops with two crazy covers — ZZ Top (“Cheap Sunglasses”) and Marvin Gaye (“Let’s Get it On”) before finishing with a lengthy feedback-drenched “Mange”.

I recorded this set with the Neumann microphones at the front corner of the soundboard booth and mixed with a board feed. The sound quality is excellent. Enjoy!

Stream “Twenty Miles”:
[audio:https://www.nyctaper.com/D4545DeerTick3030/08%20DeerTick2010-07-19_nyctaper_t08.mp3]

Direct download of complete show in MP3 files (HERE)

Download the Complete show in FLAC [HERE].

Deer Tick
2010-07-19
Maxwell’s
Hoboken, NJ USA

Digital Master Recording
Soundboard + Audience Matrix

Soundboard + Neumann KM-150s > Edirol R-44 (Oade Concert Mod) > 2x 24bit 48kHz wav files > Soundforge (level adjustments, mixdown, set fades) > CDWave 1.95 (tracking) > Flac Frontend (level 7, align sector boundaries) > flac

Recorded and Produced by nyctaper
2010-07-22

Setlist:
[Total Time 1:35:12]
01 Smith Hill
02 [banter]
03 Spend The Night
04 Me Me Me (MG&V)
05 Hope is Big (new song)
06 Baltimore Blues No. 1
07 Something To Brag About (new song)
08 Twenty Miles
09 When She Comes Home
10 [banter]
11 Maybelline (Chuck Berry)
12 Make Believe (new song)
13 Bury Deep (new song)
14 [banter]
15 Choir of Angels [false start]
16 Choir of Angels
17 [banter]
18 Ashamed
19 Houston, TX
20 I’m Gonna Learn To Fly An Airplane (with Johnny Corndawg)
21 Dirty Dishes
22 [tuning + Tequila]
23 [new song]
24 Cheap Sunglasses (ZZ Top)
25 [encore break]
26 Let’s Get it On (Marvin Gaye)
27 Mange

If you email nyctaper for access to this recording, we expect that you will PLEASE SUPPORT Deer Tick, visit their website, visit their myspace page, and purchase their official releases from the Partisan Records Store [HERE].

[photo courtesy of Ryan Muir]

For Diamond Rings, its only a matter of time. The deadly combination of talent, charisma, catchy songs, and friends in the right places virtually guarantees that by the next time he plays NYC, John O will be riding the buzz wave. Last night at Monster Island, a smallish but enthusiastic crowd saw Diamond Rings brief opening set that included several new songs from his anticipated full-length (September release) and three songs from a series of 12″ releases on One Big Silence Records. The quirky dance number “Show Me Your Stuff” does not in fact show the world all that Diamond Rings has to deliver. John O plays some mean guitar and the track streaming below (“All Yr Songs”) is a better indication of his talents.

We recorded this set with the Neumann microphones attached to the pole set feet from the stage and mixed the room mics with a soundboard feed. The sound quality is excellent. Enjoy!

Stream “All Yr Songs”:
[audio:https://www.nyctaper.com/D1807DiamondRings2211/12%20DiamondRings2010-07-18_nyctaper_t12.mp3]

Direct download of complete show in MP3 files (HERE)

Download the Complete show in FLAC [HERE].

Diamond Rings
2010-07-18
Monster Island Basement
Brooklyn, NY USA

Digital Master Recording
Soundboard + Audience Matrix

Soundboard + Neumann KM-150s > Edirol R-44 (Oade Concert Mod) > 2x 16bit 44.1kHz wav files > Soundforge (level adjustments, mixdown, set fades) > CDWave 1.95 (tracking) > Flac Frontend (level 7, align sector boundaries) > flac

Recorded and Produced by nyctaper
2010-07-19

Setlist:
[Total Time 33:30]
01 Play By Heart
02 [new song – All I Know?]
03 [banter]
04 Wait & See
05 [banter]
06 [new song]
07 [banter]
08 You and Me
09 [banter]
10 Show Me Your Stuff
11 [banter]
12 All Yr Songs

If you email nyctaper for access to this recording, we expect that you will PLEASE SUPPORT Diamond Rings, visit the website, visit the MySpace page, and purchase his debut EP from the One Big Silence website [HERE].

[photo by nyctaper]

The Backyard Brunch Sessions were moved indoors for the weather last weekend, but the developing themes for the series remained. This past Saturday again featured two bands that had never played a live acoustic session before, and also featured immense talent that was breathtaking to behold up close. The Courtesy Tier is a duo whose standard live show features Omer Leibovitz’s intense bluesy guitar and the aggressive drum work of Layton Weedeman. Saturday’s acoustic set was worlds apart — as Omer played a nylon string classical style guitar and Layton beat a bongo and mini-maraca — but the duo’s talents made it seem as if it was their normal set-up. At just three songs, the show was more a teaser, but certainly bodes well for the flexibility and dynamics of this up and coming and growing band. The Courtesy Tier play this weekend (Saturday July 17) at Rockwood Music Hall, and then next Saturday (July 24) return to Spike Hill.

We recorded this set with four microphones placed strategically around the duo and the sound quality is outstanding. Enjoy!

Stream “Friend”:
[audio:https://www.nyctaper.com/C1070CourtesyTier2211/2%20CourtesyTier2010-07-10_nyctaper_t02.mp3]

Direct download of complete show in MP3 files (HERE)

Download the Complete show in FLAC [HERE].

Courtesy Tier
2010-07-10
Private Backyard Brunch
Brooklyn, NY USA

Four-Track Digital Master Recording
Recorded from Onstage

Neumann KM-150s + DPA 4021’s > Edirol R-44 (Oade Concert Mod) > 2 x 24bit 48kHz wav files > Soundforge (level adjustments, mixdown, set fades) > CDWave 1.95 (tracking) > Flac Frontend (level 7, align sector boundaries) > flac

Recorded and Produced
by nyctaper
2010-07-14

Setlist:
[Total Time 14:10]
01 [introduction]
02 Friend
03 [banter]
04 Calling Out
05 Cold

If you email nyctaper for access to this recording, we expect that you will PLEASE SUPPORT The Courtesy Tier, visit their website, and purchase their debut EP Map and a Marker from the links at the Music Section of their website [HERE].

[photo by mikeL]

Last week, The Feelies played their now regular July 4th shows at Maxwell’s and we missed them for the second year in a row due to a vacation. There are some decent photos of last week’s gigs here, and a review here. Although we caught one of the shows in 2008 (here), I guess we kind of feel like we let down the Feelies fans who come to nyctaper for recordings of their shows (we’ve done six). So, I’ve decided to dig into the vault for a little treat from last year. In September of 2009, The Feelies played a mini three-show “tour”, which included ATP, a show at the Bearsville Theatre, and a show at Southpaw (on nyctaper here). The ATP recording popped up on Dimeadozen, and we covered the Southpaw night, but until now no recording of the Woodstock show had appeared. A short while ago, the prolific East coast taper mikeL sent us this recording so that we could offer it to our readers.

Mike recorded the set with a pair of Audio Technica 825s set up fifteen feet from the stage and the result is a recording of great clarity and presence. Enjoy!

Stream “Boxcars” [REM cover]:
[audio:https://www.nyctaper.com/F7001Feelies8800/24%20feelies2009-09-12at825d2t14.mp3]

Direct download of complete show in MP3 files (HERE)

Download the Complete show in FLAC [HERE].

The Feelies
2009-09-12 Bearsville Theater Bearsville NY
aud-1 : AT825 > D-7 (line in) > DATM >> RMR-D110 > D7 > DAT-1 (added track IDs on DAT-1) >> RMR-D100 > optical > HHB830 > CDRM > iTunes> AIFF > xACT > FLAC
recorded 15ft stage left center (between left stack and left of stage), 6ft stand

first set/disc 1 (35:51)
01. when company comes
02. bluer skies
03. egyptian reggae [richman]
04. the undertow
05. sunday morning
06. invitation
07. nobody knows
08. the high road
09. on the roof
10. lets go
second set/disc 2 (1:18:06)
01. barstool blues (neil young)
02. deep fascination
03. higher ground
04. the final word
05. slipping (into something)
06. time is right
07. away
08. original love
09. too far gone
10. raised eyebrows
11. crazy rhythms
12. – crowd
13. doin’ it again
14. boxcars (carnival of sorts) [buck/stipe/mills/berry]
15. i wanna sleep in your arms [richman]
16. – crowd
17. take it easy baby [morrison]
18. sooner or later
19. – crowd
20. outdoor miner [wire]
21. paint it black [jagger/richard/jones]
22. – crowd
23. she said she said [lennon]
24. fa ce-la
25. – outro
recording and post-production by mL

If you email nyctaper for access to this recording, we expect that you will PLEASE SUPPORT The Feelies, visit their MySpace page, and purchase the new reissues of Crazy Rhythms and The Good Earth directly from the Bar None website [HERE].

[photo by nyctaper]

The night after Akron/Family played as a fifteen-piece ensemble at Le Poisson Rouge, they returned to their roots and played a “secret show” at tiny Monster Island Basement — the center of Brooklyn’s DIY scene. The band was once again a three-piece, but similar to the LPR show (also recorded, coming soon quality not sufficient for posting), the songs were stretched out sometimes beyond recognition. “River”, which was a compact seven-minute package at their last NYC show (Music Hall in March), added a neat guitar jam and went beyond twelve minutes. The highlight of the show was clearly the tribal-beat-infused crowd-participation monster of a “Ed Is A Portal” that lasted a full twenty-two sweaty minutes. But it was more than the numeric length of the songs. Akron/Family were relaxed and were playing in front of friends — this show was more of a party than a concert and the band’s performance reflected that energy.

I recorded this set with the Neumann microphones mounted to a pole about ten feet from the stage, and mixed with a feed from the soundboard. The basic sound system and basement setting does limit the sonic quality, but overall this is an outstanding recording which captures the energy of the room. Enjoy!

Stream Entire Show:

This Recording is now available to Download in FLAC and MP3 and to Stream at Archive.org [HERE].

Akron/Family
2010-07-01
Monster Island Basement
Brooklyn, NY USA

Digital Master Recording
Soundboard + Audience Matrix

Soundboard + Neumann KM-150s > Edirol R-44 (Oade Concert Mod) > 2x 16bit 44.1kHz wav files > Soundforge (level adjustments, mixdown, set fades) > CDWave 1.95 (tracking) > Flac Frontend (level 7, align sector boundaries) > flac

Recorded and Produced by nyctaper
2010-07-05

Setlist:
[Total Time 1:16:20]
01 Meek Warrior
02 River / Jam
03 So It Goes
04 [banter]
05 Another Sky
06 [new song – Seth]
07 [banter]
08 Lake Song / New Ceremonial Music For Moms
09 Ed Is A Portal
10 Silly Bear

If you email nyctaper for access to this recording, we expect that you will PLEASE SUPPORT Akron/Family, visit their website, and purchase their official releases from Dead Oceans Records [HERE].

[photo by acidjack]

As a band led by the multi-instrumentalist and multi-talented Kelly Pratt, Team B is more than just the sum of its members’ many other groups (Beirut, Arcade Fire, Antibalas, etc). The collective group is a means by which performers who are supporting players in their “big” bands can stretch out and take a step to the front of the stage. Last Saturday at the Backyard Brunch concert series, their brief set highlighted Pratt’s vocals along with his trumpet work which has been a mainstay of Beirut sets. The interplay between horns, accordian and dual ukeleles showcased the many talents of Team B while the song selections, which include lyrics adapted from the poems of Theodore Roethke, also showed a literary side.

We recorded this set with eight high-end microphones placed strategically around the band. While the mix is not perfect, it does accurately describe the sound in the backyard that day. Enjoy!

Stream “Mystery Man”:
[audio:https://www.nyctaper.com/T5062TeamB0210/02%20TeamB2010-06-26_8mics_t02.mp3]

Direct download of complete show in MP3 files (HERE)

Download the Complete show in FLAC [HERE].

Team B
2010-06-19
Private Backyard Brunch
Brooklyn, NY USA

Eight-Track Digital Master Recording
Recorded from Onstage

Neumann KM-150s + DPA 4021’s + Schoeps MK-41s + DPA 4021’s > 2 Edirol R-44s (Oade Concert Mod) > 4 x 24bit 48kHz wav files > Soundforge (level adjustments, mixdown, set fades) > CDWave 1.95 (tracking) > Flac Frontend (level 7, align sector boundaries) > flac

Recorded and Produced
by nyctaper
2010-07-01

Setlist:
[Total Time 25:55]
01 [introduction]
02 Mystery Man
03 [tuning/banter]
04
05 [tuning/banter]
06
07 My Papa’s Waltz
08 [tuning/banter]
09
10 [outro]

If you email nyctaper for access to this recording, we expect that you will PLEASE SUPPORT Team B, visit their website, visit their MySpace page, and purchase their releases from their main page.