nyctaper Recordings

concert discussion and free flac downloads

Chuck Johnson: March 24, 2016 Union Pool and March 29, 2016 Trans-Pecos

April 29, 2016
By

IMG_2240

We saw a lot of our friend Chuck Johnson lately, between his one-of-a-kind full band performance at the Three Lobed Sweet Sixteen Spectacular, to these two NYC shows, the latter of which we sponsored. Both of these performances — the first at Union Pool, the second at Trans-Pecos — showcased Chuck’s recent album on Trouble In Mind Records, Velvet Arc. It’s a more electric-focused project than some of his other recent work, but continues with their strong sense of narrative, and Chuck’s refreshing, ingenious phrasing. We were grateful that Chuck was able to make time for two New York performances — and that we were able to sponsor one of them. Chuck is back out west and off the tour trail for a bit, but we’ll be waiting for his return.

The Union Pool set was recorded by EricPH in our usual manner in the venue, with engineer Doug’s soundboard feed and AKG microphones. The Trans-Pecos show was recorded with Schoeps MK4V microphones at the stage lip only. The sound quality of both is excellent. Enjoy!

Download the Union Pool show: [MP3/FLAC]

Download the Trans-Pecos show: [MP3/FLAC/ALAC]

Stream the complete shows:

Chuck Johnson
2016-03-24
Union Pool
Brooklyn, NY

Exclusive download hosted at nyctaper.com
Recorded and produced by Eric PH

Soundboard (engineer: Doug) + AKG C480B/CK63 > Roland R-26 > 2xWAV (24/48) > Adobe Audition CC (align, compression, mixdown, normalize, fades) + Izotope Ozone 5 (EQ) > Audacity 2.0.5 (downsample, dither, tracking, tagging) > FLAC (16/44.1, level 8)

Tracks [37:43]
01. Florets
02. [tuning]
03. Sail Away Ladies
04. [tuning]
05. Anamet
06. Middle Water
07. [tuning]
08. Velvet Arc

________________________

Chuck Johnson
2016-03-29
Trans-Pecos
Queens, NY USA

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

Schoeps MK4V (stage lip)>NBob Cables>PFA>Zoom F8>24bit/48kHz WAV>Adobe Audition CS 5.5 (align, mix down, compression)>Izotope Ozone 5 (EQ, effects)>Audacity 2.0.3 (track, amplify, balance, downsample, dither)>FLAC ( level 8 )

Tracks
01 Florets [fades in]
02 [tuning]
03 Sailaway Ladies
04 [tuning2]
05 Anamet
06 Middle Water
07 Velvet Arc

Support Chuck Johnson: Website | bandcamp | Trouble In Mind Records 

Lee Ranaldo: March 29, 2016 Trans-Pecos

April 28, 2016
By

FullSizeRender

One of those only-in-New York things: you’re out in Ridgewood on a Tuesday night to see a solo guitar player (Chuck Johnson), and the opening act is freaking Lee Ranaldo. Since the demise of Sonic Youth, Lee has been a busy man, putting out two well-received solo records. If these new songs are any guide, there’s going to be a lot more where that came from. What’s striking about seeing Ranaldo in the many settings where we’ve seen him — from the Sonic Youth days to a mind-bending improv performance with Tim Barnes at the opening of Market Hotel, to this solo acoustic performance at Trans-Pecos — is the assuredness with which he plays, the singular dedication and quality that comes through in every single thing he does. The decades under his belt as a professional musician serve not to weigh him down, but as with the finest artists, to free him to do exactly what he chooses, when he chooses, and do it well. These new songs show Lee’s continuing development during the post-Sonic Youth Between the Times & the Tides and Last Night On Earth era, when Ranaldo first embraced more straight-ahead songwriting in the solo realm versus his previous experimental efforts. While we’ve heard “Let’s Start Again” before, at last year’s Trans-Pecos show, the rest of these songs were new numbers, some of which Lee has tried out sporadically at other appearances. Even in their stripped-down form, the complexity and strength of these songs was obvious, and Ranaldo’s vocals have never sounded better. This was a welcome burst of energy from a master of his craft; we can’t wait to see what comes next.

I recorded this set with Schoeps MK4V microphones at the stage lip near Lee and his guitar, coupled with a soundboard feed and Audio Technica 853 microphones in the audience to capture the ambiance of the room. The sound quality is excellent. Enjoy!

Download the complete set: [MP3/FLAC]

Stream the complete set: 

Lee Ranaldo
2016-03-29
Trans-Pecos
Queens, NY USA

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

Soundboard + Schoeps MK4V (stage lip, DFC) + Audio Technica 853c>PFA (ROC, at SBD)>>Zoom F8>3x24bit/48kHz WAV>Adobe Audition CS 5.5 (align, mix down, compression)>Izotope Ozone 5 (EQ, effects)>Audacity 2.0.5 (track, amplify, balance, downsample, dither)>FLAC ( level 8 )

Tracks [Total Time 31:11]
01 [intro]
02 Let’s Start Again
03 Circular
04 Electric Trim
05 Last Looks
06 Thrown Over the Wall

SUPPORT Lee Ranaldo: Website | Store

Oneida: March 11, 2016 Shea Stadium

April 27, 2016
By

Oneida

Last month, Oneida embarked on a weeklong tour and as promised, we were there to catch the tour opener at Shea Stadium. Typical for recent sets, the band played mostly new songs that you may be familiar with if you’ve been following along here, plus two covers, “S.P.Q.R.” by This Heat and “All Data Lost” by Chrome that were recently released on the Positions EP. “All Data Lost” gets augmented with the “It Was Me” intro, last (and first) heard in October 2014, stretching the jam into an epic, twenty-six minute closer. Similarly, “Cedars” is joined with “Bad Habit,” which we first saw way back in May 2012 at 285 Kent. The band has been on a roll the last few years, despite their infrequent schedule, and when Oneida eventually gets around to releasing their next LP, I think we’re going to be in for something that rivals Rated O as their definitive statement. Until then, we’re fortunate the band is brining these new tunes out on the road.

This set was recorded to multitrack by Shea Stadium engineer Dave. I think mixed down the fourteen tracks, resulting in a recording of exceptional clarity. Enjoy!

Download: [MP3/FLAC]

Stream:

Oneida setlist

Oneida
2016-03-11
Shea Stadium
Brooklyn, NY

Exclusive download hosted at nyctaper.com
Recorded by Dave
Produced by Eric PH

Soundboard (engineer: Dave) > 14xMono WAV (16/44.1) > Adobe Audition CC (mixdown, balance, compression, normalize, fades) + Izotope Ozone 5 (EQ, effects) > Audacity 2.0.5 (tracking, tagging) > FLAC (16/44.1, level 8)

Tracks [70:08]
01. Economy Travel
02. I Will Haunt You
03. Cedars > Bad Habit
04. Reputation
05. S.P.Q.R. [This Heat]
06. Cock Fight
07. It Was Me > All Data Lost [Chrome]

If you enjoyed this recording, PLEASE SUPPORT Oneida. Visit their website, like them on Facebook, and buy the Positions EP from Rocket Recordings.

Dan Friel: March 6, 2016 Palisades

April 26, 2016
By

Dan Friel

Back in January we caught Dan Friel doing his noise pop thing at Palisades. That was somehow Friel’s first appearance on this site, despite us all being longtime fans of both his solo material and Parts & Labor. Last month we ran into Friel again at Palisades for an extra special set, opening up Sunwatchers’ record release show. This set features Friel joined by Sunwatchers’ Jeff Tobias on saxophone, Sam Kulik on trombone, and Jesse DeRosa on trumpet for “Life Part 2,” “Life Part 1,” and “Thumper.” While the setlist is similar to what we saw in January (aside from “Valedictorian”) the added brass section makes for a completely unique experience. It’s nice to see Friel doing collaborative sets and I hope this isn’t the last we’ll see of it.

I recorded this set with the AKG’s set up at the stage lip, combined with board feed from Palisades FOH Ariel. The brass section comes in nice and clear. Overall the sound is excellent. Enjoy!

Download the complete show: [MP3/FLAC]

Stream the complete show:

Dan Friel
2016-03-06
Palisades
Brooklyn, NY

Exclusive download hosted at nyctaper.com
Recorded and produced by Eric PH

Soundboard (engineer: Ariel) + AKG C480B/CK61 (stage lip) > Roland R-26 > 2xWAV (24/48) > Adobe Audition CC (align, mixdown, balance, compression, normalize, fades) > Audacity 2.0.5 (downsample, dither, tracking, tagging) > FLAC (16/44.1, level 8)

Tracks [30:55]
01. Life Part 2
02. Lungs
03. Valedictorian
04. Rattler
05. [banter]
06. Life Part 1
07. Thumper

If you enjoyed this recording, PLEASE SUPPORT Dan Friel. Visit his website, like him on Facebook, and buy Life from Thrill Jockey.

Waco Brothers: April 13, 2016 Union Hall

April 25, 2016
By

waco

Correspondent NeilD writes:

The Waco Brothers may be credited as the godfathers of “insurgent country” — they were set to release the first single on Chicago’s Bloodshot Records back in 1995 until it turned out some members were out of town, leaving Waco co-frontman Jon Langford to go it alone — but their influences have always been far broader than just taking classic country and infusing it with punk energy. A quick perusal of their nine-album oeuvre turns up covers of songs by Johnny Cash and Roy Acuff, sure, but also Neil Young, Gram Parsons, T. Rex, and even Syd Barrett-era Pink Floyd; their latest and first full album in more than ten years, “Going Down in History,” matches a strong set of typically astringent originals with covers of both Texas cowpunk pioneer Jon Dee Graham (“Orphan Song”) and the Small Faces (“All or Nothing”), with the album dedicated to the latter’s keyboard player Ian McLagan, who died a little over a year ago.

The Wacos were born and raised in tiny Chicago bars (the original genesis of the band was as a way for Jon and fellow guitarist/vocalist Dean Schlabowske to earn free drinks), which made the Brooklyn stop on this tour altogether appropriate: With its stated 100-person capacity stretched to the breaking point and the volume cranked up way past 11, Union Hall was sweaty and ear-shattering throughout this hour-and-a-half set. Highlights included an outstanding “Walking on Hell’s Roof” from 2000’s Electric Waco Chair — with a blistering violin solo courtesy of guest Waco and frequent Langford collaborator Jean Cook — plus a healthy sampling of songs from the new album, including Schlabowske’s hauntingly catchy “Receiver,” Tracey Dear channeling the Clash’s Mick Jones more than ever on “Had Enough,” and Langford’s “Building Our Own Prison,” with its takedowns of big-box-store culture and Malvina Reynolds-inspired “tick-tack, clackity-clack” refrain. For the encore, drummer Joe Camarillo ceded the drum throne to founding Waco (and longtime Mekon) Steve Goulding, as the band kicked into a song that started out as a mashup of “Pinball Wizard” and “Folsom Prison Blues,” before veering off into those covers of “Interstellar Overdrive” and “20th Century Boy” that were staples of the Wacos live playbook long before showing up on last year’s covers album “Cabaret Showtime.”

The set was recorded with AT-853 mics suspended from the Union Hall ceiling, mixed with a board feed. Huge thanks to Union Hall soundman Alex, to venue booker Shannon Manning (not just for bringing the Wacos to Brooklyn and for her support of NYCTaper but for the timely supply of a chair so I could reach the aforementioned ceiling), and to Langford, Schlabowske, Dear, Camarillo, Cook, and Alan Doughty for reinvigorating the band after a long semi-hiatus.

Download the complete show from its page on the Live Music Archive: [MP3] [FLAC]

Stream the complete show:

Waco Brothers

Union Hall
Brooklyn, NY
April 13, 2016

Soundboard > Sony PCM-M10 > WAV (24/48) + AT853 cardioid mics > SP-SPSB-1 battery box > Sony PCM-M10 > WAV (24/48) > Sound Studio (light dynamic compression and mixing) > FLAC (16/44.1) > Tag > FLAC
Recorded and mastered by neil d

01 intro
02 See Willy Fly By
03 Red Brick Wall
04 Had Enough
05 Receiver
06 Going Down in History
07 Harm’s Way
08 Pigsville
09 Devil’s Day
10 Too Sweet to Die
11 Walking on Hell’s Roof
12 All or Nothing
13 Plenty Tough and Union Made
14 Fox River
15 Building Our Own Prison
16 I Fought the Law
17 Revolution Blues
18 Do You Think About Me
19 Orphan Song
20 White Lightning
21 Big River
22 Pinball Wizard/Folsom Prison Blues/Interstellar Overdrive/20th Century Boy

You can learn more about the Wacos and purchase their albums at:

http://wacobrothers.com/wb/
https://www.bloodshotrecords.com/artist/waco-brothers
https://wacobrothers.bandcamp.com/

the Mountain Goats: April 19, 2016 City Winery

April 24, 2016
By

tMG Winery 3 Lowden
[photos by Andrew Lowden]

Over the course of three shows at City Winery, John Darnielle gave his Mountain Goats bandmates a subtle but meaningful tribute that you would have missed if you were not paying close attention. For the first song of each of the three John “solo” segments in each show, a different band member was featured in a duo with the band’s protagonist. On Sunday, Matt Douglas played sax on “Foreign Object”, on Monday Peter Hughes played bass on “Jenny”, and for this Tuesday night finale of the residency, Jon Wurster joined John for a cover of Dio’s “Rainbow in the Dark” — a song Darnielle revealed that Wurster had never played before this performance.

These are some of the little things that bring the fans back to see the Mountain Goats time and again. There were many fans who attended each of the three nights at City Winery and perhaps other East coast shows. What brings them back night after night isn’t just the promise of different and sometimes rare songs at any given show, or the often hilarious banter, or the chance to hear their favorite songs — the most compelling aspect of the Mountain Goats experience is the feeling of belonging. There is a strong sense of unity within the band, between the fans, and between the fans and band. The music offers a sense that no matter how difficult things are for you, there are people out there who know what you’ve endured and can tell you from experience that you’re going to be alright.

The final night of this special set of shows became the “celebratory” performance in large part because this particular crowd was quite rambunctious. And John rewarded the energy with a couple of first-time covers and a few songs that had yet to appear on this tour. In particular “Cobscook Bay” and “Nine Black Poppies” were familiar but welcome additions to the tour itinerary, both not having appeared on a setlist since last year. For a final night of the tour and likely the last NYC Mountain Goats show until 2017, this show was exactly what we’d hoped to experience.

I recorded this set in the same manner as the previous night and the sound quality is equally superb. Enjoy!

Download the Complete Show in FLAC and MP3 from Archive.org [HERE]

Stream the Complete Show (minus banter tracks):

Mountain Goats
2016-04-19
City Winery
New York NY

Digital Master Recording
Soundboard + Audience Matrix

Soundboard [Engineer: Brandon Eggleston] + Schoeps CCM4u Cardioids > Sound Devices 744t > 2 x 24bit 48kHz wav files > Soundforge (post-production) > CDWave 1.95 (tracking) > TLH > flac (320 MP3 and tagging via Foobar)

Recorded and Produced by nyctaper

Setlist:
[Total Time 1:42:44]
01 Get Lonely
02 Foreign Object
03 Woke Up New
04 Until I Am Whole
05 Cry for Judas
06 [banter – gimmick intro]
07 Werewolf Gimmick
08 Rainbow in the Dark [Dio]
09 [banter – thanks]
10 Superman [Goldfinger]
11 Nine Black Poppies
12 Cobscook Bay
13 Lakeside View Apartments Suite
14 Southwestern Territory
15 Love Love Love
16 Stabbed to Death Outside San Juan
17 Damn These Vampires
18 [banter – game show intro]
19 Game Shows Touch Our Lives
20 The Young Thousands
21 Liza Forever Minnelli
22 [encore break]
23 See America Right
24 Up the Wolves
25 Home on the Range
26 No Children
27 Spent Gladiator 2
28 [second encore break]
29 This Year

SUPPORT the Mountain Goats: Website | Twitter | Buy Official Releases | Tour Dates

Courtesy Tier: March 30, 2016 Trans-Pecos

April 22, 2016
By

FullSizeRender

It took an impromptu interview with two of us and the band Courtesy Tier for me to realize that we had been following them for six years. Having first impressed at a Backyard Brunch Session, then at our CMJ show, we were struck early on by the easy interplay between Layton Weedeman and Omer Leibovitz who, being a duo who play blues-driven rock n’ roll, earn easy comparisons to The Black Keys. But at the 2015 Rough Trade show we wrote about recently, the band had expanded to a three piece, and with Alex Picca on bass, the three became more than the sum of their parts. The band is promoting their Little Rock EP, in anticipation of a full-length album they are hard at work on, and we were thrilled to have them join us to preview some of that material such as their new single, “When You Were Young.”

While they may share a gulf in years with Wussy, for whom they opened this Trans-Pecos show, Courtesy Tier share many good qualities with their stagemates that night: an unpretentious, quality-based approach to music; an ability to write distinct, memorable songs around a cohesive sound; and a general ability to grab control of a room. I’d hazard that much of the audience at this show was new to Courtesy Tier, so we knew we’d made the right pick for an opener as we watched the crowd grow throughout their set, rather than the all-too-common flight for the bar. But then, you’d have had to be crazy to bolt during any of these songs, from the propulsive kickoff track and longtime band favorite “Cold” to the lighters-in-the-air closeout singalong, “Home.”

As with the Wussy set, I recorded this with Schoeps MK4Vs at the stage lip, Neumann KM150s on the room, and a soundboard feed from David Fine. The quality is outstanding. Enjoy!

Download the complete show: [MP3/FLAC]

Stream the complete show: 

Courtesy Tier
2016-03-30
Trans-Pecos
Queens, NY USA

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

Schoeps MK4V>NBob Cables>PFA>Aeta PSP3 + Soundboard (engineer: David Fine) + Neumann KM150 (at SBD, ROC, PAS)>>Zoom F8>6x24bit/48kHz WAV>Adobe Audition CS 5.5 (align, mix down, adjust levels)>Izotope Ozone 5 (EQ, compression, tube effect)>Audacity 2.0.3 (track, amplify, balance, downsample, dither)>FLAC ( level 8 )

Tracks
01 Cold
02 [removed]
03 [banter1]
04 Childish Blues
05 And We Don’t Know
06 [banter2]
07 When You Were Young
08 Jackson
09 Roll On
10 [banter3]
11 Home

SUPPORT Courtesy Tier: Website | Facebook | Get “When You Were Young”

the Mountain Goats: April 18, 2016 City Winery

April 21, 2016
By

tMG City Winery Lowden
[photos by Andrew Lowden]

We saw all three of the Mountain Goats performances this week at City Winery. And while this is not the first time we’ve experienced three straight tMG shows (Bowery in 2011 was 3 in a row), this set of shows was so emotionally rewarding. As we’ve pointed out already this month, the tour that concluded in NYC was inspired by a show we recorded at this very venue one year ago. Each of the nights took on a different personality and on night two, the song choices geared in a subtle way towards the positive and inspiring — perhaps motivated by the birthday of band member Matt Douglas (check out the slowest happy birthday song ever). Monday night included the only NYC performances of “Dennis Brown” and “Never Quite Free”, and the only appearances all tour of the New York-based duo of “Going to Port Washington” and “Going to Queens”. And there was reason to be positive. This tour was entirely successful on its merits, the band is playing at its peak, and City Winery seems to be the perfect fit for the current incarnation of the Mountain Goats. Indeed, this tour also contained a stop in Chicago for two shows at that branch of the venue. The balance of the set consisted of primarily songs we’ve seen on this tour which have included inspired 2016 versions of “Woke Up New” and “Damn These Vampires”, which continued to shine on this night. We expect to post the third and final night in the next few days, so stay tuned.

I recorded this set with the Schoeps cards clamped to a pole 20 feet from the stage and mixed with a perfect soundboard feed provided by the band’s longtime FOH Brandon Eggleston. The sound quality is superb. Enjoy!

Download the Complete Show in FLAC or MP3 at Archive.org [HERE]

Stream the Complete Show:

Mountain Goats
2016-04-18
City Winery
New York NY

Digital Master Recording
Soundboard + Audience Matrix

Soundboard [Engineer: Brandon Eggleston] + Schoeps CCM4u Cardioids > Sound Devices 744t > 2 x 24bit 48kHz wav files > Soundforge (post-production) > CDWave 1.95 (tracking) > TLH > flac (320 MP3 and tagging via Foobar)

Recorded and Produced by nyctaper

Setlist:
[Total Time 1:34:54]
01 Song for Dennis Brown
02 Woke Up New
03 Until I Am Whole
04 [banter – stay on tour]
05 Werewolf Gimmick
06 New Monster Avenue
07 Stabbed to Death Outside San Juan
08 [banter – say yes]
09 Jenny
10 Going to Port Washington
11 Going to Queens
12 [banter – day pants]
13 Black Pear Tree
14 [Happy Birthday Matt Douglas]
15 Lakeside View Apartments Suite
16 Deuteronomy 2:10
17 Get Lonely
18 Alpha Rats Nest
19 Damn These Vampires
20 Oceanographer’s Choice
21 The Young Thousands
22 Liza Forever Minnelli
23 [encore break]
24 Never Quite Free
25 This Year
26 Spent Gladiator 2
27 [second encore break]
28 The Diaz Brothers
29 No Children

SUPPORT the Mountain Goats: Website | Twitter | Buy Official Releases | Tour Dates

Gunn-Truscinski Duo: March 26, 2016 Three Lobed Sweet Sixteen Spectacular, King’s (Raleigh, NC)

April 20, 2016
By

gunn-truscinski-schwentker
[photo courtesy of David Schwentker]

Though his solo career has been the (very successful) focus of late, many of us were first exposed to the virtuosic guitar playing of Steve Gunn via his perfect pairing with the drummer John Truscinski. The duo produced a pair of outstanding albums on Three Lobed Recordings, Sand City and the masterstroke Ocean Parkway, each with an indelible connection to desert blues, Indian ragas, American folk, and psychedelia. By our count, though, their last live shows doing this music were in 2012, including the Hopscotch Music Festival and 285 Kent shows that appeared on this site.

That made it especially exciting to experience the group’s return to a stage where we’ve seen them before — at King’s in Raleigh, NC. This time, we were celebrating the sixteenth anniversary of Three Lobed Recordings, and in a sense, the reissue of both of the duo’s albums by the label this year. Building on Gunn’s dynamic afternoon solo set, the pair gifted us three songs filled with precise interplay and hypnotic guitar work. Gunn dug deep on the guitar work during “Ocean Parkway” and “Banh Mi Ringtones,” the latter’s signature melody leading the pair into an explosive, noisy jam that iced the cake for those of us who love seeing these two play together about equally to our love for Gunn’s solo outings. After “Banh Mi” wound back to its subtler beginnings, the pair closed with “Wythe Raag” from Sand City, which managed to evoke both the namesake Brooklyn street and legendary musical style for which it’s named. That number likewise came in the three parts, building to another sprawling noise climax before its mystical, melodic closing. As Gunn prepares to tour his new record, we hope these two will find time to continue to work together — it’s something not to be missed.

I recorded this set as with the other sets from the day, with a combination of multiple soundboard channels from engineer Brad  Womack’s feed, together with onstage Schoeps MK22 mics and mounted MBHO mics in the center of the room. The sound quality is simply phenomenal. Enjoy!

Download the complete show: [MP3/FLAC]

Stream the complete show:

Gunn-Truscinski Duo
2016-03-26
Three Lobed Sweet Sixteen Spectacular
Kingís
Raleigh, NC USA

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

4x Soundboard channels (engineer: Brad Womack) + MBHO 603a/KA200N (FOB, DFC, PAS) + Schoeps MK22 (onstage, ORTF, DFC)>KC5>CMC6>Aeta PSP3 >> Zoom F8>8x24bit/48kHz WAV>Adobe Audition CS 5.5 (align, mix down, compression)>Izotope Ozone 5 (EQ, effects)>Audacity 2.0.3 (track, amplify, balance, downsample, dither)>FLAC ( level 8 )

Tracks
01 [intro]
02 Ocean Parkway
03 [tuning]
04 Banh Mi Ringtones
05 Wythe Raag

PLEASE SUPPORT Gunn-Truscinski Duo, visit Steve Gunn’s website, and purchase the new Ocean Parkway/Sanc City re-release and their other releases directly from Three Lobed [HERE]

The Mountain Goats: April 17, 2016 City Winery

April 18, 2016
By

tmg2016-04-17
[photo courtesy of music_defined‘s instagram page]

As noted in our review of the New Haven show, the concept of this Mountain Goats tour grew up around the band’s City Winery gigs of last year, of which we recorded both. That the band found inspiration in this particular room isn’t surprising; while some younger fans may not be used to seeing bands in more sedate environments, this venue must be an absolute dream for any performer who plays a wide dynamic range of music and whose fans hang on every word. The Mountain Goats took the stage at one of last year’s shows not with the type of upbeat number you’d need to launch a typical club gig, but with the gorgeous “Get Lonely,” which set the tone for an evening of wide-ranging sounds and deep catalog dives. Yes, the pro-wrestling-themed Beat the Champ made a few appearances, including a stripped-down take on “Foreign Object” and an inspired “Werewolf Gimmick,” and an encore of “Southwestern Territory,” but the deep dives were the real meat of the evening. John Darnielle reached all the way back to 1993 for “Water Song II,” followed by “Horseradish Road,” from 2000’s Coroner’s Gambit, played so rarely of late that Darnielle skipped a verse. Not that a rough spot here or there matters; only the hardest heart wouldn’t have wept at the night’s fragile, emotional peak, from “Steal Smoked Fish,” followed by “Black Pear Tree,” to “Lakeside View Apartments Suite” to “Ezekiel 7 and the Permanent Efficacy of Grace,” the night’s most musically dense number, and a note of hope.

Among many gifts, Darnielle’s ability to swing from spinning metaphors about wrestling to such deep emotional fare, and back to lighter-hearted territory like “Damn These Vampires.” Despite the seriousness of the material, Darnielle’s freewheeling, conversational style with his audience makes the show itself intimate and light; especially in this seated, dinner situation, it feels like being part of a very large living room show. And, as we’ve noted before, Jon Wurster’s drums, Peter Hughes’ bass and multi-instrumentalist Matt Douglas give Darnielle a backdrop that adds discipline and welcome twists to both new and old songs.

Darnielle closed with one of the band’s most poignant recent numbers, “Spent Gladiator 2.” As with “No Children,” the closer of the 4/12/15 City Winery show, Darnielle performed most of the song in the audience,  circling through the crowd, singing the lyrics without amplification. That refrain, to stay alive, just stay alive, felt like both the universal plea that it is and a personal one to each of us. If you were lucky enough to be sitting there, having taken in this exceptional hour and a half, you knew life was worth living.

I recorded this set with a feed of engineer Brandon Eggleston’s live mix, together with Schoeps MK41V microphones mounted on a post forward of the board. The sound quality, as with all of our City Winery recordings of this band, is exceptional. Enjoy!

Download the complete show from its page on the Live Music Archive: [MP3] | [FLAC]

The Mountain Goats
2016-04-17
City Winery
New York, NY USA

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

Soundboard (engineer: Brandon Eggleston) + Schoeps MK41V (FOB, ROC, PAS)>KC5>CMC6>>Zoom F8>2x24bit/48kHz WAV>Adobe Audition CS 5.5 (align, mix
down, adjust levels, light compression)>Izotope Ozone 5 (EQ, effects, image)>Audacity 2.0.5 (track, amplify, balance, downsample, dither)>FLAC (
level 8 )

Tracks [Total TIme: 1:32:53]
01 Woke Up New
02 Until I Am Whole
03 Maize Stalk Drinking Blood
04 [banter1]
05 Werewolf Gimmick
06 Get Lonely
07 [banter2]
08 Foreign Object
09 [banter3]
10 Water Song II
11 Horseradish Road
12 Steal Smoked Fish
13 Black Pear Tree
14 Lakeside View Apartments Suite
15 Ezekiel 7 and the Permanent Efficacy of Grace
16 Wild Sage
17 Damn These Vampires
18 Game Shows Touch Our Lives
19 See America Right
20 The Young Thousands
21 Liza Forever Minnelli
22 [encore break]
23 Southwestern Territory
24 Up the Wolves
25 [banter4]
26 No Children
27 [banter5]
28 Spent Gladiator 2

SUPPORT the Mountain Goats: Website | Twitter | Buy Official Releases | Tour Dates

tmg-JLB

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nyctaper.com is a live music blog that offers a new paradigm of music distribution on the web. The recordings are offered for free on this site as are the music posts, reviews and links to artist sites. All recordings are posted with artist permission or artists with an existing pro-taping policy.

All recordings and original content posted on this site are @nyctaper.com as live recordings pursuant to 17 U.S.C. Section 106, et. seq. Redistribution of nyctaper recordings without consent of nyctaper.com is strictly prohibited.

nyctaper.com hereby waives all copyright claims to any and all recordings posted on this site to THE PERFORMERS ONLY. If any artist posted on this site requests that recordings be removed, those recordings will be removed forthwith.