The War On Drugs: March 19, 2014 Bowery Ballroom – Flac/MP3/Streaming

March 23, 2014
By

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[photos by PSquared Photography]

The War On Drugs new album Lost In The Dream is a record that can only be adequately described in grand sweeping terms. This release is not simply in the “best of 2014” discussion, it will be considered one the best of this decade. There have been some lofty review ratings posted for Lost this week, and much effusive praise, but as we have chronicled the growth of this band and Adam Graduciel over the last five years, the album is a natural progression for a group whose two prior records were each superb. But Lost In the Dream changes the equation and ups the ante for The War On Drugs. The ten songs on this album are each microcosms of the work as a whole — the struggles and doubts of a man in his mid-30s grappling with passage of youth and the inevitable approach of middle age — each set to haunting and evocative melodies that echo in the ear even after moving on to the next track. The stories of Adam’s obsessions with the minutiae of the production of this albums have all been told. The man truly suffers for his art. But ultimately the musicianship finds itself equal to the songcraft. Lost is the first War On Drugs album where the songs are given a chance to breath and step outside themselves to reach remarkable crescendos. The lazy term would be that the songs “jam”, but these aren’t improvisations instead rather meticulously crafted passages. For instance, “Eyes To The Wind” hits its peak with a screaming guitar solo that segues to sax and then piano and back to guitar seamlessly and almost without the listener recognizing the lead change.

For the band’s current tour, Adam has assembled the core band but has added two ringers, multi-instrumentalists John Natchez and Anthony LeMarca. We attended the Bowery Ballroom shows on Wednesday and Thursday and if the album truly deserves the superlatives so in fact does the live show. On Wednesday, The War On Drugs worked through the entire Lost In The Dream (minus one instrumental track) and selected classic material in a 100-minute set that was stunning in its ability to not only capture the magic of Lost but expand upon its instrumental passages. We have never seen Adam more confident and in charge and on stage the band’s mood appeared both celebratory and all-business. There was even a champagne bottle poured into cups on stage on Wednesday. But if there is any sadness in this band’s triumph, its that this is almost certainly the last time The War On Drugs will play a room the size of Bowery Ballroom. Given how quickly and thoroughly the three NYC shows sold out, the band could have played five local shows without an empty seat. As the tour continues West and then ultimately moves to Europe, we expect that The War On Drugs will return to NYC in the Fall.

I recorded this set in our usual manner in this venue – Sennheiser cards mounted in the balcony and mixed with an excellent board feed, this time mixed by the band’s FOH C. Laszlo Koltay to perfection. The sound quality is superb. Enjoy!

Stream “Eyes To The Wind”:

Stream “Suffering”:

Download the Complete Show [MP3] / [FLAC]

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.

The War On Drugs
2014-03-19
Bowery Ballroom
New York, NY

Digital Master Recording
Soundboard + Audience Matrix

Soundboard [engineer C. Laszlo Koltay] + Sennheiser MKH-8040s > Edirol R-44 (Oade 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

Setlist:
[Total Time 1:39:47]
01 In Reverse
02 Baby Missiles
03 Under The Pressure
04 Suffering
05 [banter – Sore Eros]
06 Eyes To The Wind
07 [banter – dad]
08 An Ocean in Between the Waves
09 Disappearing
10 Red Eyes
11 [band introductions]
12 Brothers
13 Burning
14 Lost In The Dream
15 Comin Through
16 I Was There
17 Come To The City
18 Black Water Falls

If you download this recording from NYCTaper, we expect that you will PLEASE SUPPORT The War On Drugs, visit their website, and purchase Lost In The Dream from Secretly Canadian Records [HERE]. Seriously, if you don’t already own this album, do yourself a favor and buy it.

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NYCTaper Upcoming Schedule – Spring and Summer 2014

March 22, 2014
By

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The calendar having turned towards a new season, its time for a long overdue update to the schedule. You’ll find a lot of old favorites on the list, some new ones and the festivals as highlights.

[Caveat: Below is the updated schedule. We expect to attend and record these events. However, circumstances will prevent some of these from being done, and others will be added in the meantime.]

If you want nyctaper to record your band, a band you represent, a show you’re promoting, or even your favorite band in the world, get us in the door and make sure everyone who needs to approve of the recording gives permission. Also, remember each person on the nyctaper crew does this all for free, the recordings, the post-production, the reviews, the links, etc., so treat us fairly.

Schedule:

Thou:
March 23, 2014 Saint Vitus Brooklyn

And You Will Know Us By The Trail Of Dead:
March 29, 2014 Bowery Ballroom NYC

Hurray For The Riff Raff:
April 2, 2014 Knitting Factory Brooklyn

Real Estate:
April 4, 2014 Music Hall of Williamsburg

Dean Wareham:
April 5, 2014 Bowery Ballroom NYC

Thee Silver Mt. Zion Memorial Orchestra:
April 7, 2014 Bowery Ballroom NYC

NYCTaper Presents – Whiskey Bitches / Crazy Pills and TBA Bands:
April 8, 2014 Death By Audio Brooklyn

William Tyler:
April 16, 2014 Union Pool Brooklyn

Acid Mothers Temple:
April 23, 2014 Mercury Lounge NYC

EMA:
April 25, 2014 Bowery Ballroom NYC (permission pending)

Steve Gunn / Kevin Morby:
April 25, 2014 Rough Trade Brooklyn

Megafaun:
May 2, 2014 Baby’s All Right Brooklyn

Slint:
May 4, 2014 Bowery Ballroom NYC

NYCTaper Presents – Whiskey Bitches / Ghost Punch and TBA Bands:
May 6, 2014 Cameo Gallery Brooklyn

Mogwai:
May 9, 2014 Terminal 5 NYC

La Sera:
May 10, 2014 Baby’s All Right Brooklyn

The Shoes / Paul Collins Beat:
May 10, 2014 Bell House Brooklyn (permission pending)

Owen Pallett:
May 13, 2014 Glasslands Gallery Brooklyn

Chad VanGaalen:
May 15, 2014 Bell House Brooklyn (permission pending)

Woods:
May 16, 2014 Bowery Ballroom NYC

Panda Bear:
May 18, 2014 Wordless Music – Warsaw Brooklyn (permission pending)

Built To Spill:
May 20, 2014 Music Hall of Williamsburg

Built To Spill:
May 21, 2014 Bowery Ballroom NYC

The Pains Of Being Pure at Heart:
May 22, 2014 Bowery Ballroom NYC

Acid Mothers Temple:
May 28, 2014 Knitting Factory Brooklyn

Mountain Jam:
June 5-8, 2014 Hunter Mountain NY

Sharon Van Etten:
June 13 and June 14, 2014 Bowery Ballroom NYC

Courtney Barnett:
June 17, 2014 Bowery Ballroom NYC

Merge 25:
July 23-26, 2014 Carrboro NC

Low Fat Getting High: February 21, 2014 Shea Stadium – FLAC/MP3/Streaming

March 21, 2014
By


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[Photos courtesy of Walter Wlodarczyk]

The website for Brooklyn band Low Fat Getting High describes their sound as “post-noise-grunge-core-shredding”. After this show at Shea Stadium — where they packed twelve songs into a set less than a half-hour long — I’d say that’s about right. There’s a definite 90s influence going on — at points, they feel in like what Local H might have sounded like with more balls — but LFGH dispenses with much of that decade’s sad-sack navel-gazing in favor of jams that deliver the party like a gut punch. This set roiled from the first notes of their single, “Better Better Worse” through what practically qualifies as a “jam” number for this band, the four-and-a-half minute “My Hate”. But where some bands in this territory are content with turning it up and getting stoopid, LFGH has some real craft behind their work. Snag their EP, Bad Yoga, or better yet, head over to Muchmore’s on March 29, and see for yourself.

Like our other set’s from this night, this  was recorded in full digital multitrack combined with a pair of my audience mics. The Shea team was gracious enough to let us use their digital multitrack files, which made for a recording of outstanding, almost album quality. We’d encourage you to check out their site for their own version of this show (coming soon) and those of hundreds of other bands.

Stream “Better Better Worse”

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

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.

walter-wlodarczyk-low-fat-getting-high-1

Low Fat Getting High
2014-02-21
Shea Stadium
Brooklyn, NY USA

Exclusive download hosted at nyctaper.com courtesy of liveatsheastadiumbk.com
Recorded by R.J. Gordon and acidjack
Produced by acidjack

Soundboard multitrack + Naiant X-X>Edirol R-44 [OCM]>>Adobe Audition CS5.5 (mixdown and effects)>Izotope Ozone 5 (effects, compression, limiting)>Audacity 2.0.3 (tracking, fades, additional EQ, dither, downsample)>FLAC ( level 8 )

Tracks
01 Instrumental #1
02 Better Better Worse
03 Childhood Friends
04 The Claw
05 Bath Salts
06 Don’t Blame Me
07 Hate Them All
08 Instrumental #2
09 Emasculator
10 Police Cop
11 Don’t Believe You Anymore
12 [banter]
13 My Hate

If you enjoyed this recording, PLEASE SUPPORT Low Fat Getting High, visit their website, and buy their records on bandcamp.

Cross Record: March 15, 2014 Post-SXSW Private Show (Dripping Springs, TX) – FLAC/MP3/Streaming

March 20, 2014
By

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[Photos by acidjack]

There was no shortage of hate for SXSW this year, and there are some good and less-good reasons why. Let’s just say that when a member of one band attending this mostly-musicians-only post-SXSW get-together at a remote ranch in Dripping Springs, Texas described this show as a “cleansing experience”, nobody argued. The worst aspects of the festival are opposed not only to what music is about, but what musicians are about. Musicians, for the most part, are a gentle, generous sort of people. The whole point of their endeavor is to give.

Cross Record were the hosts of this particular event, and their humble attitude is reflected in the way you hear vocalist/guitarist Emily Cross talk about how much time she has left, when it’s her band’s event. Luckily her husband Dan Duszynski, her main co-conspirator, was there (along with Peter Frederiksen on guitar) to remind her there was no time limit. The band played in a living room looking out on the Texas hill country, an area I was previously aware of only through a themed barbecue restaurant (you can take the New Yorker out of New York, but….). Then again, the Cross Record gang aren’t exactly rural sorts themselves. Cross and Duszynski moved to the Austin area from Chicago, where they built up a loyal following for their brand of “drone-folk”. Whatever you want to call it, their songs unfold slowly, carried on the slow boat of Cross’ voice and dual guitars, with minimal percussion. Among bands of recent vintage, the closest comparison I can think of is Philadelphia’s excellent Family Band; among better-known acts, I’d offer up another wife-husband unit, Low. To my mind, both of those are high compliments.

Cross Record are recent signees to Ba Da Bing Records, who are releasing the remaining physical copies of their latest album Be Good and, with any luck, giving them the push they need to break to a wider audience. Be Good is a special record, with Cross’ deeply personal songs embedded in hypnotic atmospherics that don’t overwhelm her voice, one of those you can’t believe is coming out of a woman that small or young. This show was stripped back further still, with the band offering up three of their own songs, including two from their previous album, Magnetic Current, along with two lovely covers — Merle Haggard’s “I Can’t Hold Myself In Line” and Townes Van Zandt’s “Don’t You Take It Too Bad”. After almost a full week of intensity in Austin, standing in crowds half-paying attention to too many bands who had lost the plot, it was cleansing indeed to see Cross there, guitar on her shoulders, singing her heart out, backed by a kick drum and a couple more guitars. It was a righteous thing. It did right by South By Southwest.

I recorded this set with my Schoeps MK4V microphones right in front of the band and their simple PA setup. It’s a perfect reflection of what it sounded like to be sitting there. Enjoy!

Stream “Holy Well”

Stream “I Can’t Hold Myself In Line” [Merle Haggard]

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

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_6979

Cross Record
2014-03-15
Private Ranch
Dripping Springs, TX USA

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

Schoeps MK4V>KC5>PFA>Edirol R-44 [OCM]>24bit/48kHz WAV>Izotope Ozone 5 (EQ, effects)>Audacity 2.0.3 (fades, tracking, amplify, balance, downsample, parallel compression, dither)>FLAC ( level 8 )

Tracks
01 Slow
02 Holy Well
03 [banter1]
04 I Can’t Hold Myself In Line [Merle Haggard]
05 [banter2]
06 I Want Your Mind In Your Body
07 Don’t You Take It Too Bad [Townes Van Zandt]

If you enjoyed this recording, PLEASE SUPPORT Cross Record, like them on Facebook, buy Be Good from Ba Da Bing Records and buy their other records from their bandcamp page.

The Coup: March 13, 2014 SXSW, New Movement Theater (Austin, TX) – FLAC/MP3/Streaming

March 19, 2014
By


IMG_6824
[Photos by acidjack]

NYCTaper isn’t known for live hip-hop, and I believe this is a first for us. Having now had the experience of seeing The Coup, I hope it’s not a last. The leftist, legendarily excellent Oakland crew blew my mind in this performance at the unofficial DC Against The World SXSW day show put on at the New Movement Theater improv club by CHIRP (the Chicago Independent Radio Project) and Fredericksburg All Ages together with sponsors Rogness Brewing Company and Bitch Beer. As a live act, it’s almost not fair to call The Coup “hip-hop”, as their sound is at least as firmly rooted in funk and vintage soul. Sure, frontman Boots Riley spits out rhymes like a machine, but behind him is a crack band of incredibly talented players whose virtuosity goes well beyond what lifted samples can do. Not to mention Silk-E, the band’s singer, who’d be a force on her own anywhere in the soul/R&B genre.

Boots asked us if it was our first Coup show, and a majority of hands went up. Too bad for us, because they are one of the best live bands I’ve ever seen. It didn’t matter that it was the middle of the day on a Thursday in a poorly-lit comedy club, or that they had another show to crank out just a couple hours later. From the first seconds of “Everythang” The Coup were bouncing, hands and bodies in the air, and so were we. Boots kept whipping the crowd into a frenzy with songs from all over the band’s catalog, including “The Guillotine” and “You Are Not A Riot” from their latest, Sorry To Bother You, as well as nuggets from their earliest work, including the previously-mentioned “Everythang” and “Five Million Ways to Kill A CEO” from their breakout 2001 record, Party Music. If the point of playing SXSW (if there’s any at this point) is to introduce yourself to an unfamiliar audience, to broaden your fan base by proving your worth the old-fashioned way, then this Coup set was a resounding success. Then again, it would’ve been by any measure. This is a group of master showmen, and they’re gonna bring it no matter what the circumstances.

I recorded this set with Schoeps MK4V microphones hung from a pipe up close and dead center in the venue, combined with a soundboard feed from the engineer of the day, Mike. Keep in mind that the New Movement Theater is designed for improv comedy and not music, and realize that this is the sound of a massive band using less than all of their equipment (not enough DIs were available) on a rented PA through a minimal board. While the sound quality is an accurate reflection of the room and the heroic efforts of all involved, there are a few technical glitches (feedback, etc.) here and there. The fault for those lies in the circumstances and limitations of the day, and not any deficiency on the part of the band, the organizers or the production crew. I believe this is a compelling set, and if it gets you off the fence about seeing The Coup, it has done its job. Enjoy!

Stream “Five Million Ways To Kill A CEO”

Stream “The Guillotine”

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

Permanent Links (please, don’t use unless the above are not working) [MP3] | [FLAC]

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_6823

The Coup
2014—03-13
DC Against the World SXSW Day Party
New Movement Theater
Austin, TX USA

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

Schoeps MK4V (FOB/DFC/PAS)>KC5>PFA + Soundboard (engineer: Mike)>>Edirol R-44 [Oade Concert Mod]>2x24bit/48kHz WAV>Adobe Audition CS 5.5 (mix down, edit SBD)>Izotope Ozone 5 (EQ, effects, imaging, compression)>Audacity 2.0.3 (fades, tracking, amplify, balance, downsample, dither)>FLAC ( level 8 )

Tracks [Total Time 45:57]
01 Everythang
02 Get Your Hands Up
03 The Magic Clap
04 [banter]
05 Five Million Ways To Kill A CEO
06 The Gods of Science
07 [unknown]
08 [banter2]
09 The Guillotine
10 You Are Not A Riot
11 [banter3]
12 Fat Cats, Bigga Fish

If you enjoyed this recording, PLEASE SUPPORT The Coup, visit their website, and buy Sorry To Bother You from ANTI Records.

BOYTOY: February 24, 2014 Shea Stadium – FLAC/MP3/Streaming

March 17, 2014
By

walter-wlodarczyk-boytoy-1
[Photos courtesy of Walter Wlodarczyk]

The Brooklyn band BOYTOY only has some scattered bandcamp tracks to their name, but don’t expect their anonymity to last. Leading off a four-band bill anywhere isn’t easy, but BOYTOY grabbed our attention immediately at Shea Stadium on this Friday night, with a wide-ranging brand of rock n’ roll delivered with a poise that belies their limited output. Their style ranged from the bratty pop-punk of “Bad Brain” to the more dense, shoegazey stylings we saw at the end of the set with “Blazed”, which recalled early Lush. Vocalist Saara Untracht-Oakner shows consistency even as the song styles change, and bandmates Glenn Van Dyke (guitar) and Matthew Gregory aka Matty Beans (drums) are right there with her, churning out one song after another that demands repeat listens. We enjoyed it so much that we are offering the entire set for stream, as well as the traditional FLAC and MP3 downloads, below. An EP is expected in late spring; keep an eye out on the band’s bandcamp page for more info.

As with the sets posted from Big Ups and Slothrust, this set was recorded in full digital multitrack provided by the Shea Stadium team, combined with a pair of my Naiant audience mics. We’d encourage you to check out Shea’s site for their own version of this show (coming soon) as well those of hundreds of other bands.

Stream the entire set:

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

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.

walter-wlodarczyk-boytoy-2

BOYTOY
2014-02-21
Shea Stadium
Brooklyn, NY USA

Exclusive download hosted at nyctaper.com courtesy of liveatsheastadiumbk.com
Recorded by R.J. Gordon and acidjack
Produced by acidjack

Soundboard multitrack + Naiant X-X>Edirol R-44 [OCM]>>Adobe Audition CS5.5 (mixdown and effects)>Izotope Ozone 5 (effects, compression, limiting)>Audacity 2.0.3 (tracking, fades, additional EQ, dither, downsample)>FLAC ( level 8 )

Tracks
01 Road Dog
02 Bad Brain
03 Helluva Party
04 TV Dreams
05 Shallow Town
06 Visits
07 Postal
08 Runner
09 Blazed

If you enjoyed this recording, PLEASE SUPPORT BOYTOY, like them on Facebook, and buy their music at their bandcamp page.

SUPPORT NYCTaper




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