Stars: October 11, 2011 Music Hall of Williamsburg – FLAC/MP3 Downloads + Streaming Songs

December 22, 2011
By

Photo courtesy of Jill and For the Love of Brooklyn
[photos courtesy of Jill and For the Love of Brooklyn]

Montreal band Stars has long been one of my favorites. I first saw them at the now defunct Siren Festival of 2006, against the beautiful scenic backdrop that is Coney Island, and was blown away by their unique blend of pop and rock. Even though they now claim Montreal as their hometown, the band has deep NYC roots, having written their first song and several albums while living in a small West Side Apartment in the late ’90s, so it’s no surprise that they consistently return to their home away from home in the Big Apple.

We had the good fortune of seeing Stars at Music Hall of Williamsburg for a performance that was nothing short of outstanding. Their performance featured two never before played songs, To the Better Ones and Holes, offering up a moment of vulnerability, but also demonstrating their trust and connection with the audience.

Lead singer Torquil Campbell was also able to connect with the audience in a slightly different way, showing his jovial mood by kindly requesting that an audience member “pass the spliff” before playing the aforementioned To the Better Ones. Between moments like this and personal commentary about the heroes of Occupy Wall Street, it was clear that spirits were high and a genuine love for New York existed on this beautiful Brooklyn night.

I recorded this set using a pair of Schoeps MK41 hypercardioid microphones clamped to the center balcony railing. The samples I have chosen include Set Yourself on Fire, the self-titled track from their 2004 album, and my personal favorite Elevator Love Letter, a fitting tribute to our metropolis.

Stream “Set Yourself on Fire”
[audio:https://www.nyctaper.com/S1110Stars1102/stars2011-10-11.setyourselfonfire.mp3]

Stream “Elevator Love Letter”
[audio:https://www.nyctaper.com/S1110Stars1102/stars2011-10-11.elevatorloveletter.mp3]

Direct download of MP3 files [HERE]

Download the Complete show in FLAC [HERE].

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.

Photo courtesy of Jill and For the Love of Brooklyn

Stars
Music Hall of Williamsburg
New York, NY, US
2011-10-11

Recordist : hi and lo
Location : DFC, clamped to balcony
Source : Schoeps MK41/CMR > Naint Tinybox > Sony PCM-M10 @ 24 bit / 48 kHz
Mastering : Wavelab 6 (Mixdown/EQ/Fades/resamping/dither) > Flac Level 8 with TLH v2.6.0 (Build 168)

Tracklist:

01. Intro
02. Fixed
03. The Passenger
04. Take Me to the Riot
05. Wasted Daylight
06. Set Yourself on Fire
07. To the Better Ones
08. Dead Hearts
09. Ageless Beauty
10. Soft Revolution
11. Holes
12. Your Ex-Lover is Dead
13. Window Bird
14. We Don’t Want Your Body
15. How Much More
16. Reunion
17. Calendar Girl
18. (Encore Call)
19. One More Night
20. Bitches in Tokyo
21. The Ghost of Genove Heights
22. Changes
23. Elevator Love Letter

Running Time: 1:41:32

Please support Stars by visiting their Website. If you’ve enjoyed this recording, you may also purchase any of their wonderful albums directly from the band’s Store

Atlas Sound: December 18, 2011 Bowery Ballroom – Flac and MP3 Downloads + Streaming Song

December 20, 2011
By


[photo courtesy of Melissa Neira]

On Sunday night at Bowery Ballroom, Atlas Sound performed damned near the perfect concert. This was a performer of immense talents playing nearly two hours of superb music — much of it from his acclaimed new album — at the City’s best sounding venue. We make no secret of our admiration for Bradford Cox on this site, but this was Bradford at a level of excellence that we had not previously witnessed. Over the last two years, we’ve seen the development of the Parallax material in a live setting, from the Bell House in early 2010 to St. Cecelia’s Church last Summer. But what elevated this Bowery show above the rest was not just the final polish on a finished and released album, but the near flawless level of proficiency with which Bradford performed. The Parallax numbers (nine of the twelve songs were played) were stretched out and allowed to breath, while Bradford developed looping tracks that were faithful to the album’s theme. For instance, the title track which times at less than three minutes on the album, spanned over seven minutes live — a purposeful and focused seven minutes. The song transitions were natural and did not sound awkward or forced at all, and even in the few tracks where he did not loop, Bradford sounded confident and comfortable. “Mona Lisa”, which is arguably the most “pop” track on the album became a sweet optimistic folk song live, and we are streaming it below. We would have been satisfied with the 75 minutes of the main set, but he returned and played over thirty minutes of encore material, which included two extended songs to end the set. With what Bradford had just given the audience, a little bit of indulgence was not only acceptable, but welcome.

I recorded this set from our standard balcony position at this venue with the four microphone rig and the sound quality is quite excellent. Enjoy!

Stream “Mona Lisa”:
[audio:https://www.nyctaper.com/D9090Deerhunter8282/08.%20Mona%20Lisa.mp3]

Direct download of complete show in MP3 files (HERE)

Download the Complete show in FLAC [HERE].

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.

Atlas Sound
2011-12-18
Bowery Ballroom
New York, NY USA

Four-Track Digital Master Recording
Recorded from Balcony Rail

Neumann KM-150s + DPA 4021’s > Edirol R-44 (Oade Concert Mod) > 2x 24bit 48kHz wav files > Soundforge (level adjustments, EQ, mixdown, set fades) > CDWave 1.95 (tracking) > TLH > flac (320 MP3 and Tagging via Foobar)

Recorded and Produced
by nyctaper
2011-12-19

Setlist:
[Total Time 1:45:04]
01 Parallax
02 The Shakes
03 Te Amo
04 Walkabout
05 Amplifiers
06 Recent Bedroom
07 Modern Aquatic Nightsongs
08 Mona Lisa
09 Angel Is Broken
10 Terra Incognita
11 Nite Bike
12 [encore break]
13 Artificial Snow
14 Flagstaff
15 Attic Lights

If you email nyctaper for access to this recording, we expect that you will PLEASE SUPPORT Atlas Sound, visit the Atlas Sound artist page, and purchase the new album Parallax from 4AD Records [HERE].

My Morning Jacket: December 14, 2011 Madison Square Garden – FLAC and MP3 Downloads + Streaming Songs

December 19, 2011
By


[Photos courtesy of Pete Matthews for Feast of Music]

My Morning Jacket took their impressive stage show to Madison Square Garden last night,  demonstrating again how a band that works hard, plays tight and writes compelling songs can achieve large-scale success without much in the way of conventional marketing.  It had been a while since I last saw MMJ- I think my last check-in with them was some time in the last decade at Irving Plaza.  Since then they’ve gone from a mid-tier band straddling the indie and jam-band divide to a full-fledged juggernaut, a latter-day Phish for the less-tie-dyed set.  It’s easy to see how this band can both inspire the more jam-band-focused taper community as well as garner positive notice from sites like Pitchfork.  While we are the only folks recording at most shows we attend, this night there were several other crews in attendance.  It’s not hard to understand why – with sprawling solos, complex arrangements, and quiet solo moments, MMJ shows practically cry out for being recorded.  If you’re going to be an arena band, you have to embrace it, and MMJ delivers a large-scale rock n’ roll party, with a light show that could hold its own with any band in America.  The folks in the seats stood throughout the set, while the massive open floor was packed with hand-waving fans. The two-and-a-half hour set boasted many of the band’s big numbers, including a smoking “Mahgeetah”.  The show closed with some true holiday cheer in the form of a faithful rendition of the Bing Crosby classic, “I’ll Be Home for Christmas”.  The members of MMJ are no doubt looking forward to being home for Christmas themselves, as this show marked the end of their current tour.

I recorded this set in the raised seated section behind the soundboard area, in the center, with the Schoeps supercardiod microphones to reject unwanted sound.  While not as good as the recordings we feature from smaller venues, it is a fine capture of the evening.  Enjoy!

Stream “Off the Record”
[audio:https://www.nyctaper.com/M1412MMJ2011/15 Off the Record.mp3]

Stream “I’ll Be Home for Christmas [Bing Crosby]”
[audio:https://www.nyctaper.com/M1412MMJ2011/24 I’ll Be Home For Christmas.mp3]

Download the FLAC and MP3 files and stream the entire show on the Live Music Archive [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. Further, please note that this will be uploaded to the Live Music Archive after it has been up on this site for several days.

My Morning Jacket
2011-12-14
Madison Square Garden
New York, NY USA

Recorded by acidjack and Johnny Fried Chicken Boy for nyctaper.com
Produced by acidjack

Schoeps MK41 (DIN, DFC, behind SBD)>KCY>Naiant littlebox>Sony PCM-M10 (24/44.1)>Audition (EQ, normalize, limit peaks)>Audacity (set fades, tracking, downsample to 16bit)>FLAC ( level 8 )

Tracks [Total Time: 2:28:48]
01 Victory Dance
02 Circuital
03 It Beats 4 U
04 First Light
05 I’m Amazed
06 Wonderful (The Way I Feel)*
07 Steam Engine
08 Outta My System
09 Dancefloors ^
10 Golden
11 Mahgeetah
12 Dondante
13 Smokin From Shootin
14 (end of) Run Thru>Touch Me I’m Going To Scream Pt.2
15 Off The Record
16 Gideon
17 [encore break]
18 Bermuda Highway
19 Wordless Chorus
20 The Day Is Coming
21 The Bottle (Gil Scott-Heron & Brian Jackson) ** ^
22 Holdin On To Black Metal ^
23 One Big Holiday ^
24 I’ll Be Home For Christmas (Bing Crosby)

^ w/ Dearland Horns
* w/ Ben Bridwell
** w/ Brian Jackson

If you enjoyed this recording, PLEASE SUPPORT My Morning Jacket, visit their website, and purchase their latest record, Circuital, directly from the band’s store [HERE]

The National: December 12, 2011 Beacon Theatre – FLAC and MP3 Downloads + Streaming Songs

December 15, 2011
By

[Photos courtesy of Pete Matthews for Feast of Music]

The National are closing out a massive two years of recording and near-constant touring in style here in New York, with a run of sold-out shows at the Beacon Theatre that have featured many of our favorite bands (The War on Drugs, on this night) as openers. Not many years ago, I could not have conceived of a band that makes moody, melodramatic indie rock of their particular variety selling out large NYC venues like the Beacon and Terminal 5; look what else is playing in those spots these days, and it ain’t much like The National.

Indeed, with their style of music – which feels intimate and personal by definition – it has to be a challenge to play a somewhat impersonal big venue, even one as gorgeous as the Beacon. Singer Matt Berninger made a number of self-deprecating references to that during the show – mocking his awkward stage banter, and the band’s lack of “sexy” songs – but all joking aside, he and his bandmates proved every bit that they belonged on that stage. The band also debuted two new songs, “Rylan” (streaming below) and “I Need My Girl”, which we hope will appear on their next record (whenever that is).

But the show’s true story was the encore. While encores many can feel perfunctory, The National turned theirs into a true highlight, upping the intensity and even sending Berninger crowdsurfing through the first several rows at the Beacon during “Terrible Love”. The band closed out the show with an unamplified “Venderlyle Crybaby Geeks” with the members of War on Drugs – a unique way to end night one of what should be one of the most compelling runs for them yet.

I recorded this set with DPA 4021 microphones in a mobile configuration. Recording in a boomy theater without a mic stand is a bit tricky, and there is some analog hiss in quiet parts due to having to boost the levels significantly, but overall I am pleased with this. Enjoy!

Download the MP3 and FLAC files and stream the entire show at the Live Music Archive [HERE]

Stream the entire show

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. This set will appear on the Live Music Archive after it has been hosted here for a couple of weeks. Please do not upload it to the LMA “for us”. Please respect our requests.  Thanks!

The National
2011-12-12
Beacon Theater
New York, NY USA

Recorded by acidjack
for ncytaper.com

DPA 4021 (FOB, DFC)>Denecke PS/2>Sony PCM-M10 (24/44.1)>24bit/44.1kHz WAV>Audacity (set fades, EQ, amplify and balance, downsample to 16bit)>FLAC ( level 8 )

Tracks
01 Runaway
02 Anyone’s Ghost
03 Mistaken For Strangers
04 Secret Meeting
05 Bloodbuzz Ohio
06 Slow Show
07 Squalor Victoria
08 Afraid of Everyone
09 Conversation 16
10 Rylan
11 [banter]
12 Son
13 Available
14 Cardinal Song
15 Sorrow
16 [banter]
17 Lucky You
18 England
19 Fake Empire
20 [encore break]
21 I Need My Girl
22 Mr. November
23 Terrible Love
24 [banter]
25 Venderlyle Crybaby Geeks [unamplified]

If you enjoyed this recording, we expect that you will PLEASE SUPPORT The National, visit their website, and purchase their official releases from The National’s Shop [HERE].

Royal Baths: December 9, 2011 Glasslands – FLAC and MP3 Downloads + Streaming Songs

December 15, 2011
By


[Photos by acidjack]

I have wanted to see Royal Baths for over at least a year now, since this site last attempted to cover one of the band’s New York shows. Last year’s ill-fated attempt was a gig at Monster Island Basement that, let’s just say, suffered from some human failings. But I didn’t care – the band’s debut album on Woodsist Records, Litanies, was one of my absolute favorites of last year. Woozy, dark and catchy as hell, the record sounded perfectly like their hometown of San Francisco, evoking that city’s 60s fixation without being trapped by it. Knowing that this Kanine Records (their new label) party at Glasslands would feature a strong lineup of bands and top-notch sound engineering, I calculated that this would be our chance to capture a memorable set.

I was right.  The band that showed up for this show was lightyears beyond the act we saw a year ago – focused, poised, and powering their way through a number of songs that will appear on their forthcoming record on Kanine, Better Luck Next Life. The new tunes continue in the dark vein of Litanies, but feel a bit tighter, with a tad less of the ramshackle feel that characterized Litanies.  They also offered up some of my favorite tunes from that record, including “Sitting In My Room”, and rolled out a truly bizarre cover – Nina Simone’s “Be My Husband” (I had to Google lyrics to figure that one out, and still had it wrong the first time..)  They closed out with a lengthy psychedelic new number that once again highlighted their musical chops. Clearly, moving to New York was good for these guys.  I can’t wait for the new record.

hi and lo and I recorded this set with Schoeps MK5 cardiod microphones and a flawless soundboard feed from Josh, the house engineer at Glasslands.  The sound quality is outstanding.  Enjoy!

Better Luck Next Life will be released on Kanine Records on February 7, 2012.  Pre-order the record [HERE]  Thanks to Kanine Records for granting permission to record.

Stream “Sitting In My Room”
[audio:https://www.nyctaper.com/R9012RoyalBaths2011/06 Sitting In My Room.mp3]

Stream “Be My Husband [Nina Simone]”
[audio:https://www.nyctaper.com/R9012RoyalBaths2011/05 Be My Husband.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.

Royal Baths
2011-12-09
Glasslands
Brooklyn, NY USA

Recorded by hi and lo
Produced by acidjack for nyctaper.com

Schoeps MK5(c)>CMR>PFA>EAA PSP2>Sonic AD2K+ + Soundboard >> Tascam DR-680 (24/48)>2x24bit/48kHz WAV>Audacity (mixdown, set fades, very light EQ (about -1db cut @ 125Hz and below) tracking, amplify, balance and downsample)>FLAC ( level 8 )

Tracks
01 [new song – “Morning Birds”]
02 [new song – “She’s the Hunter and You’re the Prey”]
03 [new song – “Shadow World”]
04 Drudgery
05 Be My Husband [Damien Rice]
06 Sitting In My Room
07 [new song]

If you enjoyed this recording, PLEASE SUPPORT The Royal Baths, visit their website, and pre-order Better Luck Next Life from Kanine Records [HERE]

The War On Drugs: December 11, 2011 Bowery Ballroom – Flac and MP3 Downloads + Streaming Songs

December 14, 2011
By


[photo courtesy of Mike Benigno and Bowery House List]

It was slightly less than a year ago that an opening set at Bowery Ballroom by The War On Drugs so floored us with its intensity and purpose that we vowed never to miss them again. They have been on NYCTaper four times this year, and have quite literally never disappointed. At Bowery on Sunday night, it was the band’s headlining coming out party and the sold-out crowd were treated to another taste of excellence. War On Drugs latest album Slave Ambient has earned them universal praise, and the set contained 6 of the albums twelve songs. “Baby Missiles” is arguably the strongest track on the record and we’re streaming it below. War On Drugs will be performing the track on Jimmy Fallon on January 10th — their late night tv debut. We are also streaming an interesting cover of the Grateful Dead’s “Touch of Grey”, a song that represents that band’s only certifiable hit, and a cover where the War On Drugs turns the song into their own, never veering too far in the direction of tribute or parody. The War On Drugs will return to NYC for a show at Music Hall of Williamsburg on April 8.

I recorded this wet with the four mic rig from the balcony rail and the sound is excellent. Enjoy!

Stream “Baby Missiles”:
[audio:https://www.nyctaper.com/W1008WOD2101/10.%20Baby%20Missiles.mp3]

Stream “Touch of Grey” [Grateful Dead cover]:
[audio:https://www.nyctaper.com/W1008WOD2101/09.%20Touch%20of%20Grey%20%5bGrateful%20Dead%5d.mp3]

This show is now available for download in FLAC and MP3 on Archive.org [HERE].

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.

War On Drugs
2011-12-11
Bowery Ballroom
New York, NY USA

Four-Track Digital Master Recording
Recorded from Balcony Rail

Neumann KM-150s + DPA 4021’s > Edirol R-44 (Oade Concert Mod) > 2x 24bit 48kHz wav files > Soundforge (level adjustments, EQ, mixdown, set fades) > CDWave 1.95 (tracking) > TLH > flac (320 MP3 and Tagging via Foobar)

Recorded and Produced
by nyctaper
2011-12-13

Setlist:
[Total Time 1:23:39]
01 Best Night
02 Taking The Farm
03 Coming Through
04 Your Love Is Calling My Name
05 Come To The City
06 I Was There
07 Brothers
08 Arms Like Boulders
09 Touch of Grey [Grateful Dead]
10 Baby Missiles
11 Buenos Aires Beach
12 Black Water Falls
13 A Needle in Your Eye No 16

If you email nyctaper for access to this recording, we expect that you will PLEASE SUPPORT The War On Drugs, visit their website,  and purchase their new album Slave Ambient from Secretly Canadian Records [HERE].

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