Harvey Milk: March 15, 2011 Union Pool – Flac and MP3 Downloads + Streaming Song

March 16, 2011
By


[photo courtesy of John Ruscher and Eardrum NYC]

Harvey Milk has been described as metal, sludge, sludge-core, noise rock, and experimental noise. Labels aside, this is an unabashed rock band — one that plays at an extreme volumes, draws from countless influences, and plays without the slightest pretense. Last night was the closing of their three-show residency at Union Pool, and while the previous shows had featured complete album performances, Tuesday’s set was a representative mix of their material split evenly between the old and new. Harvey Milk reached all the way back to 1994 and the first album (“Merlin is Magic”), and performed four songs from 1997’s The Pleaser, including “Anthem” (streaming below). The newer material included several songs from Special Wishes (2006) and Life (2008), but skipped 2010’s Small Turn, which has been performed in full on the first night of the run. Lead guitarist Creston Spiers was armed with two huge dual guitar amps and his ax filled the small room easily — each song providing ear-splitting chunks of sonic goodness. As the set came to a close, the band dispensed with theatrics and played through the encore songs without leaving the stage. If any single act could encompass the power of this evening, it occurred before the final crush of guitar in the set’s closer (“Death”) when Spiers retreated to his amps and turned the volumes of all the dials up to the max in one fluid motion before returning to the microphone to finish the set. Turn it up, indeed.

We recorded this set from the elevated soundboard area. We attached the Neumann’s to the rail and pointed them at the stage amps and mixed in a slight board feed (75/25). The soundboard mix provides mostly vocals and drums to counteract the high volume of guitars in the room. The final product is a superb balanced mix of this amazing show. Enjoy!

Stream “Anthem”:
[audio:https://www.nyctaper.com/H1503HarveyMilk2222/13.%20Anthem.mp3]

Direct download of complete show in MP3 files [HERE]

Download the Complete show in FLAC [HERE].

Harvey Milk
2011-03-15
Union Pool
Brooklyn, NY USA

Digital Master Recording
Four Channel 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
2011-03-16

Setlist:
[Total Time 1:17:21]
01 Crush Them All
02 War
03 I Dont Know How To Live My Life
04 Merlin Is Magic
05 Motown
06 A Maelstrom Of Bad Decisions
07 In The Ground
08 [banter]
09 D Block
10 Goodbye Blues
11 Lay My Head Down
12 What I Want
13 Anthem
14 [unknown – Goodness Gracious]
15 Shame
16 Death Goes To The Winner

If you email nyctaper for access to this recording, we expect that you will PLEASE SUPPORT Harvey Milk, visit their website, and purchase their official releases from Hydra Head Records [HERE] and from Chunklet [HERE].

La Sera: March 2, 2011 Bowery Ballroom – FLAC and MP3 Downloads + Streaming Songs

March 15, 2011
By


[Photos by Geoffrey Dicker for According2G]

La Sera is the new LA-based project from Katy Goodman, best known for her work with the Vivian Girls. La Sera may be an LA band but the Bowery Ballroom crowd welcomed Katy and her new band with open arms, and well they should have. La Sera more or less picks up where the Vivians left off, but adds a lighter California twist that befits their hometown. La Sera songs, compared to the Vivians, are suffused with a sunnier tone that borrows from the girl groups of the 60s and California surf rock, with the Vivians’ layers of feedback stripped away. That leaves Goodman’s voice and her pretty, spare arrangements, which is all to the good, as she can sing the hell out of these songs. This set included a number of new songs – impressive considering that Goodman release La Sera’s debut LP, La Sera, just earlier this year – as well as a spot-on cover of the Mamas and the Papas’ “Dedicated to the One I Love.” Despite her use of rotating touring bands (because Goodman continues as a member of the Vivian Girls, she cannot consistently keep one La Sera together), this band delivered the songs confidently, setting the stage perfectly for the headliner, Tennis (also recorded).

I recorded this set from the same location as the Tennis recording, but utilized only the Microtech-Gefell microphones. The sound is excellent. Enjoy!

Stream “Beating Heart”:
[audio:https://www.nyctaper.com/L3002LaSera0211/17 Beating Heart.mp3]

Stream “Dedicated to the One I Love”:
[audio:https://www.nyctaper.com/L3002LaSera0211/13 Dedicated to the One I Love.mp3]

Direct download of MP3 files [HERE]

Download the Complete show in FLAC [HERE].

La Sera
2011-03-02
Bowery Ballroom
New York, NY USA

An acidjack master recording
Recorded and produced by acidjack for nyctaper.com

Equipment: Microtech-Gefell M210s>Edirol R-44 [Oade Concert Mod] (24/48)
Position: LOC, at soundboard, mics on extension arm at eye level with sound staff, 210s pointed at stacks
Mastering: 24bit/48kHz WAV>Audacity (downsample, EQ, set fades, limit peaks, amplify and balance)>FLAC ( level 8 )

Tracks [Time 33:06]
01 Behind Your Eyes
02 Sleeptalking
03 Never Come Around
04 Hold
05 [unknown]
06 [banter]
07 Been Here Before
08 [unknown – new]
09 Left This World
10 [banter]
11 Devils Hearts Grow Gold
12 [unknown – new]
13 Dedicated to the One I Love [The Mamas and the Papas]
14 [unknown]
15 You’re Going to Cry [feat. Molly from Widowspeak and Elena from Tennis]
16 Beating Heart

If you download this recording from NYCTaper, we expect that you will PLEASE SUPPORT La Sera, visit their MySpace page, and purchase La Sera directly from Hardly Art records here.

Hooray For Earth: March 8, 2011 Glasslands – FLAC and MP3 Downloads + Streaming Songs

March 14, 2011
By


[Video still by Cannons]

Looking at Brooklyn bands with big, big potential to come out of SXSW this week transformed into rising stars, Hooray For Earth has got to be high on the list. Though there is no exact formula for making it to the next level, it has to include the appeal to resonate beyond narrow indie borders into the broader pop realm. Look at bands that have done it recently (Yeasayer, in particular) and Hooray For Earth is right up there with them. How so? The energy of Hooray For Earth‘s music is boundless, their beats ecstatic. Their songs are anthemic, but smart; fresh, but digestible. Songs like “Rolling/Nectarine” are all big beat backbone with shimmering keys and soaring choruses that click in any language, and that applies to most of their standout 2010 EP, Momo. They are both of rock music but beyond it in the way that many recent successes are; without dropping gimmicks, the band’s mastermind Noel Heroux takes some cues from the electronica realm and makes music that sounds like the near-future.

This Glasslands show was packed from when doors opened, completely sold out and then some. Undoubtedly, many of us had the same idea of spending Fat Tuesday sending off some local heroes before an SXSW run that will include a coveted spot at Pitchfork‘s showcase. Heroux and Co. got some unintended practice in crisis management, as gear malfunctioned left and right at the show’s start, including Heroux’s bass strap snapping during the second number. That didn’t slow the show’s momentum a bit, though, as HFE showcased a number of new songs that will appear on their forthcoming full-length, True Loves, which has already been generating heat in media circles. The hype seems justified, as Heroux has evolved the anthemic pop sound of Momo to embrace more tribal sounds, such as on the set opener, “Realize It’s Not the Sun,” and the spacescape-evoking “Black Trees.” The backing vocals of the ladies of Zambri were key throughout the night, perhaps no more so than on the standout title track to their new record, “True Loves”. Begged for an encore, the band came back to perform “Form” from Momo, which Heroux introduced as “This is Form. It’s rock n’ roll.” Not to contradict Noel, but in this moment, Hooray For Earth songs are all rock n’ roll. The rest of rock n’ roll may just not know it yet.

I recorded this set with the DPA microphones and an excellently mixed board feed from Derek at Glasslands. The sound is outstanding. Enjoy!

Stream “True Loves”:
[audio:https://www.nyctaper.com/H7206HFE0201/05 True Loves.mp3]

Stream “Rolling/Nectarine”:
[audio:https://www.nyctaper.com/H7206HFE0201/06 Rolling_Nectarine.mp3]

Direct download of MP3 files [HERE]

Download the Complete show in FLAC [HERE].

Hooray For Earth
2011-03-08
Glasslands
Brooklyn, NY USA

An acidjack master recording
Recorded and produced by acidjack for nyctaper.com

Equipment: DPA 4021+Soundboard>Edirol R-44 [Oade Concert Mod]
Position: ROC, balcony, ~ORTF
Mastering: 2x24bit/48kHz WAV>Audacity (vocal-enhancing compression on soundboard track, smooth peaks, mixdown, adjust levels, EQ, smooth peaks, amplify and balance, downsample)>FLAC ( level 8 )

Tracks:
01 Realize It’s Not The Sun
02 Surrounded By Your Friends
03 Get Home
04 [banter]
05 True Loves
06 Rolling/Nectarine
07 [banter]
08 Sails
09 [banter]
10 Black Trees
11 [encore break]
12 Form

If you download this recording from NYCTaper, we expect that you will PLEASE SUPPORT Hooray For Earth, visit their website, and purchase Momo and their debut LP, True Loves directly from Dovecote Records.

Nicole Atkins: March 11, 2011 Maxwell’s – Flac and MP3 Downloads + Streaming Song

March 13, 2011
By


[photo by nyctaper]

On the final night of her current tour, Nicole Atkins came home to a sold out Maxwell’s on Friday night. The tour in support of the heralded new album Mondo Amore (Razor & Tie) began at Bowery Ballroom more than a month ago and swung cross-country before its triumphant return. The band at Maxwell’s was the core group — not the orchestra-sized outfit at Bowery — and the set’s full throttle energy reflected it. From the opening notes of “Heavy Boots” the band was tight and focused and nicely complimented the main instrument — Nicole’s powerful voice. And she was in fine voice all evening in all modes, whether folk (“Monterey Honey”), ballad (“Hotel Plaster”), honky tonk (“Cry Cry Cry”) or a classic soul cover (“See And Don’t See”, streaming below). Nicole will play several SXSW shows before returning to dates in the Spring, which include Bonnaroo Festival and several dates with the Avett Brothers.

I recorded this set from our usual location and setup in this venue and the sound is outstanding. Nicole’s sound engineer Jeff mixed her vocals prominently and to perfection and the result is a recording that truly reflects of the strengths of this artist. Enjoy!

Stream “See And Don’t See”:
[audio:https://www.nyctaper.com/N1906NicoleAtkins1020/23.%20See%20and%20Don%27t%20See%20%5bMarie%20Queenie%20Lyons%5d.mp3]

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

Nicole Atkins
2011-03-11
Maxwell’s
Hoboken, NJ USA

Digital Master Recording
Four Channel 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
2011-03-12

Setlist:
[Total Time 1:16:18]
01 Heavy Boots
02 Maybe Tonight
03 This Is For Love
04 You Come To Me
05 [banter]
06 Party’s Over
07 [band introductions]
08 Cry Cry Cry
09 Vitamin C [Can]
10 [banter2]
11 The Way It Is
12 Brooklyn’s On Fire
13 [banter3]
14 Hotel Plaster
15 [banter4]
16 Monterey Honey
17 My Baby Don’t Lie
18 Vultures
19 [banter5]
20 War Is Hell
21 The Tower
22 [encore break]
23 See and Don’t See [Marie Queenie Lyons]

If you email nyctaper for access to this recording, we expect that you will PLEASE SUPPORT Nicole Atkins, visit her website, and purchase her new album Mondo Amore from her website [HERE].

Widowspeak: March 3, 2011 Glasslands – FLAC and MP3 Downloads + Streaming Songs

March 10, 2011
By

Brooklyn’s Widowspeak could be considered a Pacific Northwest import of sorts – vocalist/guitarist Molly Hamilton and drummer Michael Stasiak hail from Tacoma, Washington (guitarist Robert Thomas is from Chicago) and the rain-washed influence of that region suffuses both their sound and their songwriting.  Stylistically, you hear it in their guitar playing, which picks up the jangly, rangy sound of some of the early K Records acts like Beat Happening, and in the band’s unforced delivery.  There is a mellow, wistful air to Widowspeak that is uncommon to hungry young East Coast bands; rather than blaring “hear me NOW!” their approach is more akin to, “don’t worry, we know you’ll get it eventually.”  Which is to say that, in a scene thoroughly embracing the 90s at the moment, Widowspeak are firmly more in the SubPop than the shoegaze camp.  Hamilton’s vocals are sure to garner their fair share of favorable comparisons – one reviewer compared Hamilton’s distant, ghostly moan to Mazzy Star, but I prefer to think of her as a successor to Chan Marshall, aka Cat Power.  Her vocals talents were on full display this past Thursday night at Glasslands, where the band gave us a taste of some of the material they hope to release this summer on their forthcoming full length on Captured Tracks.  The band gave us a tight, well-rehearsed and set with few digressions, with a mix that emphasized Hamilton’s vocals.  Their current 7″ single (also available on Captured Tracks) “Harsh Realm” is both a knowing reference to an old joke (this link is worth reading) about grunge slang, as well as a paean to Hamilton and Stasiak’s roots, and that song also closed out this eight-song set.  Another highlight was the band’s sincere rendition of Chris Isaak’s classic, “Wicked Game”, which went perfectly with the band’s style and sound.

I recorded this set with the DPA microphones and a soundboard feed by Derek of Glasslands.  The sound quality is excellent.  Enjoy!

Stream “Harsh Realm”:
[audio:https://www.nyctaper.com/W3030Widowspeak0211/09 Harsh Realm.mp3]

Stream “Wicked Game”:
[audio:https://www.nyctaper.com/W3030Widowspeak0211/07 Wicked Game.mp3]

Direct download of MP3 files [HERE]

Download the Complete show in FLAC [HERE].

Widowspeak
2011-03-03
Glasslands
Brooklyn, NY  USA

An acidjack master recording
Recorded and produced by acidjack for nyctaper.com

Equipment: DPA 4021+Soundboard>Edirol R-44 [Oade Concert Mod]
Position: ROC, balcony, ~ORTF
Mastering: 2x24bit/48kHz WAV>Audacity (mixdown, adjust levels, smooth peaks, amplify and balance, downsample)>FLAC ( level 8 )

Tracks
01 Burnout
02 Yellow Light
03 Brainfreeze
04 banter
05 Nightcrawlers
06 Ghost Boy
07 Wicked Game [Chris Isaak]
08 Pines
09 Harsh Realm

If you download this recording from NYCTaper, we expect that you will PLEASE SUPPORT Widowspeak, visit their MySpace page, and purchase their forthcoming LP and the “Harsh Realm” 7″ from Captured Tracks.

Akron/Family: March 5, 2011 Bowery Ballroom – Flac and MP3 Downloads + Streaming Song

March 8, 2011
By


[photos by nyctaper]

Akron/Family shows tend to be celebratory affairs, so the end-of-tour sold-out show at Bowery Ballroom on Saturday night was quite likely the ultimate A/F affair. As the band is touring throughout the year behind the superb new album S/T II: The Cosmic Birth and Journey of Shinju TNT, the setlists have been geared primarily towards the new material, but on this night the band took their time and opened smoothly into a sweet version of the older “We All Will”, before launching to an extended “River”. Of the Shinju songs, “So It Goes” was quite electric on this night and we’ve chosen to stream it below. Several drum-oriented jams broke out during the evening, not the least of which closed out the incendiary “Raising the Sparks”, a song which had so impressed at Knitting Factory last month for entirely different reasons. In a true acknowledgment of the collective energy of the crowd, A/F closed the show with a full participatory version of “Love And Space” that extended for a full eight minutes. Akron/Family will start another tour in a few weeks, when they will play the West coast and the Soutwest.

I recorded this set with the four microphone rig from our standard balcony location in this venue and the sound quality is superb. Enjoy!

Stream Entire Show:

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

Akron/Family
2011-03-05
Bowery Ballroom
New York, NY USA

Four-Track Digital Master Recording
Recorded Balcony Railing

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
2011-03-06

Setlist:
[Total Time 1:39:53]
01 We All Will
02 River
03 Island
04 A AAA O WAY
05 So It Goes
06 Another Sky / Drums
07 Raising The Sparks
08 Everyone Is Guilty
09 Say What You Want To
10 Silly Bear
11 [encore break]
12 Fuji II (Single Pane)
13 Light Emerges
14 [banter]
15 Love And Space

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

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