[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].

[Woods at Music Hall on March 12, 2010.  Photos courtesy of Frank Siringo]

Each time we see Woods (and it’s been quite a few lately) we are struck by the evolution of the band.  Despite not being a particularly longstanding act (though I suppose they are by the scene’s current standards), they already feel, in a sense, like godfathers of the scene.  Part of that is that comes from their status as the foundation of Woodsist Records, a label that has spawned groundbreaking acts coast to coast (the West Coast feel of many of their offerings is undeniable).  But it also comes from their music itself, which evolved from the typical 3-4 minute rock format into sprawling, layered psychedelic compositions. I cannot call what they are doing “jamming”, for one because it is so anathema to the local aesthetic, and also because it feels pejorative and limiting.  What Woods are doing is gradually expanding their sound and sharing their virtuosity on their instruments with us – not aimlessly noodling for a bunch of wookies.  Being part of the Woodsist showcase at the 2010 Northside Festival, this performance at Music Hall of Williamsburg did not boast anything as massive as the 16-minute “Bend Beyond” we witnessed at the Abrons Arts Center performance, but it did feature a stretched out “I Was Gone,” “Blood Dries Darker,” “The Hold” and a still-respectable 9-minute “Bend Beyond.”  The show was packed, and the audience was treated to another can’t miss performance that cued up another fantastic set from Real Estate to close out the night.

The NYCTaper team recorded this show from our usual spot at the soundboard booth using two separate recorders and a combination of six mics.  The results are exceptional and even better than the Real Estate recording.  Enjoy!

Stream “To Clean”:
[audio:https://www.nyctaper.com/W2206Woods2990/Woods2010-06-25_nyctacid_t03.mp3]

Direct download of MP3 files [HERE]

Download the Complete show in FLAC [HERE].

Woods
2010-06-25
Music Hall of Williamsburg
Brooklyn, NY  USA

Six-Track Digital Master Recording
Recorded from Front of Soundboard Booth

Neumann KM-150s + DPA 4021’s + Schoeps CMC641s > 2xEdirol R-44 (Oade Concert Mod) > 3 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 and acidjack
2010-07-02

Setlist:
[Total Time 48:02]
01  I Was Gone
02  Blood Dries Darker
03  To Clean
04  [banter]
05  Suffering Season
06  Down This Road
07  The Hold
08  Rain On
09  Bend Beyond

If you email nyctaper for access to these recordings, we expect that you will PLEASE SUPPORT Woods, visit their MySpace page, and purchase their official releases, including their latest, At Echo Lake, from Woodsist Records.

[Photo courtesy of Janice Chou for FREEwilliamsburg]

I had absolutely no idea who Oh Land was when I saw her on the bill for FREEwilliamsburg’s Northside Festival showcase at Brooklyn Bowl.  And initially, I didn’t care.  It was Sunday night, there were five acts on the bill, and Hooray for Earth was up next.  All I needed was another 35 minute set in my life.

Then I saw her.

A tall, stunningly gorgeous Danish woman takes center stage, looking like a hipster Heidi Klum, with a DJ/beat specialist off to the left.  Oh, and she’s wearing a wolf hat, which she takes off for the first song.  And high heeled boots.  And short shorts.  In front of her, a keyboard.  To her right, a giant black box contraption with electronic drums stuck to one side, balloons tied to the top.  Suffice it to say, Oh Land didn’t look a bit like any of the other 16 or so bands I saw last weekend.

Then, I heard her.

From note one, former ballerina Nanna Øland Fabricius (Oh Land, get it?) proves that she has the voice and music to match her striking looks.  Her initial approach is simple.  “Hey, I’m Oh Land.  I’m going to play a song called ‘Perfection’.”  Huge beats drop, drowning out the bowling.  She starts to sing.  The song sounds like flying, a simple but beautiful love song, Fabricius’ voice strong and clear over the beat.  It is perfection; perfect, dreamy pop.  Although Oh Land is known in her native Denmark, and has an EP and a record (Fauna) out, her profile in the U.S. has been relatively minimal, with an SXSW gig earlier this year being the first big exposure.  Fabricius tells the audience it is her first time playing these songs live, yet the rest of the performance is spot-on.  My favorite song was the quietest, “Lean,” which you can stream here.  Throughout Oh Land’s short but extremely well-received set, I’m running the simple math: voice + songs + looks = rock star.

It turns out I am not the only one who thinks so.

Oh Land has already been snapped up in the U.S. by Epic Records, a “major label” that is home to a few other artists you may have heard of, like Michael Jackson, Ozzy Osbourne, Modest Mouse, Franz Ferdinand and Shakira.  Good for Epic, and for Oh Land – I think they’ve got a winner here.  Epic plans to release Oh Land’s record later this year, with her first single, “Sun of a Gun” set to drop in early September, album to follow.  Epic was gracious enough to grant NYCTaper permission to release this recording prior to the album’s release date, provided that we edited out a few numbers and a bit of tuning.  While it is our normal policy to only release complete shows, we felt that our readers deserved to hear anything we could give them by this incredible artist.  Please check out Oh Land’s record and “Sun of a Gun” (available for download with the complete set below) when Epic releases it.  Also, Fabricius just moved to Williamsburg – so if you see her in the neighborhood, please say hi.

I recorded this set in the same way as the Keepaway recording.  This set is particularly strong sound-wise, as my “stack tape” method works well for Oh Land’s relatively simple keys/beats/vox setup.  Thanks to FREEwilliamsburg and Epic Records for making this happen.

Read an interview with Oh Land on FREEwilliamsburg here.

Stream “Lean”:
[audio:https://www.nyctaper.com/O0627OhLand0210/ohland_lean_2010-06-27nyctaper.mp3]

Direct download of MP3 files [HERE]

Download the show in FLAC [HERE].

Oh Land
2010-06-27
Brooklyn Bowl
Brooklyn, NY  USA

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

Equipment: Schoeps CMC641>Edirol R-44 (Oade Concert Mod) (24/44.1)
Position: ~12ft from right stack, mics A/B, pointed at stack, 12ft up
Mastering: 24bit/44.1kHz WAV>Audacity (set fades, EQ, tracking, amplify channels)>FLAC Level 8

01 Perfection
03 Wolf and I
06 Break the Chain
07 Lean
08 Sun of a Gun

If you download this recording from NYCTaper, we expect that you will PLEASE SUPPORT Oh Land, visit their MySpace page, and purchase their forthcoming Epic Records release as well as Fauna, which is most easily purchased in the U.S. on iTunes.

[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.

[photo by nyctaper]

The best sign for the continued viability of a band that has moved beyond its initial “buzz” is their ability to write quality material and mature in their live act. Real Estate has accomplished both and proved it as the headliner of the Woodist showcase at the Northside Festival. The band continues to play tighter and more focused sets. On Friday, Real Estate opened with a new-ish song “All Out of Tune”, and played two other new numbers, including perhaps the strongest song of the set — an untitled number (“Nothing to Lose”? — sampled as Track 09 below) that premiered at Monster Island in April and for which we mixed the audio of this video of that performance. The song’s guitar line recalls “Fake Blues” but with a stronger melody and representative Real Estate style lyrics — perhaps a perfect new single for the band.

Real Estate perform again in NYC on July 9 at Le Poisson Rouge, at the outset of their extensive tour with Kurt Vile. They return again to NYC in mid-August to open for Deerhunter at Pier 54.

I recorded this set with the four microphone rig from the left front corner of the soundboard. The house mix was quite excellent and the sound quality of this recording is outstanding. Enjoy!

Sample “Fake Blues”:
[audio:https://www.nyctaper.com/R2410RealEstate9229/05%20RealEstate2010-06-25_nyctaper_t05.mp3]

Sample “New Song” (Track 09):
[audio:https://www.nyctaper.com/R2410RealEstate9229/09%20RealEstate2010-06-25_nyctaper_t09.mp3]

Direct download of complete show in MP3 files (HERE)

Download the Complete show in FLAC [HERE].

Real Estate
2010-06-25
Music Hall of Williamsburg
Brooklyn, NY USA

Four-Track Digital Master Recording
Recorded from Front of Soundboard Booth

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
2010-06-28

Setlist:
[Total Time 53:51]
01 All Out of Tune
02 Green River [false start]
03 Green River
04 Suburban Beverage
05 Fake Blues
06 Pool Swimmers
07 [banter]
08 Basement
09 [new song]
10 Suburban Dogs
11 [new song]
12 Atlantic City
13 Beach Comber
14 [encore break]
15 Black Lake
16 Younger Than Yesterday

If you email nyctaper for access to this recording, we expect that you will PLEASE SUPPORT Real Estate, visit their MySpace page, and purchase their releases from Woodist Records, Half Machine Records, and Underwater Peoples (currently sold out).