[photo by nyctaper]

For ardent baseball fans and a long time followers of the music of R.E.M., Dream Syndicate, Young Fresh Fellows, Minus 5, Steve Wynn and the Miracle 3, the all-star group that performed on Wednesday at the Bowery Ballroom was the best of all worlds. The foursome of Steve, Peter Buck, Scott McCaughey and Linda Pitmon performed over two and a half hours of music which encompassed far more material than their 2008 collaboration on The Baseball Project. While the concert did include 11 of the 13 tracks from Frozen Ropes, the two full sets and thirty-seven songs performed also drew from the lengthy catalogs of the group’s members, including some Dream Syndicate classics, material from the several Minus 5 albums, songs from the new Young Fresh Fellows release, and even three new songs from the anticipated second Baseball Project album. Now well into this current tour, the band was tight and stretched out quite a few of the numbers. As always, Scott’s banter was highly entertaining and gave a true irreverence to the evening.

We recorded from our standard position at the Bowery with the four microphone rig and the sound quality in the venue was quite exceptional. This is an excellent recording with no flaws whatsoever. Enjoy!

Direct download of MP3 files (HERE)

Download the Complete show in FLAC [HERE].

The Baseball Project / Minus 5 / Steve Wynn IV
2009-09-23
Bowery Ballroom
New York, NY USA

Four-Track Digital Master Recording
Recorded from Balcony Rail
Next to the 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
2009-09-26

Set 1
Setlist:
[Total Time 1:04:30]
01 Past Time
02 Ted F*cking Williams
03 Out There on the Maroon
04 I’m Not Bitter
05 Broken Man
06 Love Me Anyway
07 The Yankee Flipper
08 That’s What You Always Say
09 Long Before My Time
10 Vintage Violet
11 The Lurking Barrister
12 Dark Hand of Contagion
13 Tell Me When Its Over
14 Manhattan Fault Line
15 Ichiro Goes To The Moon
16 Lies of the Living Dead
17 Amphetamine

Set 2
Setlist:
[Total Time 1:30:29]
01 [banter]
02 Buckner’s Bolero
03 Jackie’s Lament
04 Gratitude (For Curt Flood)
05 The Death Of Big Ed Delahanty
06 Cindy, It Was Always You
07 Satchel Paige Said
08 Ambulance Dancehall
09 Cigarettes Coffee and Booze
10 [Gold and Silver tease]
11 Medicine Show
12 Trial Separation Blues
13 Twilight Distillery
14 Harvey Haddix
15 Revolution Blues
16 The Days of Wine and Booze
17 The Days of Wine and Roses
18 Aw Shit Man
19 [encore break]
20 The Closer
21 Let the Good Times Crawl
22 The Straw That Stirs The Drink
23 [banter]
24 Strychnine

[photo by nyctaper]

If you email nyctaper for access to this recording, we expect that you will PLEASE SUPPORT The Baseball Project, visit their website, and purchase Frozen Ropes directly from the Yep Roc Records site [HERE].

[photo courtesy of Dani Jordan]

I will admit that I am addicted to the Of Montreal concert experience. Every show is a multi-media entertainment extravaganza. For recent experiences, the stage show has often trumped my true appreciation of the song craft and the musicianship. Last night at Terminal 5, while the stage show had its usual assortment of wild play-acting — crucifixions, animal costumes, and feathers everywhere — I made a conscious decision to concentrate on the musicians, and I was rewarded as the band absolutely shined. In particular, BP’s outstanding guitar work in “Rejecter” and Davey Pierce’s sharp bass playing in “Bunny” were highlights. While the show began with five consecutive numbers from Skeletal Lamping, the setlist was dominated by Hissing Fauna material including nine of the twelve songs on that album. As per usual, the encore segment featured one memorable cover song, this time “Love Hangover” from the disco-era Diana Ross.

We recorded from the standard location in this venue, dead center of the rear of the floor with a direct line towards the huge stacks. The sound quality in this venue can often be muddy, but overall we were pleased with the sound on this evening, and the recording is a fine listening experience. Enjoy!

Direct download of MP3 files (HERE)

Download the Complete show in FLAC [HERE].

Of Montreal
2009-09-18
Terminal 5
New York, NY USA

Digital Audience Master Recording
Recorded from Floor – 50 Feet from Stage

Neumann KM-150s + DPA 4021s > 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

Many Thanks to BP!

Recorded and Produced by nyctaper
2009-09-19

Setlist:
[Total Time 1:32:20]
01 [introduction]
02 Mingusings
03 Id Engager
04 For Our Elegant Caste*
05 Touched Something’s Hollow
06 An Eluardian Instance
07 Requiem for O.M.M.2
08 The Party’s Crashing Us
09 Suffer For Fashion
10 Sink the Seine
11 Cato As A Pun
12 Forecast Fascist Future
13 My British Tour Diary
14 She’s a Rejecter
15 Bunny Ain’t No Kind Of Rider
16 Faberge Falls For Shuggie
17 I Was Never Young
18 Heimdalsgate Like A Promethean Curse
19 The Past Is A Grotesque Animal
20 [encore break]
21 Love Hangover (Diana Ross)*
22 A Sentence Of Sorts In Kongsvinger
*with Janelle Monae

If you email nyctaper for access to this recording, we expect that you will PLEASE SUPPORT Of Montreal, visit their website, visit their MySpace page, and purchase their new CD Skeletal Lamping at the Polyvinyl website [HERE].

Son Volt also played Washington DC on Tuesday
[photo by Steve from Baby Stew Blog]

Last night at Irving Plaza, Son Volt proved once again why they are the virtual mantle-carriers of the “no depression” movement of the 1990s. Fueled by the emergence of a superb new album American Central Dust, the band played an outstanding non-stop two-hour set which featured ten of the twelve tracks from the album along with material from the balance of their catalog (except no Straightaways material). The touring band features James Walbourne (Pernice Brothers, Pretenders) on guitar and pedal steel (he does not appear on the album), and his fervent guitar work provided multiple excellent solos during the evening. Of the new numbers, “Cocaine and Ashes” was a particularly strong performance, and along with the fan favorite “Windfall” and the old Waylon Jennings “Are You Sure Hank Done It This Way” were the highlights of the show. Despite his stoic stage reputation, Jay Farrar was engaging and talked to the crowd several times, including the dedication of “Big Sur” to ZZ Top.

We recorded this set with the four microphones from the middle of the floor in the sweet spot for sound in this venue. Other than some annoying chatter near the microphones, this is an outstanding capture. Enjoy!

Direct download of MP3 files (HERE)

Download the Complete show in FLAC [HERE].

Son Volt
2009-09-17
Irving Plaza
New York, NY USA

Digital Audience Master Recording
Recorded from Center of the Floor

Neumann KM-150s + DPA 4021s > 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
2009-09-18

Setlist:
[Total Time 1:52:43]
01 The Picture
02 Feel Free
03 Underground Dream
04 Down to the Wire
05 Dust of Daylight
06 Highways and Cigarettes
07 Cocaine and Ashes
08 When the Wheels Don’t Move
09 Ten Second News
10 Dynamite
11 Pushed Too Far
12 Jukebox of Steel
13 [banter]
14 Big Sur
15 Methamphetamine
16 [band introductions]
17 Tear Stained Eye
18 Strength and Doubt
19 No Turning Back
20 Hard Times
21 Medication
22 Damn Shame
23 The Search
24 Buzz & Grind
25 Bandages & Scars
26 Afterglow 61
27 [encore break]
28 Action
29 Roll On
30 Windfall
31 Are You Sure Hank Done It This Way (Waylon Jennings)

If you email nyctaper for access to this recording, we expect that you will PLEASE SUPPORT Son Volt, visit their website, visit their MySpace page, and purchase their official releases directly from the Jay Farrar Official Store [HERE].

[photo by nyctaper]

On the week that Bar None Records reissued both Crazy Rhythms and The Good Earth, the Feelies played a weekend of shows in the New York area. On Friday, they played Crazy Rhythms from start to finish at All Tomorrow’s Parties (acidjack’s recording is here). Saturday’s show was a performance at the beautiful Bearsville Theatre in Woodstock. Last night, the celebratory weekend was completed with an absolutely monumental Feelies show at Southpaw. The band performed two sets that consisted of over two hours of music, but the most amazing aspect of the show was the encore set — the band returned on five separate occasions to perform a total of ten encores. Included in the show were the usual plethora of covers — the raging second set opener of Neil Young’s “Barstool Blues” and the Beatles “Everybody’s Got Something to Hide” (from Crazy Rhythms) among them — but there were also a few surprises including a teacher-mimics-student version of R.E.M.’s “Carnival of Sorts”.

The band was again well-served by the presence of long time sound pro Andy Peters, who navigated through a limited sound system to provide outstanding listening quality. We set up the four mics at the front of the railing above the floor which provided a direct line to the stacks. The resulting sound quality of this recording is quite excellent. Enjoy!

Direct download of MP3 files (HERE)

Download the Complete show in FLAC [HERE].

The Feelies
2009-09-13
Southpaw
Brooklyn, NY USA

Digital Master Audience Recording
Recorded from Front and Center at Railing
20 Feet from the Stage

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
2009-09-14

Setlist:
Set 1:
[Total Time 32:54]
01 When Company Comes
02 Egyptian Reggae (Jonathan Richman)
03 [new song]
04 The Undertow
05 Sunday Morning (Velvet Underground)
06 Invitation
07 Nobody Knows
08 The High Road
09 On The Roof
10 Let’s Go

Set 2:
[Total Time 1:27:47]
01 Barstool Blues (Neil Young)
02 Deep Fascination
03 Higher Ground
04 The Final Word
05 Slipping (Into Something)
06 Time is Right
07 Away
08 Original Love
09 Too Far Gone
10 Raised Eyebrows
11 Crazy Rhythms
12 [encore break]
13 Doin’ It Again
14 Carnival of Sorts (R.E.M.)
15 [second encore break]
16 Moscow Nights
17 I Wanna Sleep In Your Arms (Modern Lovers)
18 [third encore break]
19 Take It As It Comes (Doors)
20 Paint it Black (Rolling Stones)
21 [fourth encore break]
22 Fa Ce-La
23 Everybody’s Got Something To Hide (Except For Me And My Monkey) (Beatles)
24 [fifth encore break]
25 Outdoor Miner (Wire)
26 She Said She Said (Beatles)

If you email nyctaper for access to this recording, we expect that you will PLEASE SUPPORT The Feelies, visit their MySpace page, and purchase the new reissues of Crazy Rhythms and The Good Earth directly from the Bar None website [HERE].