[photo credit]

moe.’s annual New Year’s warm-up gig was an intimate affair at a packed Irving Plaza. The special surprise guest was the (former) Allman Brothers legend Dicky Betts, who guided the band through an epic In Memory of Elizabeth Reed before joining in during Al Schnier’s Allmans-like Mexico.

This recording was made from the perfect location in this venue, and should be better than it is. In December, I sent my Neumann microphones to be serviced, and have used the DPA microphones exclusively. The quality of the two sets is fairly similar, but the Neumann’s have a -10db pad for situations like this concert. The sound in the venue was quite powerful and overwhelmed the DPA > Apogee system. I used the “soft-limiter” to prevent distortion, but during louder moments the sound is still “crunchy”. The problem was significantly reduced during the 2nd set. During quieter passages, particularly in Set 2, this recording is absolutely superb. Enjoy!

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

moe.
2007-12-30
Irving Plaza
New York, NY USA

Digital Master Audience Recording
Recorded from Front of Board
Dead Center approximately 40 feet from the stage

DPA 4021s (9 ft Stand) > Apogee Mini-Me > M-Audio Microtrack 24/96 > 24bit 48kHz wav files > Soundforge (set fades, balance levels, dither, downsample, patch) > CDWave 1.95 > Flac Frontend (level 7, align sector boundaries) > flac

*crossfade 1 minute and 10 seconds of patch material from an alternate recorder in the middle of Buster (thanks Eric)

Recorded and Produced by
nyctaper
2008-01-05

Setlist:
Set 1
[total time 1:02:44]
01 Stranger Than Fiction
02 Runaway Overlude
03 Captain America
04 Seat Of My Pants
05 Sensory Deprivation Bank
06 Timmy Tucker

Set 2
[total time 2:05:25]
01 Opium
02 In Memory Of Elizabeth Reed
03 St. Augustine
04 Where Does the Time Go?
05 Mexico
06 [encore break]
07 Spaz Medicine
08 Buster
09 Spaz Medicine

If you download this recording, PLEASE SUPPORT moe. and visit their website.
and purchase their latest official release:

The New York Dolls reunion is another one of those unlikely-but-true rock stories with a bittersweet happy ending. The band performed two nights at Irving this week, and while Syl Sylvain and David Johansen look fit and sang and played with focus, its hard to watch this band without realizing that its rhythm section and lead guitarist are no longer with us. The Dolls paid a fine tribute to Johnny Thunders when Syl pointed out Johnny’s daughter in the balcony before the dedication of Johnny’s classic “You Can’t Put Your Arms Around a Memory” segued neatly into his Dolls composition “Lonely Planet Boy”. David also dedicated “Private World” to the late bassist Arthur Kane. While the “new” band members are unfamiliar, their instrumental backing was superb. All the classics were performed along with some of the numbers from their excellent new release.

The recording was made from the ideal location at this venue, and the sound quality is outstanding. Enjoy!

This recording has been removed from nyctaper. Although we have not been contacted by NY Dolls or their representatives, it was announced on January 17, 2008 that portions of these two nights would appear on a live release (here). Please support NY Dolls and purchase the official version of these outstanding concerts.

New York Dolls
2007-12-29
Irving Plaza
New York, NY USA

Digital Master Recording
Recorded from FOB Center
Dead Center 30 Feet from PA

DPA 4021’s > Marantz PMD-660 (Oade BCM) > 16bit 44.1 wav > Soundforge (set fades, level boost, slight eq) > CDWave 1.95 (tracking) > Flac Frontend (level 7, align sector boundaries) > flac

Premiere Download offered at
https://www.nyctaper.com
nyctaper@nyctaper.com

Recorded and Produced by
nyctaper
2007-12-30

Setlist:
[Total Time 1:31:28]
01 Looking For a Kiss
02 Puss ‘N’ Boots
03 We’re All In Love
04 Piece of My Heart
05 Pills
06 Dancing on the Lip of a Volcano
07 Private World
08 I Aint Gonna Eat Out My Heart Anymore
09 Rainbow Store
10 Babylon
11 Plenty of Music
12 Human Being
13 You Can’t Put Your Arms Around a Memory
14 Lonely Planet Boy
15 Who Are the Mystery Girls?
16 Dance Like A Monkey
17 Trash
18 Jet Boy
19 [encore break]
20 Personality Crisis
21 Gotta Get Away From Tommy

CD Cover Artwork (Thanks JohnE!):
coverart

Information:
txt file

Verification:
md5 file

If you download this recording PLEASE SUPPORT New York Dolls and visit their website.

[photo credit]

Friday night was the opening show of Gov’t Mule’s annual New Year’s run at the Beacon — and it was a barn-burner. Warren and company ripped through the usual Mule standards, and added a few inspired covers including Bob Marley, Van Morrison, Beatles, and Buffalo Springfield. The crowd was in a celebratory mood, and good will flowed all around. We were treated royally by security, fellow fans, and ultimately the band.

This recording was made from Row G, about 20 feet directly in front of the right PA stacks. The sound is crystal clear, and has a surprisingly deep soundstage, given our uncentered locale. We are extremely pleased with this recording. Enjoy!

Download the Complete show in FLAC [HERE].

Govt Mule
2007-12-28
Beacon Theatre
New York, NY USA

Digital Master Audience Recording

Recorded Front of Board
Right Side, Row G Seat 20
20 Feet in Front of Right PA Speakers

DPA 4021s (7 ft Stand) > Apogee Mini-Me > M-Audio Microtrack 24/96 > 24bit 48kHz wav files > Soundforge (set fades, balance levels, dither, downsample) > CDWave > Flac Frontend (level 7, align sector boundaries) > flac

Recorded and Produced by
nyctaper
2007-12-29

Setlist:
Set 1
[Total Time 1:14:57]
01 Brighter Days
02 32-20 Blues
03 No Need To Suffer
04 Have Mercy On The Criminal
05 Lively Up Yourself
06 Beautifully Broken*
07 Slackjaw Jezebel
08 He Ain’t Give You None
09 For What Its Worth

Set 2
[Total Time 1:29:08]
01 Child Of The Earth
02 Painted Silver Light
03 She Said, She Said
04 Tomorrow Never Knows
05 Streamline Woman
06 Drums
07 Unring The Bell
08 Bad Little Doggie
09 How Many More Years**
10 [encore break]
11 Long Distance Call
12 30 Days in the Hole

*With “When Doves Cry” verses
**With “Wang Dang Doodle” verses

If you download this recording, PLEASE SUPPORT Gov’t Mule and visit their website. At their site you can purchase soundboard recordings of their concerts via Mule Tracks.

At a recent Pierce Turner gig, I ran into my old friend Fred Parcells from Black ’47. Fred has compiled an extraordinary history of Irish music (including an enormous Black ’47 archive) at his site (here).

There was a time back in the early 90’s when I saw Black ’47 once or twice every week at the old Paddy’s Reilly’s on Second Avenue and 28th Street (the new Reilly’s is on 29th). The combination of free-flowing Guinness, Irish politics, and rollicking Irish music created a captivating and exuberant experience. Black ’47 still plays regularly now at Connolly’s, and still performs about 100 gigs a year (tour info here).

This soundboard recording captures a typically excellent Saturday night at Paddy Reilly’s, when Black ’47 ruled the roost and played tirelessly. The outstanding soundboard mix was done by Johnny Murphy, Black ’47’s soundman at the time. All the instruments are well-balanced, and the sound is bright, clean and energetic. Enjoy!

Download Complete show in FLAC [HERE].

Black ’47
1996-12-28
Paddy Reilly’s Music Bar
New York, New York USA

Master Digital Soundboard Recording
Soundboard > Sony D-7 DAT

DAT Master > Panasonic SV-3800 > digital coaxial > Audigy 2 ZS Platinum > Soundforge > 16 bit 44.1 wav > CD Wave (tracking) > Flac Frontend (level 7,align sector boundaries) > flac

[total time: 1:47:03]
Tracklist:
01 Big Fellah
02 Oh Maureen
03 Fire of Freedom
04 Green Suede Shoes
05 Danny Boy
06 Reels
07 Walk All the Days
08 Livin’ in America
09 Funky Céilí
10 40 Shades of Blue
11 Czechoslovakia
12 Rockin’ the Bronx
13 Who Killed Bobby Fuller?
14 Losin’ It
15 Maria’s Wedding
Encores
16 Gloria
17 I Fought the Law

If you download this recording PLEASE SUPPORT Black ’47 and visit their website.

This month Sigur Ros released Heima — the DVD of their 2006 tour of Iceland. This film captured the band’s return to their homeland after a worldwide tour in support of Takk, their brilliant 2006 release. This past October, nyctaper was fortunate to experience the limited acoustic/film screening sets in NYC. The recording is still available for download at nyctaper.com (here).

Early in the Takk tour, nyctaper recorded the Sigur Ros set at the Theatre at Madison Square Garden. This was a breathtaking experience, as the music and its setting were perfectly matched, and the band performed flawlessly accompanied by a rare appearance of a complete brass section.

nyctaper recorded with small stealth microphones from a decent seat in the 200’s. This is a fine recording, with only some accompanying chatter between songs. Enjoy!

Download the Complete show in FLAC [HERE].

Sigur Ros
2006-02-09
The Theatre at Madison Square Garden
New York, NY USA

Master Audience Recording
Section 204 Row H, Seat 13,
approximately 75 feet directly in front of left PA speaker

Core Sound Cardiods > M-Audio Microtrack 24/96 > .wav > Soundforge* > CDWave (tracking) > Flac Frontend (level 7, align sector boundaries) > flac

recorded and edited by
nyctaper
2006-02-10

Tracklist:
01 Takk/Glósóli
02 Ný Batterí
03 Saeglopur
04 Gong
05 Andvari
06 Hoppípolla
07 Meo Blódnasir
08 Sé Lest
09 Olsen Olsen
10 Viõrar Vel Til Loftárasa
11 Svo Hljótt
12 Heysátan
Encores:
13 Starálfur
14 Hafssól
15 Untitled #8 (Popplagið)

CD Artwork is in the FLAC folder.

If you download this recording, PLEASE SUPPORT Sigur Ros and visit their website