[photo credit]

Yo La Tengo appeared Friday night at the Music Hall for the final night of their “Freewheeling Tour”. The band fielded questions, requests and general banter from the audience, and responded with humor and some interesting song selections and performed a primarily acoustic concert. The highlights included Georgia’s beautiful cover of Dylan’s 4th Time Around, and the humorously persistent audience member’s request for Blue Line Swinger–which was eventually granted (Ira: “Is that Fred Armisen?”).

The recording of this concert was a difficult affair. This was my first event at the Music Hall, and I gravitated towards the balcony for a better view and more direct line to the PA speakers. Unfortunately, the acoustic nature of the concert, drastic variations in volume, and the inattentive nature of the balcony crowd created certain impediments to a clear recording. At times, this recording can be outstanding, at other times, the stage volume is too low and the ambient noise too great. Overall, its a nice listen of an interesting concert, and the apparently the only circulated recording of this mini-tour. Enjoy!

Yo La Tengo
2007-11-16
Music Hall of Williamsburg
Brooklyn, NY USA

Digital Master Recording
Recorded from Balcony Railing Left
15 Feet from Left PA Speaker

DPA 4021’s > Marantz PMD-660 (Oade BCM) > 16bit 44.1 wav > flac

Recorded and Produced by
nyctaper
2007-11-17

Setlist:
[Total Time 1:56:04]
01 Introduction
02 The Weakest Part
03 Moby Octopad
04 [questions and banter]
05 Sometimes I Don’t Get You
06 Deeper Into Movies
07 [questions and banter]
08 I Don’t Want to Spoil the Party
09 Tom Courtenay
10 [questions and banter]
11 Magnet
12 The Summer
13 [questions and banter]
14 4th Time Around
15 [questions and banter]
16 Looney Tunes
17 [questions and banter]
18 Black Flowers
19 [questions and banter]
20 Dreaming
21 [questions and banter]
22 Blue Line Swinger
23 [questions and banter]
24 Hanky Panky Nohow
25 [questions and banter]
26 Somebody’s Baby
27 Griselda
28 The Story of Yo La Tango
29 You Can Have it All
30 [encore break]
31 Stockholm Syndrome
32 Big Day Coming
33 Flowers of the Forest

If you download this recording PLEASE SUPPORT Yo La Tengo. Visit their excellent website.

[photo credit]

mum performed another outstanding set on Saturday night at the Concert Hall of the Society for Ethical Culture. The venue was a classic structure with superb acoustics that fit the layered sound structure of mum perfectly. As this was the last night of the U.S. tour, the band was in good spirits, playful, and clearly enjoying themselves.

The other “star” of the excellent 2-night stand was the Wordless Music Series itself. Wordless had the foresight to book mum for two concerts in two very distinct but appropriate venues. The brainchild of Ronen Givony, Wordless presents diverse and yet inter-related musical genres and performers. The Series is well-researched and presented with meticulous attention to detail.

I recorded this concert, again with kind permission from Gunni (and Wordless), from the 5th row of the balcony, far right. This is not an ideal location, but the venue’s acoustics transcended space limitations, and delivered a fine recording. Again the PA speakers had some hiss, but this is only noticeable during quiet passages. Enjoy!

Download the complete show in FLAC [HERE].

mum
2007-11-10
The Wordless Music Series
Concert Hall at the Society for Ethical Culture
New York, NY USA

Digital Master Recording
Recorded from Balcony
5th Row far Right

Neumann KM-150’s (AK-50 Hypercardiod Capsules) > Apogee Minime > digital coaxial > M-Audio Microtrack > flac

Recorded and Produced
by nyctaper
2007-11-11

Many thanks to Gunni for permission to record.

Setlist:
[Total Time 1:27:14]
01 Winter (What We Never Were After All)
02 Moon Pulls
03 Oh, How the Boat Drifts
04 I Was Her Horse
05 Sit Down
06 Guilty Rocks
07 Blessed Brambles
08 I’m 9 Today
09 Marmalade Fires
10 A Little Bit, Sometimes
11 Kostrzyn
12 These Eyes are Berries
13 Dancing Behind My Eyelids
14 They Made Frogs Smoke ‘Til They Exploded
Encores:
15 The Ghosts You Draw On My Back
16 Smell Memory

If you download this recording PLEASE SUPPORT mum. Visit their myspace page, the mumweb fansite, mumweb forum, and buy mum official releases

[photo credit]

mum resurrected their old magic in the Church of St. Paul last night. The newest version of mum debuted at the Sugarcubes Reunion almost exactly a year ago. After the departure of founding member Kristin Anna Valtisdottir (now Kri­a Brekkan) , the 2006 performance was an awkward set of entirely new material, and the new mum seemed to be exploring less interesting musical approaches. Following a year of maturity, and the release of an excellent new album Go Go Smear the Poison Ivy, mum has toured Europe and the U.S. this Fall. The performance last night concentrated primarily on the new album’s songs which have developed fully into solid mum compositions, rich in texture and complex instrumentality.

An interesting footnote to last night’s concert. Near the end of the first encore, a curious tall thin dark-haired woman in a large overcoat approached my microphone stand and watched the concert for a short while. After a few brief minutes, I realized that she was Kristin, and when the woman left to the rear of the venue, a shocked mum crew member noticed her and the two embraced at length. She left shortly thereafter.

Many thanks to Gunni for permission to record. I set up very close the PA speakers to avoid the echo and boomy nature of recording inside of an old church. The PA system was plagued with a noticeable hiss and buzz, and those noises do mar the quiet moments of this recording. When the music is louder, you can not notice the noise. Enjoy!

My recording of last year’s debut mum performance is available (here).

Download of the complete show in FLAC [HERE].

mum
2007-11-09
The Wordless Music Series
The Church of St. Paul the Apostle
New York, NY USA

Digital Master Recording
Recorded from Upfront, 6 rows from Right PA Speakers

Neumann KM-150’s (AK-50 Hypercardiod Capsules) > Apogee Minime > digital coaxial > M-Audio Microtrack > flac

Recorded and Produced
by nyctaper
2007-11-10

Setlist:
[Total Time 1:14:00]
01 Slow Bicycle
02 Moon Pulls
03 I Was Her Horse
04 Oh, How the Boat Drifts
05 Sit Down
06 Asleep In A Hiding Place
07 Guilty Rocks
08 Winter (What We Never Were After All)
09 Mother’s Last Word to Her Son
10 A Little Bit, Sometimes
11 Blessed Brambles
12 Marmalade Fires
Encores:
13 The Ghosts You Draw On My Back
14 I’m 9 Today

If you download this recording PLEASE SUPPORT mum. Visit their myspace page, the mumweb fansite, mumweb forum, and and buy mum official releases:

Phil Lesh and Friends performed the 7th show of the 10-night stand at the Nokia Theatre on Thursday. This is not your father’s Grateful Dead. Phil leads a band of young guns through tight and focused jams. This version of the “Friends” includes Jackie Greene as primary vocalist. Greene’s soulfulness and versatility were display last night, particularly in the strong version of the classic Pigpen blues-rave up “Caution.” Another new friend, keyboardist Steve Molitz from Particle played mostly a supportive role, but shined during “Unbroken Chain”. The band also includes returning friend Larry Campbell, and long-time drummer John Molo.

The recording offered for download below includes many firsts. This is the first 24-bit recording offered at this site. For those unfamiliar, 24-bit files are high resolution recordings that can be played on your computer using programs such as Foobar, or burned on DVD-A discs and played on a DVD player that supports DVD-A playback. The files are larger than standard CD-quality 16-bit files. This download is exactly 2 gigabytes.

This recording is also the first time nyctaper has recorded with both the Neumann and DPA microphones in tandem. I borrowed an Edirol R-4 Four-Track Digital Recorder (thanks Keith!), and ran all four microphones into the deck. The pre-amps on this particular R-4 have been upgraded by Oade Brothers Audio. I also connected digitally with the Microtrack from the R-4 and captured a 24-bit “raw” mix. The recording offered below is a 24-bit flac version from the Microtrack. The complete post-production of the R-4 version, and a 16-bit version will come later, and will likely be offered through bit torrent.

I am extremely proud of the quality of this recording. Nokia Theatre has a state of the art sound system, and Phil Lesh employs similar quality equipment. The use of the four mics permitted a capture not only of the sound directly from the PA speakers, but also nice room ambiance and depth. Enjoy!

This recording is now available for download in 24-bit FLAC at Archive.org [HERE].

Phil Lesh and Friends
2007-11-08
Nokia Theatre
New York, NY USA

Digital Audience Master
Neumann + DPA Four Microphone Mix
Recorded from Front of Board
Left Side, Approximately 50 Feet from PA

Neumann KM-150s (AK-50 Hypercardiod Capsules) + DPA 4021s (Cardiods) >
Edirol R4 (Oade Mod) > 4 Track 24bit 48kHz wav files > digital coaxial >
M-Audio Microtrack (2-channel mixdown) > CD Wave 1.95 > Flac Frontend
(Level Eight) > 24/48 Flac files

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

Recorded and Produced by
nyctaper
2007-11-09

Set 1:
[Total time 1:04:01]
01 Passenger
02 I’m So Gone
03 Mexican Girl
04 Pride Of Cucamonga
05 Deep Elem Blues
06 Bird Song
07 Alabama Getaway

Set 2:
[Total time 1:59:11]
08 Playing In The Band
09 Althea
10 Cold Black Devil
11 Caution
12 New Speedway Boogie
13 Unbroken Chain
14 Scarlet Begonias
15 Fire On The Mountain
Encores
16 Donor Rap/Band Introductions
17 Its a Hard Rain’s A-Gonna Fall

If you download this recording PLEASE SUPPORT Phil Lesh and Friends, and visit their website

[photo credit]

I had the same reaction when I saw Pylon in 1988. How can a band who has not toured in many years, and who have played intermittently since the 1980s, so sound tight. Its a credit to the rhythm section of Curtis on drums and Michael on bass, but its also a testament to the quality of the original songwriting and the unique melodic sense of guitarist Randy. Last night at the Mercury Lounge, Pylon delivered a terrific set of their best material in front of a packed and adoring crowd. Vanessa was energetic and genuinely modest about the tremendous crowd support.

With the permission of Pylon (thanks!), I recorded this concert from the ideal location in this venue, equidistant from the two sets of speakers, and directly in front of the soundboard booth. The result is a recording with excellent stereo separation and clarity. The crowd is present in the recording, but not obtrusively. Enjoy!

Download the Complete show in FLAC [HERE].

Pylon
2007-11-07
Mercury Lounge
New York, NY USA

Digital Master Recording
Recorded from in Front of Soundboard
Dead Center Approximately 30 feet from PA

DPA 4021’s > Marantz PMD-660 (Oade BCM) > flac

Many Thanks to Pylon (in particular Michael) for permission to record.

Recorded and Produced by
nyctaper
2007-11-08

Setlist:
[Total Time 1:17:38]
01 Cool
02 Dub
03 Driving School
04 Read a Book
05 Working is No Problem
06 Sugarpop
07 3×3
08 Gravity
09 Precaution
10 Weather
11 The Human Body
12 Crazy
13 K
14 Danger
15 Volume
16 Feast on My Heart
17 Stop It
Encores
18 M Train
19 Beep
20 Sloganistic

If you download this recording PLEASE SUPPORT Pylon. Visit their website and buy their official releases.