nyctaper | New York's live music archivist

The Rooks: December 5, 2015 Mercury Lounge

February 18, 2016

[screen shot from this video]

The indie-soul crossover movement of the last decade that included the likes of Sharon Jones and Raphael Saadiq was admirable but would only be truly meaningful if it led to young bands taking up the mantle. This is where The Rooks come in. The band was formed at Wesleyan College in Connecticut. The Rooks moved to NYC in 2013 and began to play gigs that were immediately lauded — their residency at Pianos in January of 2014 is on record as one of the most highly-attended runs that venue has produced. We caught the band during those shows and acidjack noted the band’s obvious talent, appeal and predicted future success. We’re still sticking with that story. In December, I captured The Rooks in a double bill with their friends Lawrence, and the packed sold-out Mercury Lounge confirmed that we’d been right. The band is bigger than ever and with the crowds bursting at the seams, they are poised to move up the ladder to bigger venues and more high profile gigs. The band’s set included tracks from their 2015 EP Wires, a couple of unreleased songs, and three neat covers, including the closing song from an unmentionable artist that tore down the house. Catch The Rooks on tour this Spring including a show at Rough Trade BK on February 27.

I recorded this set with the Schoeps mounted next to the soundboard and mixed with an excellent feed from Mercury’s FOH Alex. Other than a boisterous crowd somewhat noticeable during quieter moments, the sound quality is superb. Enjoy!

Download the Complete Show [MP3] / [FLAC]

Stream the Complete Show:

The Rooks
2015-12-05
Mercury Lounge
New York NY

Digital Master Recording
Soundboard + Audience Matrix

Soundboard [engineer Alex] + Schoeps CCM4u Cardioids > Sound Devices 744t > 2 x 24bit 48kHz wav files > Soundforge (post-production) > CDWave 1.95 (tracking) > TLH > flac (320 MP3 and tagging via Foobar)

Recorded and Produced by nyctaper

Setlist:
[Total Time 45:47]
01 Intermission (Wires)
02 Doubt
03 Nothing Wrong
04 [Lawrence intro]
05 Gin and Juice [Snoop Dogg]
06 Secrets
07 You’re the One
08 Kiss From a Rose [Seal]
09 May Care
10 Bury Me Deep
11 Purple Reign [Prints]

SUPPORT THE ROOKS: Website | Bandcamp | Facebook

SAVAK: January 22, 2016 Union Pool

February 17, 2016

By EricPH

It was sad news last year when Obits announced their dissolution. Fortunately we were there for their second-to-last NYC performance, at Brooklyn Night Bazaar back in November 2014. It goes without saying that Obits will be missed. However, Obits alums Sohrab Habibion (also ex-Edsel) and Greg Simpson weren’t quiet for very long. Only a month after that announcement, Habibion and Simpson debuted their new band, SAVAK, having recruited a veritable who’s-who of nineties and aughts indie rock: Michael Jaworski (The Cops, Virgin Islands); James Canty (The Make-Up, Nation of Ulysses); and Matt Schulz (Enon, Holy Fuck); plus Greg Vegas (Hat City Intuitive, Monsterland) guesting on saxophone. SAVAK recently completed the recording of Best of Luck in Future Endeavors, which will be released on Comedy Minus One in late May. I conned my way into a sneak preview of the mastered album—why else tape shows if not for the graft?—and I assure you, this one’s a keeper.

In anticipation of the upcoming record, we made it out for a snowy evening with SAVAK at Union Pool where we were treated to a performance of much of the Best of Luck in Future Endeavors, plus a cover of MDC’s “I Remember.” If I were to make comparisons I’d feel pretty confident making the obvious one to Sohrab Habibion’s classic nineties band Edsel. Additionally, SAVAK channels I.R.S.-era R.E.M., especially on the standout track “Reaction.” The rest of the set will have you shaking in your desk chair in no time, so let this tide you over until the album release.

SAVAK’s next scheduled show is at the Bell House on May 11, with Kid Congo Powers & The Pink Monkeybirds. Tickets are on sale.

I recorded this set from our usual location at Union Pool, the room mics combined with a board feed from FOH Robert. I mixed those down and then Sohrab provided some additional mastering. The results are excellent. Enjoy!

Download the complete show: [MP3/FLAC]

Stream the complete show:

SAVAK
2016-01-22
Union Pool
Brooklyn, NY

Exclusive download hosted at nyctaper.com
Recorded and produced by Eric PH
Mastered by Sohrab Habibion

Soundboard (engineer: Robert) + AKG C480B/CK61 > Roland R-26 > 2xWAV (24/48) > Adobe Audition CC (align, balance, compression, mixdown, normalize, fades) > Izotope Ozone 5 (EQ) > Mastering > Audacity 2.0.5 (downsample, dither, tracking, tagging) > FLAC (16/44.1, level 8)

Tracks [37:27]
01. Split Decision
02. Alive in Shadows
03. They Are Bones
04. Reaction
05. This Currency Exchanged
06. Elapsed Remaining
07. Drop the Pieces
08. Sick of War
09. Early Western Traders
10. Call It a Night
11. I Remember [MDC]

Support SAVAK: Website | Facebook | Comedy Minus One

The Soft Moon: February 13, 2016 Market Hotel

February 15, 2016

By acidjack

[screen capture from this video]

Sometimes adversity breaks bands; other times it breeds strength. The Soft Moon have had more than their share of travails on this tour, the most notable being that they got robbed during their West Coast leg, leaving them with no gear or merch for the rest of the tour. Fans stepped up via their GoFundMe page, and they were back on their way bowed but not broken.

Here in New York, things haven’t been quite that dramatic, but this show still goes down as “challenged.” Venue growing pains meant some gremlins in the Market Hotel’s new sound system cropped up at the worst time, leaving the venue scrambling to get the show on track and the band without a soundcheck. By the time the band came on, there had been a few hiccups in other sets, but the show went on mostly without a hitch. Then, the sound system died at the end of The Soft Moon’s first song, “Black.”

Visibly frustrated, the band faced a choice — call it a night, or plow ahead. With almost nothing technology-wise on their side, they chose the latter, giving the crowd who’d braved sub-zero temperatures a memorable, hard-charging set that channeled frontman/creator Luis Vasquez’s rage into the conduit of their songs, dark, synth-driven postpunk dirges whose disaffection no doubt matched Vasquez’s actual mood. The band’s latest album, Sleeper, is arguably its best, and we got a fine sampling of those tracks, including “Black,” “Wasting,” and “Wrong.” The new record’s added depth was evident on the electropop pleaser from that record, “Far,” in particular.

Among the several performances of theirs we‘ve covered, The Soft Moon have never failed to draw a large crowd, and to draw them in once there, and this show continued the theme. Vasquez is a natural to watch, contorting his body as he belts lyrics that are often buried under effects. Fans crowded around him under the red stage lights, right in the impact zone for the sound system’s deep bass to catch them up in the whirlwind onstage. Once the sound was on track, so were The Soft Moon, and Vasquez was unrelenting for the rest of the set — perhaps afraid to pause too long. The crowd stayed with them, right through the pummeling encore of “Die Life,” “Want” and a new(?) track. The Soft Moon didn’t get to have a perfect night, but they can count this as another good one for those of us on the other side of the stage. For a second shot at seeing the band, come to Baby’s All Right on Feb 18.

I recorded this set with a soundboard feed of Dana Wachs’ house mix, coupled with Audio Technica microphones mounted in our usual spot in the venue. Other than the general sound system issues, which we’ve removed, the sound quality is quite good. Enjoy!

The Soft Moon have upcoming shows in Philadelphia on Feb 16, New Haven Feb 17, at Baby’s All Right in NYC Feb 18. See all their tour dates here.

Download the complete set: [MP3/FLAC]

Stream the set (with “Black” removed):

The Soft Moon
2016-02-13
Market Hotel
Brooklyn, NY USA

Exclusive download hosted at nyctaper.com
Recorded and produced by acidjack

Soundboard (engineer: Dana Wachs) + Audio Technica 4051 (FOB, PAS)>Zoom F8>2x24bit/48kHz WAV>Adobe Audition CS 5.5 (align, mix down, limiter)>Izotope Ozone 5 (EQ, effects, image)>Audacity 2.0.3 (track, amplify, balance, downsample, dither)>FLAC ( level 8 )

Tracks [Total Time 1:04:00]
01 Black
02 Dead Love
03 Machines
04 Parallels
05 Alive
06 Far
07 Circles
08 Zeros
09 Try
10 Wrong
11 Into the Depths
12 Tiny Spiders
13 Insides
14 Being
[encore break removed]
15 Die Life
16 Want
17 [unknown1]

Support The Soft Moon — buy their records from Captured Tracks, visit their website, and support them via their GoFundMe page.

William Tyler: February 2, 2016 Capitol Theatre (Port Chester, NY) + June 26, 2015 Mercury Lounge

February 12, 2016

By acidjack

Our friend William Tyler has been a real road warrior these past few years, hitting NYC multiple times both as a headliner and support act. These two performances represent the latter, with Tyler’s virtuoso guitar playing setting the stage for another act. This month, Tyler did the duties for Wilco at the Capitol Theatre in Port Chester, NY, a legendary venue that Tyler acknowledged as such before delving into a concise but powerful set that featured a brand-new song, “Venus and Aquarius,” along with growing tour favorite “Highway Anxiety.” The vibe was a bit different at the intimate Mercury Lounge back in summer of 2015, when Tyler opened of the two Ty Segall acoustic sets we covered that day, but what didn’t change was Tyler’s gratitude and generosity toward his audience, as he played another new song (tentatively titled “Going Clear”) as well as another excellent version of “Highway Anxiety,” among others. If you were in the taper’s section at the Cap, you’d have noted the surprise among the Wilco diehards who hadn’t heard Tyler before. Part of Tyler’s charm is that how easily he wins over not only crowds that aren’t his own, but crowds who aren’t generally familiar with instrumental guitar music. Give these sets a listen — both the songs and the banter — and you’ll get a sense of why.

nyctaper recorded each of these sets with Schoeps CCM4 microphones. The Mercury show also includes a soundboard feed. The quality of both is outstanding. Enjoy!

Download the complete sets: [Capitol Theatre] [Mercury Lounge]

Stream the complete sets

William Tyler
2016-02-02
Capitol Theatre
Port Chester, NY USA

Exclusive download hosted at nyctaper.com
Recorded by nyctaper
Produced by acidjack

Schoeps CCM4 (ROC, FOB, PAS)>Sound Devices 744T>24bit/48kHz WAV>Audacity 2.0.5 (track, amplify, balance, downsample, dither)>FLAC ( level 8 )

Tracks
01 Missionary Ridge
02 Venus and Aquarius [new]
03 Highway Anxiety
04 We Can’t Go Home Again
05 Cadillac Desert

_______________________
William Tyler
2015-06-26
Mercury Lounge
New York, NY USA

Exclusive download hosted at nyctaper.com
Recorded by nyctaper
Produced by acidjack

Schoeps CCM4 (ROC, FOB, PAS)>Sound Devices 744T>24bit/48kHz WAV>Audacity 2.0.5 (track, amplify, balance, downsample, dither)>FLAC ( level 8 )

Tracks
01 Portrait of Sarah [fades in]
02 Missionary Ridge
03 [banter]
04 Highway Anxiety
05 [banter2]
06 Going Clear
07 [banter3]
08 We Can’t Go Home Again

If you enjoyed these recordings, PLEASE SUPPORT William Tyler, visit his website, and grab his records from Merge.

Soda: January 28, 2016 Alphaville

February 11, 2016

By acidjack

Gainesville, FL trio Soda rolled into Alphaville in Brooklyn a few weeks ago during a spate of area shows that established them as yet another quality product of a fertile local scene (college towns are good like that). The three piece, consisting of founder Lara Lookabaugh on bass/vocals, Arlington Garret on guitar/vocals, and Meredith Kite on drums, just dropped a tight six-song EP, Without A Head, on Andrew Savage’s Dull Tools label. That well-produced record belies the dirtier-but-possibly-more-entertaining reality of the band’s live show, which like their home state manages to be both scuzzy and transcendent, sometimes at the same time. In other words, Soda fit right in with the current Brooklyn moment, producing approachable punk-influenced rock that’s delightfully unspecific in its focus and easy to love. The double vocal attack of Lookabaugh and Garrett works well live, both sounding good and offering some welcome gender parity in an area of the music world that doesn’t always have it. This show covered most of the new EP, as well as two unreleased songs, “Plucking Hairs” and “Know How.” As an introduction of this new band to New York, this and their other recent New York shows did the trick, as we’re all looking forward to more. Stream the EP below along with this show, and if you like it, please buy it!

I recorded this set with Schoeps MK41V supercardiod mics from a location near the soundboard. The sound quality is quite good for the room. Enjoy!

Download the complete show: [MP3/FLAC]

<a href="http://dulltools.bandcamp.com/album/without-a-head">Without a Head by Soda</a>

Soda
2016-01-28
Alphaville
Brooklyn, NY USA

Exclusive download hosted at nyctaper.com
Recorded and produced by acidjack

Schoeps MK41V>KCY>Z-PFA + Soundboard>Zoom F8>2x24bit/48kHz WAV>Adobe Audition CS 5.5 (align, mix down, compression)>Izotope Ozone 5 (effects)>Audacity 2.0.3 (track, amplify, balance, downsample)>FLAC ( level 8 )

Tracks
01 New Trash
02 Plucking Hairs
03 Janie Juicehead
04 Blonde on Blonde
05 Lot Pony
06 Know How
07 Chasin’ Tail

If you enjoyed this recording, you can purchase Without A Head from the bandcamp link above.

Shearwater: February 6, 2016 Mercury Lounge

February 10, 2016

By nyctaper

[photos by PSquared Photography]

I’m a big fan of intelligent and accomplished musicians — the type of people who don’t just play music but thrive at other vocations. Recently we enjoyed the music of fashion icon Preetma Singh, mathematics whiz Kiran Gandhi, composing genius Owen Pallett, award-winning novelist John Darnielle, and others. On Friday at Mercury Lounge, it was Jonathan Meiburg of Shearwater, who besides fronting an outstanding band is also a renowned ornithologist, or a bird expert, who has been profiled in Scientific American.

Meiburg’s dual expertise results in some consistent themes in Shearwater’s music. The lyrical content includes many references to nature, with two of the albums actually called Animal Joy and The Golden Archipelago. Last month, Shearwater released their eighth full-length record Jet Plane and Oxbow and its been described as a “protest album” which given current climate science, would seem to be an instinctual reaction for someone in tune with the natural world. At Mercury, the band played eight of the eleven songs on the new album (along with three classics and one cover) and the entire event was truly breathtaking. The show began with a single white light illuminating Jonathan’s face as the band began the set with the album’s opening track “Prime”, a song that offers dual themes of tragic love and a natural world on the precipice of danger. The set continued in dramatic fashion until book-ended by the album’s closing track the somber “Stray Light at Clouds Hill”, a song that shares a lyrical refrain with “Prime” but mourns both human and natural death. For an “encore” (the band never actually left the stage), Meiburg offered a heartfelt tribute to the late David Bowie by pointing out that the album Lodger helped him through some difficult times, before the band broke into a powerful version of “Look Back in Anger”. It was a compelling and appropriate end to what was most certainly one of the best shows we will see all year. Shearwater is currently on tour in Europe but will return to the US in March, including a show back in NYC at Bell House on March 12. Our local readers would be wise to attend that show.

I recorded this set with the Schoeps mounted at the soundboard booth and mixed with an extraordinarily well-mixed board feed by the band’s very talented touring FOH (whose name I did not get, please provide if you know ). The sound quality is superb. Enjoy!

Download the Complete Set [MP3] / [FLAC]

Stream the Complete Set [banter tracks removed]:

Shearwater
2016-02-06
Mercury Lounge
New York NY

Digital Master Recording
Soundboard + Audience Matrix

Soundboard + Schoeps CCM4u Cardioids > Sound Devices 744t > 2 x 24bit 48kHz wav files > Soundforge (post-production) > CDWave 1.95 (tracking) > TLH > flac (320 MP3 and tagging via Foobar)

Recorded and Produced by nyctaper

Setlist:
[Total Time 1:02:44]
01 Prime
02 Filaments
03 [banter – crows]
04 A Long Time Away
05 Rooks
06 [banter – uncomfortable dislocation]
07 Quiet Americans
08 You As You Were
09 Wildlife in America
10 [banter – louder]
11 Pale Kings
12 [band introductions]
13 Backchannels
14 [banter – Lodger]
15 Stray Light at Clouds Hill
16 [banter – thanks]
17 Look Back in Anger [Bowie]

SUPPORT Shearwater: Website | Facebook | Twitter | BUY Jet Plane and Oxbow

Page 88 of 447

« 1 … 86 87 88 89 90 … 447 »

Categories

Recent Comments

Blogroll

Music Sites

Taper Blog Fraternity

Archives

The Rooks: December 5, 2015 Mercury Lounge

SAVAK: January 22, 2016 Union Pool

The Soft Moon: February 13, 2016 Market Hotel

William Tyler: February 2, 2016 Capitol Theatre (Port Chester, NY) + June 26, 2015 Mercury Lounge

Soda: January 28, 2016 Alphaville

Shearwater: February 6, 2016 Mercury Lounge

Email

Recent Posts

DISCLAIMER and LEGAL NOTICE