Download: Kristin Hersh with TW Walsh – “Around Dusk” (MP3 / FLAC)
Posted on July 19, 2010 at 8:21 am | No Comments
2010 is a ridiculously rewarding time to be a Kristin Hersh fan. Having eschewed the standard record/release/tour/rinse/repeat cycle that most label-bound artists stick to, she’s turned to her loyal followers, both old and new, to directly fund her ongoing projects, and to share in their progression. This year, that investment is paying off in spades: A brand new full-length, “Crooked”, released digitally as part of a gorgeous hardcover book from publisher HarperCollins in the UK. And another far more ambitious book on the horizon: An auto-biography, “Rat Girl: A Memoir” (that’s the U.S. title, out next month – it’ll be “Paradoxical Undressing” elsewhere).
And that’s just her scheduled, official solo output. There’s also a long-awaited Throwing Muses album in the works, which we’re getting a preview of in the form of free demo downloads on the Muses’ CASHmusic page. Her rock trio 50 Foot Wave hit the studio earlier this year, so we should be hearing the results of those sessions as well. All the while, Kristin keeps playing shows (a 6-date UK/Irish tour started over the weekend – see below), raising her boys, and offering up tons of bonus material on the exclusive pages that her subscribers (her “Strange Angels”) get access to. Even for the most ardent fan, it can be tough keeping track of all this stuff. That is most definitely not a complaint.
That embarrassment of online bonus riches includes not one, but two new digital EPs connected to the release of the “Crooked” album/book: “Crooked Beginnings”, comprised of newly remixed and remastered non-disc demos; and “Crooked Remainders”, four songs that didn’t make the final cut of the album.
It’s “Crooked Beginnings” that jumps out, due not just to a set of solid songs that could easily have comprised a physically-released-and-sold EP that would make any artist proud, but due to the involvement of audio engineer & ace musician TW Walsh. I’ve been a fan of TW’s since his initial involvement with Pedro The Lion, even moreso after digging into his own solo work (which most recently took the form of Boston band The Soft Drugs), and am increasingly impressed with his engineering work as he mixes and masters a whole bunch of records I dig (including pal David Bazan‘s “Curse Your Branches” last year).
So a KH/TW team-up is right up my alley, and the results measure up to the associated anticipation. Tim’s aural changes add clarity and depth, giving the songs more definition and oomph than the original demos (which can be found on the downloadable “Speedbath” collection), and then there’s this: He applied his drumming skills to my favorite song on the EP, “Around Dusk“. I loved the original demo, was a bit disappointed to learn it wouldn’t make the “Crooked” cut, so to hear it in this form is a real gift. TW offers some comments on the track…
“My first attempt was to emulate the feel of the [original version’s] drum loop, but it didn’t quite work within the track. After trying several options, I settled on a very simple pattern without any fills or embellishments. It has a kind of hypnotic vibe. I overdubbed shaker and tambourine to fill out a little more space.”
And on mixing/mastering the “Crooked Beginnings” EP as a whole, TW says…
“As for the mixing/mastering, I received “stems” for all of the songs. Stems are subgroups of tracks. For example, if there are 4 electric guitars on a song, these have been sub-mixed and reduced to 2 tracks. Vocals have probably already been compressed and received reverb treatment. So, the song has already been “mixed” to a certain extent, but there is still room for refinement. What I tried to do was to give each instrument its own space in the mix and to fine-tune the dynamics of each track so the music breathed, but the mixes still had some punch. Hopefully I accomplished this goal, and Kristin feels that these recordings are represented well. The source tracks were solid and felt more like finished songs than a collection of demos. Well done, Kristin. Cheers!”
Couldn’t agree more with that last bit. And thanks to Kristin and the CASHmusic crew, I’m honored to offer up this new version to any and all non-Strange Angels (Normal Angels?) in both MP3 and higher-quality FLAC form, as well as a stream of the entire 5-song “Crooked Beginnings” EP. To see just what kind of magic TW worked, I’m also sharing the original demo version of “Around Dusk“…
[MP3]: Kristin Hersh – “Around Dusk” (with TW Walsh)
[FLAC]: Kristin Hersh – “Around Dusk” (with TW Walsh)
[MP3]: Kristin Hersh – “Around Dusk” (original “Speedbath” demo)
Kristin Hersh – Crooked Beginnings by cashmusic
19 July – Dublin, EI – Whelan’s
20 July – Cork, EI – Cyprus Ave
22 July – London, UK – Barbican Centre
23 July – Gateshead, UK – The Sage (sold out)
8/31 – NYC – “Upstairs at the Square”, Barnes & Noble, Union Square, NYC
9/15 – “The Happy Ending Reading Series” – Joe’s Pub, NYC
10/9 – “Live Wire” – Portland, OR
10/10 – Wordstock event (TBA) – Portland, OR
10/28 -Flavorpill reading event at The Tank – NYC
Here’s hoping a Boston-area event pops up in there somewhere before the schedule is finalized.
Live MP3s: PIXIES do Doolittle in Boston
Posted on June 30, 2010 at 11:25 am | No Comments
When the Pixies decided to jump on the “full album live” train last year to perform their seminal “Doolittle
So when the first run of these “Doolittle” gigs was announced last year, free will played no part in my decision to attend. In fact, the word ‘decision’ played no part. Tickets to the second of two late-November Boston stops were purchased on auto-pilot, and fate smiled upon Amie and I with some amazing seats. I’d seen the foursome in smaller venues, and larger (including the ill-fated, band-crushing opening slot tour with U2), but never, ever so ridiculously close. I didn’t give a good goddamn which phase of their career they were in – I’d be in the f’in third row. So close that I wouldn’t even complain if I wasn’t on Kim’s side of the stage (ok, maybe just a little).
Speaking of trends, here’s one I look forward to seeing more of: Near-instant gratification from bands who record their own live shows and offer them up to fans as a keepsake. Yeah, it’s been going on for years in certain circles, but with technology, the turnaround time has been shrinking dramatically, and spreading to non-hippy bands (i.e. ones I actually like). When I saw the Trashcan Sinatras last year, all you had to do was hang around after the show for about 15 minutes and you could buy a custom USB stick that contained a huge, unedited MP3 of the entire set, recorded via laptop from the board by one of the guitarists. How ’bout that? (sidenote: The Trashcans just finished up a tour in support of their excellent new album, which has now been released in the US. You can still buy recordings from the previous tour here.)
And so the Pixies, enabled by the folks at Abbey Road Live (composed of the same core crew behind Live Here Now and DiscLive), decided to document the entirety of their “Doolittle” retrospective tour. Not only could fans pre-order better-than-soundboard recordings of their shows and pick them up soon after the band left the stage, but even those who couldn’t make it were able to snag the full sets over at DoolittleLive. It was a boon for fanatics and collectors, as they discussed the best performances and best quality recordings over at the band’s (currently down) official message board. And it was, of course, a boon for the band as well, funneling even more nostalgia-fueled income their way. Simple economics.
Well, it was simple until the tour hit Boston, of course. As the band, and Abbey Road Live, tried to set up to record those two nights, they hit a snag: namely the local union crew working the Wang/Citi Center. I know some details, not enough to explain it clearly, but the end result was pretty straightforward: No live documentation of the band’s long-awaited visit to what many consider their hometown, performing an album they wrote and recorded near that very venue. A damn shame for those looking forward to either reliving it or experiencing it from a distance.
Well, with this post, I try to ease that sting a little. You can thank a fellow taper who goes by the name emorency/BennyBlanco, and the fact that he was paying close attention when the Abbey Road crew announced, after the first show, that they weren’t permitted to record either show. Unlike me, he brought his gear to night number two, knowing it would be lost to the ages if he didn’t, and came up with the goods.
So with his permission, and with the “unofficial” permission of Abbey Road and the band (meaning this won’t be up for long, and could disappear more quickly if ‘the man’ comes around), here is the Pixies’ triumphant performance of “Doolittle” in Boston on Saturday night, November 28th, 2009. Yes, they closed with “UMass“, and it was glorious. Don’t settle for this recording, though… be sure you visit DoolittleLive and look around for other notable shows from the band’s long retrospective tour. Support this whole official live-recording business model by throwing more tall dollars their way.
My commentary on the show, such as it is, follows below. Enjoy…
Live at the Wang Theatre / Citi Center
in Boston, Massachusetts
on Saturday, November 28th, 2009
Audience recording by BennyBlanco/ScreamingSlave
Technical details:
Mics = DPA 4061 > Custom BB > R09HR @ 24/96
Mastering & EQ in SF 9 > Downsample to 24/48 > MP3 @ 320/44
Location = Front Row Mezzanine
download the entire set as a 208 MB .zip file
01. Intro
02. Dance The Manta Ray
03. Weird At My School
04. Bailey’s Walk
05. Manta Ray
06. Debaser
07. Tame
08. Wave Of Mutilation
09. I Bleed
10. Pixies Speak
11. Here Comes Your Man
12. Dead
13. Kim Speaks
14. Monkey Gone To Heaven
15. Kim Speaks
16. Mr. Grieves
17. Crackity Jones
18. Kim Speaks
19. La La Love You
20. Kim Speaks
21. No. 13 Baby
22. Kim Speaks
23. There Goes My Gun
24. Kim Speaks
25. Hey
26. Kim Speaks
27. Silver
28. Gouge Away
29. Crowd
30. Kim Speaks
31. Wave Of Mutilation [UK Surf]
32. Into The White
33. Crowd
34. Kim Speaks
35. Isla De Encanta
36. Holiday Song
37. Nimrod’s Son
38. Where Is My Mind?
39. UMASS
Some personal highlights, from my spot in the 3rd row…
Totally dug the rhythm section solidarity, as Kim Deal spent much of the show hanging back near David Lovering’s drum riser. Yes, we got both versions of “Wave of Mutilation“, and I can’t imagine anyone complained about redundancy. Speaking of that song, I spent much of the show wondering when Lovering would finally use the triangle hanging off his kit, and should have realized that moment would come only once, during its “UK Surf” version. As practiced as the band must be after so many reunion shows, I’ll admit it was kind of endearing when they had to abort and restart “Weird At My School“. That’s what you get for tackling the b-sides, I guess. Glad they decided not to skip it after they bailed. One of the best parts of being so close to the stage? Watching Joey Santiago’s serious string bending during “I Bleed“. Amazing. Think the band is on auto-pilot? Think they’re not feeling it? Well, you shoulda seen Frank Black during “Hey“, as he stepped back from the microphone and mouthed along to every note of Santiago’s glorious mid-song guitar lick. After the band finished “Hey“, and the crowd readied themselves for the seldom-heard (and Kim Deal-fronted) “Silver”, she self-deprecatingly said “Yes, we’re playing all of them”. I’ve never been a big fan of the song, but after seeing it live, I am now. After “Isla De Encanta“, Santiago leaned over to the front few rows and asked us “Are you deaf yet? Oh, wait, you probably can’t hear me…”. A sweaty David Lovering, whose momentum built through the show and resulted in absolutely brutal cymbal crashes during “Gouge Away“, lost a stick during “Holiday Song” but flawlessly recovered. Not an easy song to do that on. That final bow. How can you not love that? Looked like four old friends who just had a hell of a good time in their musical hometown.
The band recently announced another string of U.S. “Doolittle” tourdates, hitting some spots they missed the first time around. Here’s the itinerary, all in September…
Sept. 7th @ Tower Theatre, Philadelphia, PA
10th @ Ryman Auditorium, Nashville, TN
13th @ Fox Theatre, Atlanta, GA
17th @ Uptown Theatre, Kansas City, MO
18th @ Brady Theatre, Tulsa, OK
19th @ Verizon Theatre, Dallas, TX
20th @ Verizon Wireless Theatre, Houston, TX
22nd @ Austin Music Hall, Austin, TX
24th @ Mesa Amphitheatre, Mesa, AZ
25th @ The Joint, Las Vegas, NV
26th @ RIMAC Arena, San Diego, CAKeep an eye on DoolittleLive.com as the tour progresses for new recordings. Abbey Road Live recently documented the band’s entire New Zealand/Australia tour as well.
The band’s official website is in the process of being relaunched, so you should get over there right now, just in case that relaunch doesn’t include the free live “Doolittle” EP they have available for download.
Last year, 4AD released the massive (and massively priced) Pixies MINOTAUR boxset. If I didn’t already own all of its contents (and had just won the lottery), I would have been all over it. Beautifully designed (of course) by 4AD art director Vaughan Oliver, it uses both original and new work from photographer Simon Larbalestier, whose images have helped aesthetically define the band since their first release. Here’s a video ‘trailer’ for the boxset, which is really more of a mini-documentary (clocking in at 30 minutes). It was filmed at the one-night London release event showcasing that new-and-old artwork, and features chats with Oliver and Larbalestier, along with Kim, Frank, and David, and most importantly, a surprise live set from the band. Check out full performances of “Hey“, “No. 13“, “Monkey Gone To Heaven“, “Debaser“, “Planet Of Sound“, “Dig Fire“, “Bone Machine“, and “Wave Of Mutilation (UK Surf)”…
In between their seemingly never-ending reunion jaunts, each Pixie keeps their individual musical juices moving on their own ongoing projects…
Frontman Frank Black / Black Francis is very busy with the solo thang, and Slicing Up Eyeballs has the latest on an upcoming b-sides compilation, a rock opera being put together based on his 2007 record “Bluefinger”, and a list of upcoming solo dates, including some overseas festivals dates in August, and a whole lot of U.S. gigs well into September. Bassist/vocalist Kim Deal continues on with her sister Kelley in The Breeders, who also have a few U.S. shows set up for September (including the Jim Jarmusch-curated All Tomorrow’s Parties 2010 in Monticello, NY). Guitarist Joey Santiago and drummer David Lovering teamed up to form instrumental band The Everybody last year, and quickly released their downloadable debut “Avatar”. Head to their site for a variety of download options (including song stems that you can remix, or play along with, to your hearts content). They’ve also got a track up for use on Rock Band, if you’re into that. Check their Facebook page for the latest news.
As ever, listen to any and all ‘Nac-hosted Mp3s at the Hype Machine.
the fine print… If anyone has an issue with these MP3s being made available, just let me know (my contact info in the ‘nac faq). Files are made available for a limited time, and are generally not reposted once removed.