Live Mp3s: Tullycraft in Somerville
Posted on July 16, 2009 at 1:29 pm | No Comments
If you need to put a smile on your face, or at least widen your already-existing one, there’s no surefire way to do that than to see Tullycraft play live. There’s an exuberance to their shows and songs, a sincerity of sweetness and light that could knock over even the most jaded hipster. So it was with no slight sadness that I read their MySpace update back in March that said the following…
“Each of us has had a wonderful time, but over the years it’s become increasingly difficult to balance our personal lives (i.e. Chris’ goat farm, Cori’s adult bookstore, etc…) with our time in the band. While we’re excited to continue to write and record music together, we’ve decided to take a step back from playing live shows”.
To say goodbye, at least for now, the band played two more (west coast, unfortunately) shows in the spring, including a May appearance at the SF Popfest (setlist), then packed their tour cases away. Being a Seattle-based band, we didn’t get a ton of Tullycraft visits here in Boston, but when they did come, it was a guaranteed good time. The world needs more of those, not less, but we can take comfort in knowing that the band hasn’t clearly not called it quits (more on that below).
To mark their live hiatus, I figured it was time to (finally!) share up this set I recorded last summer at PA’s lounge, with the kind permission of TC’s Sean Tollefson. Even though he claims this wasn’t the best performance of the tour, and the fact that the sound at PA’s is rarely perfect, he gratefully gave his consent anyway (and I quote: “Tullycraft has never been a band that has been known for being tight or our playing ability, so I’m cool with [it].”). Thanks, Sean.
Here it is, a rough and ready 12-song set from Somerville, MA last summer. Be sure to scroll down below for some info and links…
Live at PA’s Lounge
in Somerville, MA
on Thursday, June 12th, 2008
01. Superboy Supergirl
02. Wild Bikini
03. Georgette Plays A Goth
04. Stowaway
05. Every Little Thing
06. Godspeed
07. Josie
08. banter
09. The Secret History Of Devil’s Paw
10. Our Days In Kansas
11. banter
12. Bored To Hear Your Heart Still Breaks
13. banter
14. If You Take Away The Make-Up
(Then The Vampires They Will Die)
15. The Punks Are Writing Love Songs
As regular readers of the ‘Nac know (or at least those that read the fine print below), I capture all the shows I go to on a little Minidisc recorder, a little machine that never really caught on, but still has a few loyalists. Was nice to find out from Sean that Tullycraft guitarist Chris is a fellow MD fan. Sean also let me know that while things are now quieter in band-land, they’re not completely quiet: Sean is working on new song demos and Chris is rebuilding their recording studio, which includes setting up a new 16-track analog machine (their last four albums were recorded on 8 tracks). So fans take heart that more music is on the way.
Some Tullycraft links…
Their official site, MySpace page, Wikipedia entry, and their Magic Marker label page. Additional Audio: The band has freely downloadble songs from each of their albums on their own Mp3s page, and you can stream 5 tracks on MySpace. And get this: Tullycraft’s Sean maintains his own date-appropriate “Mp3 of the Day” feature on the TC blog, offering up songs he likes by non-Tullycraft artists. It’s a daily visit, and you’d do well to throw this feed link in your RSS reader.
Required reading: Tullycraft wears their “Twee” badge with honor, and Sean took some time to pull together a little “Twee Primer” for the Washington Post’s Post Rock music blog last summer. Some great recommendations to be found in there. Video: There’s one for “Georgette Plays A Goth” from their latest album, “Every Scene Needs A Center”. You can try a full Tullycraft YouTube search for live clips. Photos: My Flickr-hosted shots from the PA’s show are here. Check out the full Tullycraft Flickr tag search. Easily stream any and all ‘Nac-hosted Mp3s at the Hype Machine.
ye olde fine print… If anyone has an issue with these Mp3s being made available, just let me know (my contact info in the ‘nac faq). Live sets recorded with a Sony ECM-719 mic and a Sony MZ-RH10 minidisc, converted to .wav and then edited to 192kbps Mp3s. Files are made available for a limited time, and are not reposted once removed.
Boston: Your Weekend Music Plans
Posted on July 10, 2009 at 1:18 pm | No Comments
A quick note about a couple shows happening over the weekend that deserve your attention and attendance, although it requires you to pick just one. Here’s the info so you can choose wisely….
Less than an hour drive northwest of Boston sits Lowell, MA, where Wilco will be playing tomorrow evening with openers Connor “Bright Eyes” Oberst and his Mystic Valley Band. The forecast looks fantastic, and the venue is unique, to say the least – they’ll be playing in the middle of Red Sox minor league affiliate Lowell Spinners‘ ballfield, LeLacheur Park. Tickets are still available, if a tad pricey (and they get pricier if you wait until tomorrow), but the setting, weather, and those two bands together make it worth it.
While you’re at the show, be sure you stop by the Labels Are For Jars table, where the local anti-hunger organization will be raising awareness and funds by raffling off t-shirts and showing off other cool specially-designed merch (including a limited edition show-specific poster, which Wilco will have on sale.). For more on Labels Are For Jars’ mission and message, visit their website, or hit up yesterday’s post on Boston Band Crush.
Also happening tomorrow night, but a bit closer to home – The Luxury headline their album release show at the Paradise. Frontman Jason Dunn and I go way back to our early-90s Burlington, Vermont days when we were both playing in bands and sharing bills, and I’ve loved watching him and his band step into the local spotlight recently after plugging away for awhile. With his previous band, The Halogens, and now with The Luxury, Jason has always written well-crafted, hook-filled, anglophilish songs – seems it just took awhile for some in this town to catch up to what he and his bandmates have been doing. While in general I’m no fan of music-as-competition, I’ll admit I took no small amount of joy seeing them pull out a win in this year’s WBCN Rumble (especially since this latest edition, by all accounts, was one of the best ones in years).
And so tomorrow The Luxury celebrates the release of their second full-length, “In The Wake Of What Won’t Change”, with a party at the Paradise, and they’ve invited some area friends: The Click Five, MidAtlantic, and one of my recent faves, Aloud. Tickets are available here or at the Paradise box office. According to Jason’s twitter account, the CDs have arrived just in time, so grab your copy at the show or keep an eye on the band’s online store, where I’m sure it’ll be added soon. Hit up their Facebook page and the FB event page, where you’ll find a list of recent press and a little on what you can expect tomorrow night. At the very least, one hell of a party, and more than likely, a spectacle.
So there you go, your Saturday night is all set. Y’know, if you’ve got a lead foot and a radar detector, I’m betting you could catch the Lowell show and make it back to the city in time for the set or two at the ‘Dise.