Mp3s: Syme live in Boston
Posted on March 13, 2008 at 11:58 am | No Comments
Despite my missing out on the now-in-progress South By Southwest, I’m able to still reap a few benefits, with the ripple-effect of bands being more active this time of year, and scheduling tours around their Austin appearances. Case in point: A second stateside visit from Norwegian four-piece Syme, with a few Northeasterly shows leading up to their journey south and west for a couple SxSW shows. Fortunately, Boston was one of those scheduled pit stops.
The band played our Paradise Lounge last week, and pulled in a pretty solid crowd considering they were a late addition with an early opening slot. Their set included a couple songs from their excellent 2005 “Swing Swing” album, along with new tracks that will hopefully appear on their next album, and likely in the setlists for their two SxSW appearances in Austin this weekend…
Tomorrow night, Friday, March 14th @ Chain Drive Saturday, March 15th @ Esther’s Follies (w/The Soundtrack of Our Lives)
Here’s Syme’s full Boston set from last week, shared with their kind permission. Give a listen (especially to my current fave, “250/300“), and do go see them if you’re down in Austin this weekend. Then again, if you’re in Austin, I sure hope you’re too busy to be reading this blog…
Live at the Paradise Lounge
in Boston, MA
on Wednesday, March 5th, 2008
01. I Drink My Beer With Two Hands
02. No Spark, No Heart
03. 250/300
04. Little Drum
05. My Companion
06. Krdish
Some Syme-centric links…
Their official site, which redirects to their MySpace page, and here’s their Karisma Records page.. Additional Audio: Apart from the streaming MySpace tracks, check out another live set I shared back in October (during their first North American jaunt). You can also listen to more live songs and a few interview clips over at JamNow. Video: A clip for the song “Planetarium“. Photos: All of my Syme shots are here, and you can see some fantastic shots from their recent Toronto show thanks to David Waldman. Upcoming tourdates: See above for the details on their two SxSW appearances this weekend. After that, they’re heading back home to get to work on their next record. File that info under: “something to look forward to”. 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). 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.
Mp3s: Wye Oak live in Cambridge
Posted on March 11, 2008 at 8:52 am | No Comments
Every year, for the past dozen years and to varying degrees of seriousness, I think “This will be the year I make it to South By Southwest.” Hasn’t happened yet, but… someday. As the showcases get scheduled, more great bands get added, and the parties get planned, I sit here in Boston getting buried under a mountain of digital SxSW-specific promo emails, and wait for my fellow bloggers to write about what a great time was had. Sigh.
But if I was there, one of the bands I’d be sure to see is Wye Oak, who are part of the Merge Records showcase on Friday night at the Parish. I was fortunate enough to catch the Baltimore-based duo of Jenn & Andy when they played here in Cambridge a couple weeks back, and they’ve kindly allowed me to share their performance here on the ‘Nac.
Their seven song set naturally showed off songs from their upcoming debut, “If Children”, but they also threw in a couple new numbers and a reworked older one. If you’re down in Austin this week, make sure you get to the Merge showcase early, as they’re playing second, with Portastatic up first. And go ahead, rub it in… let me know how great it was. I can take it.
Live at the Middle East Upstairs
in Cambridge, MA
on Friday, February 22nd, 2008
01. Please Concrete
02. Untitled (new)
03. Family Glue
04. Warning
05. Half a Double Man
06. I Want For Nothing
07. Obituary
Some Wye Oak links…
Their official site, MySpace page, and Merge page. Additional Audio: The band’s site has no less than four Mp3s from “If Children”. And their MySpace page adds another for streaming. Generous, they are. Also generous: Aural States and Baltimore Taper, who teamed up to offer another full Wye Oak live set, recorded earlier this month, along with an interview. Video: Here’s something very cool – Watch Andy play through the entirety of “Warning“, showing off his drum n’ keys multi-tasking skills, courtesy of MyDrumLesson.com. There are also a whole slew of live clips up on YouTube. Photos: My Flickr-hosted shots are here, and you can find more through a full Wye Oak Flickr tag search. Upcoming live dates:
March 14th @ The Parish in Austin (Merge Records SXSW showcase)
April 10th @ The Sugar Tank in Lancaster, PA
April 11th @ The G-Spot in Baltimore, MD (CD Release)
April 12th @ Union Hall in Brooklyn
April 13th @ The Black Cat in Washington, DC
May 2nd @ the Over the Top Festival in Toronto, ONListen 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). 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.