The Mountain Goats @ The Toff In Town (2012-05-09)

Since seeing The Mountain Goats twice at the end of 2008 I've been wanting to catch them again since. I missed the 2010 tour but I wouldn't miss them another time so I got myself a ticket to the smaller of the two Melbourne shows.
As expected the show was fantastic! Not only was it a hefty setlist but the selection of songs played were great. A bunch of new ones off Transcendental Youth which is shaping up to be a standout album from these guys. And a bunch of my favorite older ones by them. Really happy to have gotten You Were Cool and Fall of The Star High School Running Back, but it was more popular ones like Pigs That Ran Straightaway Into the Water, Triumph of and This Year that really pleased me despite them not being overly rare. Johns banter is always hilarious and this show was no exception. I especially liked the story about his son and scarface.

This was recorded from almost directly in front of the left speaker stack. The sound is very true to how it sounded on the night and is actually much clearer than I thought it would be.



Setlist:
1.  For Charles Bronson
2.  Old College Try
3.  Birth of Serpents
4.  Damn These Vampires
5.  Jeff Davis County Blues
6.  Counterfeit Florida Plates
7.  Hast Thou Considered The Tetrapod
8.  Hawaiian Feeling
9.  Fall of The Star High School Running Back
10. Woke Up New
11. You Were Cool
12. Transcendental Youth
13. The Diaz Brothers
14. White Cedar
15. Palmcorder Yajna
16. International Small Arms Traffic Blues
17. Night Light
18. Pigs That Ran Straightaway Into the Water, Triumph of
19. Love Love Love
20. Game Shows Touch Our Lives
21. You Or Your Memory
22. This Year
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
23. 1 Samuel 15:23
24. Quito
25. The Best Ever Death Metal Band In Denton

Length: 1:37:42

Sound Quality: B+

Download Here

Progfest, 08/09/2012 @ the Esplanade Hotel

Not much else to say about this event other than "fuck yes!" Tim Charles and his Welkin crew really delivered one of the best mini-festival local lineups in this city last year at this very venue, and when the 2012 lineup was announced, I knew there was no way I'd be missing out. I think from memory the only thing I recorded last year was Sydonia, and it turned out pretty much unpostable, so I was keen to get some more stuff this year!

Ne Obliviscaris
It's fair to say that for a significant number of attendees, their attention was squarely on Melbourne's melodic/progressive black metal heroes Ne Obliviscaris - I know mine was. What can I say about these guys that hasn't been said already? Since they (FINALLY) released Portal of I it's just been a stellar year for them, and this was the icing on the cake. I was a little surprised they didn't make any mention of Dan Presland being back behind the drumkit; he left just prior to the release of the album, and other than a low-key underage gig the night before, if I'm not wrong this would have been his first show back with NeO for nearly two years. Thought that might have warranted a bit more of a mention, but ah well, it was great to see, and hear, him back. Dude's an awesome drummer. Alas, the recording didn't turn out so well. And I left after I heard Xenoflux (my favourite song) because I was already missing way too much Jericco. But it was worth it to stick around for this awesomeness.

SETLIST:
And Plague Flowers the Kaleidoscope
Of the Leper Butterflies
Forget Not
Tapestry of the Starless Abstract
Xenoflux
Of Petrichor Weaves Black Noise (not recorded)
DOWNLOAD MP3 HERE

Other sets to come from A Lonely Crowd, Okera, Mushroom Giant, Chaos Divine and Jericco... I think? I was moving around a lot, kinda forgotten exactly what I recorded haha.

Godspeed You! Black Emperor @ Coachella Festival (2012-04-21)

This was something special. I never thought I'd get to see Godspeed play a show and even listening back to this recording I'm in disbelief. It was just perfect in every way. Come and play for me every other week please Godspeed ok?
Watching the band play in darkness and seeing the mountains behind them was really cool and while I am seeing them again in a few months I don't think it will compare to this show. I had also never heard Albanian prior so that was a welcome surprise in the set. I closed my eyes at one point during the start of World Police and when I opened them the set was finishing up. I just completely lost myself in the moment. Man.... this was just so good.

I recorded this set on the left side barrier (behind the VIP area bit) in line with the left speaker stack. I was actually really surprised there wasn't any soundbleed from the stages either side (SBTRKT and David Guetta) where I was standing. I'd been worried about that leading into the show.



Setlist:
1. Hope Drone
2. Albanian
3. Rockets Fall On Rocket Falls
4. World Police and Friendly Fire

Length: 56:28

Sound Quality: B+

Download Here