Jason Lytle @ The Toff In Town (22-02-2012)

Supported by Ben Mason

The last time Jason Lytle was in Australia was in 2004 with Grandaddy, a tour I missed due to being a poor student and also having moved back to the city only a few months beforehand I was not real confident attending shows by myself. One of my few gig regrets. So with a setlist full of old Grandaddy songs, last nights show at the Toff couldn't have made me happier. I just hope it's not another 8 years before he returns!

Setlist:
El Caminos In The West
The Go In The Go-For-It
Levitz
Chartsengrafs
Sarah 5646766
Birds Encouraged Him
I Am Lost (And the Moment Cannot Last)
The Crystal Lake
What Can't Be Erased
Stray Dog and the Chocolate Shake
Willow Wand
Hewlett's Daughter
Jed's Other Poem (Beautiful Ground)
Now It's On

Length: 1:05:29


FLAC (348 MB)
320 MP3 (132 MB)

Cass McCombs @ The Corner Hotel (17-02-2012)

Supported by The Orbweavers and Wintercoats.

Having been introduced to Cass McCombs music with his 2003 album "A", this tour was a long time coming. I didn't have high expectations for this gig, I had heard years ago that Cass had been known to perform entire shows with his back to the audience, and live clips on youtube were just average to good. The gig wasn't amazing but it was better than I expected, his band were really great and they played a nice selection of songs from across his discography. Despite his vocals not coming across quite as strong live as on record, I went home more than satisfied for a gig I had been waiting the best part of a decade for. Recording turned out well.

Setlist:
1. Love Thine Enemy
2. Equinox
3. Angel Blood
4. Buried Alive
5. Robin Egg Blue
6. Dreams-Come-True-Girl
7. Harmonia
8. Joe Murder
9. That's That
10. My Sister My Spouse
11. County Line

Length: 1:24:18

Download MP3 (115MB)

sleepmakeswaves @ The Espy (2012-02-10)

This show is the perfect example of why I started this blog. To promote and expose bands I enjoy so that people will go see them and support them. A few weeks ago I hadn't heard sleepmakeswaves but I downloaded Neeso's recording because he raved about it so much. Wow, this band is fantastic. After listening to his recording a few times I then got their album and listened to that non-stop for about a week. Long story short: I found a new favourite band because of this blog. But, enough of that...

sleepmakeswaves are a band I should have gotten into a long time ago but for some reason I always thought they'd be 'just another prog-rock' band. Turns out I was wrong. These guys play some of the best post-rock this country has to offer. This set is made up mostly of material from their debut LP '.​.​.​and so we destroyed everything' as well as a couple of well appreciated older tracks. And, from what I gather they switch things up each tour so I expect this will not be the last time I catch these guys. Already looking forward to next time!

I recorded this one in the same manner as the Solkyri set but closer to the left speaker stack. The weird glitchyness is more noticeable (and more frequent) in this one but again I edited it all out for enjoyment sake.



Setlist:
1. to you they are birds, to me they are voices in the forest
2. in limbs and joints
3. one day you will teach me to let go of my fears
4. we sing the body electric
5. (hello) cloud mountain
6. keep your splendid silent sun
7. now we rise and we are everywhere
8. our time is short but your watch is slow
9. a gaze blank and pitiless as the sun

Length: 58:01

Sound Quality: A

Download Here

Download Key: 6V-Op9_ZmmuosL5T74rkrci8xvjr1A8USgXRev9mvdA

Battles @ Forum Theatre, 28/01/2012

I've been pretty keen to see these guys for quite some time, especially as I was unable to make it to any performances on their 2008 tour. Well, they got announced for the 2012 BDO and as soon as this sideshow was announced I bought myself a ticket. And they totally lived up to my very high expectations. I wish I'd gotten to see them with Tyondai, but this was still a fucking incredible show. Naturally, it was almost all Gloss Drop songs but that was my second-favourite album of 2011 so who's complaining? The way the vocalists were present on the screen was a cool touch, and I particularly dug the way they extended several songs. Sundome was jaw-dropping. The only real negative about the gig itself was the technical difficulties Ian had during My Machines, but what can you do? And the sound on this recording isn't so great. But ahh well. Fantastic gig!

SETLIST
Intro
Africastle
Sweetie & Shag
Dominican Fade
Atlas
Wall Street
Tonto
Ice Cream
Inchworm
My Machines
Futura
----Encore----
Sundome

DOWNLOAD MP3 HERE

Woollen Kits @ The John Curtin Hotel (20-01-2012)

Supported by The UV Race, Dead Farmers and Loose Grip.

I know a few people were eagerly awaiting these recordings, sorry for the delay. What a great line up and great sets all round! Enjoy!

Loose Grip
I arrived just minutes before Brisbane's Loose Grip took the stage, or rather, the floor in front of the stage, so I was lucky to be able to record this but glad I could. Here's all 11 minutes and 48 seconds of their blistering set, into which they packed 7 songs, most of which are available on their excellent debut 7" available on Bedroom Suck Records.

Setlist:
1. Cereal
2. Baked
3. Light Me Up
4. Maccy D's
5.
6.
7. Wipe The Slate

Loose Grip MP3


Dead Farmers
Up next were Sydney band Dead Farmers who I was looking forward to seeing for the first time having heard plenty of praise for their live shows, all of which was justified. Tore through a set of straight forward rock with tons of energy, and the dual vocals work really well. Look forward to next time they're down here.

Setlist:
1.
2.
3. Never Enough
4. Spit Shine
5.
6. Down Low
7.
8. Out The Door

Dead Farmers MP3


The UV Race
Their first show in awhile and the first time I'd seen them in just over a year, when they supported Thee Oh Sees last January. Always fun live and this set was no exception.

Setlist:
1.
2. Set Sail To Fail
3.
4.
5. Burn That Cat
6. Lost My Way
7.
8. The UV Know
9.

The UV Race MP3


Woollen Kits
I've lost count of the times I've seen Woollen Kits now, and they only get better every time. Tonight was all about launching their self-titled debut LP which is available now on R.I.P Society and at all good record stores. Do yourself a favour and get it! Yet another great set to end an excellent night.

Setlist:
1. -
2. Out Of Whack
3. Down Your Street
4. Shelley
5. Always
6. Sloan
7. I Love You
8. Susannah

Woollen Kits MP3

Feist @ Palais Theatre (01-02-2012)

Epic performance by Feist at the Palais Theatre, playing songs mostly from her 2011 album "Metals", but also a few select tracks from previous releases, albeit with very different arrangements to the originals. Her most well known song "1234" was notably absent from the set, but I think you'd be hard pressed to find anyone who went home disappointed. As good as the show was, it still didn't quite match seeing her play alone on her first tour in 2005 with about 100 other people in a small jazz club, one of my favourite gigs I've ever been to.
Still, it was very impressive, and the recording came out well. Although one thing I noticed listening back to the recording is a distinct lack of bass, not from a bad recording, but because there was no bass on stage. It didn't even occur to me on the night, probably because of the sheer volume (it was quite a loud gig for the style of music) but listening back, a lot of the songs could have really used some bass.



Setlist:
1. The Undiscovered First
2. How Come You Never Go There
3. A Commotion
4. Graveyard
5. Mushaboom
6. The Circle Married The Line
7. So Sorry
8. Anti-Pioneer
9. My Moon My Man
10. I Feel It All
11. The Bad In Each Other
12. Honey Honey
13. Comfort Me
14. Caught A Long Wind
15. Get It Wrong, Get It Right
-
17. When I Was a Young Girl
18. Cicadas and Gulls
19. Sealion
20. Let It Die
-
21. Intuition

Length: 01:51:05

FLAC (491MB)
MP3 V0 (161MB)

Julianna Barwick @ The Toff in Town (18-01-2012)

Julianna Barwick's 2011 album The Magic Place was one of my favourite releases of the year so I had high hopes for the gig, and wasn't disappointed. Since it is mostly just Julianna's vocals, it was not a loud performance, and you can clearly hear clinking glasses and coughs. But it was a (kinda disappointingly) small and quiet audience and the recording turned out well.

Setlist:
1. The Magic Place
2. Bob In Your Gait
3. Vow
4. -
5. Prizewinning
6. White Flag
7. -
8. -

Download:
MP3 (108MB)
FLAC (279MB)

Explosions In The Sky @ Meredith Music Festival (2011-12-09)

Wow! Been waiting for this one since I last saw them almost 4 years ago. It was one of the best shows I've ever seen and completely changed my appreciation for post-rock. I would love to have a recording of that one to listen to but it got lost in the big PC crash of 2008.
Anyway, flash forward to now and it was finally time to see Explosions again and they were just as fantastic as last time. The Supernatural Amphitheatre is such an ideal setting to see them play in and the sunset spot was just perfect. I can't say enough good things about this one. Download it and listen and appreciate it.

I recorded this on the barrier pretty much dead center. I'm really actually quite surprised it came out as well as it did. If there'd been vocals they would have been completely non-present in the recording but didn't have to worry about that.



Setlist:
1. The Only Moment We Were Alone
2. Catastrophe and The Cure
3. Postcard From 1952
4. The Birth and Death of The Day
5. Let Me Back In

Length: 46:44

Sound Quality: A-

Download Here

Kurt Vile & The Violators @ Northcote Social Club (2011-12-05)

I hadn't listened much to Kurt Vile's records before this gig, but bought a ticket based on rave reviews of his live shows from people I trust, and I'm glad I did. I'm still not crazy about his albums but really loved this performance. There was an intensity, especially in such an intimate venue, and especially with the songs performed solo, that doesn't translate well to record for me. Anyone who was at the gig might notice this is missing the last song of the set, apologies, the mic cable came loose. What I did manage to get turned out well though!


Setlist:
1. Blackberry Song
2. Runner Up
3. Jesus Fever
4. On Tour
5. Freeway
6. Ghost Town
7. Hunchback
8. Freak Train
9. Peeping Tomboy
10. My Best Friends (Don't Even Pass This)
11. Puppet To The Man
12. Society Is My Friend
13. [crowd cheers for encore]
14. Baby's Arms
15. Downbound Train

Length: 1:23:53

FLAC (457MB)
MP3 (V0) (123MB)

Mono @ The Forum (2011-10-07)

So this one was pretty fantastic. Mono playing Holy Ground with a 23 piece orchestra was something I thought I wouldn't get a chance to see but Melbourne Festival made it happen. Really thankful for that. The performance is exactly how you'd expect if you've heard the album but seeing it live is something else. Much more powerful.
On a sour note. This pretty much marked the end of my battery box. Had to scrap the right channel because it was so staticy. I hope someone else comes forward with a recording of this Also, Melbourne festival should get rid of glass bottles. There's so many of them getting thrown in bins in this recording. Really takes away from it.

This was recorded from the front row behind the first row of booths. I was about halfway between the centre of the room and the passageway up the side. It's pretty much my 'go to' spot in the venue and produces quite nice results.



Setlist:
1. Ashes In The Snow
2. Burial At Sea
3. Silent Flight, Sleeping Dawn
4. Are You There?
5. 2 Candles, 1 Wish
6. Where Am I
7. Pure As Snow (Trails of The Winter Storm)
8. Follow The Map
9. Halcyon (Beautiful Days)
10. Everlasting Light

Length: 1:24:15

Sound Quality: B

Download Here