[Photos by acidjack]
The Sacred Bones Records showcase was the last show I saw at the Northside Festival, and it was also one of the ones I anticipated the most. First, because I try to never miss a chance to see bands I like at Glasslands, and second, because it was a stellar lineup from beginning to end. Of the bands playing, Amen Dunes were one I had not seen before, but they won me over early with their hypnotic, dark sound that recalls Syd Barrett, the Velvet Underground, Suicide and 13th Floor Elevators, among others. Founder and frontman Damon McMahon has claimed that he gets nervous performing live, but you wouldn’t have known it during this confident, if too short, set. Of course, it’s unlikely that McMahon could see us any more clearly than we could see him given the huge clouds of man-made fog he played in. If nothing else, the fog gave the show even more of a narcotic vibe.
This set gave us a taste of some of McMahon’s best songs from his recent record, Through Donkey Jaw. McMahon’s songs, now produced by a three-man band, tend to be downtempo affairs, but they held this crowd rapt, especially on numbers like the opener to Donkey Jaw, “Baba Yaga”. We were fortunate enough to catch a second, slightly longer Amen Dunes show on the following Sunday at the Knitting Factory when nyctaper saw Amen Dunes opened for another of our favorite bands, the Wooden Shjips (that recording [HERE]). McMahon is one of those artists whose integrity and brilliance you recognize instantly, and we both felt that way when we caught our respective sets.
I recorded the Glasslands set with a soundboard feed and Schoeps MK5 microphones; the Knitting Factory set was similarly recorded with Sennheiser MKH-8040 microphones and a soundboard feed. Both are outstanding, with excellent house mixes. The Glasslands recording favors the soundboard more, while the Knitting Factory recording favors the sound from the Sennheiser microphones. Enjoy!
Stream “Lower Mind” from the Knitting Factory:
[audio:https://www.nyctaper.com/A1706AmenDunes0212/02 Lower Mind.mp3]
Stream “Baba Yaga” from Glasslands:
[audio:https://www.nyctaper.com/A1706AmenDunes0212/05 Baba Yaga.mp3]
Download the MP3s: [Glasslands] | [Knitting Factory]
Download the FLACs: [Glasslands] | [Knitting Factory]
Note: All of the material on this site is offered with artist permission, free to fans, at our expense. The only thing we ask is that you download the material directly from this site, rather than re-posting the direct links or the files on other sites without our permission. Please respect our request.
Amen Dunes
2012-06-24
Knitting Factory
Brooklyn, NY USA
Exclusive download hosted at nyctaper.com
Recorded by nyctaper
Produced by acidjack
Sennheiser MKH-8040 + Soundboard>Edirol R-44 [Oade Concert Mod]>2x24bit/48kHz WAV>Audition CS 5.5 (mixdown)>Izotope Ozone 5 (EQ)>Audacity (set fades, tracking, amplify, balance, downsample)>FLAC ( level 8 )
Tracks
01 Diane
02 Lower Mind
03 Swim Up Behind Me
04 Bedroom Drum
05 Not A Slave
06 Baba Yaga
07 [unknown]
_____________________________
Amen Dunes
2012-06-17
Glasslands Gallery
Brooklyn, NY USA
Exclusive download hosted at nyctaper.com
Recorded and produced by acidjack
Soundboard + Schoeps MK5 (cardiod, DFC, DIN, 8ft)>KCY>Z-PFA>Sound Devices USBPre2>>Edirol R-44 [Oade Concert Mod]>2x24bit/48kHz WAV>Audition (mixdown, balance)>Izotope Ozone 5 (EQ, analog effects)>Audacity (set fades, tracking, amplify and balance, downsample)>FLAC ( level 8 )
Tracks
01 Diane
02 Lower Mind
03 Swim Up Behind Me
04 Bedroom Drum
05 Baba Yaga
If you enjoyed these recordings, PLEASE SUPPORT Amen Dunes, like them on Facebook, and buy their records directly from Sacred Bones Records.
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