With this column I hope to do two things: cover changes in the way we create, listen to and enjoy music, and provide the first forum (as far as I’m aware) that covers and reviews concert recordings. This week we’ll kick things off by reviewing some of the best/most exciting concert downloads of 2010 so far.

I hope these reviews will eventually become more regular and frequent, but this is by no means a comprehensive review of all concert recordings for this year. Nor is it necessarily a review of all of the best ones. As usual, email me if you think I’ve missed something vital. I should also mention that this week I am handing over some writing duties for the first time. I hope to do this more in the future. Concerts and concert recordings are best reviewed by fans of the artists.

Acid Mothers Temple

In March and April of this year, Acid Mothers Temple toured all across the United States. As usual, tapers were there to catch many of the shows. As a result, Acid Mothers Temple’s 2010 tour is featured on all three of the sites featured here two weeks ago. Fortunately though, there is no need for any of you to deal with Dimeadozen to hear Acid Mothers Temple’s 2010 tour. The two shows available there –Portland and Vancouver—both have the worst sound quality of the available concerts, and are borderline unlistenable.
Unfortunately, I can’t really recommend the recording of the New York show featured on NYCTaper either. This is the first time I have listened to an acidjack recording, and I must say, his recording sounds about as good as anything I’ve heard from Lynch. Unfortunately though, this just isn’t Acid Mother Temple’s best recorded show from the tour. That distinction belongs to either the http://www.archive.org/details/amt2010-03-24.flac16 “>San Francisco show or the Chapel Hill show. Their show is always heavy with improvised jams, and on these nights in particular, the band was able to take the jams into interesting places. Both shows featured very different intros to ‘In Infinity,’ but both were outstanding. Chapel Hill also probably features the best live version of ‘Cometary Orbital Drive’ I’ve heard yet, and while it’s missing the ‘Dark Stars in the Dazzling Sky’ encore, it has perhaps the best recorded set of the entire tour.

Akron/Family

Akron Family toured the United States in the first part of this year, but only one show was recorded and shared, this recording from NYCTaper. This was recorded by Lynch himself and, as usual, it sounds great. The only thing he failed to capture from the show was when Dana and Seth shared looks of mutual frustration over a girl who managed to sneak on stage and play beat on drums aimlessly during the encore. What makes this my most exciting download of 2010 is the approximate hour of new material included in the set. Only ‘Silly Bear’ has made previous appearances in Akron/Family’s set, but that song has not been heard since 2008. My personal favorite is the ten minute ‘Light Emerges’ that leads perfectly into the ‘Drums>Ed is a Portal’ jam. Another highlight from the new material for me was ‘So It Goes,’ played near the start of the set. Unfortunately, the previously released material included in this set is not as strong as it appears on some other recordings (to be covered in the coming weeks). The encore of ‘Raise The Sparks’ leading into ‘I Know You Rider’ was good, but I have heard better recorded versions. Nevertheless, this show is a must-have for any fans of Akron/Family.

Oneida

Oneida may be NYCTaper’s most covered act –it is at least the band that I’ve downloaded the most of from the site. This is the result of two factors: Oneida plays New York very often, and they are one of the most exciting live bands around today. There is a risk of over-covering NYCTaper recorded Oneida shows, but even if that happens, this show is worth highlighting. Of the three Oneida sets I’ve seen this year, this was easily the best, and it offers a lot for both fans and new listeners to enjoy. The twenty-eight minute ‘Improv in B’ and the ten minute ‘Improv in D’ are unlikely to ever be repeated. And while both jams featured moments of tedium, they also had plenty of intense moments that are well worth the investment. The set also includes some of the best live versions of some of Oneida’s most often played songs. The ten minute version of ‘Ghost in the Room’ stands out in particular, as does the set closer, an eight minute version of ‘Sheets of Easter.’ Oneida fans couldn’t ask for more.

Silver Mt. Zion (link)

These guys toured Europe in March in support of their new album. At the time of writing, they are out touring the States. Hopefully those shows will offer something more than the European performances though, as only one song from the new album was included in their set that wasn’t present on previous tours; ‘Piphany Rambler.’ For the Bristol show, the vocals are way too loud during opener, ‘13 Blues for 13 Moons,’ and while the problem seems to correct itself later in the set, there are still better recorded shows out there. The Nottingham and Brighton performances are both imperfect, but each have highlight tracks. Tellingly though, it is the versions of ‘Teddy Roosevelt’s Guns’ and ‘God Bless Our Dead Marines’ that stand out rather than any of the new material.

Retribution Gospel Choir (link)

The only shows I have found are on the Live Music Archive, and even if shows were available elsewhere, there’s hardly a need. All of the recordings here feature decent sound, and the sets don’t really change enough to justify listening to each show. As a result, the shows don’t really stand out much from each-other. The shows that sounded particularly good to my ears –Salt Lake City and Berlin— were also on the shorter side. Unfortunately, the shows with the most songs –Amsterdam, Belgium and Cologne— weren’t the best performances. In those last two American dates, ‘68 Comeback’ gets an extended workout (well at least compared to the album). Another interesting addition to the set was the Delroy Wilson cover ‘This Life Makes Me Wonder.’ To be honest, it just sounds out of place in Retribution Gospel Choir’s set. Ultimately, I came away disappointed with Retribution Gospel Choir’s 2010 live recordings. There are some strong moments –’Something’s Going to Break’ and ‘Electric Guitar’ are especially strong in their live from—, but ultimately, none of them match up to my favorite recording from their 2008 tour.

Titus Andronicus (link and link)

I already panned their new album. I didn’t enjoy it, but I thought when compared with their previous album and their live performances I had seen, The Monitor was bloated and pretentious. I downloaded NYCTaper’s two recordings, hoping that the songs would translate better in a live setting. Unfortunately, that’s not the case. In fact, The Bowery recording is just awful. Reading the posting, it appears to have been recorded by Dan Lynch who typically produces fantastic recordings, but something must have gone wrong that night. The levels just sound wrong. The guitars sound weak. Violin and piano sound like they’ve been added to the available instrumentation, but this doesn’t do much to improve the sound since the guitars sound so awful. It almost sounds like Titus Andronicus doesn’t know how to play that night. The Maxwell’s recording actually sounds much better, which is surprising since Maxwells is a much more cramped venue, and I would expect the Bowery to have produced the better of the two. Still, the Maxwell show doesn’t really add much to their studio material. The one time I saw these guys live after purchasing The Airing of Grievances, I thought the songs translated pretty well live. But whatever is heard at the show just doesn’t seem to be captured by NYCTaper’s equipment.

of Montreal–by Jennifer Monteagudo (link)

No one does kinderpop twee quite like of Montreal. Even in their latest releases where singer Kevin Barnes has taken on a Prince-like voice and darker persona, there’s a sense of childlike magic and illusion to of Montreal’s music. Unfortunately, that hyper-cheery sound doesn’t translate to the recording of their NYC Highline Ballroom show. Opener ‘Suffer for Fashion’ suffers from poor production; Barnes’ voice seems taxed and can barely be heard over the drums. The band doesn’t hit their swing until halfway through, but it’s a pleasure when they do. Although of Montreal’s live tracks aren’t wildly different from their recorded ones, ‘Oslo in the Summertime’ takes on a much faster, desperate tone, turning this already great song into an amazing one. They also perform a work-in-progress, ‘Teenage Unicorn Fisting.’ And like any good concert, there’s a cover: the band does a rendition of the Jackson Five’s ‘I Want You Back,’ which turns out to be the highlight of the show by far. Despite the lackluster sound quality, the recording did capture of Montreal introducing Susan Sarandon… who then went on to spank an audience member. of Montreal’s live shows are notoriously fun, but if you can’t go, this is recording isn’t a bad option.