2006.06.24 - Poland @ Katowice Spodek
Source A: Hi-Mini Disc --- Monacor MCE-4000 > DIY battery box > line in > MZ-NH700 Hi-Sp
Dissemination: USB cable > SonicStage > CEPro2 > FLAC FrontendLocation: 20' left from center of SBD, Sector J, row II, seat 1
Taper: Chester
Gen: 0 from Master
Notes - by: Galen: As of 07/2006, very early in the month, I realized that the same low > high frequency sound that Tool had when they opened with Sober (you know what I mean if you know the 2002 tour!) was used at the transition of Lost Keys>Rosetta Stoned. What does that mean? Not sure. The sound is quite nice & pleasant throughout although it does appear to be a bit left-channel dominant. Although not a perfect capture of the band this is, nonetheless, a very accurate, clear product is worthy of numerous + enjoyable listens. This is of course correlative to the overall performance which, as the collector will notice, features a few mess-ups where the band correctly "goes with it". If a member of the band were to hear what the average Tool-fan + taper can do perhaps Tool would reexamine their notorious anti-taping paradigm. All in all, worth your while to sit back, close your eyes & imagine you are in Katowice, Polamd @ a Tool show...
Maynardism: "Good evening."
Time: 93:44
Lost Keys (Blame Hoffman)
Rosetta Stoned
Stinkfist
Forty Six & 2
Jambi
Schism
Right In Two
Sober
Lateralus
Vicarious
Ænema
Source B: Hi-Mini Disc --- Panasonic ECM RP-VC201 > Sony MZ--NH700 (PCM mode)
Dissemination: Master HiMD > USB transfer to HDD > SonicStage3.3 > Track splitting in CDWave 1.94.8 > FLAC
Location: in front of soundboard area, a little on the left
Taper: SNSik
Gen: 0 from Master
Notes - by: Galen: Real nice recording. There are several instances of microphone phasing (movement) at random segments of time, some over-zealous Tool fans yipping + yelping & what appears to be someone in the audience having a Tool-gasm but other than that this is the type of recording folks hope to achieve at the end of the day. The source is balanced, clear, clean & although not perfect in regards to capturing the entirety of the sound spectrum it still sounds damn fine. This is at the very least as nice sounding as Source A of this performance is. Recommended recording for all the right reasons, at least audibly. Tool appeared to be delivering a standard-performance without much variance or sense of adventure. Not that the performance appears to be canned but it does seem to be more processed than organic. If that makes sense to you then you must shop at Whole Foods.
Time: 93:44
Source C: Video / Digital Camera --- <Sony Cyber-shot DSC-S60
Notes: Unsure why it took me so long to figure out that, most likely, the filmer of the previous night is the same filmer of this performance. The hallmarks are there for style, professionalism and grace.
Notes: The audio is actually quite a bit better than the video of this source. The video is choppy, full of movement enough to make a land-lover seasick & Tool appears as little shadows onstage. The camera is not a video camera per se but a digital camera with the setting to movie rather than still-pictures. The quality is less than impressive when used in ideal light let alone for a dark Tool show. Still, it is surprising how decent the audio actually is. Although not excellent by any means the audio is at the very least tolerable & is as good as some ECM>MD sources floating around in the trading pool. The video though is nearly unwatchable. Put together, this source is best left for collectors only.
Time: 1:31:08