Wahzoo was a short-lived band from Sacramento in the mid-90s. They consisted of:
Bill Heston- guitar,
Dan Yoas- drums,
Rick Bowersock- bass and vocals. Rick has also played with RKL and Stalag 13 (must be an Oxnard native).
Analog recording on 2 inch tape,1996
I’ve been on a bit of an RKL kick lately. It is fun to hear these shows, but also heartbreaking to listen to Jason. He was so funny- I didn’t know he had kids. Just tragic that he passed away while trying to get clean.
Anyway, this is another recording from that amazing gift that is the Jason Ross archive. I popped it into Izotope and bumped the vocals down a bit, and bumped the bass up a bit. Mix fluctuates for the 1st 5min or so but settles down. Very enjoyable.
Recorded by: ?
Transfer by: Shayne Stacy
Transfer Equipment used: Namakichi Dragon & M-Audio audiophile 2496 card
Enhanced in Izotope (music rebalance)
Here’s another really cool one that I found when moving Barry Ward’s tapes- an instrumental rehearsal session from the Riches to Rags era. These sound different than the versions that Barry posted on his channel a few years ago (BK Ward- you should all subscribe)
Recorded by: ? (Barry Ward Collection)
Transfer by: Shayne Stacy
Equipment used: Nakamichi Dragon and M-Audio Audiophile 2496 card
Here is one from Gary Shurtleff’s collection (check out his excellent “fromthenosebleeds” channel for mostly arena rocking coolness)- an uncirculated 1st gen VHS tape of RKL at covered wagon in SF in 1988. I think that 1988 run is peak RKL- they were so amazing back then.
I think this was filmed by the drummer of a band called M.A.R. who lived in the area- Stockton, I think. I forgot his name and lost his contact info, but he filmed RKL A LOT, and I don’t think much has gotten out. Wonder where he is now.
Filmed by: I can’t remember
Transfer by: Shayne Stacy
Equipment used: JVC HRS9800U and Canopus ADVC300
Brightness/contrast/exposure/denoise via Adobe Premiere and Neat Video
I had an hour in between meetings so I popped this in to listen/digitize, and I enjoyed it so much I figured I would post it today. This is a different than the KCSB tape from 1985 that has been well-circulated amongst traders since the 1980s. This is a very raw, kick ass set of mostly newer songs at the time. It this Joe Raposo’s first “show”? I hear Jason introduce the new bass player.
Again, I need to give a huge thanks to Barry Ward for sending these tapes my way, and good idea to bring the 120 minute tape to record the set- otherwise, it would have cut off at 45 min.
The Nak usually freaks out with 120min tapes (it doesn’t like the thin tapes), but it transferred just fine. A few little imperfections at the start, then all good.
Recorded by: Barry Ward
Transfer by: Shayne Stacy
Equipment used: Nakamichi Dragon and M-Audio Audiophile 2496 card
Happy Mediocre Monday everyone. This one is only mediocre because the board mix was not good… not good at all. I had to rebalance it and it is still only so-so. The tape’s rarity and source make it pretty damned cool actually.
This was from an amazing Day at the Farm with 6 of my favorite bands at the time- what a show!
Recorded by: ? (from Barry Ward’s soundboard tape)
Transfer by: Shayne Stacy
Equipment used: Nakamichi Dragon and M-Audio Audiophile 2496 card
Rebalance in Izotope RX8 (guitar and bass +8!)
Huge thanks to Barry Ward for giving the OK for this one to be posted. It is really cool to hear some early RKL sets that sound pretty decent, quality-wise. Punk recordings from the mid-80s were usually sketchy at best.
I looked for way too long for a photo of the VIS, which is now The Independent. The best I could find was a pic of the club in 1991, when it was the Kennel Club.
Recorded by: ? (Barry?)
Transfer by: Shayne Stacy
Equipment used: Nakamichi Dragon and M-Audio Audiophile 2496 card
It’s mediocre Monday everybody! Gotta love work stress. This show is definitely mediocre quality, but it is so funny. The flyer shows a Beer Drinker’s Night promotion, where you get admission and a drink ticket for $6. It was pretty clear that the people around the recorder were pretty hammered- it was like listening to a party with RKL playing in the background.
Still awesome due to the rarity- from Barry Ward’s archive.
Recorded by: ?
Transfer by: Shayne Stacy
Equipment used: Nakamichi 680ZX and M-Audio Audiophile 2496 card
It’s mediocre Monday! I thought this one qualified because the quality is not great at the start of the set, but it improves dramatically. I wonder if this comes from 2 different sources- the 1st part of the set sounds like a rough audience tape, and the 2nd part is clearly a board tape. Great set.
Recorded by: ?
Transfer by: Shayne Stacy
Equipment used: Nakamichi 670ZX and M-Audio Audiophile 2496 card
From Barry Ward’s collection
Here is another amazing artifact from Barry Ward’s cassette collection. This is the earliest RKL show I have ever heard, and apparently it is the earliest show on the internet as well. They talk about their upcoming 7″ release of It’s a Beautiful Feeling!
This one was pretty raw but clean enough for me to remix it a bit. It was light on guitar and very harsh with the high end so I did what I could to fix that up. Thanks Barry!
Recorded by: Barry Ward
Equipment used: Sony Walkman recorder
Transfer by: Shayne Stacy
Equipment used: Nakamichi Dragon and M-Audio Audiophile 2496 card
Rebalance in Izotope RX8: Bass +1, Guitar +4
EQ in Sony Soundforge: Boost lows and drop the highs by about 2db each
Nice Recreation Artwork of the Mab sign by Eric Yee
Sacramento Music Archive 