Jamroom

Taping for 13 years and based in Scotland we have the Scottish taper “Jamroom” that has been recording many bands and concerts, yet with Corona hitting the world in 2020 and no recent concerts to tape we thought that we should see what “Jamroom” has been up to in 2020 and as well as in the past.

First of all, how are you doing in these extraordinary times with Corona spreading all over the planet?

I'm ok. Lucky enough to be working from home. Family is safe, so far. I hope all my taping friends are doing well and I'm supporting as many artists financially, that I can. I'm still spending too much money on LPs, some tapes and CDs, and lots of Bandcamp downloads. Trying to give some money to the artists who are suffering by being unable to tour to make money.

Could you tell us a bit on why you started to tape concerts and some early recollections from the first year of taping?

I started taping in 2008, which was really late for me. I was already a member of Dime and had been collecting recordings by the bands I liked most. I had seriously started considering to be a taper in 2007 and started asking questions of other tapers, getting my recordings gear, etc. My first recording was Alter Bridge at the Academy. A couple of friends were going and I had my taping gear, so time to start. I was really nervous about getting the gear in and getting set up, but it worked out ok in the end. I have had plenty of recordings fail for a variety of reasons, but listening back to this recording after I got home was so great. I was a taper now and could share back to those who had shared with me. I just started going to a lot more gigs than I ever used to go to. It just kind of snowballed from there.

You mostly tape in Scotland. How is it to tape concerts in Scotland?

Yes, I pretty much only tape in Glasgow. It's too much bother for me to have to travel more than an hour from home, especially with work in the morning. I have taped a couple of Edinburgh gigs and one gig and one festival in London, but that's it. I guess taping up here is the same as the rest of the UK or EU. Big venues don't want you taping and smaller venues and the bands that play there are often cool with it. I don't tape with a stand for my mics, even though I could in some venues. I don't know if I ever will. I generally like to be near the front, not always the best taping position, but I'm going to see bands first, and taping second.

If you would choose 3 concerts that you have recorded which one´s would that be and why so?

There's probably a big difference between the best sounding recordings I have made and the best gigs I have been to. Top 3 gigs would be impossible, but 3 that stick in my memory are:

Clutch - Bar Bloc 2012-01-20

The band were on a night off on the Thin Lizzy support tour and played a tiny bar. The place was absolutely packed and the band had a great time. We were there at 17:30 just to get a space. The band didn't go on till 22:00 

The Cosmic Dead / Pigs Pigs Pigs Pigs Pigs Pigs Pigs - The Old Hairdressers 2013-11-09

In my top 5 all time gigs. Absolutely insane levels of intensity from both bands. The gig didn't finish until 01:30

GNOD - Rocket 20 Festival, London 2018-03-11

GNOD closed out the festival on the Sunday night and it was a totally visceral performance. Ear-splittingly loud, huge backscreen with images flashing through and an outstanding performance. There was no way anyone could have followed that.

Which concert has been the most trickiest to tape so far during all these years?

Probaby my first few in the big venues, as I was quite nervous. Any time they were doing pat downs. However even at the Barrowlands which has a metal detector, I got my gear in without problems.

From when you first started to tape up until now have there been many changes in the way that you tape?

To be honest, apart from a change of mics, preamp/battery box, recorders, my technique is still the same.

Do you collect other tapers concerts too and which bands are your favorite one´s?

I used to download quite a lot of shows, like I used to buy artists back catalogues for completist reasons. I gave that up probably 10 years ago. I'll only collect some from bands I'm really into. I'm currently heavily into modern psych music, so bands like The Cosmic Dead, Kungens Man, Papir, Firefriend, etc. A lot of Dr Space (Scott Heller) recordings that have been uploaded over the years are great to listen to.

Back to 2020. Many tapers ended up with no option to tape in 2020. How was it for you, did you tape any concert in 2020 before Corona took over?

I only got to two gigs before the lockdown. I saw The BellRays, which was amazing as always. It's a treat to see Bob and Lisa play. I have also enjoyed some of their lockdown performances on FB and IG. I also went to the album launch for local experimental band Mhenwhar Huws. Seems so long ago now.

The last question for this time. Do you have any band that you still haven´t taped that is on your “taping bucketlist”?

There are tons of psych bands I would love to see live, so it's a big list. Causa Sui, Papir, Dead Sea Apes, I could easily list 30 or 40 bands who make music I love.

Many thanks for answering the questions for us!