Chris Levoir died last weekend. My thoughts are with his family, friends, bandmates and co-workers in this awful time.
I didn't know him as well as some of the folks whose rememberances are circulating this week, but Chris was a friend to this blog. He thought this sort of documentation of our local culture was important, and he went out of his way to be helpful in making it happen. I first met him properly when I was doing some recordings for the Wavelength festival in 2011 and he helped me get set up with a board feed.
There are some sound techs who act like imperious lords of their little domain, and don't want anyone interfering with them. Busy as he was, Chris was never like that, and subsequently whenever I was at the Great Hall he'd always take a moment in that hurry-up-and-wait-around rhythm that gigs have for a few words, just to chat about what I'd seen lately and what he'd been up to. He'd look you in the eye, shake your hand and speak thoughtfully, but you could always feel an intense force of personality. The Great Hall is a funny sort of room for live music, and over the time that he worked there, Chris had tamed a venue whose sound had previously been a hit-or-miss proposition into something far more consistent — to the point that between the sound I knew I'd hear and the chance to see a friendly face I came to quite look forward to going to shows there.
I also knew him as a rock'n'roll frontman, though not as much as I should have. There's so many bands and so much to do in this city that it's really easy to say, "oh, I'll see them next time." The Mark Inside fell into that category for me, and though I always took note when they had a show coming up, it just happened that several times in a row I let something else take precedence. Enough so, that when next month's album release show was announced, I took care to mark it off in my calendar. I was looking forward to hearing some new material, but even more, I was hoping to get a good recording to be able to offer back to Chris, just as a small token of gratitude for all the help he'd given me. And now, that's not going to happen.
I do have this in my archive, however. And in a week where it's important to celebrate Chris and his work, it seems right to get it out there in circulation. This is a set from NXNE 2009 and finds the band in good form, mostly playing songs from the not-yet released Nothing To Admit. This came when I was still getting my feet wet as a live recordist, so it's not as accomplished as it might be — but the guitars bite and snap nicely and the vocals are clear and present. At the time, I'd posted one song and filed it away. I've put one more below, in case you would like a sample, and the link to the full set follows. Please share freely, crank it up, and celebrate Chris' memory.
The Mark Inside - Everything is a Daydream [live at Velvet Underground (NXNE), June 20, 2009]
Full set:
The Mark Inside (live 2009-06-20)
This is presented as 256 bitrate MP3's. If anyone has an avid interest in a lossless version, please email me.
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