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As of 2006, Northern Liberties have started working on a Collaboration Album, So here's the deal..... Northern Liberties takes one day to write and record one song with a favorite musician of ours. This is a long term project, We are going to have a lot of fun with it, and at the very end we'll release the songs as a CD. We are going to update this page as the songs are created and captured to the digital recording world.

Click to enlarge	Sunday October 18th 2009 - Billy Brat with NORTHERN LIBERTIES " Yet untitled " written by Billy Brat and Northern Liberties Billy Brat - Electronics/Vocals Justin Duerr - Percussion / Vocals Kevin Riley - Bass Marc Duerr - Drum Set About the Recording - We talked about this one for a while. Billy lives in Virginia, so it's a long hall to record. We got a call two weeks ahead of time that Billy would be in Baltimore on Saturday the 17th, and would be willing to drive on to Philly to record on Sunday. We played the phone tag that seems required for these recordings, and fixed it in stone. The recording came together quick.... The only glitch was recording machine issues. It was a pain in the ass to get the recorder to capture the event. But electronic arms were twisted, and the machine saw it our way in the end. About Billy - As one half of Buck Gooter, Billy brings the intense vocals and electronics to a fevered vision of awesomeness. He inspires and frightens. Check them out LIVE! for full effect. http://buckgooter.tk/
Click to enlarge	Sunday August 16th 2009 - Joe And Paul with NORTHERN LIBERTIES " Yet untitled " written by Joe and Paul with a little Northern Liberties Paul Walker - Guitar Joe Lotito - Guitar Justin Duerr - Percussion / Vocals Kevin Riley - Bass Marc Duerr - Drum Set About the Recording - Paul called and said"Joe and I wrote a song for an NL collaboration".... We were up on a few dead lines, Kevin was leaving town in two weeks for a 6 week trip, So the phone tag began. After a load of bad and forth, we had a date. The recording went great, it was the first use for a new recorder.This said, our fingers were crossed that it would hold up and the confusion on Kevin's part would be over come quickly. Joe and Paul had done their home work.... and the song was pretty much set with only a few arrangement changes made on the fly. It was a pleasure to work with these two old friends on a awesome song. About Joe - A founding member of Eulogy with Justin. Joe has been a steady hard worker in music since the early 90's. He plays every string instrument with a creative mastery. Super talented with out ever sounding like a music class. Joe is also an accomplished luthier, having build everything from violins, violas, basses, guitars, and several custom designed hybrids. He is currently playing guitar in Chasing Arethusa http://www.myspace.com/chasingarethusa About Paul - As guitar and synth in Lesser Known Neutrinos, Paul blew our minds with a refreshing blend of punk, synth, and new wave. We liked it so much we did a split 7inch with them. He's now in work with a new project with Kelso, another NL collaborator. Find him at his day job at his Firehouse Bikes, selling and repairing bikes in the heart of West Philly. http://www.firehousebicycles.com
Click to enlarge	Sunday February 8th 2009 - Ian and Greg of Technician with NORTHERN LIBERTIES " A Fish Story " written by Ian and Greg with a little Northern Liberties Ian Pitcher - Guitar / Vocals Gregory Nangle - Bass Justin Duerr - Percussion Kevin Riley - Bass Marc Duerr - Drum Set About the Recording - This was our second collaborative session with our long time friends Greg and Ian. Technician has been around the block, from the catbox to the west coast. Truly they are one of my all time favorite bands. This song came together quick, with Greg and Ian having worked out the riffs a bit the day before. It took a few tries for the Nl's to wrap out heads around the smart time signature.... But fun for us all the way. About Technician - Since the late 90s Technician has been a beacon light of the Philadelphia music scene. They are both mysterious and blinding, playing super stripped down songs in mind bending patterns and time signatures. Simple and complex, with out ever seeming forced. They have released a hand full of cd's and 7inchs over the years, and are in the starts of recording a new offering. http://www.technician.org
Click to enlarge	Thursday August 31st 2008- Mandy Katz with NORTHERN LIBERTIES "Pond Scum" written by Mandy Katz with a little Northern Liberties Mandy Katz - Violin and Vocals Justin Duerr - Backing Vocals, Percussion Kevin Riley - Bass Marc Duerr - Drum Set About the Recording - We started the day planning on recording a collaboration with a different band... and after a bit of phone tag they fell through at the last minute. So Northern Liberties where all dressed up with no where to go. We had the drums miked, and the room was ready to record. So with a bit of a sad optimism we started to call other folks on the collab list and see if any one was ready to go NOW.... RIGHT NOW! During the first call Mandy said," I'll call you back in 5 minute... I think I can do it." Then with a second call she said sure thing, and Marc and Justin sped away to pick her up. Thing happened fast after that... we'll after we did the normal NL warm up of telling jokes and stories of the goings on in our lives. Mandy brought a few pages of lyrics and a melody.... and we set out from there. With a few runs of different ideas, and few notes on the trusty NL dry erase board, we got on of my favorite collaborations yet. Pond Scum.... About Mandy Katz.... A true artistic visionary, a singer,song writer, musician, painter, potter, tile worker, gardener, and all around know what and how, about almost everything art. A friend of the Northern Liberties for 10 years, she designed the cover art for our Bugs and Rats/Northern Liberties split 7inch. She has played in numerous bands that have shared the stage with the NLs like.... including my favs Kiss Kiss Kill and Beware the Blunted Needle. www.myspace.com/bewarethebluntedneedle
Click to enlarge	Thursday June 26 2008 - Joe B with NORTHERN LIBERTIES "Making a Sacrifice for Art" written by Joe B with a little Northern Liberties Joe B - Acoustic Guitar and Vocals Justin Duerr - Backing Vocals, Percussion Kevin Riley - Acoustic Bass Marc Duerr - Drum Set About the Recording - It was a great time to finally make this a reality. For years the Nl's have been BIG fans of all that is Joe B. For the first year that we practiced in South Philadelphia we did so in the same building that the Nite Lights practiced in.... So more than see their live set... we loved to hear them through the walls. This recording came together quick, with Joe B showing up with a pretty worked out song. We played around with the arrangement, and before long we had a great recording. .... then the problem started.... I set down to mix it, and there was some sort of noticeable phase shift that was easy to hear in the quite acoustic song. So lucky for me my roommate has a fancy recording set up and can fix this noise, But he also plays in a band, and we both seemed to be playing a bunch of shows and out schedules never lined up till almost two months had pasted. But we got the noise worked out and it sounds great. Thanks Gary! About Joe B .... As Singer and Guitarist of the band the Nite Lights, Joe writes some of the best and most distinctive music I've ever heard. Joe B is also an amazing visual artist in the craft of paper cut..... If you've ever spent time walking around Philadelphia you've probably seen a few posters featuring Joe's art. Check out his art and music. It's an NL favorite for sure! http://www.thenitelights.com/
Click to enlarge Photo by Jon Brown on my Camera and Flash	Easter Sunday 3am MARCH 23RD 2008 - SHAWN and KELSO with NORTHERN LIBERTIES "Born Defective" written by Shawn, Kelso and Northern Liberties Shawn - Guitar and Vocals Kelso - Drum Set Justin Duerr - Vocals, Percussion Kevin Riley - Bass Marc Duerr - Drum Set About the Recording - It's 11:30 and we are watching the floor bounce 3 inches down on every jump of the 100+ crowd watching THE SLITS. Our equipment is in a pile of bent and broken in the center of the now deserted basement. The show was killer, the bands were killing it all night and the NL's were pumped on adrenaline and coffee. Our friends Shawn and Kelso from Boston's "Bugs and Rats" had come down for the week end to check out the show and hang out.... It was a last minute decision, Marc says "Can we record after the show?" as if to wonder if we'd be able to mentaly handle it, or to just wonder if my neighbors would freak out.... I said fuck yeah! It was on.... Kelso left in one car with some of his Philly Peeps... Marc's off on his way, and me the J-Man and Shawn piled in the rock van and headed the warehouse to do the massive two full drumset assault. Set up, freak out, set some more up, freak out, help my room mate load in his gear, Freak out more..... Then with one single take we obliterate it. Justin and Shawn over dub the vocals, and it finished at a bit after 5am on Easter Morning just in time to sleep through Jesus' rise from the grave! About Shawn and Kelso.... We played in Boston in 2005 and we didn't know anyone at all.... The next band sets up and just explodes! BUGS and RATS are a powerhouse of band. Since this first meeting we've played probably 10 show with them, as well as releases a split 7inch. - Kelso is probably the most brutal drummer I've ever seen... He plays in a trance like state, primal and magical. Both Shawn and Kelso played in Boston Hard Core band Brando, plus you'll also find Kelso behind the drum set in "The Glow"
Click to enlarge	THURSDAY FEBRUARY 28TH 2008 - MARYBETH CHEW with NORTHERN LIBERTIES "Only Math Exists" written by Marybeth Chew and Northern Liberties Marybeth Chew - Synths and Computer Manipulation Justin Duerr - Vocals, Percussion Kevin Riley - Bass Marc Duerr - Drum Set About the Recording - I was at work when my mobile phone rang, It was Marybeth.... She wanted directions to my place. This recording project was something of a mystery to me, seeing how the J-man set it up. So this for-mentioned phone call was assuring, putting a time and place to the nights recording. The nl's meet up at 3:30 and drink the standard to much coffee as we play some phone tag with Marybeth over the differences between a Wav and an MP3.... I'm not even sure of these details. We settle via phone that she'll bring the music files on a cdr. A cdr? you might ask, Yep Marybeth spent the early part of the afternoon with the help of Anthony Palumbo crafting a wonderfully rich soundscape to challenge the collaborative channeling of the Northern Liberties hive mind. So we tuned in the frequency and followed the cubed labyrinth. About Mary Beth Chew- Bassist of fellow Badmaster band BAD NEWS BATS http://www.myspace.com/badnewsbats - Also collaborating with Justin Duerr's Solo projects.
	THURSDAY JANUARY 31TH 2008 - DAVID APONTE with NORTHERN LIBERTIES "Psychic Silhouette" written by David Aponte and Northern Liberties David Aponte - Nord Synth, Cassette Tape Loops, Delay Pedals, FM Radio, TV Justin Duerr - Vocals, Percussion, Guitar Kevin Riley - Bass Marc Duerr - Drum Set About the Recording - At 2:30 I headed off to West Philly to pick up David and his gear. A man like David Aponte could have brought anything to the door after my call. As the master mind of MFM, he's a constant evolution of sound and performance. He's known to make music with many instruments, devises, forces, and wave forms.... from providing the soundtrack to silent films to full on harsh noise to beautiful mash ups of tape loops lush with delay, he a well versed, well read, commander of his own reality. ...We set up his gear at our practice space and set to finding the sounds path.... almost instantly Justin honed in on a delay loop that David made just to show us how the effect worked.... Sampled live from the local radio waves, the song built itself around this classical loop. About David Aponte - We first met David Aponte in 2004. He had recently re- emigrated to the Philadelphia area. We noticed his magical control of musical manipulation and performance art at his first Philadelphia MFM performance at the CODE space. Avery gifted and accomplished artist and print maker, having shown is work in many national galleries. A great knower of fact and fiction..... Just a good guy!
	WEDNESDAY MARCH 7TH 2007 -B. NOTHING with NORTHERN LIBERTIES "Wolf in the Maternity Ward" written by B.Nothing/Justin Duerr with arrangement by Northern Liberties B. Nothing - Guitars Justin Duerr - Vocals, Percussion Kevin Riley - Bass Marc Duerr - Drum Set About the Recording - "After work on Wednesday"Kevin says to Marc. Northern Liberties starts the day with some small talk about Philly goings' on, and some jamming. Mr. Nothing has prepared a few riffs and a overview of a song order. It took a few tries for Northern Liberties to wrap our minds around the riffs that Mr. Nothing had brought us. But with a little work we got a great recording with a fantastic musician and friend. About B. Nothing - We first met Mr. Nothing in 2002 as the Guitarist for Grind,Doom, Punk band Syzslak. He's just plain a great guy, We've played many many shows with Mr. Nothings projects..... Which include Urine Trouble, Total Fucking Destruction, the Company Corvette. He can also me found manning the bar at Fuime, West Philly's Best Little Bar.
	SUNDAY FEBRUARY 25TH 2007 -ENID CROW with NORTHERN LIBERTIES "Haunted Tree House Society" written by Enid Crow/Justin Duerr with arrangement by Northern Liberties Enid Crow - Vocals Justin Duerr - Vocals, Percussion, Hand Claps Kevin Riley - Bass Marc Duerr - Drum Set About the Recording - It's 8:30 am and we are dressed in suits and hats and looking for pigeons in Rittenhouse Square. That's how the day begins. Miss Enid Crow is taking a promo photo for us this morning. It may have been the only time ever that Rittenhouse was pigeon free..... So we walk to City Hall. Justin and Enid had worked on the song idea the night before, so the the recording went very quickly.... except for Kevin being completely confused by the rhythm of the chorus. About Enid Crow - An accomplished Photographer and Seamstress. Enid Crow is musically featured as Justin's partner in The Vivian Girls. See her work online at www.ENIDCROW.com
	THURSDAY JANUARY 11TH 2007 -CLARK ROTH with NORTHERN LIBERTIES "Soldier" written by Clark Roth with arrangement by Northern Liberties Clark Roth - Vocals, Keyboards Justin Duerr - Backing Vocals, Percussion Kevin Riley - Bass Marc Duerr - Drum Set About the Recording - Clark had this one ready to go.... Melody, Arrangement, and Lyrics. It was a bit of a challenge for Kevin to figure out the bassline from Clark's keyboard melody, but using the universal language of nods and winks, it worked out fine. About Clark Roth - Singer, Keyboardist, Novelist, and more. Justin and Marc first met Clark Roth in 1995 while working as commercial fishermen in Seattle. Northern Liberties found Clark once again in 2003, after Clark relocated to Philadelphia. As frontman of the band Kandy Whales, Clark shared the stage with Northern Liberties on a many nights.