"Tales from Topographic Oceans" Being Remixed by Steve Wilson

Discussion in 'Music Corner' started by rstamberg, Nov 24, 2015.

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  1. yesstiles

    yesstiles Senior Member

    I love "Relayer" but come one, we all know what the "3 popular albums" are? And it's not Relayer. So bring on Tales as well!
     
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  2. Rfreeman

    Rfreeman Senior Member

    Location:
    Lawrenceville, NJ
    Someone was maintaining there was a unifying concept to this album I would understand if I paid closer attention. I was assuming the lyrics had some part of conveying this concept I was missing out on.
     
  3. milco

    milco Forum Resident

    The drum section on 'ritual' is actually surprisingly short. I say 'surprisingly' because knowing it's there casts a bit of a shadow over the rest of the track for me, but I remember watching the timer on my CD player one time I played it and the whole drum section actually lasts less than 3 minutes. Seems more.:sigh:
     
  4. CheezCache

    CheezCache Forum Resident

    Location:
    Florence, Alabama
    That would be a great idea. My previous listening version of Tull's A Passion Play was a needledrop split only into side A and side B. Then I got the remix, which is split by individual sections. While I still listen to it from end to end, having the section titles readily available helps to organize things mentally. Bonus points to Steven Wilson if he could do that.
     
  5. No, I was on topic, because Tales is an example of how a band did a very complex work without the use of computers at all. I would challenge any modern band to try to do something this organic and so elaborate void of digital editing software here in the modern era. They would learn a lot about themselves, as musicians and gain a proper respect for the artist that came from that era.
     
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  6. I can only think the chanting and drumming is more relevant or welcoming than ever.... here in the modern age of endless distractions, stress and the need for instant gratification. It's a timeless piece of music that needs ones full attention. That is why people here are talking about it decades later.
     
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  7. CheezCache

    CheezCache Forum Resident

    Location:
    Florence, Alabama
    "Don the cap and close your eyes imagine all the glorious challenge
    Iron metal cast to others
    Distant drums"

    -Jon Anderson
     
  8. Squealy

    Squealy Forum Hall Of Fame

    Location:
    Vancouver
    Here's a question about Topographic Oceans -- why didn't they come up with named sub-sections for each piece as they did for "Close to the Edge" and other long songs... Wasn't that a way to get more publishing/writing royalties? Was that loophole closed?
     
  9. murrays

    murrays Forum Resident

    Location:
    New Zealand
    I read that it had more to do with contractual obligations (minimum number of tracks per album). I guess they must have got past that restriction.
     
  10. yesstiles

    yesstiles Senior Member

    My favorite part of "The Remembering." :love:

    My 2nd favorite is right near the end when Steve is going off the rails with Wakeman following behind. Sublime.
     
    kevinsponge and rstamberg like this.
  11. moops

    moops Senior Member

    Location:
    Geebung, Australia
    So is it actually happening but anyone who's "in the know" has got a gag order ?
    Or was it happening but it got kiboshed and looks like sitting on the shelves just to torment us ?
     
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  12. FVDnz

    FVDnz Forum Resident

    It was done with TAAB as the HDTracks version got broken into 8 tracks, and I like it that way too. I wouldn't mind if Tales got segmented but it's probably going to be unlikely given that Close to the Edge, And You and I, I've Seen All Good People or Starship Trooper for example never got split up either.
     
  13. vinylphile

    vinylphile Forum Resident

    Unfortunately computers aren't a fad, they're here to stay. They will remain a very useful tool in any musician's arsenal.

    If you want to hear a current band that can play every bit as well as YES did in their heyday, I'd suggest you give a listen to Opeth's most recent album. Very organic-sounding. Unbelievable drummer - every bit as good as the prog guys from the 70s. Great live band. Innovative and unique music played by extremely skilled musicians - computers or not.

    Of course this is all just my opinion. Subjective - just like yours.
     
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  14. CheezCache

    CheezCache Forum Resident

    Location:
    Florence, Alabama
    At the moment, it appears there is no scheduled release for the project. What is unclear is the degree to which it has been completed. Official statements seem to indicate that the mixing was not completed, but we have gotten an unofficial hint that it actually is complete and just needs the go ahead for manufacturing. All we know for certain is that it probably won't be released any time soon.
     
    moops likes this.
  15. Larry L

    Larry L Senior Member

    Location:
    Allen, Texas
    Tired of all the bashing.
     
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  16. CheezCache

    CheezCache Forum Resident

    Location:
    Florence, Alabama
    Say, does anyone know who we could contact to perhaps get the ball rolling again on this release? It sounds like Steven and the band would like to release it, if only it their were their decision. I'd email a request to whomever's in charge if I knew where to send it.
     
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  17. What does Opeth have to do with YES? TFTO completely broke new ground in rock music. Prog metal has been going on for how many decades now?
    Howe played with very little effects and distortion on his guitar. His tone came predominately from the guitar itself, how it was set up and his tube amp. Modern metal guys are using a stock sound that lacks any kind of originality at this point in time. I can tell Steve Howe's playing in about 3 seconds. Who else can say that these days?

    70's art rock vs modern metal… it's like comparing Bob Dylan to Moby. Why bring that into the conversation? I don't get the point.
     
  18. Tristero

    Tristero In possession of the future tense

    Location:
    MI
    You're the one that insists on taking this thread off topic by using it as a soapbox for your dislike of modern music, again and again. It's getting ridiculous. If you want to start a discussion about how computers are ruining music or whatever, knock yourself out. It has nothing to do with a possible Tales remix.
     
    rednoise, FVDnz, ledsox and 2 others like this.
  19. vinylphile

    vinylphile Forum Resident

    Wow. So you're calling Pale Communion modern metal, eh? Pretty clear that you haven't even heard it - or its predecessor Heritage.

    Perhaps next time do a little research before forming an opinion.
     
  20. Let's try to keep this on topic...
    Wilson remixing Tales.

    Will computers be involved in the process? Dumping the rough tracks into pro tools and having at it?

    This is a debatable topic.

    Should Rembrandt be scanned and digitally improved with colorization to make it pop more and capture the eyes of today's cultural tastes? It could be then transferred back to canvas, this is done all the time.

    It's a big question to me.. not sure about others.

    I still see Tales and many of the albums of that golden age as historical documents that captured a point in time when music WAS created in a much more organic way using tape machines and vinyl and not endless digital manipulation.

    Just because we can, doesn't mean we should.
    Just an opinion.
     
    mark renard likes this.
  21. Tristero

    Tristero In possession of the future tense

    Location:
    MI
    Have you checked out any of S. Wilson's other remix work? I'm a big fan of his surround mixes, though they definitely use the latest technology so it might not be up your street. To be honest, I was actually a bit disappointed with Close to the Edge, a rarity for me with SW, but he redeemed himself fully with Fragile, IMO.

    As far as the broader question of remixing goes, I tend to resist the purist mentality. A mix of a rock album is not really the same thing as a classic Rembrandt painting (which at this point could only be "remastered" with a cleaning, not actually remixed). Mixes are more fluid, often imperfect reflections of the sound aimed for. Sometimes artists aren't happy with the mix they ended up with and even try to go back and change things themselves. Steven Wilson often works in pretty close coordination with the artists he remixes (and he's always a fan of the stuff he works on), so I think that he generally tries to capture the spirit of the original. Of course, his discs always come with nice versions of the original mix as well, so it's not as if history is being re-written.

    This is not to say that every remix is successful or even necessary, in some cases. There is of course the egregious matter of the Genesis remixes--I know that many fans, myself included, would welcome Wilson's hand at some of the old Genesis classics, including nice flat masters of the originals. So I can see how fans would get up in arms with something like that, but that's not the case with these Yes reissues.
     
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  22. rstamberg

    rstamberg Senior Member Thread Starter

    Location:
    Riverside, CT
    Good questions all.
    It'll be released - mark my words.
     
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  23. Ken_McAlinden

    Ken_McAlinden MichiGort Staff

    Location:
    Livonia, MI
    There is no contemporaneous surround mix of Tales from Topographic Oceans. The 5.1 mix will be the one and only surround mix of this album to exist to date. This will be my main interest, and has no precedent from which to be unfaithful. The stereo remix is the sideshow for me, but the original mixes will be included on the Blu-ray in high resolution. History is served and fun is had by all. Huzzah and bring it on!
     
    MoonPool, FVDnz, Saganomics and 4 others like this.
  24. BillyMacQ

    BillyMacQ Forum Resident

    Location:
    Brooklyn, NY
    Lot of talk about how "organically" TFTO was created in the studio, and maybe it was, but are we sure there wasn't the same amount of tape cutting/editing done to it like Teo Macero did with the Miles Davis sessions of the late 60s? It wasn't done using a computer, of course, but the concept is the same. Use the best bits, toss the rest out.

    Love,
    Billy
     
    jay.dee, vinylphile and ledsox like this.
  25. qtrules

    qtrules Forum Resident

    Location:
    canada
    this year?
     
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