Surrounded On Sundays - 5.1/quad reviews and summaries

As I suspected, I don't like the album that much and the surround mix is just OK . I don't figure on ever listening to anything but the surround mix. The live performance is the best thing in the box. However, I have to say I love the form factor - five discs in a box that is smaller that a fatboy jewel case. Fits right on the CD shelf. If only all box sets were like that.

 

Totally agree on the packaging. They did a nice job including spot varnishing on the sleeves... Something you don't see as much these days.

 

Terra Nova from JT with the forever luscious Carly Simon ping-ponging around my living room. < sigh >

But seriously folks,

JT
Flag
Dad Loves His Work
Hourglass
October Road

all extremely enjoyable, all about to be played at least twice, before being filed away again, while I grow closer and closer to buying the Bernie Grundman vinyl box, and selling what will become the two duplicates.

 

Terra Nova is exquisite in surround.

 

Stormwatch


Studio album by
Jethro Tull
Released 14 September 1979 (UK) / (US)
Recorded Spring/summer 1979
Studio Maison Rouge Mobile and Maison Rouge Studio, Fulham, London
Genre Folk rock, progressive rock, hard rock
Length 45:42 (original release)
59:38 (with 2004 bonus tracks)
Label Chrysalis
Producer Ian Anderson
Robin Black

Stormwatch is the twelfth studio album by the progressive rock group Jethro Tull, released September 1979. It is considered the last in the trilogy of folk-rock albums by Jethro Tull (although folk music influenced virtually every Tull album to some extent). Among other subject-matters, the album touches heavily on the problems relating to the environment, oil and money.

Stormwatch was notably the last Tull album to feature the "classic" line-up of the 1970s, as drummer Barriemore Barlow and keyboardists John Evan and David Palmer all left the band in the months after the Stormwatch tour concluded in April 1980, while bassist John Glascock had died from heart complications in November 1979 during the tour.

In 2004, a remastered version of Stormwatch was released with four bonus tracks. The album was reissued in October 2019 in an expanded six-disc edition with a new stereo remix by Steven Wilson, several unreleased tracks, and a full concert recorded in the Netherlands in March 1980.[3]

• Ian Anderson – vocals, flute, acoustic guitar, bass guitar (on tracks 1, 3-8 & 11)
• Martin Barre – electric guitar, classical guitar, mandolin
• John Glascock – bass guitar (on tracks 2, 9, 10, 12 & 13)
• John Evan – piano, organ
• Dee Palmer – synthesizers, portable organ and orchestral arrangements
• Barriemore Barlow – drums, percussion

Additional personnel[edit]

• Francis Wilson – spoken word (on track 1 and 8)
• Dave Pegg – bass guitar (on track 14)
• Robin Black – sound engineer
• David Jackson – artwork
• Peter Wragg – art direction

1. "North Sea Oil" 3:12
2. "Orion" 3:58
3. "Home" 2:46
4. "Dark Ages" 9:13
5. "Warm Sporran" (instrumental) 3:33
6. "Something's on the Move" 4:27
7. "Old Ghosts" 4:23
8. "Dun Ringill" 2:41
9. "Flying Dutchman" 7:46
10. "Elegy" (instrumental) David Palmer 3:38
---------------------------------------------------------
For a rough Jethro Tull backstory look at the Thick as a Brick review.

This is considered to be the third album in a series of Folk Rock albums by Tull - Song From The Wood, Heavy Horses and Stormwatch. For some reason as a youngster whenever I saw this album it gave me the feeling that it was a heavy metal (of the day) album. That makes it all the more curious as to why I never bought it.
I have not really heard this album before except for snippets here and there, and this is one of the Tull albums I have been looking forward to. I purchased this one on the strength of the others in the series, so this is another blind listen. It arrived a couple of days ago, and is fresh off the press.
After seeing the insane prices that the other books are going for now, within relatively short periods of being released, I thought it would be good to go through this sooner than later. If you are a like Tull, I suggest getting what interests you while you can, because I have grown to love the band and I just can't see me paying upwards of $200 for one of these sets secondhand.

Amazon has it for $46.49 https://www.amazon.com/Stormwatch-4...0th+anniversary&qid=1574543325&s=music&sr=1-1
Discogs has it from $38.35 Jethro Tull - Stormwatch ...The 40th Anniversary Force 10 Edition...
Burning Shed has it for roughly 32 pounds Stormwatch - The 40th Anniversary Force 10 Edition
and I assume any good new music retailer would have the set also.

This is another Steven Wilson 5.1

So without further ado
DTS 96/24

North Sea Oil
Rhythm gtr left rear, tuned sticks right rear.
The instrumental section has a lead break and a spoken voice over on the right side.
We have the flute doing some interesting things in the mix too.
Nicely balanced mix, with a good sounstage.

Orion
Strings left rear. Guitars either side.
Piano in the right.
A nice vocal reverb runs to the rears.
This track has some nice dynamics.

Home
We start with an acoustic guitar just left and the vocal front and centre.
We get a nice effect of a delayed electric shimmering around front left to right.
Some nice harmonised gtr front left and right .
Strings in the rears.
Harmony vocals on the sides.

Dark Ages
Synth swell all around. Effects around the channels. A nice reverse reverb on the vocal gives some interesting effects.
Strings in the rears.
This is an interesting track, and is very engaging, with an excellent mix, with a lot going on.
A bit of a drum section with some tom rolls whooshing around us.
Some nice moving effects in this track. Nothing obnoxious, just little bits here and there in context.
Nice warm sub.
All the instruments are audible and balanced.
This album reminds me more of earlier Tull albums more than Songs from the Wood, or Heavy Horses I think.
This song feels like the albums centrepiece, and it is a really well constructed track that has a great mix.

Warm Sporran
A mandolin in the rears. This track almost sounds like Tull does Mike Oldfield.
A very cool instrumental.
Kick and bass get some sub assistance.
Another nice full balanced mix.
Nice marching snare does a few things in the rears. Great sounding track.

Something's On The Move
Hats in the left rear. An organ has a swoop across the back.
Gtr right rear.
Flute sounds like the middle of the room.
A very thick warm bass up front.
Unusual mix here. A very dense track. Drums on the left, but not in a bad way ... such a dense mix.

Old Ghosts
A swell of sounds all around.
Gtr right, strings in the rears.
Little bits and pieces everywhere with this one.
Some really nice effects on this one.
Very full and balanced.

Dun Ringill
A chorus of voices around us. Seagulls caw.
Then the music rises in acoustics all around. More really effect reverse reverb on the vocals creating some really nice surround effects.
This is a really good track.
Some bvox on the sides. Great track and mix

Flying Dutchman
Tentative atmospheric start punctuated with some punchy guitar.
Piano left, gtr right.
Snare roll in the rear. Drums doing some interesting thing.
Strings in the rears.
Mandolins in the rears.
Tin whistle? In the rear left.
Some really nice flute .. some really interesting writing.

Elegy
A very pretty track with lots of nice melodies and harmonies
Strings in rears, flutes playing harmonies in rear channels.
Piano right side.
Again a lot going on.
Great mix

This is a very good album, a lot better than I expected. The mix is excellent, and the sound is very good. Not compressed at all from what I can tell.
I highly recommend all the Tull releases, and while this one is still an affordable option, it would be very worth getting while it's still affordable.
One minor issue. I will need to send my copy back for an exchange, as there is a glitch at the end of the album. During the final electric guitar section the disc freezes a couple of times momentarily. It isn't the end of the world but it is slightly disappointing, and more than likely because of those slide in sleeves they use.

 

‘Or they felt blu ray would reach more fans

 

I was listening to the cd in my car during the week, and I have to say I really like this album. It was a surprise to be honest. I fear I have underestimated Mr Anderson's later catalog.
I find this album very engaging, musically and lyrically. I also find the mix to be excellent. From the first track we get a nice soundfield.

It is a DTS soundtrack, but it sounds very good to me.

Available on amazon from about $13 https://www.amazon.com/Thick-Brick-contains-Audio-Content/dp/B0073XORCY
Available from discogs from about $8 Ian Anderson - TAAB2


For me this is a great addition to the collection.

Cheers @riskylogic , I'm really enjoying this

 

Burning Shed still has Homo Erraticus new.

 

In the Court of the Crimson King


4oth



50th


Studio album by
King Crimson
Released 10 October 1969
Recorded June–August 1969
Studio Wessex Sound Studios, London
Genre Progressive rock[1]
Length 43:56
Label Island Atlantic
Producer King Crimson

n the Court of the Crimson King (subtitled An Observation by King Crimson) is the debut studio album by English rock band King Crimson, released on 10 October 1969 by Island Records. The album is one of the first and most influential of the progressive rock genre, where the band largely combined blues influences that rock music was founded upon with elements of jazz, classical, and symphonic music.

The album reached number five on the UK Albums Chart and number 28 on the US Billboard 200, where it was certified Gold by the Recording Industry Association of America. It was reissued several times in the 1980s and 1990s using inferior copies of the master tapes. After the original masters were discovered in the Virgin archives in 2003, the album was remastered again by Simon Heyworth and reissued in 2004. A 40th anniversary edition of the album was released in 2009 with new stereo and 5.1 surround sound mixes by Steven Wilson.

King Crimson

• Robert Fripp – electric and acoustic guitars, production
• Michael Giles – drums, percussion, backing vocals, production
• Greg Lake – lead vocals, bass guitar, production
• Ian McDonald – woodwinds (saxophone, flute, clarinet, bass clarinet), keyboards (Mellotron, harpsichord, piano, organ), vibraphone, backing vocals, production
• Peter Sinfield – lyrics, illumination, production

Production

• The original album featured the following credit: "Produced By King Crimson for E.G. Productions – 'David & John'." David Enthoven and John Gaydon were the founders of EG Records, both of whom left the company during the 1970s. CD reissues from the 1980s removed "David & John" – the credit was restored in 1999 at Fripp's insistence.
• Robin Thompson – recording engineer
• Tony Page – assistant engineer
• Barry Godber – cover illustrations[35]

1. "21st Century Schizoid Man (including "Mirrors")" Robert Fripp, Ian McDonald, Greg Lake, Michael Giles, Pete Sinfield 7:24
2. "I Talk to the Wind" McDonald, Sinfield 6:04
3. "Epitaph (including "March for No Reason" and "Tomorrow and Tomorrow")" Fripp, McDonald, Lake, Giles, Sinfield 8:49
4. "Moonchild (including "The Dream" and "The Illusion")" Fripp, McDonald, Lake, Giles, Sinfield 12:13
5. "The Court of the Crimson King (including "The Return of the Fire Witch" and "The Dance of the Puppets")" McDonald, Sinfield 9:26
Total length: 43:56
--------------------------------------------------------
King Crimson are a rare and unusual band. For more info about the band go to Red

This debut album from King Crimson is an iconic album, that many consider to be the first Progressive Rock album. I personally don't see things that black and white, but certainly acknowledge it as an important album. It actually isn't a favourite Crimson album for me, but that certainly doesn't mean I don't like it. Unlike many folks I actually thought Crimson got better and better. For me their searching and wandering has been a great source of entertainment for me. As I have said before, these Crimson sets are brilliant, and I wish all the bands wanting to release deluxe sets with 5.1 mixes would follow the Tull and Crimson path, with eyes on value and content, rather than smoke and mirrors with huge prices. But alas that isn't how the business world works.

Today I am going to try for the first time ever, to compare two mixes. I must admit when I heard they were releasing another 5.1 version of the album, I was a little affronted to be honest .... I think subconsciously I was thinking that they were going to release some big box and isolate some special new mix in it, but that isn't the M.O. that Crimson have set up, and sure enough, even though there is a big box coming, this was just over thirty dollars for the new streamlined set. So I had no choice but to grab it.
So I am going to listen to the original, and then I am going to listen to the new 50th anniversary version and play spot the difference. I assume there must be a reasonable amount of difference, as otherwise it would seem futile to remix it. I can only assume that Wilson and Fripp think they didn't quite get the first one right ... or they believed that their techniques had gotten sharper and therefor a new mix was needed. However it goes, or went, we have one

40th anniversary
Amazon has the 40th Anniversary edition available from about $16 https://www.amazon.com/Court-40th-K...rimson+40th+anniversary&qid=1574594100&sr=8-1
which surprises me, as I thought it was out of print.
Discogs has many copies Japan from $40 King Crimson - In The Court Of The Crimson King (An Observation By King Crimson)
US print from $14.99 King Crimson - In The Court Of The Crimson King - An Observation By King Crimson
Uk and Europe print from $7.14 King Crimson - In The Court Of The Crimson King - An Observation By King Crimson

So surprisingly still very available and affordable. Perhaps prices have fallen with the release of the 50th anniversary edition ... I don't know, as I don't really follow these things.

50th Anniversary
Amazon has it for $32.37 https://www.amazon.com/Court-Crimson-King-Anniversary-Blu-ray/dp/B07X5GK2JJ
Burning Shed about 30 pounds In The Court Of The Crimson King (50th Anniversary)

Here is the DMG page to read up more, if that interests you https://www.dgmlive.com/news/ITCOTCK 50th Anniversary edition

So this is again a Steven Wilson 5.1 mix

As I say, this is the first time I have ever done a comparative thing with an album, so I have no idea how this is going to go.

40th - mlp lossless
21st Century Schizoid Man
We start with atmospherics in the whole field. Mixed low for impact when the main riff comes in.
The main theme is more toward the front, it wraps around nicely though, and we get crashes and splashes in the rears also.
Also we get one of the staccato guitars left rear, front left, front right, right rear. Nice effect
In the instrumental break in opens up a bit more, and we get get Fripp's lead break in the rears.
Some horns come in and they move from right rear to front, while in effect mode. Then they move back to the rears. It works nicely.
The melodic riff horns come back in, in the rears.
This is a very nice mix, so I'm really interested in what the new one will be like.
Nice well balanced mix, the ending frenzy is very effective using all channels.

I Talk to The Wind
Flutes up front. Vocals up front.
Wind instruments in the rears.
Quite a beautiful track, well balanced, and effective. The drums are there, but aptly very quite.
Fripp bell tones middle of room.
Flute lead break in the surround triangle front to rears.
Mellow lead break up front.
Another really nice balanced mix

Epitaph
Tympanic drums and cymbals in the rears. Swelling mellotron/s.
Some guitar clangs go from the middle of the room to the rears. Nice effect.
Organ in the rears.
Mellotron comes back in, in the rears.
Mellotron on the left. Guitar on the right.
We get a big swell of sound that crashes into a solo acoustic, front left.
An oboe? Up front.
Winds in the rears.
Mellotron all round.
Again the mix seems balanced and tasteful to me. Works very well.
"Confusion will be my Epitaph" nice percussive elements in the rears, and the mellotron comes back in nicely in the rears.

Moonchild
Mellotron strings in the rears. Acoustic gtr up front. Nice clear cymbals in the sides.
An effected or reverse guitar, sort of in the middle, feeding out.
We get the change and there is an ambiance all round us, then the guitar up front on its own.
Some light and airy keyboards in the rears, sort of sit under the guitar.
Some percussion comes in.
You can hear a sort of experimental trading off section here, as we get little stabs of music from the various instruments, coming from all different angles.
I forgot how mellow most of this album is.
Various percussive elements in the rears. Fripp still adlibbing somewhat up the front.
Fripp moves into a chordal section, with the glockenspiel? in the rears.

The Court Of The Crimson King
Mellotron in the rears. Piano up front.
Gtr front left, vocal centre front.
Bvox front and right.
Another keyboard on the right organ.
Percussive bits all round.
Flute plays on the tight with sends left.
Fripp plays arpeggiated guitar up front.
Mellotron swells up all around.
Then we're back to gtr and vox.
Again this is a really nice balanced mix.
With each track I ponder what these differences are going to be.
We get a cymbal bell on the right. Then an organ split in thre parts? Front right, right side and left rear.
Then we punch back into the main descending chord pattern with full band, mellotron, organ, winds and some nice drums. This swirls into a nice somewhat white sound finish, with the effect of a tape cut at the end.

So this to me sounds great ... what will this new version be?
I will wonder no more.

50th - dts HD and pcm 5.1... going with pcm
21st Century Schizoid Man
Volume slightly lower, adjusted up to balance.
Slightly more separation on the opening sound effects.
I think we have better separation on the opening riff section too.
We still have that nice circling staccato guitar chord, possibly a smoother transition.
In the change the horns sound very good left and right rear.
The guitar is up front with effects sends alternating to the left and right rears. Nice effect.
The horn effect swells up in the rears, and then its little frenzy works in the rears.
This really does sound very good.
Horns all round with great clarity.
I think the drums sound better here too.
I'm going to say, as good as the 40th is, this is actually better. Clarity is superb, immersion a little better, and very much worth the effort.

I Talk to The Wind
Flutes either side in the rears.
Bvox on the sides.
More definition in the drums here. The kick has a nice gentle sub presence also.
Nice round bass also.
Fripp's bell tones again float across the middle nicely.
This is really nice ... the original is excellent... this is better.
Flute lead across middle, Fripp lead guitar on the right.
Fripp's bell tones circle the listener nicely.
Flute lead on the right. Organ up front. Drums up front.... and you can hear them properly without them over powering the gentle bed of music.
Flute lead in the left.
Excellent mix.

Epitaph
Timpani in the rears. Mellotron seemingly all round. Gtr up front.
So far one of the major differences is the drums. They are much more present, and sound great.
Fripp's guitar clang goes from left to right beautifully.
Chord strikes in the rears. Mellotron in the rears.
Beautiful sounding lead fill from Fripp.
Acoustic gtr front left. Alt guitar right side.
Crescendo works beautifully.
Winds come in in the rears. Punctuated percussion front left, with crash left front and right rear.
I'm going to say this is one for the audiophiles.
Very impressed with the sound of this.
In the 40th mix, often the drums seemed a little lost, and perhaps also the bass.
Here everything really does sound so good and clear.
Immersion factor is very high.
I really wanted to rebel against the idea of doing this mix again.... it felt like just another reason to make folks buy the album, but this was certainly worth the effort.

Moonchild
Already I prefer this version, and it has made me like the album more also.
Let's see what happens here, as this normally drags a little for me.
Nice acoustic gtr right side.
Really nice clear bells on the cymbals left and front. Mellotron up front. The percussion again is more clear and present, whole still retaining its background feel.
We move into the ambient section.
Gtr just left of front left.
Keys right.
Again the drums more present, without losing their support roll on the background.
We again move into the experimental trade off section. They have used quite different positioning. Still very good.
Percussion right front, left rear, gtr just left of front left.
Fripp moves into his chordal pattern just left of front left.
Glockenspiel? Front right.

The Court Of The Crimson King
Mellotron rears, piano up front. Again the drums sound really good.
Guitar left of front left, vocal front.
Bvox rears.
Harpsichord? Rears.
Piano just right of front right.
Organ just right of front right. Mellotron rears. Organ moves across front barely noticable.
Flute on the left with effects sends to front and right. Gtr on the right.
Mellotron swells in the rear.
In the break there is less of a dropout, as you can hear the final chord fading just before the cymbal comes in.
Organ? Right.
Really nice drum fill across the front and we move back into full sound.
Mellotron in the rears.
Very full sounding finish.
The ending works really well also.

Ok, well that was a very interesting exercise. I think almost exclusively the new version is better, and listening to them back to back, I can see why they thought they needed to tweak the mix a little.
Although, not being historically a huge Crimson head ... back in the day I think Islands was the only albums I had on Vinyl ... The drums on the 40th release are a little in the background, almost like ghost drums. I don't know if that was the case on the original album or not. Here the drums are still often a background instrument in many cases, but they have more presence and a more full and rich kind of sound to them. I'm not trying to sound like an audiophile, because I am not, just trying to explain how I hear it.
There are some mild mix choice differences, that do make enough difference to notice. The break in Moonchild is slightly more in the front, and to some degree I think that actually works slightly better, although I love the mix on the 40th using the rears more ... it is hard to pick a winner in that regard.
The clarity seems much higher to my ears on the 50th. Giving a more sharp definition to the individual instruments.
I am no expert on dynamics or compression ... but this disc was more quiet than the 40th....

I guess the Crimson fanatic would want both of these discs. If you already have the 40th, I think you need to get the 50th, and preferably while it is still at a decent price, because these kinds of discs are so hard to pick in terms of going out of print ... and it always seems to be hit and miss as to how many may have been printed.

I really think the 40th is very very good, and I would say worth having ... but with the appearance of the 50th, it sounds like an audiophile piece of work, and is quite stunning ....

I hope that all makes sense, that is about as well as I can convey my opinion on this.

 

Well damn it - I guess I'm going to have to buy it again. If it weren't such a classic album, I wouldn't. I believe the 40th anniversary edition of COTCK was the first time Steven Wilson mixed an album that wasn't his own. I guess he's learned a few more tricks since then.

 

I'll definitely get the 50th remix but only once the big ‘69 set comes next year. Good to know that it sounds good. I must say that whenever I've tried A/B comparisons I lose track of the contrasts very quickly ... I don't envy you trying to do it over what must be two rather similar mixes.

 

Afraid of Sunlight


Studio album by
Marillion
Released 24 June 1995
Recorded January — March 1995
Studio The Racket Club
(Buckinghamshire, England)
Length 51:25[nb 1]
Label EMI
Producer Dave Meegan Marillion

Afraid of Sunlight is Marillion's eighth studio album, released in 1995. It was their last for EMI (who would, however, continue to release back-catalogue material on compilations and re-issues, as well as distribute some later recordings).

Afraid of Sunlight was the first Marillion studio album to fail to reach the Top 10 in the UK Albums Chart, peaking at number 16 and falling out of the Top 75 after two weeks.[3] Despite this, Afraid of Sunlight became one of the band's most critically acclaimed albums and was included in Q magazine's "Recordings of the Year" for 1995.[4] It was retrospectively described by Jeri Montesano of Allmusic as "the peak of Marillion's growing, impressive body of work" and by colleague Jason Ankeny as "the most consistent Marillion release to date".[5][6]

Marillion

• Steve Hogarth – vocals, additional keyboards and percussion
• Steve Rothery – guitar
• Mark Kelly – keyboards
• Pete Trewavas – bass and backing vocals
• Ian Mosley – drums and percussion

Additional musicians

• Barbara Lezmy – additional backing vocals (on "Cannibal Surf Babe")
• Wendy Paige – additional backing vocals (on "Cannibal Surf Babe")
• Hannah Stobart – additional backing vocals (on "Beautiful")

Technical personnel

• Dave Meegan – production, engineering and mixing (at Parr Street Studios, Liverpool, England)
• Nick Davis – mixing ("Cannibal Surf Babe") (at Rockfield Studios, Monmouthshire, Wales)
• Michael Brauer – mixing ("Beautiful") (at Sony Music Studios, New York)
• Peter Mew – 1999 digital remastering (January 1999 at Abbey Road Studios, London)
• Bill Smith Studio – design
• Paul Cox – front cover photography

1. "Gazpacho" 7:28
2. "Cannibal Surf Babe" 5:45
3. "Beautiful" Hogarth, Rothery, Kelly, Trewavas, Mosley 5:12
4. "Afraid of Sunrise" 5:02
5. "Out of This World" 7:54
6. "Afraid of Sunlight" 6:50
7. "Beyond You" Hogarth, Rothery, Kelly, Trewavas, Mosley 6:11
8. "King" 7:03
Total length: 51:25
--------------------------------------------
Marillion are a British band that decided to follow in the prog tradition, even when prog wasn't very popular anymore, so I give them kudos for following their muse and not the commercial dollar.
They formed in Buckinghamshire in England in roughly 78-80. There was a band that formed in late 1978 calling themselves Silmarillion, after the Tolkien book, and over the time between 78 and 81 the name was shortened to its current form. There are varying reports as to why the name was shortened, copyright being one suggestion, wanting to avoid any legal issues with the name.
Early on the band was frequently compared to Gabriel era Genesis. they released their first album in 1983, after being signed to EMI on the strength of some demos. They had also previously recorded some demos at the Enid's studio in Hertfordshire.
Although being hit with the Genesis soundalike tag the debut went platinum. The band really broke through in 1985 with Misplaced Childhood, and the hit single Kayleigh. to be honest when the song first came out, I wasn't very interested, and I didn't explore any of the band's work until the Misplaced Childhood 5.1 was released reasonably recently. The single made me think the band were a somewhat lightweight pop band, and at the time, that just wasn't going to fly with me.
They recorded their final album with Fish as the singer (Clutching At Straws), who had gained a bit of a name for himself by this stage. Apparently there was some kind of managerial issue, and Fish put it to the band that they could continue with him, or the manager ... the band for better or worse chose to keep the manager and Fish departed.
In 1989 the band recruited Steve Hogarth, who was the keyboardist and vocalist with a band called The Europeans. A new era of Marillion started.
In 1994 they released the Brave album, and it was a return to roots album in many ways, as the band had flirted with commerciality in their previous album.
This album Afraid Of Sunlight is the follow up to the successful Brave album, which charted at 10 in the UK. This album charted at 16 in the UK, but went to 8 in holland, and also got some minor chart action in Germany and Sweden.

As I say I am very new to the band. I have picked up the 5.1 albums I am aware of
Misplaced Childhood
Brave
F.E.A.R
Sounds That Can't Be Made
Clutching At Straws
and now Afraid Of Sunlight
So I have never heard anything off this album, and enter it completely unaware of what it might be.
I wouldn't say I am a huge Marillion fan, but each of those albums has entertained me enough to be interested in getting a new release. I hope to some degree that Script and Fugazi get redone also at some point, because although I am not familiar with them, I am interested in the development, and won't but a cd, based on the fact that it seems the band are going to do this with their albums while it remains viable to do so.

This is also brand new... and it is so nice to be able to get into some of these albums before they are OOP.
Amazon roughly $40 https://www.amazon.com/Afraid-Sunlight-Deluxe-4CD-1BD/dp/B07X7YPQBQ
Burning shed roughly 30 pounds Afraid of Sunlight (Deluxe)
Google Shopping $38.99 Marillion - Afraid of Sunlight (cd)
and i assume many other places, but there's a few for you to check out.

The set has the original stereo mix, and new stereo mic on cd. A two cd concert. and also the Bluray, with the 5.1, stereo, bonus tracks and all that stuff we expect from these releases. The band seem to have followed the King Crimson, Jethro Tull example and are trying to give a top product at a good price, and I tip my hat at that choice.

5.1 mix Michael hunter
Dts hd and 24/48 pcm 5.1... going with the dts this time

Gazpacho
Arena noise, with an announcer left. Speaking on right moves to left.
Synth pad upfront. Guitar kicks on upfront, and the drums.
Turned the volume up from start volume.
Guitars or effect send rings in the rears.
It's a very full mix ... not sure that there is a sub send.
Glistening keys and guitars in rears.
Announcer type vocal right side.
We have a crisp top end leaning soundwise, which does suit this music.
We fade out to sfx.

Cannibal Surf Babe
Bass front and centre.
Keys in rears. Little sfx in rears.
Guitars either side and front.
The whole soundfield is getting aural action.
We get some nice synth surround effects.
We open and close with a mild beach boys pastiche.
We actually close with a French lady over a surround bed of synths.

Beautiful
Guitars either side. Drums and bass have some nice space to work in here.
This is a really nice ballad type song.
The mix is nicely immersive, and balanced.
Hogarth's vocal come over very well.
Nice organ in the rears.

Afraid Of Sunrise
Guitar just left. Keys right rear. A lot of nice use of effects sends.
Another mellow track that works well.

Out Of This world
Slow fade up. Gtr front left and right rear.
Synth front right and left rear.
Rothery takes a lead break, and a really nice one. More sfx in the rears, radio chatter.
A synth bed floats around the channels with a Hogarth vocal.

Afraid Of Sunlight
Guitar upfront left. Synths in rears.
As the sing slowly builds to a crescendo the soundfield really fills out nicely.

Beyond You
Very mellow beginning. That comes in nicely. Synth bed. Piano gently in the rears.
Nice dynamic punch in, full soundfield with various keys/synths around us.
Another dynamic drop. This moves back into a louder section smoothly.
Slow fade.

King
We get some nice guitar up front, with keys in rears. Then this is broken by sfx all round. Then another reflective guitar and vocal section to start the song proper.
Another nice dynamic punch in.
Nice keys in the rears.
Then another nice dynamic punch in.
Drops down to keys rears, vocals front.
Drops out almost completely guitar just left of left front. Vocal still front.
A slow rise in dynamics again works effectively.
We finish with a big swell, that is effective and then cuts out.

Firstly. I really like this album, it has an earnest reaching feel. I have no idea what the lyrics are, but Hogarth is invested in them. I know I should hear the lyrics, and i do, but i'm trying so hard to focus on the mix that I can understand but not really take in the lyrics if that makes sense.
The album is written very dynamically. The album plays well, and has good dynamics, but I am a bet each way as to whether they manage to get the dynamics across as well as they could ... if that makes sense. I don't think it is brickwalled or anything like that though, there certainly are good dynamics, but it feels like it needs a little more.
The album sounds very good, but I think a little more bottom end would have done it a world of good. Having just listened to the two Crimson albums, I feel that Wilson doing whatever he did in the 50th mix would work wonders here.
We have a batch of songs that lean towards a light and shade kind of feel. It is a fairly mellow album with some punch sections. again I think the punch sections would have worked a little better with a little more bottom end.
I'm not knocking the album, and I would really really like a Marillion fan to step in and give us their breakdown of this.
I actually really found myself getting right into the album. I felt that the sound was good, but not quite right.
There are a lot of effects sends doing some of the surround feel. There is also some very good mixing. The album certainly has a nice immersive feel, and with the emotive leaning that the album is taking that works very well.
I think this is definitely worth getting, but I also feel that it could have been better

 

I think the mixes are slightly different, but the sound on the 50th came across a lot better to me.
I don't look forward to having to do that again .... it's kind of a pressure when you know that someone may decide to buy something based on what you say, and then disagree ... but I really like the drums in the 50th mix. the 40th, they seem to be a little lost on occasion.

 

Crises


Studio album by
Mike Oldfield
Released 27 May 1983
Recorded November 1982–April 1983
Studio Tilehouse Studios, Denham, Buckinghamshire
Genre Progressive rock, pop rock
Length 37:41
Label Virgin
Producer Mike Oldfield Simon Phillips

Crises is the eighth studio album by English multi-instrumentalist and songwriter Mike Oldfield, released on 27 May 1983 on Virgin Records. It marked the continuation of Oldfield's change in musical direction that had started with his previous album Five Miles Out (1982), signified by more commercial and straightforward rock and pop songs. The album contains the hit singles "Moonlight Shadow" featuring Maggie Reilly on lead vocals and "Shadow on the Wall", sung by Roger Chapman. Oldfield supported the album with the Crises Tour across Europe in 1983 that featured most of the musicians that played on the album.

• Mike Oldfield – guitars on all tracks except "Foreign Affair" (including Ovation Adamus electroacoustic guitar, Ramirez Spanish guitar & Manson acoustic guitar on "Taurus 3"); Fairlight CMI on all tracks except "Taurus 3"; Roland string synthesizer (probably the VP-330) on "Crises", "In High Places", "Foreign Affair" & "Shadow on the Wall", Oberheim OB-Xa synthesizer on "Crises" & "In High Places"; Farfisa organ & piano & Prophet 5 synthesizer on "Crises"; bass guitar on "Crises" & "Shadow on the Wall"; acoustic bass guitar on "Taurus 3"; harp on "Crises"; mandolin on "Crises" & "Taurus 3"; banjo on "Taurus 3" & "Shadow on the Wall"; Simmons electronic drums on "Crises"; bells & tambourine & shaker on "Taurus 3"; Oberheim DMX drum machine & Oberheim DSX digital polyphonic sequencer & Quantec Room Simulator reverb unit on "Crises"; vocals on "Crises".

Additional personnel[edit]

• Maggie Reilly – vocals on "Moonlight Shadow", "Foreign Affair" and "Mistake"
• Jon Anderson – vocals on "In High Places"
• Roger Chapman – vocals on "Shadow on the Wall"
• Simon Phillips – acoustic Tama drums, co-production, special effects; shaker on "Foreign Affair" and "Taurus 3"; finger-snaps, bells, tambourine and boots on "Taurus 3"
• Ant (Ant Glynne) – guitars on "Crises" and "Shadow on the Wall"
• Rick Fenn – guitar on "Crises"
• Phil Spalding – bass guitar on "Crises" and "Moonlight Shadow"
• Pierre Moerlen – vibraphone on "In High Places"
• Ginny Clee - synthesizers on "Mistake"
• Tim Renwick - guitars on "Mistake"
• Morris Pert - drums on "Mistake"

1. Crises
2. Moonlight Shadow
3. "In High Places"
4. "Foreign Affair"
5. "Taurus 3"
6. "Shadow on the Wall"

-------------------------------------------------------
I have my fingers crossed here. this cost way more than I wanted to pay, but I have always enjoyed the album, and 5.1 fever got the better of me. I have been waiting weeks to listen to it and I just have enough time to squeeze it in. So I'm not going to get too elaborate here.

Amazon 1 copy for $423 ... thankfully I didn't pay that much (I just couldn't) https://www.amazon.com/Crises-Mike-...e+box+set&qid=1574610010&s=music&sr=1-1-fkmr0
Ebay has one for $307 mike oldfield crisis super deluxe box set | eBay
another for 239 GBP
Disocgs starts from $164 Mike Oldfield - Crises

Very sad days when an album like this is so unavailable, and so expensive to hunt down..... Anyway lets see whether it is/was worth worrying about.

5.1 mix Mike Oldfield

Dts 5.1

Crises
Synth left, another front. Bells alternating sides.
Some very distinctive synth sounds either side piano up front.
Drums come in up front.
Nice immersion factor.
One of Oldfields very layered pieces.
Nice bass up front in the first change.
Police siren across front. Random pieces of broken glass? From various angles
Nice harmony guitars left, front, and right.
Change back to uptempo section.
Drum fills either side. Various synths in sides and rears, as lead melody guitar plays up front.
Another change
Guitar left, front and right.
Drums right side. Vocal section.
Nice balance between the guitars.
Another change.
Drums front and right for fills.
Guitars all round.
Bvox rears.
Riff guitar right.
Hi what effect moves around.
Synth front with effects sends to rears.
Nice harmony guitars around us again. Left, right and front.
Ride cymbals behind us.
Synth sound right side. Nice acoustic gtr up front. Various gtrs
Two synths either side start another change. Drums come in front right.
Tom's play off each other in either side of the rears.
Synth pad rears.
This is an unusual mix, for an unusual piece of music. There is certainly a lot going on. Definitely immersive.
Layers of stuff going on all around.
Double kick thing going on with pieces of drum fills all around us. Interesting mix indeed.
Then keys and guitar come back in.
Nice sub pulse.
Percussion crescendo punches out to a synth fade.

Moonlight shadow
The first song that really got me into Oldfield.
Acoustics either side. Palm mute melody lead up front.
Drums on the right.
Maggie Reilly's vocal sounds great.
The stab acoustic is in the front, left rear and right rear.
Lead break up front.
The video plays just visible under the rotating green earth of the album cover.
Dead stop ending.

In high places
Percussion track either side. Jon Anderson, quite obviously up front.
Gtr left rear. Xylophone synth up front.
Another unusual mix. Again immersive.

Foreign affair
Drums right. Synth noises, left, right and front.
Maggie Reilly again sounds great up front.
Again an unusual mix, again it is immersive.

Taurus 3
Drums around all speakers. Acoustic gtr up front.
Synths either side.
Percussive assault in the rears.
The guitar up front is great.
Again an unusual mix, again very immersive.

Shadow on the wall
Lead guitar up front. Guitars either side. Rhythm and harmony guitars.
Drums up front.
Banjo ip front also.
Synth stab just left of front left.
Another very immersive mix.
Lead break section is really interesting, with multiple layered guitars sounding pretty cool.
Bvox either side in the extended sort of fade out.
Again very immersive mix.

This one is so unusual. I like it, I am happy I have it, but I don't think I would encourage someone to pay over a hundred bucks for it.
I like the Mike Oldfield mixes I have heard, but I honestly think that even if he wanted to twiddle the knobs himself, he would have been much better getting someone else in to bounce ideas off, and to also temper his leanings somewhat.
Oldfield is a talented guy, who writes some very good if not slightly unusual stuff, and he seems to have an "I must do it all myself" mentality. I honestly think that if he got in a Ludwig, Clearmountain, Wilson or Scheiner type guy, these mixes would be mindblowing instead of interesting.
I think a serious Oldfield fan would want this as there is a lot on offer in the box itself ....



but I wouldn't be spending most of the dollars asked merely for the 5.1.

So I can't recommend this at the price it will cost, but I do like it, but it is very unusual.

 

So while we are on a page someone might see. here are this week's choices . Yes, we're back to that ... I hope nobody minded my self indulgence this week.

 

Dave Gilmour - On An Island
Vince Gill - High Lonesome Sound

 

Nick Drake - A Treasury
Alison Kraus And Union Station - New Favourite

 

James Taylor - JT
Johnny Cash - Live At Folsom Prison

 

Alice Cooper - billion dollar babies
Soundgarden - Badmotorfinger

 

Steve Hackett - Spectral Mornings
Hawkwind - Warrior On The Edge Of time

 

XTC - Oranges and Lemons
ELP - Tarkus

 

Velvet Underground - Reloaded
Porcupine Tree - Lightbulb Sun

 

Mark, re Stormwatch and the “glitch at the end of the album”: is the glitch in “Elegy” on DVD 1?

Thanks, Fritz

 

yea. It is just after about the 45 minute mark ... just before the fade out.

 

Thx, Will check it out and see if I have same problem.