Surrounded On Sundays - 5.1/quad reviews and summaries

...And Then There Were Three...


Studio album by
Genesis
Released 31 March 1978
Recorded September–October 1977
Studio Relight Studios
(Hilvarenbeek, Netherlands)
Genre Pop rock[1]
Length 53:27
Label Charisma
Producer David Hentschel Genesis

...And Then There Were Three... is the ninth studio album by the English rock band Genesis. It was released in March 1978 by Charisma Records and is their first recorded as a trio of singer/drummer Phil Collins, keyboardist Tony Banks, and bassist/guitarist Mike Rutherford following the departure of guitarist Steve Hackett. The album marked a change in the band's sound, mixing elements of their progressive rock roots with shorter material, and Collins contributing to more of the group's songwriting.

The album received mixed reviews from critics, but reached No.  3 on the UK Albums Chart and No.  14 on the US Billboard 200. The lead single "Follow You Follow Me" became their highest charting at that point, reaching No.  7 in the UK and No.  23 in the US. The album was certified platinum by the Recording Industry Association of America (RIAA) in 1988 for selling one million copies in the US. To further promote it, Genesis toured worldwide with their new live guitarist Daryl Stuermer. The album was remixed in 2007 as part of the Genesis 1976–1982 box set in 5.1 surround sound and a new stereo mix by Nick Davis.

Genesis

• Tony Banks – keyboards
• Phil Collins – drums, percussion, vocals
• Mike Rutherford – basses, guitars

Production

• Genesis – production
• David Hentschel – production, engineer
• Pierre Geofroy Chateau – production assistant
• Steve Short – mixing assistant
• Geoff Banks – equipment
• Andy Mackrill – equipment
• Dale Newman – equipment
• Hipgnosis – sleeve design, photographs

1. "Down and Out" Phil Collins, Tony Banks, Mike Rutherford 5:28
2. "Undertow" Banks 4:47
3. "Ballad of Big" Collins, Banks, Rutherford 4:51
4. "Snowbound" Rutherford 4:31
5. "Burning Rope" Banks 7:10
6. "Deep in the Motherlode" Rutherford 5:16
7. "Many Too Many" Banks 3:32
8. "Scenes from a Night's Dream" Collins, Banks 3:30
9. "Say It's Alright Joe" Rutherford 4:21
10 "The Lady Lies" Banks 6:08
11. "Follow You Follow Me" Rutherford, Banks, Collins 4:01
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Genesis came together in 1967 as a group of likeminded Charterhouse School guys wanting to write songs. They started out with the intention of writing songs for other people and then they picked up by Jonathon King. They recorded the album From Genesis To Revelation which has a huge amount of input from King, and to a degree, his input somewhat spoiled the album ... but of course that is subjective.
The band ended up getting out of the King deal and making another album Trespass, which is a very good album, and more on their own terms. They were starting to do more gigs at the time and wanted a slightly harder sounds, and the track the Knife came about, and somewhat pointed the direction they would take.
One thing about Genesis is that they were always in flux stylistically with very few albums sounding like the album prior.
Around this time Peter Gabriel started getting some notoriety with his stage costumes and performance, which somewhat annoyed the guys a little, as they wanted people to listen to the music.
The band went on to start getting some real success and recognition around the Time of Selling England By The Pound and when they got around to doing Lamb Lies Down On Broadway, they were really starting to turn some heads. Unfortunately due to some artistic differences and personal issues Peter Gabriel left after the tour of the Lamb and the band went on to record two albums with Steve Hackett remaining on board. After they recorded Wind and Wuthering Hackett wanted to move on due to wanting to have more of his songs represented. This was a sad loss for Genesis as it can't be underestimated how good his guitar parts were. He had a natural leaning towards using the right textures and tones, and playing just what the song needed, but not enough of the songs were his, so he felt a need to move on.
Suffering two huge losses the band decided to keep going, and in 1978 ...And Then There Were Three came out.
Phil Collins who had been the drummer and back up vocalist in the band from Nursery Cryme in 1971, and wanted to stay that way, had reluctantly taken over vocals after Gabriel left. The band saying they couldn't find anyone really suitable, and laying it on Phil to be the singer and front man.
There has been a notoriously big fan battle staged between Gabriel and Collins, which is actually ridiculous because they were pretty much best mates and Phil was best man at Peter's wedding, and through the years they have consistently played music together at various times.

So we come to this album, which divides a lot of Genesis fans. I personally think it is great, but understand the reservations others have about it.
Most seem to attack Collins for the change of sound in the band, but the reality is Tony Banks was more the leader than Collins was, up until Collins huge solo success (and overexposure) in the eighties.
So although Collins does have some writing credits on this album, he had predominantly been the bands arranger up to this point, and really didn't start writing much until the eighties, after his very publicised divorce, and even more so, his big debut album Face Value.

Discogs has this available from about $32 Genesis - ...And Then There Were Three...
from about $30 Genesis - ...And Then There Were Three...
There is also an sacd/dvd version available from about $54 Genesis - ...And Then There Were Three...
All the bands albums are available in 5.1 in a now OOP series of box sets, which I believe is mentioned in the above Selling England link.

Many folks were unhappy with Nick Davis' choices in the remixes, and there were also some folks felt that the mastering was a bit heavy handed on the compression.
I like my sacd's and can't really make too much comment on those issues, but I reckon folks will put their two cents worth in on that as we go.

5.1 mix Nick Davis
Mastering Tony Cousins



Down and Out
We star with a held synth note across the middle and a halting synth chord progression up front.
The guitar riff comes in up front with a nice sounding synth across the field.
The rhythm to me is great, but some find it too disjointed.
This is one of my favourite Genesis songs.
We have a nice sub support for the bass and kick.
The drums are fantastic.
Cymbals all round.
Synth left guitar right.
The mastering probably is a little on the louder side, but I don't hear any clipping.
Banks synths, which I personally love on this album, give us a great surround field to be engulfed in.

Undertow
We start with with beautifully balanced keys and guitar, filling the field. Then a string pad comes in, and shortly after the drums kick in.
Bvox in the rears.
Then to me a beautiful wall of guitars and synths surround us in what I see as the chorus. Then back to the gentle intro.
I think this is one of Banks best songs.
Nice punctuated drum fills get the full width of the front.
The almost sitar-like guitar on the left and right.

Ballad Of Big
A somewhat lesser song, but still sounding great.
A nice mellow keyboard intro that bursts into an uptempo rock song in the form of a ballad from the wild west .... yea I know lol
Again the bass and kick get good sub assistance.
Guitars either side in the verses, then burst into a wall of synths in the chorus.
To me we have a nice balanced mix that has various keyboards parts left right and front forming a deep immersion.

Snowbound
Another song I love, but some find a bit dorky I think.
A couple of acoustics arpeggio away under a synth counter melody.
The chorus bursts in again with synths filling the field all around us, the acoustics either side.
I would be interested to know how many tracks of each there are... it sounds very layered.
We have held chords and twinkling arpeggios that reflect the lyrics well.
Meanwhile the acoustics strum away either side.

Burning Rope
I think most Genesis fans like this one.
We get more layered keys either side.
More great drums.
A dramatic opening theme bursts into a really nice melodic theme.
Piano up front, synths rears and either side.
In the verse we have guitars either side.
I really like the structure and the layered synths.
We move to a mellow section with guitar either side and the melody synth.
Then Rutherford gets his first chance to take a lead. It is effective and melodic and sure it isn't Hackett but it is very effective and we move into an excellent change. This in turn moves into another excellent change led by the piano, and we modulate back into the verse.
Some nice subtle backing vocals.
Then we get that cool descending guitar led riff again . And we modulate to a nice finish.

Deep In The Motherlode
We get a powerful bass, drums and synth opening, that moves into a steady groove.
Again nice sub assistance. Again nice layered synths and guitars weld together, either side. Cymbals crashing in the rears.
Again great drums.
In the change we get gtrs either side. Some nice synth left and front.
The change works well as a narrative and dynamic interlude.
Then back into the main riff, and really cool swelling grind.
This breaks down to a nice halting halfbeat outro.

Many Too Many
Oh oh a piano ballad
Nice piano upfront, synth strings either side and front.
Nice rhythm gtr both sides. Really cool harmony guitar upfront.
Then we burst into the prechorus.
Synths either side, guitar up front.
Nice harmonised guitars either side.
Rutherford takes another nice lead in the fade.

Scene's From A Night's Dream
Gtrs in the rears. Nice sub support again
Cool bvox in the rears.
Cowbell left.
Each time I hear this I like and appreciate it more.... on first hearing it I didn't.
Vocals all round.
Some nice counterpoint from the keys.
Very effective and immersive mix.
Listening much more closely really does this song a favour. It can seem somewhat trite when not immersing yourself in the actual music.

Say It's Alright Joe
We start slowly and gently.
Keys just left, vocal up front. Soundfield fills up with tinkling keys. Then we mellow down again.
Gtrs either side.
Then punch.
Synths either side and front.
A cool guitar arpeggio either side leads us back to the verse.
Again the guitars and synths work really well together creating a great immersive sound.

The Lady Lies
We start with some almost strpper-like music.
We get keys either side, and a great bass upfront. Bvox come in also.
And great mix of distorted guitars and keys either side.
The drums again are great.
Nice arpeggio guitars either side.
Ride on the right.
This is the three guys trying to capture a Gabrielesque type track ... perhaps not quite succeeding, but I have grown to really like this.
The mix is excellent and those drums are great.
In the change tripled vocals all round.
Again the immersion factor is really good.
Such a well arranged track.
Possibly a cowbell on the right. Can't tell if it is a ride bell or cowbell, but I'm leaning to the cowbell now.

Follow You Follow Me
I'm going to say this song is infamous. I reckon it's great, and also not particularly commercial for 1978.
Although a ballad of sorts it is so not typical.
The great little guitar intro dances around us. Then the drums and keys come in, and we have a solid groove.
The synth following the vocal melody comes in the sides.
Great sub assist. Great drum track, again so atypical for a so called commercial song. I think it is because the lyrics are love song-like, rather than dungeons and dragons-like.
The lead synth either side sounds really good.

I know I seem to be in the vast minority, but this is one of my favourite Genesis albums, and each time I listen to it, it seems more bizarre to me that it is so disliked by so many.
I can hear that it may be somewhat compressed, but not brickwalled to my ears. Most importantly I don't hear any clipping.
The mix perhaps isn't in the highest tier of mixes, but I reckon it is wonderfully immersive, and I can hear layers of synths and guitars blending beautifully to create this lush wall of sound, that still has an edge.
I reckon Collins really started to become a very good singer around this time, and probably peaked on the self titled album.
I may well just be biased, and perhaps this album just touches me in a way that it doesn't others, but I reckon this is a great album and a great mix.

 

Also don't forget to run through any of the albums we have done, if you feel drawn to

Reference to the albums

Aerosmith - Toys In The Attic
Alice Cooper - Welcome To My Nightmare
Allman Brothers Band - Live At Fillmore East
Allman Brother Band - Eat a Peach
Anathema - We're Here Because We're Here
Ayreon - The Source

The Beatles - The Beatles (White Album)
The Beatles - Abbey Road
Beck, Jeff - Blow By Blow
Be Bop Deluxe - Futurama
Be Bop Deluxe - Sunburst Finish
Bjork - Vespertine
Bowie, David - The Rise And Fall Of Ziggy Stardust And The Spiders From Mars
Browne, Jackson - Running On Empty

Charles, Ray - Ray Sings, Basie Swings
Cobham, Billy - Spectrum
Cobham, Billy - Spectrum (Quad) thanks @-dave--wave-

Davis, Miles - In A Silent Way
Davis, Miles - Bitches Brew
Depeche Mode - Some Great Reward
Derek and the Dominos - Layla and other assorted love songs
Dire Straits - Brothers In Arms
Doobie Brothers - The Captain And Me
Dream Theater - Distance Over Time
Dukes Of Stratosphear - Psurroundabout Ride
Dylan, Bob - Blonde On Blonde

Eagles - Hotel California
ELO - debut album
Emerson Lake And Palmer - Brain Salad Surgery

Fagen, Donald - The Nightfly
Flaming Lips - Yoshimi Battles the Pink Robots
Fleetwood Mac - Rumours

Gabriel, Peter - Up
Gaye, Marvin - Lets Get It On
Genesis - Selling England By The Pound
Genesis - And Then There Were Three
Gentle Giant - The Power and The Glory
Grateful Dead - Workingman's Dead

Hendrix, Jimi - Electric Ladyland

Inxs - Kick
Iron Maiden - Dance Of Death

Jeff Beck Group - Rough And Ready
Jethro Tull - Thick As A Brick
Jethro Tull - Minstrel In The Gallery
Joel, Billy - The Stranger
John, Elton - Madman Across The Water

King Crimson - Red
Knopfler, Mark - Sailing To Philadelphia

Living Colour - Collideoscope
Lynyrd Skynyrd - Southern Surroundings

Moody Blues - A Question Of Balance
Morrison, Van - Moondance

Nick Cave And The Bad Seeds - Dig Lazarus Dig
Nine Inch Nails - The Downward Spiral

Oldfield, Mike - Five Miles Out
Opeth Pale - Communion

Pat Metheny Group - Imaginary Day
Pineapple Thief - Dissolution
Pink Floyd - Dark Side Of The Moon
Pixies - Doolittle

Queen - A Night At The Opera

REM - Green
Rich, Charlie Behind Closed Doors
Roxy Music - Avalon
Rush - Hemispheres
Rush - Moving Pictures

Santana - Lotus
Sly And The Family Stone - Greatest Hits
Steve Miller Band - Fly Like An Eagle

Talking Heads - Fear Of Music
Talking heads - Remain In Light
Tangerine Dream - Phaedra
Townsend, Pete/Lane, Ronnie - Rough Mix
T Rex - Electric Warrior

Uk - Night After Night

Wakeman, Rick - Six Wives Of Henry The Eighth
Waters, Roger - Amused to Death
Wayne, Jeff - War Of The Worlds
Who - Quadrophenia
Wilson, Steven - Hand. Cannot. Erase.
Wings - Band On The Run

XTC - The Black Sea

Yes - Close To The Edge

Zappa - Quaudiophiliac

If the mood takes you, please feel free to give us your summary of any of these albums that we have done. For our purposes here, please try and give us information about the mix, in as much or as little detail as takes your fancy.
If you feel so inclined, review the album, and the mastering or anything else about the album that you feel drawn to.
Cheers,
Mark

 

Jethro Tull - Thick as a Brick. Aqualung, TAAB, and a Passion Play comprise what I consider to be their classic prog era Aqualung is only one that I deem to be essential, but the other two are really good too. The surround mix is excellent and perhaps a bit more adventurous than other Tull mixes Steven Wilson has done. Ian's vocals seen to move to the back from time to time. The barrage at the end of part one is a surround highlight. (2/3)

I decided today would be a good day to listen to TAAB2 again. Mark doesn't have it so I'm going to throw that one up as a bonus review, forthwith.

 

TAAB 2


Studio album by Ian Anderson

• Released 2 April 2012
• Recorded March 2011, November 2011
• Genre Progressive rock
• Length 53:45
• Label Chrysalis/EMI Records
• Producer Ian Anderson

Thick as a Brick 2, abbreviated TAAB 2 (pronounced /tæb tuː/ by Anderson) and subtitled Whatever Happened to Gerald Bostock?, is the fifth studio album by Jethro Tull frontman Ian Anderson, released in 2012 as a follow-up of Thick as a Brick, Jethro Tull's highly acclaimed 1972 parody concept album. It entered the Billboard chart at No. 55.

According to Anderson, TAAB 2 (pronounced /tæb tuː/ by Anderson) focuses on Gerald Bostock, the fictional boy genius author of the original album, forty years later. "I wonder what the eight-year-old Gerald Bostock would be doing today. Would the fabled newspaper still exist?"[2] The follow-up album presents five divergent, hypothetical life stories for Gerald Bostock, including a greedy investment banker, a homosexual homeless man, a soldier in the Afghan War, a sanctimonious evangelist preacher, and a most ordinary man who (married and childless) runs a corner store; by the end of the album, however, all five possibilities seem to converge in a similar concluding moment of gloomy or pitiful solitude.[3] In March 2012, to follow the style of the mock-newspaper cover (The St Cleve Chronicle and Linwell Advertiser) of the original Thick as a Brick album, an online newspaper was set up, simply titled StCleve.

Personnel

Musicians
Ian Anderson – vocals, flutes, acoustic guitars
Florian Opahle – electric guitar
John O'Hara – accordion, Hammond organ, piano, keyboards
Pete Judge – trumpet, flugelhorn, tenor horn, E-flat tuba
Ryan O’Donnell – additional vocals
David Goodier – bass guitar, glockenspiel
Scott Hammond – drums, percussion

Production
Steven Wilson – mixing engineer
Mike Downs – recording engineer
Ian Anderson – liner notes
Peter Mew – mastering engineer

Allmusic Review

Track listing

The original Thick as a Brick consists of only two long tracks comprising a single song, while the TAAB 2 lists 17 separate songs merged into 13 distinct tracks (some labelled as medleys), although also all flowing together much like a single song.

All tracks are written by Ian Anderson.

No. Title Length

1. "From a Pebble Thrown" 3:05
2. "Medley: Pebbles Instrumental / Might-Have-Beens" 4:21
3. "Medley: Upper Sixth Loan Shark / Banker Bets, Banker Wins" 5:41
4. "Swing It Far" 3:28
5. "Adrift and Dumfounded" 4:25
6. "Old School Song" 3:07
7. "Wootton Bassett Town" 3:44
8. "Medley: Power and Spirit / Give Till It Hurts" 3:11
9. "Medley: Cosy Corner / Shunt and Shuffle" 3:37
10. "A Change of Horses" 8:04
11. "Confessional" 3:09
12. "Kismet in Suburbia" 4:17
13. "What-ifs, Maybes and Might-Have-Beens" 3:36

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The 2-disc edition includes a DVD with the following contents:

5.1 Surround Mix – It’s DTS
24-bit Stereo Mix

It's Out of Print, but used copies are inexpensive:

Discogs

I bought this when it first came out, but I haven’t listened to it very much. This seems like a good day to give it another go. It’s definitely my first time listening to it in sequence with TAAB 1.

Most of Anderson’s solo efforts don’t sound like Jethro Tull albums, but this one does. As a sequel, it starts out and ends with some refrains from the original Thick as a Brick, and continues the story often with straight up spoken narration. However, musically I find it more like some of the later Tull albums.

Surround Mix by Steven Wilson
Narration and vocals in center; drums and guitar in front, unless otherwise noted. The lyrics appear on screen on all tracks.

1. "From a Pebble Thrown": Starts with ocean surround, guitar in front, organ in back
2. "Medley: Pebbles Instrumental / Might-Have-Beens": Flute in center, keyboard and vocals in surround
3. "Medley: Upper Sixth Loan Shark / Banker Bets, Banker Wins": Drums, flute and guitar in front, lots of keyboard in back.
4. "Swing It Far": Piano, guitar and drums in front at beginning, piano goes to rear. Some vox and chimes in back.
5. "Adrift and Dumfounded": Swirly guitar surround on this one.
6. "Old School Song": Flute in center again for starters, then moves in to surround when vocal start. Lots of guitar in back too.
7. "Wootton Bassett Town": Reverberating front to back chimes. Strings in front, castinets in back.
8. "Medley: Power and Spirit / Give Till It Hurts": Piano in front, glockenspiel then organ in back. Reverbing chimes again.
9. "Medley: Cosy Corner / Shunt and Shuffle": Tuba in front, tenor horns in back. Flute in center
10. "A Change of Horses": Flute in center and back. Accordion in front. Some nice interplay with flute in front, guitar in back
11. "Confessional": Glockenspiel then organ then flute in front, acoustic guitar in back.
12. "Kismet in Suburbia": Flute in front, organ and some bvox and guitar in back
13. "What-ifs, Maybes and Might-Have-Beens": More reverbing chimes. Flute in center, Piano and organ in back.

This is a nice album, but it's a bit redundant if you have just about the entire Tull catalog like I do. But still, if you are a Tull completist, a Steven Wilson completist, or you really like TAAB 1 then you need it. The surround mix is really good - lots of interesting stuff going on in the back. (1/3)

 

Cheers mate. I didn't even know about this.
I just ordered it

 

Those others in here that have heard TAAB 2, your thoughts? I haven’t heard the surround mix (didn’t know one existed), but I found the album to be so depressing, uninspired and musically uninteresting, that I couldn’t wait for it to be over.

Loved the original, but hated the sequel. Maybe my expectations were way too high.

 

Well. I didn't know there was a 5.1 of Your Wilderness. I do know that In Cauda Venenum is only available in a box.

 

Unfortunately yes

 

Well the votes are surprising me this week so far, and pleasantly so.
To vote in this week candidates go here

 

It's a few years since I've listened to Thick As A Brick 2, so this is a good opportunity. I very much liked the album when it came out and thought that it was a very decent attempt to write a sequel to a classic album.

Since Steven Wilson engineered both the stereo and surround mixes, this is no remix and he had the luxury of a working with material that had fully been recorded in the digital domain. As you'd expect, the result is very clean, perhaps too clean: the mix misses some of that analogue warmth in the bottom end. That “clarity” extends to the lyrics as well, which go for rather obvious targets in a rather obvious way; the fact that the lyrics are on-screen means that you can wallow as much as you want in Anderson's satire. It doesn't help that the songs at the start of the album (while pleasant to hear and confidently composed/arranged) are not Anderson's A material. The instrumental break in “Adrift and Dumfounded” is the first time that I felt the music cranking up beyond the expected and it doesn't last long.

“Wootton Bassett Town” is the first real highlight of the album. (For those who don't know, Wootton Bassett is a town in England which was granted a Royal Charter for the respect it showed over several years to Britains's war dead of the early 21st Century; the town is close to RAF Lyneham, the airfield that took delivery of the repatriated bodies of servicemen killed in the Iraq War.) From this point on the album is in a higher gear until “A Change of Horses”, the must-have track here for the Tull fan (and also the only track that breaks the five-minute mark.) “Kismet In Suburbia” is another good one, and probably the most artful lyric on the entire album. For what it's worth, I find the end of the album a bit tacky.

The surround mix as a whole is full & enjoyable, with electric guitars and (naturally) flutes having many of the memorable moments. Coming back to the album I must confess that I like it less than I thought I did, but it's certainly not a hardship to hear it and the 5.1 is well worth owning.

 

It took a few years of waiting to find this'un in the used bins at Amoeba.

Totally worth the wait, even if I did havta throw $40(?) at it.

This is my favorite PG, maybe tied with IV/Security. Fine surround mix, even within the dense production. Convincing placement/movement of sounds and instruments in the room. Dank ambience.

Just the kind of thing that might go well with Monday Night Football tonight.

 

To vote in this week candidates go here

 

Looks like we're doing Depeche Mode and the Doors tomorrow .. but above is the link to the votes, if anyone is interested

 

Delta Machine


Studio album by
Depeche Mode
Released 22 March 2013
Recorded March–October 2012
Studio Sound Design (Santa Barbara, California) Jungle City (New York City, New York)
Genre Electropop industrial[1]
Length 57:55
Label Columbia Mute
Producer Ben Hillier

Delta Machine is the thirteenth studio album by English electronic music band Depeche Mode. It was released on 22 March 2013 by Columbia Records and Mute Records. It is the band's first album released under Columbia. Recorded in 2012 in Santa Barbara, California and New York City, the album was produced by Ben Hillier and mixed by Flood.[2] A deluxe edition was also released, containing a bonus disc with four bonus tracks, as well as a 28-page hardcover book including photos by Anton Corbijn.[2]

"Heaven" was released as the album's lead single on 31 January 2013.[3] The second single from the album, "Soothe My Soul", was released on 10 May 2013,[4] followed by "Should Be Higher" on 11 October 2013.[5] Following the album's release, Depeche Mode embarked on the Delta Machine Tour, which kicked off in Nice, France, on 4 May 2013, and wrapped up in Moscow on 7 March 2014.[6]

Depeche Mode

• Andy Fletcher
• Dave Gahan
• Martin Gore

Additional musicians

• Christoffer Berg – programming
• Kurt Uenala – additional programming

Artwork

• Anton Corbijn – design, photography, backprojection images
• Anja Grabert – backprojection images

Technical

• Ben Hillier – production
• Ferg Peterkin – engineering
• Kurt Uenala – vocal recording
• Tomas del Toro-Diaz – engineering assistance
• Will Loomis – engineering assistance
• Dan Tobiason – engineering assistance
• Flood – mixing
• Rob Kirwan – mix engineering
• Drew Smith – mix assistance
• Bunt Stafford-Clark – mastering

al tracks written by Martin Gore except where noted.
1. "Welcome to My World" 4:56
2. "Angel" 3:57
3. "Heaven" 4:03
4. "Secret to the End" Dave Gahan Kurt Uenala
5:12
5. "My Little Universe" 4:24
6. "Slow" 3:45
7. "Broken" Gahan Uenala
3:58
8. "The Child Inside" 4:16
9. "Soft Touch/Raw Nerve" 3:26
10. "Should Be Higher" Gahan Uenala
5:04
11. "Alone" 4:29
12. "Soothe My Soul" 5:22
13. "Goodbye" 5:03
Total length: 57:55
----------------------------------
The 5.1 for Delta Machine is only available on the Live In Berlin film set by Anton Cobijn. This release is a 5 disc set, with 2 different versions of the concert on 2 dvd's, 2 cd's of the concert, and a 5.1 bluray of the album the band were touring at the time Delta Machine. It is an unusual set up having the 5.1 album on here, but it is available for very little money, so not one to get too perturbed about. Just please be aware there are a lot of Russian and Chinese versions, and as to their authenticity I am unsure.

The tracklisting of the bluray is slightly different to the cd
Welcome To My World4:56
Angel3:58
Heaven4:05
Secret To The End5:12
My Little Universe4:24
Slow3:45
Broken3:58
The Child Inside4:16
Soft Touch / Raw Nerve3:27
Should Be Higher5:04
Alone4:30
Soothe My Soul5:22
Goodbye5:03
Long Time Lie4:23
Happens All The Time4:20
Always5:07
All That's Mine3:24

This is still available new On Amazon for 24.44 https://www.amazon.com/Depeche-Mode...che+mode+live+in+berlin&qid=1573995882&sr=8-1
Walmart has it for 24.44 also https://www.walmart.com/ip/Depeche-Mode-Live-in-Berlin-CD/40712594?wmlspartner=wmtlabs&adid=22222222222000000000&wmlspartner=wmtlabs&wl0=e&wl1=o&wl2=c&wl3=10352200394&wl4=pla-1103028060075&wl12=40712594_0&wl14=Depeche Mode live in berlin&veh=sem&msclkid=119299787d5f19ddb734c4a938045e3a
Discogs has it from about $5, but there are quite a few Russian and Chinese copies in the list Depeche Mode - Live In Berlin (A Film By Anton Corbijn)

5.1 mix Ben Hillier and Ian Duncan
5.1 Mastering Andy Gibson

Welcome To My World
We star with some minimalist synth and percussion sounds. Then vocal comes in.
Predominantly upfront at first, with a swell on the right, a bit later a synth on the left.
Then the song picks up.
After I think the second chorus, we get a synth pad across the whole field, and a percussive synth either side. We also get a few subtle sound effects from various spots.
Then the song breaks down again to a more minimalist arrangement, with a percussive sound on the right.
And we move straight into

Angel
This track sounds like a space age blues. Initially this has a sort of Nick Cave feel vocally.
The feel changes with a change on the structure and accent of the beat.
We get a nice gtr sounding synth getting stereo'd in the rears.
Some percussion in the rears.
With the big fat synth pads, we get quite a dense full mix.

Heaven
The beat kicks off as a mix between drum machine and record pops.
We have a slow piano ballad style feel.
So far we have a sort of permanent ambience in the rears, with some nice little bits a pieces thrown in the rears.
It gives us an immersive feel accented by some really nice sections.
Distorted guitarist sound in the right rear.
Definitely full use of the field, but the smooth mixing of synth sounds makes it hard to pinpoint exactly what is where at times.

Secret To The End
Groove starts up front. Synth swell on the left. Wood block sound two beats left, then right. Nice effect.
Descending chord synth across the centre.
A collage of sounds all round in a crescendo later in the song.

My Little Universe
Starts of sounding a little eighties in synth pop structure, but 2000's in the sounds.
We get an upfront mix that the has a synth through the rears, and percussion right. Another minimalist arrangement.
We get some layering, and some sfx and percussion in the rears.
Some effected vocals in the sides and rears.
The song gain some density towards the end with layers.
Some nice alternating side mixing to end.

Slow
As the name suggests this is quite slow. It is again starting with a blues feel, and what sounds like a guitar riff up front.
A nice swirl synth goes around.
We also get some bits and pieces popping in and out of the rears.
Nicely immersive here and I think the synthetic blues works well here..... I assume that this where the Delta Machine title comes in.
So far these are nice mixes.

Broken
We start with digital sounds all around us, and then a beat kicks in.
Percussion and keyboard sounds all around us here. Nice definition, with a deliberate mix.

The Child Inside
Another slower song.. I think Gore sings this.
Another somewhat minimalist opening.
There's a bit of a whoosh through the sides, to the rears.
Synth pad comes in the rears.
A lot of subtle little sounds in all channels, but in still has a somewhat minimalist feel.
Another nice mix.

Soft Touch / Raw Nerve
This starts off more uptempo and bright.
A synth sound through the rears.
A disappearing into space sound comes from the front to left rear.
Interestingly, the has a beat, beat very little percussion, again seeming to be somewhat minimalist.
A guitar on the right.
We break down an a synth in the rears meets a synth up front to finish

Should Be Higher
A synth swell in the rears, and a pulse up front.
A percussive synth in the rears also.
Another effective mix, with coherent use of the channels to create the immersion effect.
A percussive effect left leads to a slight change. Swells on alternate sides and a percussive melody synth in the rears.

Alone
Drone like foghorn sound in rears. Kick and throbbing bass synth upfront.
Synth pads in the rears.
The percussion picks up a little, and comes from the front and right.
A synth chord pattern front left. Counter melody synth right rear.
Layers of synths from all speakers.
They seem to have had a little bit of fun with the mix on this album.
A few moving bits, quite a few side to side and back to front alternations.

Soothe My Soul
We start with a pulse up front and there are some circling effects and drones. Various synth parts appear in the front and rears again.
This track has a more traditional drum beat.
Lots of stuff going on here, and it sounds good... this is a sort of more traditional Depeche Mode kind of song.
They get some interesting and good sounds on here.

Goodbye
We start with a beat and a guitar blues riff up front. Then that is joined with a synth in the rears.
Some rear percussion added and a swell on the left. This drops back out. It comes back again, and the percussion I'll n the rears stays in this time.
Another nice mix.
The few blues sort of tracks work surprisingly well.
The chorus as such works well with a wall of sound kind of approach with a big reverby sound on both sides.
We get a fake ending into an embellished chorus. Very full sound.
Very good mix.

Long Time Lie
Very synthetic industrial type beat and drums here with effects going to rears.
Pulsing synth chords left side.
Bvox all round.
Swells and sfx in the rears.
Percussive synth right rear.
Another very effective mix.
Some circling again, but subtle, and seemingly not just gimmickry.
Another very good mix. More thing moving from side to side ...
It's a well thought out mix to me.

Happens All The Time
Swelling bass thin drums.
Percussive effect front left right rear alternation.
Tinkly synth in rears.
As we move to a more solid beat, the sound fills out, with pads and chords.
Percussion interlude with different pieces in different locations.

Always
Pulsating start. Little synth bits pop up in different locations.
Lots of effect sounds over a semi distorted vocal.
Then a synth pad swell in the rears, smooths the sound out.
We move into a midrange synth riff.
Then we return to the opening style, and again we move back to the smooth synth pad section.

All That's Mine
A nice rhythmic thing going on up front.
Synth pad swells up under the vocals.
Swelling melody comes in left.
Bvox rears.
Another nice mix.

I started to get into Depeche Mode via Songs Of Faith And Devotion, but I went backwards and never really followed the band forwards. So Delta Machine was actually just a random purchase a couple of years ago.
I bought it to have the concert dvd, and the 5.1 ... it just seemed like good value. I would have been struggling to remember much because I have probably only seen and heard them once each. I am pretty sure the concert dvd is good also.

This album is well mixed and interesting in that mix also. I think they have some interesting tracks going on here, and the blues and synth hybrid tracks seem to work quite well to me.
I would imagine that a Depeche Mode fan would enjoy this, but I am unfamiliar with the three of four albums in between, so my view may be skewed by that.
I think this is worth having, as it seems to be very good value for money, and I think the mix is very good, and quite interesting.

 

L.A. Woman


Studio album by
The Doors
Released April 19, 1971
Recorded December 1970 – January 1971
Studio The Doors' Workshop, Los Angeles, California
Genre Blues rock
Length 48:24
Label Elektra
Producer The Doors, Bruce Botnick

L.A. Woman is the sixth studio album by the American rock band the Doors, released on April 19, 1971, on Elektra Records. It is the last to feature lead singer Jim Morrison during his lifetime due to his death three months after the album's release, though he would posthumously appear on the 1978 album An American Prayer. Even more so than its predecessors, the album is heavily influenced by blues. It was recorded without record producer Paul A. Rothchild after he fell out with the group over the perceived lack of quality of their studio performances. Subsequently, the band co-produced the album with longtime sound engineer Bruce Botnick.[1]

"Love Her Madly" was released as a single in March 1971, preceding the album's release, and reached the Top 20 in the Billboard Hot 100. Upon release, the album peaked at number nine on the Billboard 200[2] and reached number 28 on the UK Albums Charts.[3] The track "Riders on the Storm" also achieved chart success in the US and UK.

Critics Richie Unterberger and David Quantick have both called L.A. Woman one of the Doors' best albums, citing Morrison's vocal performance, and the band's stripped-down return to their blues rock roots.[4][5]
The Doors

• Jim Morrison – Lead vocals, percussion, piano on "Orange County Suite", production
• Ray Manzarek – Hammond organ on tracks 1, 7, 9 and 11, tack piano on tracks 2 and 5, Vox Continental on track 2, rhythm guitar on track 3, Gibson G-101 on track 6, Wurlitzer electric piano on track 8, Rhodes piano on tracks 5, 10 and 12, lead vocals on "(You Need Meat) Don't Go No Further", production
• Robby Krieger – Guitar, production
• John Densmore – Drums, production

Additional musicians

• Jerry Scheff – Bass guitar on all tracks except 6
• Marc Benno – Rhythm guitar on tracks 3, 4, 5 and 8

Technical

• Bruce Botnick – Production engineering
• Doug Sax – Mastering engineer
• Carl Cossick – Sleeve art concept and design
• Wendell Hamick – Sleeve photography and visual effects
• Bill Siddons – Personal management

Tracks written by Morrison Except where noted
1. "The Changeling" 4:21
2. "Love Her Madly" Robby Krieger 3:20
3. "Been Down So Long" 4:41
4. "Cars Hiss by My Window" 4:12
5. "L.A. Woman" 7:49
6. "L'America" 4:37
7. "Hyacinth House" Ray Manzarek, Morrison 3:11
8. "Crawling King Snake" Anonymous, arr. John Lee Hooker 5:00
9. "The WASP (Texas Radio and the Big Beat)" 4:16
10. "Riders on the Storm" Morrison, Manzarek, Krieger, John Densmore 7:09
--------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
Some time in the early eighties I heard a radio special on the Doors, back when radio was more interesting and didn't just play the same 50-100 songs over and over.
I purchased Alive She Cried, and loved it, and then I guess for a few years I was somewhat .... I'm going to say obsessed with the Doors, and the legend and myth surrounding them.
The story goes that Manzarek met Morrison on Venice Beach, and Morrison recited some lines from Moonlight Drive, and they decided to put together a band .. and the rest is history.
Aside from reading the very entertaining No One Here Gets Out Alive, I haven't studied the history of the band .. when I obsess it is about listening to the music. Anyway ....

The myth and mystery surrounding the Doors is legendary and huge, and probably also somewhat overblown, but it sure is interesting.
We have the formation and rise of the band, we have legendary concerts where Morrison apparently implemented a series of experiments in crowd manipulation, taking them to the edge and bringing them back. We also have many stories of Morrison just not showing up and Manzarek having to do the singing, because Jim was off somewhere out of his head.
Things came to a head at a famous Miami concert where Morrison was charged with public indecency for allegedly pulling his ***** out ... and the stories of that incident are wide and varied and some say he did, and some say he didn't ... one thing is for sure the band were not seen as good little pop musicians.
Alice Cooper once said that his band became the great dangerous and excessive band after the Doors pretty much ended. I believe also that the Cooper band song Desperado was written for and/or about Morrison.

Anyway The LA Woman album is surrounded in just as much controversy as the band were themselves. Paul A Rothchild had produced the bands first five albums, ended up walking out very early in the sessions and Bruce Botnick took over the roll of Producer. There are statements that always used to say that he thought the music sounded like lounge music and he didn't want to be involved. More recently it has been said that it was friction between the band and Rothchild ... I am merely relaying all this from memory, so please correct me if I am wrong on any details ... but it is a fact that it was always said it was about the style of music on this album that caused the problem.

I absolutely love the Doors, and I love this album, although Waiting For The Sun and Morrison Hotel have always been my favourites.
The thing is, because I listened to so much Doors in the eighties, I rarely listen to the albums .. it is a strange thing, it isn't that I don't like them at all, just that there is so much music in the collection these days. When I saw the Doors Of Perception box with all the 5.1 mixes and bonus tracks etc, I had to get it .... I seem to remember being a little underwhelmed by it to be honest, but as I have found throughout this thread, that often seems to be a misperception, because mood and concentration levels seem to play a big part in that. So I am looking forward to having a re-listen to this album, and hopefully the others as we go through this thread.

The Perception Box (2006) is out of print ... Amazon about $550 https://www.amazon.com/Perception-6...ywords=doors+perception&qid=1574004906&sr=8-7
Discogs from $75 The Doors - Perception
it always amazes me the variance in second hand pricing ... but anyway
Ebay between about $65 - $800 doors box perception | eBay

In 2000 a stand alone dvd-audio came out ... I have no idea of these versions are the same mixes and mastering or not, so perhaps out experts can let us know please.
Discogs from about $20 The Doors - L.A. Woman
Discogs from about $25 The Doors - L.A. Woman
Ebay from about $17 doors LA Woman dvd audio | eBay

another dvd audio digipack (2006) from about $44 on Discogs The Doors - L.A. Woman

from 2013 an sacd on discogs from about $28 The Doors - L.A. Woman

So there are possibly four mixes, but definitely four different releases. Again if anyone knows any differences between them please let us know.

5.1 Engineer, Mix and Mastering Bruce Botnick

The Changling
This is not mastered loud, I had to instantly turn it up.
Manzarek's organ comes with little chirps either side.
The rhythm section is up front.
We seem to have manzarek leaning to the right side, and kreiger to the left.
In the instrumental section kreiger's guitars play alternately and harmonise in the rears.
The hand claps also appears front and rears.
Nice balanced mix.

Love Her Madly
Hats left rear.
Keys just left of front left.
Lead gtr right side.
Drum fill goes from right rear to left rear.
Another organ comes in right side. This includes the little organ chordal lead.
It's been a while, and I had either never noticed or forgotten the multitracking on here.
The drums do a left rear to right rear fill this time. Kreiger's little lead line just right of front right.
Nice mix

Been Down So Long
Solid bass and drums up front with vocal.
Guitar licks either side.
Probably three guitars here, occupying various spots around the whole field.
Lead break front right.
This also sounds nice and balanced
Here the surround gives the guitar tracks nice separation. Certainly immersive and a nice mix.
It's been a long time, and this is a nice revisit.. better than I remembered actually, and probably part of the reason for the slight avoidance.

Cars Hiss By My Window
There are some slightly different bits and pieces in here, and we get a "weehoo" I don't remember from the original.
The lead guitar seems to be in the middle of the room slightly right.
Some percussion sounds on the rears.
This has a much less layered sound, but has a full and present sound.
This may have an extra verse also. I wish I could remember better... but I don't recognize that last verse.
Morrison's harmonica vocal is front with reverb into rears.

LA Woman
This starts with a bit of God Bless America, and moves into the song we know so well.
Rhythm gtr left rear, lead gtr right side.
Nice.
Keys and drums occupy the front.
This is a really nice sounding album. Pleasantly surprised with this.
Manzarek's Doobie Brothers style keyboard break on the right.
Really a very nice mix.
We move to the most famous part of the song I guess.
Morrison circles us with his mojo risin'
This mix does work well.
Back to original mix as described.

L'america
The guitar starts front, moves left and back a few times. Settles on the left.
Spacey keys in the rears.
Some interesting movement in keeping with the spaced out kind of intro to the song.
I think there are two guitars, of they are swapping sides.
This is a spacey mix. Very effective.

Hyacinth House
I love this song.
First guitar front right. Drum kit and bass sound really nice here.
Another guitar left. Keys in the rears?
Lead guitar in the change just left of left front.
One organ right side, with a nice swirl all the way around.
Another nice mix.

Crawling King Snake
Gtr front and right rear.
Keys front left.
Rhythm chunk guitar rear.
Lead guitar seems to be centre of room, slightly right side.
We get a "yeah" just left of left front.
Another nice mix from my perspective.

The Wasp
First gtr front left.
Keys in the rears.
Guitar right.
Lead gtr front..
Keys left.
The drums get some wide action, and we end with a drum getting a delay on the left.

Riders On The Storm
Rain all round, thunder in the rears.
Keys jest left of front left.
Gtr front right.
Vocals front, effect send to the rears.
Gtr arpeggio style on the right.
Lead gtr sort of front and right... perhaps doubled of effects send... not sure.
This mix is slightly unusual to my ears, but certainly not bad. The gtr seems to be front right and then rear right... it doesn't sound bad at all, just hard to pinpoint what's going on with it.
A classic song, and a more than adequate mix.

I think this is a very good mix. It is interesting some of the things that Botnick chose to do. I think it works well.
Being recorded in 70-71, is always going to be a slight disadvantage for any album, in a surround sound format, merely due to the amount of tracks available to use, but for me this does the job nicely.
We get some good separation, some interesting effects, and I suppose a couple of slightly gimmicky moments, but I don't think they are derogatory at all.
I enjoyed revisiting this very much, and think a Doors fan would very much want this. I think a surround fan would like it, but it isn't Flaming Lips, or Dukes Of Stratosphere type mixing.
Well worth checking out. Especially seeing as though, most of the prices seem reasonable. For the Doors enthusiast it may even be worth checking out the box for the extras and what sound to my ears, to be slightly different edits in the songs here at least.... certainly I wouldn't pay 500 for it, but if the 70-80 dollar copies on discogs are in good condition, I think they would be very worth checking out.

 

I waited forever to get a discounted Perception box, and one with a worn package finally showed up on Amazon a few years ago. I forget what it cost ($120?), but totally worth it.

Got it strictly for the 5.1 content (I've never liked the stereo remixes), and to my relief, Botnick delivered. Not the most aggressive surround you'll ever hear, but convincing enough. More importantly to me, as 5.1 is necessarily a remix, they took the opportunity to increase the bass levels somewhat for a more full-bodied presentation.

Bass was always sorely lacking on the original vinyl (except S/T). A deliberate mix choice I'm sure, but a band that 'dangerous' needs to sound the part.

Not one of the geezers on this forum will admit it, but I'll bet most of them did as I did: for such albums as Aqualung and the Doors catalog, I employed the Loudness button on my 70s Pioneer receiver (quad, natch) with impunity, to give those titles a much-needed goose. Original intent be damned.

The rest of you need not confess publicly.

(Original-mix stereo gets played as-is on a separate 2.0 server system. Sweet.)

Anyway...

LA Woman is well represented in surround. I do have the standalone DVD-A, but haven't made a comparison, and don't intend to do so. Reading suggests they are the same mix, but I don't know for sure, or care. Both sound fine.

I know what I'll be spinning today while watching football.

 

Music from Big Pink


Studio album by
The Band
Released July 1, 1968
Recorded Early 1968
Genre Americana roots rock
Length 42:22
Label Capitol
Producer John Simon

Music from Big Pink is the debut studio album by The Band.[1] Released in 1968, it employs a distinctive blend of country, rock, folk, classical, R&B, and soul. The music was composed partly in "Big Pink", a house shared by Rick Danko, Richard Manuel and Garth Hudson in West Saugerties, New York. The album itself was recorded in studios in New York and Los Angeles in 1968,[2] and followed the band's backing of Bob Dylan on his 1966 tour (as The Hawks) and time spent together in upstate New York recording material that was officially released in 1975 as The Basement Tapes, also with Dylan. The cover artwork is a painting by Dylan.

In 2000 the album was rereleased with additional outtakes from the recording sessions, and in 2018 a "50th Anniversary Super Deluxe" edition was released with a new stereo mix by Bob Clearmountain.

The Band

• Rick Danko – bass guitar, fiddle, vocals
• Levon Helm – drums, tambourine, vocals
• Garth Hudson – organ, piano, clavinet, soprano and tenor saxophone
• Richard Manuel – piano, organ, vocals
• Robbie Robertson – electric and acoustic guitars, vocals

Additional personnel

• John Simon – producer, baritone horn, tenor saxophone, piano
• Don Hahn – engineer
• Tony May – engineer
• Shelly Yakus – engineer
• Bob Dylan – cover painting
• Elliott Landy – photography

2018 remix

• Bob Clearmountain - 2018 Stereo and 5.1 Surround mix
• Bob Ludwig - Remastering

1. "Tears of Rage"

• Bob Dylan
• Richard Manuel

Manuel 5:23
2. "To Kingdom Come" Robbie Robertson

• Manuel
• Robertson

3:22

3. "In a Station" Manuel Manuel 3:34

4. "Caledonia Mission" Robertson Rick Danko 2:59

5. "The Weight" Robertson Helm with Danko 4:34

1. "We Can Talk" Manuel

• Manuel
• Helm
• Danko

3:06

2. "Long Black Veil"

• Marijohn Wilkin
• Danny Dill

Danko 3:06

3. "Chest Fever" Robertson Manuel 5:18

4. "Lonesome Suzie" Manuel Manuel 4:04

5. "This Wheel's on Fire"

• Dylan
• Danko

Danko 3:14

6. "I Shall Be Released" Dylan Manuel 3:19

Excuse the messy Wiki layout .. it is Writer/s followed by Singer/s
-------------------------------------------------------------------------------
The Band has its roots in Canada and Originally formed as the Hawks, as Ronnie Hawkins back up band. Those who have seen the Last Waltz, would be familiar with this, and it is highly recommended.
They then infamously became Bob Dylan's back up band on his 65/66 electric tours, which have gone down in infamy in some circles, but I highly recommend the Dylan release Bootleg series volume 4 "Royal Albert Hall" ... which wasn't actually the Royal Albert hall, but that's another story. The First cd is Dylan solo, the Second is Dylan and the Band electric, with the famous "Judas" cry from the crowd, and Dylan sneering back "I don't believe you, You're a liar .... Playing F*****g loud" ... It is a surprisingly good album, and to me sounds great, even in all its rawness..

But enough of that, The Band went on to record with Dylan and some of these songs are written during the also famous Basement Tapes Sessions .... but the Band went on to be their very own stars and released at least a couple of classic albums, this one and the self titled follow up. I am not fully versed in the band's history, and don't know a lot about the rest of their catalog, but those two albums, and the Last Waltz set Bluray/dvd/ and also a dvd audio we may look at later, are quite fantastic and feature such a broad spectrum of artists in such a nice and unusual setting that they are sure to please most people to varying degrees throughout the show.

Oddly enough, although I know most of these songs, I have never heard this album. I was reminded recently that it was on dvd-a and couldn't believe the oversight on my part ... so as a true music addict, had to purchase it.

Available at amazon 2nd hand from about $36 https://www.amazon.com/Music-Big-Pink-Band/dp/B000083EMR
At Discogs from about $30 The Band - Music From Big Pink
There is a box set available from discogs with a bluray Europe - again I don't know if it is the same mix/master - so again help and info appreciated - from about $38 The Band - Music From Big Pink
Us press from discogs from about $84 The Band - Music From Big Pink
----------------------------------------------------
Please note: I have the dvd audio -
5.1 mix Don Gillert
Mastering Robert Vosgien

It does appear that the bluray is another mix

5.1 mix and master Bob Clearmountain
-------------------------------------------------
So if someone has the box set version, it would be appreciated if you give us your review of it, so folks can make a better informed decision ... There is every likelihood that I will end up getting the box eventually, but my budget has been getting punched in the face, so not for now.

Tears Of Rage
The first thing to notice is, it says the lyrics are synched, for those interested.
The sound is very clear. The bass is nice and present, and the drums have a nice presence also.
We get a tambourine left rear.
A chorus guitar on the right.
Vocal effect sends to the rear.
Nice balance between the instruments.
The organ is left side.
Piano bass and drums up front.
Actually the drums are a little left.
The lyrics do actually synch ... so many of these early DVDs you had to scroll them.

To Kingdom Come
Piano left. Organ front. Drums true front, again with nice bottom end and sub support. Guitar right.
Lead guitar up front.
This mix is pretty nice too.
Organ break across the middle.

In A Station
Piano left. Organ left. gtr right.
Bvox right.
This is a good mix but a little left side heavy.

Caledonia Mission
Acoustic guitar right side. Piano left side.
Electric guitar right.
Again sounds slightly left side heavy.

The Weight
Bass nice and warm up front. Drums right side.
Acoustic gtr front left.
Main vocal slightly right, but it could be an effect send giving this effect.
Piano front left.
The famous harmony section has the "put the load" sections are nicely separated, giving a nice effect.
This track is a little right sided.

We Can Talk
Organ seems to start right then be in the middle. Two vocalists one left front, one right front.
Drums right side.
My initial thoughts on this, is that the mix, may have been beyond the mixer... it isn't awful, but it isn't quite right.

Long Black Veil
Electric piano on the left. Acoustic gtr right.
Nice solid sounding drums up front where they need to be.
A horn right rear.
Organ across the rears.
This is a better mix.

Chest Fever
A deep purple organ opens us up
Across all channels.
A keyboard left rear. A guitar right.
Drums up front.
The mix again is better, but slightly unbalanced in spots.
The guitar seems a little too loud.
We break down to like a jug band type thing with nice balance
The organ gets a bit of a lead section, and may be a little loud also.

Lonesome Suzie
Organ rears? Guitar right. Drums front. Vocals front.
Not a bad mix.

This Wheel's On Fire
Unusual keyboard to start us.
An uptempo version, so I'm just trying to recalibrate my thinking ...
Piano left. Drums right.
Some mildly unusual keyboard sounds for the time coming in front and right.
This is pretty balanced, but it is a different version than I am used to.

I Shall Be Released
Piano just left of front left. Gtr right
Vocals spread nicely around.
Solid bass sound.
Swelling organ? Right.

Ok, so that is the first time I have heard the album, so I don't know what the original album sounded like. Please keep that in mind.
This mix is a little unbalanced, and in some spots quite unbalanced. For the most part it is worth a listen, but I don't think it would become a mix that one would think "ah, I am going to listen to Big Pink, for my 5.1 fill"
I realise I can't be too gentle in my reviews, as I have already had my butt handed to me for doing so lol.
So here I think we have someone out of their depth doing a 5.1 mix. The mastering seems ok. It doesn't seem too loud (I gauge this by where my volume is sitting for any given disc .. it isn't my field, I am just doing my best to communicate what I hear, and how)
To me this would be one for a serious lover of The Band to get, just to hear it. Having sat and listened to it, I can understand why they got Clearmountain to redo the 50th anniversary set. I cannot comment on what he did, but he generally seems to have a good ear, so I assume it is a little better, and I also assume that it would be more balanced in its levels etc ... again I haven't heard the original, so this is all purely off this first listen.

 

The Blu ray has more clarity, compared to the DVD-A. Whenever Clearmountain is involved, detail is heightened. More is revealed.

 

Kenny Wayne Shepherd Band - The Traveller



The Traveler

• 
  
  
  • Released: May 31, 2019[19]
  • Labels: Concord and Provogue/Mascot Label Group

Kenny Wayne Shepherd (born Kenny Wayne Brobst; June 12, 1977) is an American guitarist, singer, and songwriter. He has released several studio albums and experienced significant commercial success as a blues artist.[4]

Shepherd was born in Shreveport, Louisiana.[5] He graduated from Caddo Magnet High School in Shreveport. He is "completely self-taught", [6] and does not read music. Growing up, Shepherd's father (Ken Shepherd) was a local radio personality and some-time concert promoter, and had a vast collection of music. Shepherd received his first "guitar" at the age of three or four, when his grandmother purchased a series of several plastic guitars for him with S&H Green Stamps, which Shepherd has said he would "go through like candy".[6]

Shepherd stated in a 2011 interview that he began playing guitar in earnest at age seven, about six months after meeting and being "pretty mesmerized"[6] by Stevie Ray Vaughan, Labor Day weekend in 1984, at one of his father's promoted concerts. His self-taught method employed a process of learning one note at a time, playing and rewinding cassette tapes, using "a cheap Yamaha wanna-be Stratocaster ... made out of plywood, basically",[6] and learning to play by following along with material from his father's record collection.[6]

Blues musician Bryan Lee invited 13 year old Shepherd to play guitar onstage. He subsequently made demo tapes, and a video was shot at Shepherd's first performance at the Red River Revel Arts Festival in Shreveport. It was this video performance that impressed Giant Records chief Irving Azoff enough to sign Shepherd to a multiple album record deal.

From 1995 on, Shepherd took seven singles into the Top 10, and holds the record for the longest-running album on the Billboard Blues Charts with Trouble Is.... In 1996, Shepherd began a longtime collaboration with vocalist Noah Hunt, who provided the vocals for Shepherd's signature song, "Blue on Black". Shepherd has been nominated for five Grammy Awards, and has received two Billboard Music Awards, two Blues Music Awards, and two Orville H. Gibson Awards.

In 2000, Shepherd played guitar on the end title theme for the animated feature Batman Beyond: Return of the Joker.

In September 2008, Fender Musical Instruments Corp. released the Kenny Wayne Shepherd Signature Series Stratocaster, designed exclusively by Shepherd. In 2007, he released a critically acclaimed and two-time Grammy nominated DVD–CD project, 10 Days Out: Blues from the Backroads. This documents Shepherd as he travels the country to jam with and interview the last of the authentic blues musicians. As they tour the backroads, Shepherd, with members of the Double Trouble Band, play with a host of blues greats including Clarence "Gatemouth" Brown and Bryan Lee, Buddy Flett (with whom he jams at Lead Belly's grave), B. B. King, blues harp master Jerry "Boogie" McCain, Cootie Stark, Neal Pattman, John Dee Holeman, Etta Baker, Henry Townsend with Honeyboy Edwards, and a concert session with the surviving members of Muddy Waters' and Howlin' Wolf's bands, including luminaries such as Hubert Sumlin, Willie "Big Eyes" Smith, and Pinetop Perkins.

In 2010, Shepherd was nominated for a Grammy for Live In Chicago, which featured performances with Hubert Sumlin, Willie "Big Eyes" Smith, Buddy Flett and Bryan Lee. In 2011, Shepherd released his seventh CD, titled How I Go, on Roadrunner Records. In 2014 he released "Goin Home" on Mascot Label Group in Europe and on Concord Records in the US and the rest of the world. In 2015 Shepherd released "Something From the Road Vol. 1," a live special release for Record Store Day in the U.S.

In January 2017, the Kenny Wayne Shepherd Band went into the studio with producer Marshall Altman to record a new album of all newly written songs titled Lay It On Down and released the album on August 4 (July 21 in Europe on Mascot Label Group). Lay It On Down is the eighth record by the Kenny Wayne Shepherd Band to debut at No. 1 on the Billboard Blues Chart.

Shepherd made his Edinburgh Jazz & Blues Festival debut on 16 July 2019.[7]

On May 31, 2019, Shepherd released The Traveler on Concord Records and Mascot Label Group in Europe. The album, like the previous release Lay It On Down, was co-produced by Marshall Altman.

-----------------------------------

The Traveler, an album of experience and profound resonance by the Kenny Wayne Shepherd Band. Recorded in Los Angeles, while the band was on a break from their uncompromising tour schedule that left them road-tested and ready to rock, The Traveler showcases some world-class musicians: vocalist Noah Hunt, drummer Chris “Whipper” Layton (formerly of Stevie Ray Vaughan’s Double Trouble), bassist Kevin McCormick, and keyboardists Jimmy McGorman and Joe Krown. The album features ten songs including eight new originals co-written by KWS and some of Nashville’s most in-demand songwriters, plus incendiary covers of Buffalo Springfield’s “Mr. Soul” and Joe Walsh’s “Turn to Stone.”

BluRay version includes:

Audio

2.0 LPCM Stereo 24bit/48kHz

5.1 DTS-HD MA 24bit/48kHz

Dolby Atmos

Dolby Atmos Headphones Mix



Video

Bonus detailed interview footage with Kenny and producer Marshall Altman
-------------------------------------
I'm afraid I know nothing about Kenny Wayne Shepherd or his band. I remember and enjoyed a song called Blue On Black from the radio years ago, and that's about it.

Someone somewhere on here highly recommended the bluray 5.1, so here we are.

On the plus side this is brand new (pretty much) and so still available new.

Amazon has it for $14.99 https://www.amazon.com/Traveler-Blu-ray-Kenny-Wayne-Shepherd/dp/B07VTYDZ5R

I'm sure if you are interested and hate amazon, that it will be available elsewhere.

Above I have posted the Wiki info on the artists, and the Amazon info on the album underneath, so as to give you something to go by. My apologies for knowing nothing about this. This is a completely blind listen with no knowledge about any of it except one song from years ago.

5.1 mix Eric "ET' Thorngren and Michael Romanowski
Mastered by Michael Romanowski

This has stereo, 5.1 dts-HD, atmos, and atmos headphones mix. Obviously I'm going with the 5.1 dts

Woman Like You
Again not loud mastering. About the same level as LA Woman.
Organ on the right rear. Horns left rear.
This is nicely balanced.
We have a solid mix, and I can hear the bass, the guitars, drums and vocals clearly.
The end of the lead break we get a nice little effect with the tail having a bit of a swirl.
As stated, this is a nicely immersive mix.
A nice blues rock sound.

Long Time running
Organ right rear. Guitar left.
A riff guitar section does a few zippy surround effects.
There could more kick drum.
Lead break gets another round of zippy surround movement ... not sure that it needed it ...
A solid rock song with a few nice changes.
We end with some more lead guitar moving around the channels

I Want You
Better kick drum presence here.
Organ right rear. Horns left rear.
We have a nice slinky blues rock groove here.
We get a nice solid lead break up front, with some effects feeds, but no unnecessary movement. The horns and organ are giving us our immersion. We get a little bit of right left stuff on the guitar later in the lead break.
Outro leadbreak in the middle of the room with some more movement, and effects sends

Tailwind
We move into a more ballad type song here. The vocal reminds me a little of Warren Zevon here.
Organ right rear.
A guitar on the left.
We get a slide guitar up front. More movement.

Gravity
A held guitar note moves around the channels, while a solid rhythm guitar sits in the front left.

We All Alright
Some guitar power chord movement
This is a pretty decent sounding album.... and the mix is pretty good.... but it kind of feels to me that they needed to focus more on making a solid soundstage, and then worry about the nifty effects...
Perhaps I'm just old fashioned, but I think the lead breaks need a more solid platform, and perhaps some movement on fade outside and held notes, but some of the mixing seems to be centered around making the guitar do some unnecessary moving at somewhat inappropriate times .... perhaps it's the style of music, but on the first listen it isn't quite gelling for me.

Take it On Home
Rhythm guitar front left. Vocal front.
A nice blues rock style ballad.
Organ right rear.

Mr Soul
Gtr front left, organ right rear, horns left side.
Drums good here.
Interesting version, but I love Neil's version. This is good.
Some nice mixing here.

Better With Time
Gtr front left. Organ right rear. Shaker left side. Snare good, kick a little quiet.
Horns left side.
A bouncy kind of blues rock ballad here.

Turn To Stone
A Joe Walsh classic here ...
Gtr front left and right rear for intro.
Then the gtr left front. Organ right rear.

I'm not really sure what to make of this one.... It sounds a little inconsistent. I set the first song up to a comfortable volume level, and the first song seems to be mixed well, with nice balance .... but it sort of seems like they may have been focussing on groovy effects more than getting the solid base of the songs right. Please don't think I am saying this isn't worth having .. this is just what I am hearing.
The volume levels between songs seems a little inconsistent. Some tracks (as noted) the drums sound good, but then on others, they seem too low, or the snare is present and the kick is MIA.
From the third or fourth song on we have the rhythm guitar in the front left and the organ in the right rear, which is nice, but it starts to feel unbalanced ... I am wondering if perhaps there is some phase cancellation or something going on.
The moving lead breaks thing got a little unfocussed to my mind somewhere in the middle there for a few songs. I like the idea of moving instruments, but I think there is a time for a solid home base and movement is more for effect instruments, in my mind, rather than main instruments ... except obviously in certain circumstances....
I am a rock guy, that loves his blues ... i like all sorts of music, but they are my roots, and for the most part this is a pretty strong album, but for my ears there is something not quite right about the mix ... it seems like there is something missing, or slightly out of whack... it certainly isn't unlistenable by any stretch of the imagination, but it just doesn't quite seem right .....
I really hate to hear it like that, because I had high hopes for this one, but I just don't hear it.

Please if anyone else has this, give us your impressions, because I kind of feel like something went wrong here

 

So the vote was a tie this week, so we got the four albums that finished on top. Two very good, and two disappointing, for me at least.

I am not going to put votes up this week. Next Sunday will be for King Crimson fans.
I will be going through the Original Steven Wilson mix, and the new Steven Wilson Mix. Firstly because I only just got the new Steven Wilson mix, and I need to have a proof listen and make sure I didn't get a defective one, and secondly because I thought the original was good, so I am intrigued as to what the differences might be.
I hope this isn't going to annoy anyone, but it is new and available, and the Crimson stuff has been all high class from my experience.

 

Also don't forget to run through any of the albums we have done, if you feel drawn to

Reference to the albums

Aerosmith - Toys In The Attic
Alice Cooper - Welcome To My Nightmare
Allman Brothers Band - Live At Fillmore East
Allman Brother Band - Eat a Peach
Anathema - We're Here Because We're Here
Ayreon - The Source

Band - Music From Big Pink
The Beatles - The Beatles (White Album)
The Beatles - Abbey Road
Beck, Jeff - Blow By Blow
Be Bop Deluxe - Futurama
Be Bop Deluxe - Sunburst Finish
Bjork - Vespertine
Bowie, David - The Rise And Fall Of Ziggy Stardust And The Spiders From Mars
Browne, Jackson - Running On Empty

Charles, Ray - Ray Sings, Basie Swings
Cobham, Billy - Spectrum
Cobham, Billy - Spectrum (Quad) thanks @-dave--wave-

Davis, Miles - In A Silent Way
Davis, Miles - Bitches Brew
Depeche Mode - Some Great Reward
Depeche Mode - Delta Machine
Derek and the Dominos - Layla and other assorted love songs
Dire Straits - Brothers In Arms
Doobie Brothers - The Captain And Me
Doors - LA Woman
Dream Theater - Distance Over Time
Dukes Of Stratosphear - Psurroundabout Ride
Dylan, Bob - Blonde On Blonde

Eagles - Hotel California
ELO - debut album
Emerson Lake And Palmer - Brain Salad Surgery

Fagen, Donald - The Nightfly
Flaming Lips - Yoshimi Battles the Pink Robots
Fleetwood Mac - Rumours

Gabriel, Peter - Up
Gaye, Marvin - Lets Get It On
Genesis - Selling England By The Pound
Genesis - And Then There Were Three
Gentle Giant - The Power and The Glory
Grateful Dead - Workingman's Dead

Hendrix, Jimi - Electric Ladyland

Inxs - Kick
Iron Maiden - Dance Of Death

Jeff Beck Group - Rough And Ready
Jethro Tull - Thick As A Brick
Jethro Tull - Minstrel In The Gallery
Jethro Tull - TAAB 2 thanks @riskylogic
Joel, Billy - The Stranger
John, Elton - Madman Across The Water

Kenny Wayne Shepherd Band - The Traveller
King Crimson - Red
Knopfler, Mark - Sailing To Philadelphia

Living Colour - Collideoscope
Lynyrd Skynyrd - Southern Surroundings

Moody Blues - A Question Of Balance
Morrison, Van - Moondance

Nick Cave And The Bad Seeds - Dig Lazarus Dig
Nine Inch Nails - The Downward Spiral

Oldfield, Mike - Five Miles Out
Opeth Pale - Communion

Pat Metheny Group - Imaginary Day
Pineapple Thief - Dissolution
Pink Floyd - Dark Side Of The Moon
Pixies - Doolittle

Queen - A Night At The Opera

REM - Green
Rich, Charlie Behind Closed Doors
Roxy Music - Avalon
Rush - Hemispheres
Rush - Moving Pictures

Santana - Lotus
Sly And The Family Stone - Greatest Hits
Steve Miller Band - Fly Like An Eagle

Talking Heads - Fear Of Music
Talking heads - Remain In Light
Tangerine Dream - Phaedra
Townsend, Pete/Lane, Ronnie - Rough Mix
T Rex - Electric Warrior

Uk - Night After Night

Wakeman, Rick - Six Wives Of Henry The Eighth
Waters, Roger - Amused to Death
Wayne, Jeff - War Of The Worlds
Who - Quadrophenia
Wilson, Steven - Hand. Cannot. Erase.
Wings - Band On The Run

XTC - The Black Sea

Yes - Close To The Edge

Zappa - Quaudiophiliac

If the mood takes you, please feel free to give us your summary of any of these albums that we have done. For our purposes here, please try and give us information about the mix, in as much or as little detail as takes your fancy.
If you feel so inclined, review the album, and the mastering or anything else about the album that you feel drawn to.
Cheers,
Mark

 

'I just ordered this. I didn't think I'd be interested because I don't like their later material (post-Violator) as much. But I don't have the album at all, plus it comes with a live performance that I will definitely watch at least once, so yeah it's worth $25.

 

Technically, it's Anderson, Ian - TAAB 2

 

Damn the Torpedoes


Studio album by
Tom Petty and the Heartbreakers
Released October 19, 1979
Recorded 1978–79
Studio Sound City, Van Nuys
Cherokee Studios, Hollywood
Genre Rock
Length 36:38
Label Backstreet, MCA, Geffen, UMe
Producer Jimmy Iovine, Tom Petty

Damn the Torpedoes is the third studio album by Tom Petty and the Heartbreakers, released on October 19, 1979. This was the first of three Petty albums originally released by the Backstreet Records label, distributed by MCA Records. It built on the commercial success and critical acclaim of his two previous albums and reached #2 on the Billboard album chart.[1] The album went on to become certified Triple Platinum by the Recording Industry Association of America (RIAA).

In 2003, the album was ranked number 313 on Rolling Stone magazine's list of the 500 greatest albums of all time,[2] and 315 in a 2012 revised list.[3]

The Heartbreakers

• Tom Petty – lead vocals, rhythm guitar, harmonica, producer
• Mike Campbell – guitars (lead, rhythm, bass), keyboards
• Benmont Tench – keyboards, backing vocals
• Ron Blair – bass guitar
• Stan Lynch – drums, backing vocals

Session musicians

• Donald "Duck" Dunn – bass guitar on "You Tell Me"
• Jim Keltner (uncredited) – percussion on "Refugee"

Recording

• Jimmy Iovine – producer
• Greg Calbi – mastering
• Shelly Yakus – engineer
• John Mathias – assistant engineer
• Thom Panunzio – assistant engineer
• Gray Russell – assistant engineer
• Skip Saylor – assistant engineer
• Tori Swenson – assistant engineer

Artwork

• Lynn Goldsmith – photography
• Dennis Callahan – photography
• Aaron Rapoport – photography
• Glen Christensen – cover photography
• Tommy Steele – art direction

1. "Refugee" Tom Petty, Mike Campbell 3:22
2. "Here Comes My Girl" Petty, Campbell 4:27
3. "Even the Losers" 3:59
4. "Shadow of a Doubt (A Complex Kid)" 4:25
5. "Century City" 3:45
6. "Don't Do Me Like That" 2:44
7. "You Tell Me" 4:35
8. "What Are You Doin' in My Life?" 3:27
9. "Louisiana Rain" 5:54
Total length: 36:38
-------------------------------------------------
This is my favourite Tom Petty and The Heartbreakers album. Hard Promises comes in a close second and I like a lot of their albums, but for whatever reason, they're my favourite two.
I highly recommend the 6cd Playback set for anyone that doesn't have it, and I believe the bluray live set was great, but by the time I got around to it, it was out of my grasp.

Petty came along right at the right time for me. I was young and into rocking stuff, and after hearing a couple of tracks on the radio Refugee came along and I thought it was great. Initially when I bought the album, I was a little taken aback by a couple of countryish tracks, and also the unusual sfx in between songs, but that was just another beautiful learning curve for me. I took no time to love the whole thing.

Here is a wiki background on the band for any who may be unfamiliar
------------------
Tom Petty and the Heartbreakers (alternately Tom Petty & The Heartbreakers)[1][2] were an American rock band from Gainesville, Florida. Formed in 1976,[3] the band originally comprised Tom Petty (lead singer, guitar), Mike Campbell (lead guitarist), Ron Blair (bass guitar), Stan Lynch (drums), and Benmont Tench (keyboards). In 1981, Blair, weary of the touring lifestyle, departed the band. His replacement, Howie Epstein, stayed with the band for the next two decades. In 1991, Scott Thurston joined the band as a multi-instrumentalist—mostly on rhythm guitar and second keyboards. Blair returned to the Heartbreakers in 2002, the year before Epstein's death. In 1994, Steve Ferrone replaced Lynch on drums. The band is best known for the hit singles "American Girl", "Breakdown", "The Waiting", "Learning to Fly", "Refugee" and "Mary Jane's Last Dance".

The band's music has been characterized as both Southern rock[4] and heartland rock,[5] cited alongside artists such as Bruce Springsteen, Bob Seger, and John Mellencamp as progenitors of that genre that arose in the late 1970s and 1980s. While the heartland rock movement waned in the 1990s, the band remained active and popular, touring regularly until Petty's death in 2017, after which the Heartbreakers disbanded. Their final studio album, Hypnotic Eye, was released in 2014.

The band was inducted into the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame in 2002, their first year of eligibility. Although most of their material was produced and performed under the name "The Heartbreakers", Petty released three solo albums, the most successful of which was Full Moon Fever (1989). In these releases, some members of the band contributed as collaborators, producing and performing as studio musicians.
---------------

Tom's death was a very sad loss in a year full of horrible losses. The only thing I can say positive in regard to it, is that he got to leave us a great catalog of music to remember him by.

Unfortunately another out of print album ... so annoying.
Disocgs has it from about $83 Tom Petty And The Heartbreakers - Damn The Torpedoes
It does come with 8 bonus tracks and two videos

5.1 mix Brian Ulyate

Pcm 5.1 and dts HD.. I'm going with pcm 5.1 as almost always.

Refugee
Again this isn't overloud ...
Organ right side. Acoustic guitar left.
Electric guitar just left of left front and front.
Nice balance, and immersion here.

Here Comes My girl
Nice sounding kick and sub support. Nice drums all round.
First guitar front left.
High chord guitar rears.
The jangly guitar and piano in the rears in the chorus sounds really good.
Really nice mix.

Even The Losers
The flanged drum intro with bass. The ladies voice.
Then the song.
Gtrs sides and front.
Organ rears.
Another solid sounding drum kit, nice subtle sub assist.
No trickery, just a great straight mix that pulls you inside the track.

Shadow Of A Doubt ( Complex Kid)
Guitars all round. Again the drums are solid, with just the right amount of sub for this album.
Cymbals in the rears. Piano on the left.
This is just some nice solid mixing here. It's nice to have the effects mixing, but I think it depends on the type of music, and the mix shouldn't get in the way of the music.

Century City
We get the drums and synth sound that spun me out as a youngster, and then burst into the song.
Bvox left. Guitars either side. Piano right.

Don't Do Me Like That
Piano left. Gtr right. Organ front.
Again good drum sound.
Nice and balanced.

You Tell Me
Gtr front left. Gtrs either side. Piano across the middle? Organ rears.
Possibly the weakest track, but still great.

What Are You Doin' In My Life
Piano left. Gtrs front sides.
A lot more layered than I thought this album was.
A good fun rocker.

Louisiana Rain
We get a weird synthetic sound go around the channels and then some ambient type synth in the rears and front.
These strange little inserts were so weird to me as a young fella.
We get some talking we reverb sends to the rears.
Then we move into Louisiana Rain starts ... it's actually one of my favourite Petty tracks.
Organ rears. Gtrs all over.
We have a sort of subdued wall of sound on here, and I really like the sound of it.

Look, I love this album, and i think this is a fine mix in context with the album. $83 is a little steep, but hopefully Petty fans have it already. It's about time for a revisitation of Petty's albums anyway, I reckon.

 

Yea, probably lol ... I guess it's just wrong but I think of Ian Anderson as Tull these days, and that isn't meant to be a slight on him or the band ... I am probably wrong in doing that though.
Thanks for the reminder.