Surrounded On Sundays - 5.1/quad reviews and summaries

I gave another spin to this disc. The first time I listened to Moving Pictures in 5.1 my expectations were probably too high. I had just listened to XTC's Psurroundabout Ride and I believe that impacted on my initial impressions.

Now, at the end of the second try, I have to say that the surround mix is a nice alternative to the original stereo mix. The overall feeling I have is that they took the 'wide-stereo' approach, which a few exceptions. Things get better as you move towards the end of the album. Tom Sawyer provides a solid start, it's powerful, but really is wide stereo to me. Red Barchetta and XYZ didn't excite me too much, but Limelight did, being the first very nice mix here. The best surround mix here is Vital Signs by a large margin. It actually has lots of discrete elements and improves on the stereo experience. The Camera Eye is a lost opportunity. I was expecting much more from this...

Well, in conclusion: the gold medal goes to Vital Signs, the silver to LimeLight and the bronze to Tom Sawyer. Nothing else worth remembering for me! And I'm talking about the surround mix only... the album is great of course!!

 

Wish You Were Here is one of those albums that sounds fabulous however you listen to it, and that's certainly true of the 5.1 disc as well.

Right from the start - as we build up to what surely must be one of the most famous guitar entrances in recorded music - you get that caress of keyboards that really benefits from surround or headphones. I like the way that the little ambient synth phrases that you forget are there get channeled to remind you that (while the focus of the track is certainly upon Gilmour, spread across the front speakers) this is going genuinely to be a surround mix. The different keyboard sounds come out really nicely so that, for example, you can follow the modulation on the B3. In contrast, the vocals are quite diffuse, with the backing vocals dialled down a little bit compared with what one might expect. Mind you, I always felt that the vocal part of “Crazy Diamond” was the weaker part of the song. Fortunately the sax sounds great: creamy and just slightly out of focus, with nice spatialisation as the performer walks away.

“Welcome To The Machine” has, as Mark has mentioned, a stunning introduction in surround and I like the way that they channel the opening acoustic guitar chords on the diagonal axis instead of left/right in the fronts or rears. (In fact, the rear left/front right axis is importatn throughout the track, so that for example one of the keyboards is rear left and it's delay is front right. It's a very full soundfield but everything can be heard clearly. The tympani could have benefited from a little more bass extension.

“Have A Cigar” is probably my least favourite track on the album because it's the least “mysterious”. Here we get Roger's bass heard clearly for the first time and Pink Floyd sound like a “real” rock band. I thought that Roy's vocals would have more detail, but they're somewhat veiled. The high-hat after the second refrain is great: cutting right through the mix.

Ah, “Wish You Were Here”. Arguably Pink Floyd's greatest song and also a gift to surround with the low-fi 12-string intro duetting beautifully with an acoustic steel string that feels right there in the room with you. This is Pink Floyd in Americana mode: interesting how Richard Wright moves from the piano at the start of the song to electronic keyboards half way through to set up the next song.

“Crazy Diamond” part two starts with the most Meddle-esque phase of the album. The lead guitar relocates from centre to front right as it changes timbre, then moves into the centre of the soundfield as it soars into the upper register during the slide phase. The second instrumental phase after the perfunctory vocal reprise has a nice groove to it: that bass guitar sounds great. Unfortunately the album rather peters out: by Wright's long keyboard extemporisation I'm pretty much finished listening and it doesn't leave me with the same sense of satisfaction that I get with The Dark Side Of The Moon (an album I like less!)

Wish You Were Here is not an album I listen to much: once every three years probably does it. As a result I generally come back fresh, but it's still an album that I know too well, so at this point it really needs the surround fireworks to hold my attention.

 

Unfortunately that seems to be mainly the case with the Rush albums.

 

Ommadawn isn't in my top five Mike Oldfield albums but the surround mix is in my top three Oldfield surround mixes. First things first though: I always hated the way that they didn't leave a second of silence before the beginning of the album. As a result my system always cuts off the very start of the album and I have to restart to hear it. Poor authoring I think.

Part One begins with a beautifully articulated “duo” of acoustic guitars, then the synth main theme with Oldfield's signature electric guitar. The Dolby Digital track is, unfortunately, a little “soft”: this mix could definitely use a lossless reissue. The arrangement is also super-complex so it's rather difficult to pick out specific moments without writing absurdly-long notes. Also I find that I'm enjoying the music too much to pick it apart!

Nearly 13 minutes in you get the wonderful vocal statement of the main theme against the background of percussion, with harp, synth flute and subtle electric guitar. The held brass notes that end this section are mixed too low. The percussion outro is a great climax to part one.

Part Two begins with a slightly stress-inducing wall of guitars culminating in tubular bells (!). I find it musically rather overblown, so it's a relief when the texture dissolves once more into close-mic’d acoustic guitars which (as always) sound great in surround. The Northumberland pipes (?) are splendidly cutting in this mix: a rare phase of the album where an instrument has a clear solo melodic part. A Morris dance ensues before “On Horse Back”, the twee folk song that ends the album on (for me at least) a rather disappointing note. It's a shame that they didn't channel the children's choir into some other speakers in someone else's home!

For me Ommadawn shows both Oldfield's strengths & weaknesses: incredible musicianship, a great sense of arrangement but also a tendency to meander or get bogged down in ideas that don't quite come good. Part One is much stronger than Part Two, explaining why for the most part this is not the first Oldfield album that I reach for. Fortunately, the surround mix is very strong and Oldfield's multi-tracking benefits hugely.

 

Voting for this week's choices is Here

 

Irish pipes, played by Paddy Moloney of the Chieftains.

 

Burning Down The House is a go to track for demoing the surround system for someone. It's a recognizable song and the surround mix is amazing. At reference levels, the LFE can be felt and not just heard which furthers strengthens the argument for real speakers vs. HTIB

 

They actually sound a little short of depth compared with Uilleann pipes as I'm used to hearing them, which is why I misidentified them ... something to do with the mic’ing maybe.

 

Nick Drake - A Treasury is something I picked up because seven years ago it was being virtually given away by Amazon: £2.99 for a surround SACD! I already knew Drake's work moderately well because half of his very small discography was given to me as a wedding present by a former teacher and I picked up the rest later. Unfortunately the surround mixes struck me at the time as too front-weighted, and the programming of the compilation is not ideal.

My first comment is how naked Nick's guitar sounds, and how full the vocals are. In fact on the first great track here, “River Man”, the voice seems to inhabit a spot about four feet across between the front, meaning that the vocal nuances are very audible. I'm not directly comparing the stereo and surround mixes here but the channelling on “‘Cello Song” does sound very like conventional stereo with the guitar in the left and the conga (?) right. There's maybe a sense of the guitar there having some rear reinforcement, as though it's not quite in the corner of the room, but it's not an unambiguous effect. When the cello itself goes from close mic’ing to distant reverberation you get the disc's first obvious surround effect.

It's a shame that the strings weren't better recorded, because the guitar sounds simply gorgeous at the start of “Hazey Jane I” but the strings sound distant and ... mono? I suppose that there's only so much that one can do with the original production style, but it's a pity since Robert Kirby's arrangements have subsequently been recognised as classics and it would have been nice to get more detail on them.

For the simple “Pink Moon” the voice and guitar are brought forward by strong reinforcement from the rears. The jazzier “Poor Boy” provides a nice contrast. There's no attempt a real soundstage here because the backing vocalists seem to be a good few feet away from where Nick is singing, the drummer is rear left and the saxophonist is again some way off, this time to the left front, with the piano panned right. “Magic” has welcome detail in the orchestral arrangement, with flutes added to the strings.

To avoid labouring things I'm passing over the next three tracks and rejoining at “Fruit Tree”, possibly Nick's greatest song. Here we get a full wraparound orchestra with low strings in the rear left at one point and the woodwind widely spaced. And then “Black Dog”, generally regarded as Nick's darkest song, sounding powerfully spare after the orchestra that precedes it. It's really notable how thin the vocals are here, but of course this is basically a demo: it's maybe too retrospective to read into the performance.

“Way To Blue” - which I'd describe as the third stone cold classic here - is saved almost until the end and the Classical orchestration loses none of its power in surround. We end with the fingerstyle “From The Morning”: it's always difficult to find a suitable emotional endpoint for a Drake compilation but they cheat here by adding a little instrumental Easter Egg at the end.

Having revisited this disc confirms that the surround is rather subtle: you wouldn't demo your multichannel system with this disc. On the other hand, it sounds great overall so I think that we should definitely label this an essential disc for the connoisseur of surround sound.

 

Voting for this week's choices is Here

 

True, but I prefer Girlfriend is Better and Slippery People on this album. I'll have to re-listen, but I think those are the best surround tracks on the album, for me!

 

Slowly catching up on your reviews... I'm listening to this album as I type and share your same feelings. The surround mix has increased my enjoyment of the album.
My favourite surround remixes are Drugs (it was made for surround) and Heaven (as you said, for it's simplicity, and it works very well). All of the other songs are also great, but these two are now spinning in my mind...

 

Oldfield, Mike – Ommadawn. The label on the box identifies this as a classic album. However, 40 years ago, the only Oldfield title I was familiar with was Tubular Bells –so I would say that one is more classic. I never heard any of his other stuff until about 20 years ago. Ommadawn has aged better than TB for sure. It’s still a little noodly, but the music composition is far better. The addition of vocals with meaningless lyrics is pretty cool. The surround mix distributes the instruments front and back, sometimes with one instrument featured in the center channel. Five Miles Out is still my favorite Oldfield surround mix, but maybe that’s because I’m not burdened with a prior impression of what it is supposed to sound like. (2/3)

Now on to the sequel

 

Return to Ommadawn


Studio album by Mike Oldfield
Released 20 January 2017
Recorded December 2015 – May 2016 Nassau, Bahamas
Genre Progressive rock, world music, folk rock
Length 42:07
Label Virgin EMI
Producer Mike Oldfield

Return to Ommadawn is the twenty-sixth studio album by Mike Oldfield. It is a sequel to his third album, Ommadawn (1975). The album was released on 20 January 2017[1] on CD, CD/DVD, LP and as a digital download by Virgin EMI Records. Oldfield has played with the idea of creating a sequel to Ommadawn in the past; "Amarok was originally going to be Ommadawn II, but it went off a little in its own direction."

Return to Ommadawn is the first album since Incantations (1978) that follows the format of having one track per side of vinyl simply titled "Part one", "Part two" etc. The album received mixed to average reviews, scoring 64 out of 100 on Metacritic. It charted at number 1 in Spain.

Personnel
All instruments played by Mike Oldfield.

Intruments

Stringed instruments:​

• Acoustic guitar
• Flamenco guitar
• Electric bass guitar
• Acoustic bass guitar
• Electric guitars
  • Fender Telecaster
  • Fender Mark Knopfler Signature Stratocaster
  • PRS Signature
• Mandolins
• Banjo
• Ukulele
• Celtic harp

Keyboards:​

• Vox Continental organ
• Hammond organ
• Farfisa organ
• Mellotron
• Solina string machine
• Clavioline
• Piano

Percussion:​

• Bodhran
• African table drums
• Glockenspiel

Other:​

• Penny whistles in B♭, C, D, E♭, F and G
• Vocal effects derived from the original Ommadawn

Track listing
1. "Return to Ommadawn (Part one)" Oldfield 21:10

2. "Return to Ommadawn (Part two)" Oldfield 20:57

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The CD/DVD-Audio set contains a 5.1 surround sound mix of the album.

Seems to be out of print, but used copies aren’t expensive – Discogs. Note – Discogs lists it as DVD-V, but the disc I have is labeled DVD-A.

Surround Mix by Mike Oldfield
A track by track review is pointless. There are only two tracks, but each with many passages where the use of the rear speakers changes often. It’s not a concert hall mix; as with Ommadawn, the instruments are distributed individually. The rear speakers are mostly silent for some passages, and then kick in with a new instrument solely in the back. There are many passages where the rhytym guitar is the back and the lead is in front. A very different listening experience from the stereo mix. I might even characterize it as a dual (front and back) stereo mix.

So, Mike Oldfield has released 26 studio albums. I have a half-dozen, and I have never heard most of them. Even though it’s not generally well regarded, my favorite of his is Songs From Distant Earth. But there’s no surround mix for that, so let’s talk about Return to Ommadawn. It’s a sequel, and since Mark reviewed the first one last week, I just listened to the Ommadawn series in succession for the first time.

Return really does sound like a continuation of Ommadawn. The main problem may be that it sounds too much like it. There is much less use of vocals, and what vocals there are come from the original. Return has more percussion than the original, and the sound quality seems to be a bit better. The real question is whether or not you want more of Ommadawn. If so, get the surround mix. (1/3)

 

Days of Future Passed


Studio album by
The Moody Blues
Released 10 November 1967 (UK)
11 November 1967 (US)
Recorded 9 May – 3 November 1967
Studio Decca Studios, West Hampstead, London
Genre Proto-prog[1][2] art rock[3] progressive rock[4] psychedelic rock[5] symphonic rock[6]
Length 41:34
Label Deram
Producer Tony Clarke Michael Dacre-Barclay Hugh Mendl (exec.)

Days of Future Passed is the second album and first concept album by English prog rock band the Moody Blues, released in November 1967 by Deram Records.[7] With its fusion of orchestral and rock elements, it has been cited as one of the first examples of progressive rock.

The album was recorded at a time when the Moody Blues were suffering financial difficulties and lack of critical and commercial success. Their parent label, Decca Records offered them a chance to record a stereo LP that combined their music with orchestral interludes. They decided to compose a suite of songs about the life of everyday man, with the group and orchestra mostly playing separately and mixed together. It was a moderate success upon release, but following steady radio airplay, particularly of the hit single "Nights in White Satin", it became a top ten US hit in 1972. It has since been listed among the most important albums of 1967 by Rolling Stone.

The Moody Blues:

• Mike Pinder – Mellotron, piano, tambura, gong, vocals (including spoken)
• Ray Thomas – flutes, percussion, piano, vocals
• Justin Hayward – acoustic & electric guitars, piano, sitar, vocals
• John Lodge – bass, vocals
• Graeme Edge – drums, percussion, vocals

• Peter Knight – conducting, arrangements
• The London Festival Orchestra[29]

• Tony Clarke – production
• Derek Varnals – engineering
• Hugh Mendl – executive production, liner notes
• Michael Dacre-Barclay - production
• David Anstey – cover design, cover painting
• Steven Fallone – digital remastering

1 The Day Begins 5:34
2 Dawn - Dawn Is A Feeling 3:46
3 The Morning - Another Morning 4:03
4 Lunch Break - Peak Hour 7:41
5 The Afternoon - Forever Afternoon (Tuesday?); Time To Get Away 8:26
6 Evening - The Sun Set; Twilight Time 6:40
7 The Night - Nights In White Satin 7:21

--------------------------------------------------------------
The Moody blues formed in 1964 and was originally Mike Pinder, Ray Thomas, Graeme Edge, Denny Laine and Clint Warwick. They came through the ranks played Rhythm and Blues, and like most young bands they flipped through a few line up changes. They had initially approached John Lodge to be their bassist, but he was still in college and declined at the time.
The bands name has had many stories put forward, but it was a combination of things that led to them being The Moody Blues. There was a subtle tip of the hat to Duke Ellington's Mood Indigo, Mike Pinder had wanted something that alluded to music's ability to change people's moods, and the band at the time were also playing a lot of blues.

The band's second single Go Now took hold and essentially launched the band's career. The song was promoted on tv with one of the first purpose made promotional films of the pop era, and the song went on to be a number one song in the UK, and number ten in the US. As is typical the band encountered management problems after the chart topper and ended up signing to Decca Records.

In 1965 they released their debut album The Magnificent Moodies, and it had a strong Merseybeat /R&B flavour.
The band continued releasing singles, and most fluttered around the lower reaches of the charts, and things looked uncertain for them. There were plans to release and album in 1966, but things fell away and there was only one more single released. Some say that the song Life's Not Life was never released but there were promo and regular stock copies around at the time.

In late 1966, after somewhat of a break, John Lodge and Justin Hayward found their way into the band, and Denny Laine was cut adrift, Warwick had retired from the group and the music business.
By 1967 the band's contract with Decca was coming to an end and they owed the company several thousand dollars in advances. Also the second album had never come to light, and things were a little up in the air. Fortunately the had the support of Decca manager Hugh Mendl who had been part of the new London/Decca records subsidiary Deram.
With Mendl's backing the band were offered and opportunity to record a rock and roll version of Antonin Dvorak's, New World Symphony on the companies new Deramic Stereo Sound format, for which their debt would be forgiven.
The Moody Blues agreed, but insisted that they be given artistic control of the project, and Mendl (as executive producer) was able to provide this despite Decca's notoriously tight-fisted attitude to their artists. The project was abandoned, but they managed to convince Peter Knight to collaborate with them on a project using the band's original material.
The record company was skeptical about the project, but it went ahead. The band used the Festival Orchestra, who changed their name to the London Festival Orchestra to give it a little more pop, and a sort of impressive allusion. The styling was inspired by some of the Beatles songs using strings, and Pinder actually introduced the Beatles to the Mellotron later that year.

That's all a little long winded, but the whole thing was a very interesting series of events to me, and the results were excellent. The band recorded their songs and then Knight, wrote and added the strings afterwards. Strings were added to the album version of Nights In White Satin, but the single version didn't have the strings on it.

Nights In White Satin was released as a single in November 1967 and Tuesday Afternoon came out as a second single in July of 1968.
Initially "Nights" did well in Austria, Belgium, The Netherlands, Switzerland and the UK, being a top ten track, actually hitting number one in the Netherlands. The interesting thing is though, it had a resurgence in 1972/3 and went to number 2 on the Billboard hot 100, number one on Cashbox and Record World, and also went to number one in Canada and France... reaching top five in several countries. In 1979 the track resurfaced and went to number eight in Ireland.

Anyway.
I came to the band via the Excellent compilation Eternity In An Hour, that I think was an Australian only release, but was magnificently put together, and virtually took on the form of an actual album. Links with poems and all that kind of stuff, and I thought it was very cool. Back in my first collection of records, I had a couple of Moody Blues albums, but I really came to the party with the band as an album band when these sacd's came out.
All my memories tell me these are well done, and of course, as always, it is quite a while since I was able to listen to these.

Like everything else surrounding this album, there is a story about the surround mix as well it would seem.
There is a hdcd/dts disc from 1997, that appears to be unavailable these days.
In 2001 there was a DTS disc that came out and is available from discogs from about $16 The Moody Blues - Days Of Future Passed

The sacd came out in 2006 and is available at discogs from about $16 The Moody Blues With The London Festival Orchestra Conducted By Peter Knight (5) - Days Of Future Passed
Amazon has it from about $50 https://www.amazon.com/Future-Passed-Deluxe-Moody-Blues/dp/B000E8NQTU
There are wide and varying prices on ebay, starting at about $45 Days Of Future Passed sacd | eBay

The 5.1 mix is manipulated from the Quad Masters by Mark Powell and Paschal Byrne

I'm not sure who remastered the surround mix.

Anyway, that little ramble took up a big part of the morning, so lets get listening.

The Days Begins
We start with an orchestral swell. It has beautiful sound and we get nice surround. Some celeste in the left rear. After a sound slides across the back of us.
The instrumental works somewhat like some of Genesis, and The Who's concept albums, being almost an overview of the albums musical content.
At roughly the 4 minute mark we get one of Edge's poems. And Pinder recites it in the rears.
To me this is a really well balanced and effective mix

Dawn
A flute on the right.
Strings and winds join in and we get nice full use of the whole field again.
The centre channel exists, but it isn't doing much from what I can tell.
Hayward's vocal, are in a typical stereo album set up across the front.
A type of reply vocal comes in through the rears.
The orchestral arrangement is great, and to my ears the mix is excellent. Definitely immersive

The Morning
We get a little orchestral introduction here that gives way to the band.
We get flutes in the rears, sounding really nice, and balanced.
Bvox come in the rears also.
There is a nice sense of space in the mix.
The vocal is in the centre of the room, and the reverb on it sounds very lush.
The flutes come it several times and sound great.
We move back to an orchestral section.
They really did record this well.
Little pieces of instrumentation everywhere and very clear.

Lunch Break
We get an orchestral theme for lunch.
This actually has the busy lunchtime feel of an old movie soundtrack.
Again the surround sounds great.
The orchestra fades, and then we're hit with some pounding drums, and the first psychedelic style rock song hits.
This is a multi-vocal piece and they are spread around us.
Then we move to a gentle section. Again vocals all around nice.
A drum section that grows in tempo.
Gtr lead break, followed by the mellotron?
The guitar is on either side.
We move into the mellow bridge again.
I really like this mix, and this song works well to give the album a bit more edge.

The Afternoon
Always one of my favourites. We have the acoustics up front and the mellotron either side.
We move into that terribly cool change, with piano left, and also the acoustic.
A lot going on in that change, and it sounds excellent.
Yea there is an acoustic on the left, the mix and uses of instruments is quite subtle. With many little bits and pieces adding to the sound and mix, but not jumping out of the mix.
The songs fades into an orchestral arrangement of the track.
The moves to the evening part of the Afternoon track.
Piano on the right side.
The falsetto vocal section, comes in either side.
Shakers left side.
Again many elements in the mix, full the space well.
And we move to a fade....

Evening
But it isn't a full fade and this track starts with another nice orchestral section.
Then we get percussion either side in the rears.
The orchestra come back in, and again the sound and mix are great.
Flute, right side.
Tambourine left rear.
Via the orchestra we move into twilight time.
This has a kind of early Floyd sound.
We have layered lead vocals - front and either side.
We fade into the orchestra again, and again it sounds excellent

The Night
A short orchestral opening leads into the song that thankfully kept these guys going.
The strings come in on the sides. The bvox are sides and rears also.
I am most familiar with the album version, and the arrangement is great.
The big crescendo sounds great.
We end with another Pinder poem recitation augmented by the orchestra the vocals in the rear.
Orchestral crescendo and a gong, and we're finished ...
I should point out that the poems are written by Graeme Edge, but Pinder gives the vocal

I am not sure what the adjustments were in terms of the 5.1, there isn't much happening in the centre channel, it is there, but seems to work as an ambient speaker more than anything else.
For me that is no problem at all, I think this sounds fantastic, and the arrangements with the band on their own, the orchestra on their own and the two together are wonderful.

To me this album, although very much appreciated, doesn't tend to get its due credit for furthering, or possibly in fact, creating the progressive rock genre as much as it did.
A few months before this album came out the Beatles released Sgt Pepper, and that album certainly is a great and influential album, but in reality this album by the Moody Blues, with a lot of great input from Peter Knight, manages to encapsulate the whole late sixties, with ballads, psychedelia, orchestral, rock, romanticism, a definite concept all through, and really should be much more revered than it seems to be ... like most things falling into the shadow of the Beatles, much too easily.
It deserves to be recognised much more for what it actually is. I am not a believer in single albums/bands starting a genre as such, because there are just too many parts to the musical puzzle and everyone influences each other and there is always a steady progression with infusions from so many bands and artists that pinpointing a start is a futile exercise and people will always pick their favourite artists as the originators, but this is a terribly important album, and set the stage for the next level, that really only came to fruition a couple of years later with the bands that moved into the seventies as pure prog bands, in the sense that we see them now.

I think the mix is fabulous, the album is essential, and unless you particularly dislike the band, this should be on any surround, and music lovers list of items to buy.

A little hungover this morning, and that took longer than any of the run downs so far.... so forgive any errors in there please.

 

Seventh Sojourn

Studio album by
The Moody Blues
Released 23 October 1972 (UK) 17 November 1972 (US)
Recorded January – September 1972
Studio Decca Studios, Tollington Park, London
Genre Progressive rock psychedelic rock
Length 39:29
Label Threshold
Producer Tony Clarke

Seventh Sojourn is the eighth (seventh with the "classic" lineup) album by the Moody Blues, released in 1972.
The opening track, Mike Pinder's "Lost in a Lost World" laments the brutality of revolution and references racial tension. Several songs contain overt political references. "You and Me," like "Question" from two years earlier, alludes to ongoing wars and conflicts, including Vietnam. However, although the album showcases political concerns, in the 1990 documentary The Moody Blues: Legend of a Band, bassist John Lodge described "I'm Just a Singer (In a Rock and Roll Band)" as a response to fans who mistakenly read guru-like wisdom into the Moodies' lyrics. Instrumentally, singer/keyboardist Mike Pinder, in addition to the Mellotron, used a similar keyboard device called the Chamberlin.

• Justin Hayward - vocals, guitars
• John Lodge - vocals, bass, acoustic guitar
• Ray Thomas - vocals, flute, tambourine, saxophone, oboe
• Graeme Edge - drums, percussion, vocals
• Mike Pinder - vocals, Chamberlin, piano, harmonium

• Producer - Tony Clarke
• Recording engineers - Derek Varnals and Tony Clarke ("Isn't Life Strange")
• Assistant engineer - David Baker
• Cover and liner art - Phil Travers
• Innersleeve - The Moodies
• All instruments played by The Moody Blues
• Recorded at Tollington Park Studios, London

1. "Lost in a Lost World" Mike Pinder Pinder 4:42
2. "New Horizons" Justin Hayward Hayward 5:11
3. "For My Lady" Ray Thomas Thomas 3:58
4. "Isn't Life Strange" John Lodge Lodge, Hayward 6:09
5. "You and Me" Hayward, Graeme Edge Hayward, Thomas, Pinder 4:21
6. "The Land of Make-Believe" Hayward Hayward 4:52
7. "When You're a Free Man" Pinder Pinder 6:06
8. "I'm Just a Singer (In a Rock and Roll Band)" Lodge Lodge 4:18
Total length: 39:29
-------------------------------------------------------------------------------
From Days Of Future Passed the band had found their groove and carried on for the next five years, releasing seven albums (including "Days...") and although technically their eighth album Seventh Sojourn almost certainly alludes to the fact that this is the seventh album by the band after solidifying their line up, style and sound.

For me all the albums in the 67-72 run are of extremely high quality, and very much worth hearing, essential for anyone who is a Moody blues fan, and thankfully they all got surround treatments on sacd, even though In Search Of The Lost Chord was missing the tapes for a while, thankfully recovered.

This is my favourite Moody Blues album, and for me the band went out on a high. I'm not sure why they didn't make an album together for another six years, but that is what ended up happening.
They got back together in 78 and made Octave, but I used to have it on vinyl, and I didn't actually like it. For me it was by far the least of their albums, but in 1981, they had a huge return to form with the excellent Long Distance Voyager, and I sincerely hope that someone gets the tapes for that and gives us a surround album.

Anyhow, again we have these albums sadly out of print, but available to buy on the second hand market.
Discogs has this from $50 The Moody Blues - Seventh Sojourn
Amazon has it from $50 also https://www.amazon.com/Seventh-Sojourn-Moody-Blues/dp/B000MGVCFY

There was also a DTS disc released that starts at about $25 The Moody Blues - Seventh Sojourn

Again it is manipulated from the Quad into 5.1 by Mark Powell and Paschal Byrne

I love this album, and it has been too long since I listened to it ...

Lost In A Lost World
A swell and then some solid drums, and much more rock sound.
A very full sounding mix, the mellotron seeming to create most of the surround at this stage.
Some bvox in the rears.
It could be the mellotron but the strings in the rear sound great.
Excellent balanced mix

New Horizons
One of Hayward's ballads, and again the orchestral sound come in nicely in the rears.
Listening to this at the moment makes me wonder if Chris Deburgh's early work was inspired by these guys.
Some nice broad, right side to front left drum fills.
An excellent melodic guitar right side.
Again a beautiful thick surround mix, sound and feel. Again everything is nice and balanced.
Bvox in the sides.
The return of the electric guitar, and it is actually a harmonised, one guitar either side, set up and sounds really good

For My Lady
Cymbal rolls, acoustics and flutes all round.
Acoustic guitar either side.
Mellotron either side.
Cymbal rolls left side.
Another beautiful mix.
Again the centre is pretty much ambience.
The change brings bvox and strings all round.
The songs all segue nicely too.
The backing vocals come in at the end beautifully.

Isn't Life Strange
Flute front strings either side and rears.
Really nice balance.
Layered lead vocals, front and either side.
Refrain has vocals all around.
I actually love this song, and this sounds excellent.
A lead melody guitar in the rears.
I am only just noticing that the Moodys had their own wall of sound thing happening, on their albums.
Beautiful stuff.

You And me
Acoustics either side, electric gtr riff upfront. Strings and cymbals in the rears.
The vocals are all around again.
Again the drum fills cover the right side to front left.
The drums are river so slightly left of centre.
Again a nice full balanced mix.
The melody lead gtr is in the middle of the room, and accented by some harmony guitars.
Percussion right.

Land Of Make Believe
Acoustic gtr just left of front left.
String sounds again covering the rears, and we have vocals layered again.
Harmonies in the rears.
The lead melody guitar seems to run through the middle of the room
Another nice full immersive mix.

When You're A Free man
Again the tracks segue on what would have been side two.
Acoustics either side. String sounds sides and rears.
Again a nice wide drum mix for fills.
Bvox rears.
Another really nice mix.
Really nice effective fade out

I'm Just a Singer In a Rock And Roll Band
This is such a great song.
The drums slowly pump up. Hats on the left. Great driving bassline upfront.
Vocals all round.
The main riff, synth? Is in the rears.
This is another great mix.
The lead guitar is in the middle of the room and really effective.
Great and classic stuff.

Look, i love this album, and I think the mix is great, and really if you love the Moody Blues, these albums on sacd are really good in my opinion. I seem to remember some folks saying there was some kind of issue with them, but I just hear great music with a really good immersive mix.

 

I have them all in stereo, but only two Moody Blues in surround - A Question and Threshold. I got them because I could get them $20 or so, and that was probably because they were still on the market on account of being the least desirable. I'd love to have some more, but they aren't on my $50 buy list.

 

Rory Gallagher - Big Guns



Disc: 1
1. Big Guns
2. What's Going On
3. Tattoo'd Lady
4. Bad Penny
5. Shadow Play
6. Kickback City
7. Bourbon
8. Sinnerboy
9. Used To Be
10. Goin' To My Hometown
11. Bullfrog Blues
12. Messin' With The Kid

Disc: 2
1. The Loop
2. Born On The Wrong Side Of Time
3. A Million Miles Away
4. Calling Card
5. Out On The Western Plain
6. Lonesome Highway
7. Just The Smile
8. I'm Not Awake Yet
9. Daughter Of The Everglades
10. I'll Admit You're Gone
11. The King Of Zydeco
12. They Don't Make Them Like You Anymore

-------------------------------------------------------------
There seems to be very little info about this album around the place, but I happened across it and had to pick it up. I was extremely surprised to find some Rory in 5.1, and really hope this is well done.
I came to Rory Gallagher via the excellent Live In Europe album. I found it cheap in a secondhand store, when I was a fairly young pup and still buying random albums that looked like I may like them. I loved that album. There are various dvd's and such around the place, and they are all good, but have been, for me at least slightly disappointing ... I am hoping this has been done properly.
I'm going to go through disc one at least, as I seemed to really be slow getting that first Moody Blues album set down the way I wanted to.

-------------------------------------------------------------
For those unaware of who this guy is -

William Rory Gallagher (/ˈrɔːri ˈɡæləhər/ GAL-ə-hər; 2 March 1948 – 14 June 1995)[1][2] was an Irish blues and rock multi-instrumentalist, songwriter, and producer. Born in Ballyshannon, County Donegal,[3] and brought up in Cork, Gallagher recorded solo albums throughout the 1970s and 1980s, after forming the band Taste during the late 1960s. His albums have sold over 30 million copies worldwide.[4][5]

Gallagher received a liver transplant in 1995, but died of complications later that year in London at the age of 47.[6]

Taste
Having completed a musical apprenticeship in the showbands, and influenced by the increasing popularity of beat groups during the early 1960s, Gallagher formed "The Taste", which was later renamed simply, "Taste", a blues rock and R&B power trio, in 1966.[19] Initially, the band was composed of Gallagher and two Cork musicians, Eric Kitteringham (died 2013) and Norman Damery. However, by 1968, they were replaced with two musicians from Belfast, featuring Gallagher on guitar and vocals, drummer John Wilson, and bassist Richard McCracken.[19]

Performing extensively in the UK, the group played regularly at the Marquee Club, supporting both Cream at their Royal Albert Hall farewell concert, and the blues supergroup Blind Faith on a tour of North America. Managed by Eddie Kennedy, the trio released the albums Taste and On The Boards, and two live recordings, Live Taste and Live at the Isle of Wight.[19]

The latter appeared long after the band's break-up shortly after their appearance at the 1970 Isle of Wight Festival.[20]

-----------------------------------------------------------
For anyone wanting to read up more on Rory, here is the wiki link - Rory Gallagher - Wikipedia , and here is the Rory Gallagher site Rory Gallagher | The Official Website

Rory is a great guitarist, and I am really only very familiar with the Live In Europe and Irish Tour 74 albums, but he has a broad catalog to go through. It was very sad to lose him so young.

One copy of this available on amazon for about $35 https://www.amazon.com/Big-Guns-Very-Best-Gallagher/dp/B0009K33M8 - several available second hand from about $29
On discogs the Japanese press is available from about $70 Rory Gallagher - Big Guns - The Very Best Of Rory Gallagher
The UK pressing is available from about $11 Rory Gallagher - Big Guns - The Very Best Of Rory Gallagher
and the European pressing is available from about $5 Rory Gallagher - Big Guns - The Very Best Of Rory Gallagher
Amazon Uk has it from about 7 pounds https://www.amazon.co.uk/Big-Guns-Very-Best-Gallagher/dp/B00080CL04

I can't find a mixer for the 5.1 ...
Production engineer -Tony Arnold
Production assistants - Tom O'driscoll, Mike Tupper, Pashal and Neil Martin
Mastering Tony Cousins

So lets see what we have here.

Big Guns
Nice sub presence and good solid sound.

What's Going On
Guitars either side. Effects sends to rears.

Tattoo'd Lady
We start with fair type organ and crowd sound all round.
Gtrs either side.

Bad Penny
Hats left side. Guitars either side. Harmonica? Rears

Shadow Play

Kickback city

Bourbon

Sinner boy
Live

Used to be
Keys on the left side

Going to my hometown
Live

Bullfrog blues
Live

Messin with the kid
Live

Well, it is kind of as I feared ... Rory did some great stuff during his career, and he had a rough and ready style and sound.
I am not sure that this is actually a discrete mix... I would love someone with more expertise than me to step in and give us some details about this.
To me, it sounds like this may be an effected stereo mix dropped into a 5.1 zone. There are a couple of bits and pieces that sound like they may be discrete, but that often happens with an effected stereo mix.
I don't dislike this album as such and I only listened to the first disc, but it is terribly disappointing to me when people do this.
I think Rory has some stuff that is worth the time to mix properly, and this hasn't been mixed properly. A bit of reverb or effects sends in the rears isn't a 5.1 mix to me.

To me, if you like Rory, get the $5 European copy up there .... I wouldn't spend over ten bucks on this. To me these kinds of releases are among the reasons that surround isn't as respected as it should be.

The album sound is good, but not great, and sadly with most of Rory's stuff, I always end up being disappointed with the releases ... Someone with some scruples needs to do something with this excellent catalog of work ... If there are no multitracks to make a decent 5.1, then use the pentio, and make in known on the cover somewhere that that's what it is.

Terribly disappointed.

 

Yep, I thought Vital Signs was the only track that didn't still sound like their trademark wall of sound coming from the front. Frankly, as a general matter, I'm not sure Rush can be better in surround. A three channel wall is perhaps the way to go.

 

Wow... I had no idea this existed. So as a 2005 release, this might be after Rory’s brother seemed to take over and try to bring some organization to the back catalog. (Not sure on timelines and his general involvement since Rory’s death.)

I’d love to see his catalog get some more love with 5.1 releases, if possible.

 

Hmm. While I unfortunately haven't heard the surround of 7th, I do have the deluxe edition of Days that came out in 2017. You may have a very different mix (on SACD) than the one I have, as the 2017 2-disc edition of Days has the surround mix on DVD. And the DVD does not make much (or any) use of the center channel; as you said, it's a manipulation of the original Quad mix.

But it's not a great manipulation, and I''ve mentioned it in this thread before, as it's a prime example of not disclosing to the potential buyers that it's not really a 5.1 mix. I have no problem with Quad mixes, as there are some great ones out there, such as Bitches Brew and Headhunters. But kludging a Quad mix into a pseudo 5.1 mix is not doing the album any favors, IMO.

While Days is a brilliant album that deserves any and all accolades that it gets, it also has deserved a better hand at the helm, so to speak.

Maybe your SACD has a different mix from the DVD? I don't know the answer to that.

 

I don't know if they are different.
I enjoy the mix... Like many, it could be better, but It is immersive and full. Perhaps it could have more clarity ...


Edit - sorry I was eating ...
There was nothing but ambience in my centre, but it didn't really detract from the mix for me.

 

Yeah, I've got the 50th Anniversary 2017 set as well. Worth it as it's the first time the original LP mix has been on CD (every other disc is a remix), but the surround mix isn't all that. However, it is better than the 50th Anniversary surround mix of In Search of the Lost Chord, which is terrible.

 

I've grown to like quad mixes. But, I think you need speakers that will handle lower frequencies in the back to hear them as intended.

 

A Momentary Lapse of Reason


Studio album by
Pink Floyd
Released 7 September 1987
Recorded November 1986 – March 1987
Studio Astoria, Mayfair Studios, Britannia Row Studios, and Audio International, London A&M Studios, Village Recorders, and Can Am Studios, Los Angeles Le Mobile
Genre Progressive rock
Length 51:14
Label EMI Columbia
Producer Bob Ezrin David Gilmour

A Momentary Lapse of Reason is the thirteenth studio album by the English progressive rock band Pink Floyd, released in the UK and US on 7 September 1987 by EMI and Columbia. It was recorded primarily on guitarist David Gilmour's converted houseboat, Astoria.

Pink Floyd

• David Gilmour – vocals; guitars; keyboards; sequencers
• Nick Mason – electric and acoustic drums; sound effects (tracks 1, 2, 4-6, 9), spoken vocals (on "Signs of Life" and "Learning to Fly")

Additional musicians

• 
  
  
  • Richard Wright – piano; backing vocals ("Learning to Fly", "On the Turning Away" and "Sorrow"); Kurzweil; Hammond organ (tracks 1, 2, 5, 9, 11)
  • Bob Ezrin – keyboards; percussion; sequencers
  • Tony Levin – bass guitar; Chapman Stick
  • Jim Keltner – drums
  • Steve Forman – percussion
  • Jon Carin – keyboards
  • Tom Scott – alto saxophone; soprano saxophone
  • Scott Page – tenor saxophone
  • Carmine Appice – drums
  • Patrick Leonard – synthesizers
  • Bill Payne – Hammond organ
  • Michael Landau – guitar
  • John Helliwell – saxophone (credited as "John Halliwell")
  • Darlene Koldenhoven (as Darlene Koldenhaven) – backing vocals
  • Carmen Twillie – backing vocals
  • Phyllis St. James – backing vocals
  • Donnie Gerrard – backing vocals

Production

• Bob Ezrin – producer
• David Gilmour – producer
• Andrew Jackson – engineering; mixing
• Robert (Ringo) Hyrcyna – assistant
• Marc Desisto – assistant
• Stan Katayama – assistant
• Jeff Demorris – assistant
• James Guthrie – additional re-mixing

1. "Signs of Life" (Instrumental, with spoken vocals by Nick Mason) Gilmour, Ezrin 4:24
2. "Learning to Fly" Gilmour, Moore, Ezrin, Carin 4:53
3. "The Dogs of War" Gilmour, Moore 6:05
4. "One Slip" Gilmour, Manzanera 5:10
5. "On the Turning Away" Gilmour, Moore 5:42
6. "Yet Another Movie" Gilmour, Leonard 6:28
7. "Round and Around" (instrumental) Gilmour 1:02
8. "A New Machine (Part 1)" Gilmour 1:46
9. "Terminal Frost" (instrumental) Gilmour 6:17
10. "A New Machine (Part 2)" Gilmour 0:38
11. "Sorrow" Gilmour 8:46
-----------------------------------------------------------------
I don't get into the Dave vs Roger stuff, I think it is overblown nonsense with mainly folks that know nothing about them, siding with one or the other for personal reasons of their own. It is baited by media, who are just looking to sell something juicy, and frankly I just don't see that it is of any importance to anybody but the two guys involved. They worked together for years, and then, as always seems to happen in the music business, they didn't want to work together anymore.

On a music front, Dave and Roger have both released some fantastic stuff apart from each other, but again, as is normally the case, the stuff they did together was exceptional, because they both brought just the right amount of flavour to the mix, and it was tasty.

I personally wish the stuff on these sets was available individually, but I wanted it too much to chance missing out if that doesn't happen..
The set is beautifully presented with all sorts of stuff, replica tour booklets, a nice photo book, a nice 5 cd book with lots of details, replica tickets, stickers, posters and all that kind of stuff. A couple of one sided singles ... Probably most contentiously it has the visual material on bluray and dvd, which seems unnecessary, and raises the cost of the package unnecessarily .... but, anyhow.

We have one bluray with 5.1 versions of A Momentary Lapse Of Reason, The Division Bell, and the Endless River.
Today I am going to give the Momentary Lapse of Reason 5.1 a listen.

The details up there about who played what, may well be incorrect, as my understanding is that Wright and Mason, who apparently had little input ion the original release, have been subbed in. Some sounds and such have been changed, and I believe that On The Turning Away has a live vocal subbed in because Dave preferred it to the original studio vocal.
When I first heard all of this I was horrified, and thought it would be akin to listening to Godley and Creme's Wet Rubber Soup ... but having listened to the cd once, and having the bluray 5.1 in last night - though I must say, paying only cursory attention to it, as I had friends over and we were having a drink and chat - It doesn't sound disturbingly different.
I think predominantly many folks have a problem with eighties production and styles, and I think the idea was to change it up, and give it a somewhat more contemporary, or at least less eighties sound.
I haven't listened to the original in quite a while, so I will be just listening to what we have here, and taking it on face value. When listening to the cd in the car (the only place I really listen to cd's) it sounded like the album, and although I am sure there are probably many differences, there weren't any in that environment that made me take a step back or freak out.... at the end of the day, I am a song guy.

This, to me, at the time, was a great album. Sure it wasn't Animals or whatever, but it was never likely that even the full band would be able to match its seventies triumphs, and to em, Floyd owned the seventies. So I have never felt the album sounded bad, or the songs terrible or any of the other things I have heard thrown about, I just heard an album I enjoyed, that became of its time, like almost every album ever made.
I saw the Tour that followed the album, and it was great, although ..... in the words of someone famous, I think I had a little too much to dream, and I actually think someone slipped me some acid, so my memories of the show, aren't as concise as they may be. I do remember that the concert PA system was set up in a surround format, and they may have been the first time I experienced surround sound.

5.1 mix Dave Gilmour and Andy Jackson

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

The Later Years

Box set by
Pink Floyd
Released 13 December 2019[1]
Recorded 1986–2019
Genre Progressive rock pop rock
Label Pink Floyd Records Legacy (outside Europe)
Producer Pink Floyd Bob Ezrin



A Momentary Lapse of Reason was the band's first album after the departure of Roger Waters and helmed by David Gilmour. All of the album's drum parts have been re-recorded by Mason for the 2019 version (not all drum parts were played by Mason on the original release) and more of keyboardist Rick Wright's parts have been included (replacing parts which were played by session musicians on the original). The album has been remixed for 2019.

1. "Signs of Life"
2. "Learning to Fly"
3. "The Dogs of War"
4. "One Slip"
5. "On the Turning Away"
6. "Yet Another Movie"
7. "Round and Around"
8. "A New Machine (Part 1)"
9. "Terminal Frost"
10. "A New Machine (Part 2)"
11. "Sorrow"

------------------------------------------------------------
Aside from also containing the Division Bell on this disc, there are also these extra tracks, also mixed into 5.1

• Unreleased 1994 studio recordings

1. "Blues 1"
2. "Slippery Guitar"
3. "Rick's Theme"
4. "David's Blues"
5. "Marooned Jam"
6. "Nervana"
7. "High Hopes (Early Version)"

The Endless River is on a different bluray, with a video movie of some distinction, that I haven't seen yet.

There has been contention over the price, but like anything, if you want it enough, you will pay for it.... that is the nature of free enterprise.

The Pink Floyd site has the set for about $450 The Later Years | Shop the Pink Floyd Official Store
Amazon has the set for about $340 https://www.amazon.com/Later-Years-Pink-Floyd/dp/B07X2M36TF
Deep Discount has the set for about $335 Pink Floyd The Later Years (1987-2019) on DeepDiscount
Import cd's has it for about $324 Pink Floyd The Later Years (1987-2019) Boxed Set, With DVD, With Blu-ray, With Book on ImportCDs

So there are plenty of options. Really it is just going to depend on your budget, and your desperation to get the set. I was very lucky that my parents sent me some birthday money, and I ummm'd and ahh'd and ended up ordering it from Amazon.

Signs Of Life
We start with a boat on a river, and the paddles an water are effective... like you are sitting in the boat/canoe, whatever
We have some synth introduce the music, and some sfx, talking etc, and it is fully immersive instantly.
A really effective shimmery synth across the centre, as the first guitar notes come in.
The whistling synth moves about a little. There is a really nice room ambience as well as the really nice mix

Learning To Fly
The drums feel like they are across the middle of the room, with percussive elements on either side. Main rhythm guitar either side.
Some more really nice sfx and talking.
A very full and encompassing mix.
They have dome a really good job here.
The main vocal receives a big effect after the sfx section, and it has a trippy sound to it, with effects sends to rears..
Backing vocals in rears.
A lot of nice effects

The Dogs Of War
Sfx across the middle, again really well done.
I always liked this song, but apparently many didn't.
Organ swirls up on the right. A sample on the left... both rears.
Bvox rears and sides. The pulsing stringlike synth, builds over three channels.
The is all very balanced and effective.
This is good, but seems to have less punch than I remember, but memory is deceptive.
Some nice width to the drum fills.
With the rhythm change, we get some nice stuff too. The drum fills going into the sides works very well.
The lead gtr and sax lead sound excellent.

One Slip
One slip starts like a digital age reprise of Time. Sfx all round, and striking alarms on the rears.
Synth beds in front and rear.
The guitars rise beautifully on the sides... I mean really nice.
Organ right side.
Bvox rears.
Percussion effects either side, those gtrs rise up again.
You really are in a Pink Floyd landscape here.

On The Turning Away
Drone synth, with the vocal soon after.
Tuneful synth sides.
Acoustic gtr left.
String type synths rears
Organ blast, right.
Guitar kind of middle field.
Enveloped in the choir and music.
The field goes on around us and Dave's guitar takes centre stage.
Another really nice mix.
To me there is excellent clarity.
I keep turning the volume up too...

Yet Another Movie
Synth stabs front and sides.
Now just the sides. Mixing it up nicely.
The bottom end is really nice on this... not sure how much sub there is though.
Synth pads rears. Gtr swell left side. Sax front right. This is a lot more dense than I remember in the intro.
Nice sounding bass.
The lead gtr seems to swim around us.
Either bvox or fx sends to sides and rears.
A very eighties synth sample.
Again a very thick sound field.
It sounds wonderful to me.
I forgot how much I liked the track.
Spooky whispers in the rears.
Slide guitar does some excellent trippy moving.
More talk sfx come in.
This has a really nice cinematic feel.

Round and Round
I havent mentioned the fact that most of this segues together.
Some nice side to side synth stuff.
Short and sweet, and very effective as a fade.

A New Machine pt1
Vocal up front.
The effected trails in the sides and rears.
Again very effective.
I forgot how cool I always thought this was too. Simple and very effective.

Terminal Frost
Piano left. Another piano front and right.
Guitars front and rears.
Sax on the right.
Percussion either side.
Drum kind of in the middle of the room
Again a nice thick and rich soundfield.
Bvox rears.
Sax lead front.
Sax back on the right.
Synths all round.
Lots of splashy reverb.
More speaking effects, moving from right to centre.
Some very effective subtle movement in the soundfield, giving it a dreamlike feel.
A really nice ending too.

A New Machine pt2
A reprise of the prior, very similar in its structure and arrangement.

Sorrow
Synth pad all round.
Oh man that gtr sounds great. Thicker than treacle, and bleeding into all channels from a front to middle position, and the tails in the rears take on a slightly different sound.
Percussive synths either side. Nice effect.
Wailing little pieces of guitar everywhere.
The vocal may be a little low in the mix.
The chorus/bridge the vocals pick up a little, so it may be by design.
Some really nice all round effects in the break down, synths and guitars I believe.
We break back into the beat
Very effective mix with a fully engaged soundfield and some effective little bits and pieces of movement. Nice fade.

Well to me that is a very good mix. It is very effective, and as I may have stated there is definitely a cinematic quality to the way it is laid out.
I don't think it is a typical mix, it has some unusual choices, but I personally like the choices.
I think a serious Pink Floyd fan will love this, and if this was a stand alone release, for $30 or so, I would say essential, but as we have learned on here, we all have slightly different expectations in regards to whether a mix will cross the line we make in our heads. I many aspects the mix leaps across the lines made in my head, and in a couple of minor things, it is near or on the line.
For the most part I love this. I think that most folks that like this album will love it.
So far as the differences from the original ... I honestly can't make much of a comment, what I can say is, that nothing made me think "what/why" ... It still sounds like the same album, and it still has that hi tech somewhat sci-fi sound about it.

I think this is a great, and often overlooked album, and I personally am very happy with this.
For those who care about such things, after the fade of Sorrow, Cluster 1 starts without any resets or menu skipping. So essentially given time, you can listen to the two albums and the extras without pause, which I think is a nice touch.