Post by h***@gmail.comPost by MarkFIt's very rare for me to say: I can't think of anything negative
or critical to say about the production or the entire package.
High praise indeed! So go on then, tell us the positives instead...
Well, you're asking me to write about music. You might just as well ask
me for a dance about architecture.
But here:
Top 5 Positives About Steven Wilson's _TYA_ 2014:
1. An extended version of "A Venture" is no longer mythical. In fact,
there's even more guitar solo earlier in this mix than on the original
version, which had that awkward & frustrating fadeout just as Howe's
solo took off. No fadeout at all here, and you get to hear the entire
band jam a bit before Howe's distorted guitar squawks things to an end.
(I don't imagine the band ever wrote out much of an ending for "A
Venture", but this extended mix makes it clear that Eddie Offord should
have picked a better spot to start the fadeout in the original version.)
2. Wilson's new stereo mix is just as interesting as his 5.1 surround
mix. For one example, in "YIND" in the left channel during Howe's first
fingerpicking break, there's this very gentle, wispy acoustic guitar
strum at each chord change... a very nice touch to separate that out in
the mix. Wilson even crafted a software-enhanced fake surround version
of "Clap" (from a 2-channel live master) so that you get a nice live
hall-reverb effect during 5.1 playback.
3. The bass seems punchier on this than it did on Wilson's _CTTE_ remix.
This is a plus, especially if the bass that you're remixing is Chris
Squire's.
4. The backing vocals, especially Howe's, are mixed fluidly so Steve's
voice doesn't stick out so much. (Previous nitpick: I could hear a bit
too much Howe in Wilson's _CTTE_ surround for my tastes.) And all those
Anderson/Squire vocal overdubs on "Perpetual Change" sound great to me
in these mixes, both stereo and surround. (Note: I just read someone on
PE complaining about the fuzziness of the backing vocals on _TYA_in the
surround mix... do you really want to hear Howe's voice with extreme
clarity and separation in the mix? I don't.)
5. The booklet material seems well-researched and accurate, and the
essay by Sid Smith adds to the overall package. For example, I did not
know that the synth used for overdubs on _TYA_ was the same modular Moog
used for "Lucky Man" on ELP's debut album. These days we take synth
sounds for granted, but I presume no one in Yes back then, particularly
Tony Kaye, actually owned a synthesizer, so Yes were probably thrilled
that Keith let them use his Moog for their album.
--
Mark "and now, my ballet entitled 'Flying Buttresses'..."
Tales From TopBLOGraphic Oceans
<http://markf-yeselpkrimson.blogspot.com/>
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