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ivan@stellysee.de
| From | mrl@PSFC.MIT.EDU |
| Subject | Sgt Peppers remixed. |
| Date | Wed, 30 Apr 2003 11:16:16 -0400 |
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A few weeks ago some people were talking about Sgt Peppers, and whether it's a
highly overrated album or not. Personally, I prefer the White album, because
it rocks more, and it doesn't have the high touted but gimmicky production
tricks on Sgt Peppers. I especially don't like the stereo mix, i.e. when
there is very little blending between the 2 channels, and have totally separate
tracks in each channel. Vocals or percussion only appearing in 1 channel may
be cool to listen to using speakers, but IMHO, with headphones it detracts
from the music. While it helps to make the music sound clearer, it lessens
the sonic impact. You end up paying attention to those gimmicks, rather than
getting into the music itself. And with headphones, the music already sounds
clear, so such a mix IMHO isn't necessary, and instead gives it a sparse sound.
Ok, sometimes I may be in a quiet mood, but usually I want real impact
from my music. Perhaps this is one reason why some enthusiasts prefer the
mono mix? I definitely wouldn't go as far as to want that. So I mucked with
the music using some stereo plugins, in order to create the blend, while still
preserving the stereo effect, and created my own version of this album. As
an example, here's the first 2 minutes of "A Day in the Life", before and
after samples. I selected this one as an example, because they especially
mess with the vocals here. Initially they are in the right channel, then in
the middle, and then finally in the left channel, something which I might have
one found cool, but now find annoying. Creating a blend helps to make the
transitions seem less severe:
http://web.mit.edu/london/www/beat/beatles_orig.mp3
http://web.mit.edu/london/www/beat/beatles_remix.mp3
A few weeks ago I also mentioned about the supposed defects I heard on the Sgt
Peppers CD which I had just bought. Actually, comparing to the LP, the same
"defects" are there also. Mostly, I guess I'm hearing artifacts caused by the
heavy compression and other processing techniques that were used. I.e.,
notice on some songs how hard the K and P are in some words. I fixed as many
of these as I could.
And I'll give MHO of this LP. First, I should mention that I haven't heard
this album in many years. I think it's hard to give an evaluation if you've
heard something a billion times over, as the impact of the music will be
lessened, so you won't be able to give an unbiased opinion of how it compares
to another LP which you've heard less.
In any event, after all the hoopla about the production, that part doesn't
have much of an impact for me any longer. But what does still stand out is
the great catchy hooks and lyrics, and especially the cool vocals. Could
Lennon really sing in that high a register, or was that due to speeding up the
tapes? Well, whatever the case, it's those things that make this a really
great pop album. Entertaining, fun to listen to and to sing along with, and
with one or 2 exceptions (i.e. "Within You Without You") a very consistent
album, i.e. one that doesn't have too much jarring different songs.
I.e., Compare Sgt Peppersto Abbey Road, which IMHO is very overrated. There,
you are bounced between upbeat pop songs and heavy durge like songs such as
"Something" named "I Want You". Plus, the nonsensical lyrics on that LP have
zilch impact on me and simply bore me. And Lennon's vocals are now sounding
like a rocker rather than the sweet pop vocals on Sgt Peppers. I don't
understand how people think Abbey Road is a great album. Yes, some songs are
great, but I don't think it stacks up with any of the prior albums. I simply
can't listen to the plodging and nonsense songs any more, even after not
hearing them for many years.
So is Sgt Peppers the best album of all time? Of course not. There is no
such thing. Art and music is subjective, and even for a given person, that
person is going to like different music at different times. But, IMHO, it is
one of the best albums of all time.
Mark
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