Re: Sound quality / Peter Gabriel's "Us"

[cjm@iris.mincom.oz.au (Chris Moran)]

George Ludwig (fester@parnasus.dell.com) wrote:
: While I'm still not sure about my position on TSW, I must agree that
: my first reaction on listening to US was that the sound quality was
: very muffled. There's like no high end to be found on the record. I'm
: not sure what "novel technique" you're referring to, but I recall
: reading on the liner notes that many of the rythm tracks were
: originally recorded on location in the early 80's. God only knows what
: Peter was using for a deck...nagra? 14-bit Casio DAT? Walkman
: Professional? But I suspect that he used a lot of these ryhtms
: (recorded under less-than-ideal circumstances) and didn't want to make
: them stand out for their lack of quality. Thus, (and this is merely a
: theory) the "subdued" mix of most of the other tracks.

    The lack of high-end I believe is deliberate, and not a result of poor
recording. The mood of the album is dark and cathartic, not joyous, and a
rolled-off high-end helps establish this.


Chris Moran
chris.moran@mincom.oz.au