Top 5 Worst Recorded/Engineered CD's of 2002

[tyler657recpro]

I like dissing better than praising, so here we go. I'll start.

This isn't the worst album list, although some may qualify, just worst recorded.

1.'NSync - Celebrity
2.Red Hot Chili Peppers - By The Way
3.Counting Crows - Hard Candy
4. John Mayor - No Such Thing
5.Avril Lavigne - Nobody's Fool

[Axis]

these are production/engineering/mix worsts for the year

My bands Cd! right at the top of the list
No doubt,
Red Hot Chili Peppers,
Foo Fighters,

[Blue Bear Sound]

I think the sound quality of Shakira's "Laundry Service" is pretty bad..... Talk about overcompressed!!!!

I can't give you 5 because I haven't bought many CD's from new artists!

[chessrock]

RHCP By the Way was a total disappointment. Too compressed, distorted and lacking punch. I think we've come to expect more of Rick Rubin.

[Gidge]

how do we know if it was the engineering, mixing,mastering,playing,etc. that messed up the sound?.......

we can say what the worst sounding record is, but lets try to not point the finger at what step in the process did it........

[darrin_h2000]

Most of the worst recordings started with a model where a singer should be.

[Speeddemon]

It's true about the RHCP album... so much compression, that it's distorting.
Like Bruce, I didn't buy any new artist's album... I bought a Paladins cd for my mom, but they probably never heard of ProTools and Waves L2, so that might explain their authentic sound...

I've talked to a mastering engineer some weeks ago about the current trend of overcompressing/limiting everything. He said that it is done, because if you don't do it, radio stations will compress it more, and then the overall sound of the song is less controllable.
When you provide an already 'flatcompressed' album, it will change less when played on the radio, because it will fit within the boundaries of their own compressors...

Anyway, fuck that, I'm giving my mixes dynamics!
(BTW, I got my RNC today, I love that thing...hmmm.....maybe compress a little here and there... )

[smythology]

hey it aint just 2002..

the last ten years or whatever - it was like this. Nirvana made engineers (or the label execs who run their lives) drool and they all cranked the compression from then on, though I like Nirvana.

robin

[tyler657recpro]

One thing I just noticed, is all five of the CD's I mentioned were done with protools. I'm very dissappointed in the Counting Crows and RHCP.

[c7sus]

The best recordings I heard in 2002 were done by tapers at Phil & Friends and Govt Mule shows.

I've got a knockout P&F 5/28/02 that was done with TLM-103's through a Lunatec V-2.

Who needs record companies? They can't produce what a large segment of the public wants. I just got TOO 12/31/02! Took a week to down it.

And today is January 11,2003!!!!!!!!

The internet killed the video star!

[XerXes]

anyone listen to in flames?

to me, their new cd sounds like it was recorded "normally", then played through a boombox and re-recorded with a mic to the boombox. it sounds HORRIBLE!

best recording - TODAY IS THE DAY!
(if you like that sort of music)

[sweetnubs]

hey speed-demon, fuck the Paladins. I got into a fisfight with one of 'em once. kicked his loudmouth drunk homophobic ass too. fucking hipster poser pussies.

[chessrock]

I think the White Stripes sound pretty god-awful, but I'm guessing their production method was intentional. Either way, it just sounds like a whole lotta' muck to me. I must be getting old, because a lot of the hipster Chicago crowd just digs them to no end.

[musac]

keak the sneak(the farm boys)

[charliedango]

I really didn't buy any CD's last year either. The last CD that I bought and expected to be great but wasn't was Tool - Lateralus. The overall mix was okay, but each instrument lacked flair. Totally opposite of Aenima where each instrument shined through with true character and pressence. The drums were especially squashed and that is a horrible thing to do to such a talented and dynamic drummer. Granted the CD is very dynamic when compared to other pop and rock releases, it just lacked the textures present on their previous release.

There were two very surprising releases in the last two years that caught my attention. System of a Down - Toxicity and Queens of the Stone age - Songs for the Deaf. I think the thing that really stands out about both is their stripped down sound when compared to a lot of other glossy productions. I was amazed purely by the gain acheived on Toxicity throughout the album. The entire album rides the edge of how loud you can print digitally to CD, IMO. Songs for the Deaf is just a wonderfully dry album. Even when it's saturated with tremolo guitar effects and synth it still comes off as being dry. It's tight and instrumentally demanding to mix that way since you have nowhere to hide if you screw up, but when it works it, it really works. QOTSA's new album is proof of that.

I'm not interested in pop enough to buy one pop cd, so I wouldn't know anything about that. Besides it would be pointless because I would just compare them all to old motown recordings and scoff at their shrill nasally sound produced by their teeny-tude, flavor-of-the-week pop sensations (uh-hum...Avril Lavigne).

Wow, I didn't really mean for this to turn into a super long post. Sorry!

[jslator]

Originally posted by tyler657recpro
2.Red Hot Chili Peppers - By The Way

I don't know about the new one, but the mix for Californication was apparantly quite excellent. They destroyed it in the mastering though.

[Slackmaster2K]

Tool - Lateralus. Probably the most pop-rock-over-produced album I have at the moment. I get fatigued after the third track...way too loud, no dynamics.

Slackmaster 2000

[charliedango]

Originally posted by Slackmaster2K
Tool - Lateralus. Probably the most pop-rock-over-produced album I have at the moment. I get fatigued after the third track...way too loud, no dynamics.

Slackmaster 2000

Too loud and not dynamic? Then You must think Toxicity is the worst album ever!

[rushfan33]

Rush!!

[Slackmaster2K]

Originally posted by charliedango
Too loud and not dynamic? Then You must think Toxicity is the worst album ever!

Indeed, I think they really blew it.

Slackmaster 2000

[tyler657recpro]

Ya know what I've noticed, is some of the more respectable artists have their mainstream hits with basically no dynamics, but then they put dynamics on their truly great songs. The ones that get no airplay, even tho they're better than the hits, IMO. For example, Coldplay - Amsterdam.

[Prizmaxic]

Weezer - Maladroit

I love some of the songs, but it seems like they put no effort whatsoever into the production.

[Light]

RHCP - BTW (I think enough has been said that I don't need to bother).

Audioslave - (Amazing songs, amazing playing, God like singing, but the mix SUCKS BALLS).

That is all the ones I know.

Light

"Cowards can never be moral."
M.K. Gandhi

[BrettB]

Originally posted by Light


Audioslave - (Amazing songs, amazing playing, God like singing, but the mix SUCKS BALLS).

I disgree with that, I like the Audioslave mixes!! They sound warm and analog with the right punch. The voice is really overcompressed, but it is done quite good and it was obviously an intentional choice. The weren't afraid to go back to the analog sound: Warm compression, even some hiss now and then but a very punchy record.

I agree with RHCP. Although over here they got excellent reviews, I crave for their BSSM period...

[Prizmaxic]

I also LIKE the Audioslave record.