Best Sounding Album of all time

[ryanlikestorock]

Mark Linett's stereo remix of Pet Sounds. Opened up entire new dimensions from the mono version and sounds fantastic.

Agreed. This is my favourite album musically and sonically.

 

[rboyce_boston]

Wow...those are some great albums that people have referenced. Some I'll have to listen to again, and some for the first time.

These certainly aren't the "best" albums of all time, but I find myself always returning to them due to their outstanding production as well as great performances:

1. Luna - "Penthouse". I just love this record. I think it sounds incredible. Great drum sounds, great overall mix. Just creates an amazing atmosphere. "23 Minutes in Brussels" is epic.
2. Freedy Johnston - "This Perfect World". Butch Vig shows a different side of his production skill, with outstanding results.
3. Matthew Sweet - "Girlfriend". Call me crazy, but I think this is the best guitar record of the 90's. Fred Maher really knows how to record guitars. It also doesn't hurt to have Robert Quine and Richard Lloyd playing lead guitar throughout the record. P.S. Check out the Velvet Crush's "Teenage Symphonies to God" for more great guitar pop/rock. Mitch Easter's production on that record is pretty amazing for what is basically an album recorded in a large project studio.
4. Radiohead - "The Bends". "OK Computer" is great, too, but this album just sounds a bit more organic and natural. I just love the vocals and drums on this record.

That's all for now. Over and out.

ray

 

[sweetnubs]

I can't of course list the best recorded albums of all time because there are so many but two i've been listening to recently for references that I love are Mark Hollis' solo album (phil "fuckin' awesome" brown) and Miles Davis' Milestones. That room is beautiful (who needs multitracking!)

 

[ez_willis]

Jellyfish, Spilt Milk.

 

[dawg2k5]

King's X - Please come home Mr. Bulbous.
Nice heavy guitar tones...and very nice low end on the bass.
It sounds amazing cranked!!!

 

[jamtheguitarman]

Dream Theater / Train Of Thought

 

[jmorris]

Beatles "White' album. Iincredable sound then and today. I dont think it has been matched

 

[cornjchob2]

Captain Beefheart - Ice Cream for Crow

The overall sound of the album is just so dark, but so so clear--it's absolutely amazing. And it only took 17 years and about 8 albums before someone figured out how to capture all of Van Vliets 4 1/2 octaves dynamically with no clipping and get them to sit in a mix: that alone puts the album considerably above par.

 

[lyke_wake]

Transylvanian Hunger

WOW! That is one of the funniest things I have ever heard (but hey even if you were serious I'm not totally against the necro-black metal sound, as I heard Fenriz say in an interview "We look for the coldest ugliest sound possible", and yes I think they definitely get that sound, to the utter disbelief of non-black metal fans (I mean disbelief like “wtf are they trying to do here, my ears are bleeding?” not “omfg that sounds so good”.)).

Anyways, back on topic, not just because they are my favorite band, but I think “NILE – In Their Darkened Shrines”. Yeah I loved the production on “Black Seeds of Vengeance” (and basically Amongst the Catacombs of Nephren-Ka and In the Beginning (although they had more of a “traditional death metal sound”)). That really muddy guitar sound, and over-all dark feel of the album, as I think it helped give the album a more aggressive, totally chaotic, brutal sound that helped add to the Egyptian atmosphere. I also like the sound on “Annihilation of the Wicked”, (I would say similar to Darkened Shrines) but it lacks that huge drum sound of ITDS (and the guitar got a little muddier).

Ok why is ITDS so good? Well first off, it is very hard to mix a death metal album, let alone a band with 2 x 6 strings tuned to 7, with a dropped D like tuning (low to high A-E-A-D-F#-B), a 5 string bass, a really talented drummer (Tony Laureano) and some of the lowest vocals/growls going around (especially Karl Sanders). People complained that the sound of BSOV was too raw and that the guitar sound was muddy beyond belief. I loved this album because the sound added to the brutal/fast/technical playing (especially Derek Roddy, as his drumming was pretty much full speed on the whole album and the drums sound matched the guitars almost perfectly) and it sounded like the album was indeed recorded inside the tomb of a dead Egyptian guy.

But I couldn’t believe the sound of ITDS. At first I was not a big fan, as I was used to the sound of BSOV, although after a few spins I was in total awe. I have never heard a drum kit sound so perfect (I still had problems with the sound of the kick but after a while you get used to a more “clicky” sound rather than the usual death metal “boom”). The toms, oh the toms. They sound huge, and in my car stereo it’s like Tony Laureano is in the back seat playing. The cymbals he uses were perfect for this album and were recorded as such. They sound so thrashy and cut through so well, especially the high hats (he uses 13” hats). Snare is also very nice and punchy (I think it sounds more like a wood snare although he used brass).

But the thing that changed the most was the guitar sound This time around on ITDS the guitar sounds so much clearer, but I wouldn’t say a whole lot cleaner at the same time. You can actually hear every note they play (yes even the low A string now) and it gives the album a more “epic” feel as opposed to BSOV’s dark one. I think this was the trick and the element that made the album almost perfect - space. If I said before BSOFV sounded to me like it was recorded in a tomb, this album sounds like it was recorded on the biggest stage imaginable in front of the all the Pharaohs and Egyptian Gods (and yes I do get a little carried away sometimes ). Tony Laureano seems to have so much time and space in his “epic” rolls (check out Sarcophagus and Unas the Slayer of the Gods in particular), while playing just as fast, if not faster at times then Derek Roddy did previously. There is a lot more quality this time with vocals, not only performance wise but production (again they sound “bigger” with a lot more space) and again the guitars seem so huge, so clear, and so EPIC. But alas, like almost all death metal mixes (except maybe Cryptopsy to a degree) the bass is a “no show”, but oh well nothing is perfect right? But this album is damn close IMHO.

p.s. - sorry for the novel

 

[peopleperson]

If it's black metal we're talkin about, I think Emperor's Prometheus LP is pretty great sounding, and Mayhem finally got decent sounds on Chimera.

 

[Nakatira]

Thick as a brick by Jethro Tull, nice and clean sounding.
Lovely bass and really sweet drums.

 

[Bassoprofundo]

Jellyfish, Spilt Milk.

I was going to say this album. Great recording.

 

[johnsuitcase]

Shellac's 'At Action Park' sounds amazing on a good stereo, cranked up a bit. It was mastered with lots of headroom, so the dynamics are great, if you turn it up!

Nevermind that it's one of the few rock records that sounds like the band is right there in front of you.