ZWAN - Loud is not better

  • Thread starter Thread starter SenryokuZokyoza
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SenryokuZokyoza

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I've been reading a lot of bad stuff about Billy Corgan's new
CD, Zwan. Let's say that Zwan is Smashing pumpkins without
James and D'arcy. As a huge fan of SMP that I am, I decided to
buy Zwan's album, after downloading a few hits or so. Let's
say that I am no audio expert or pro anything but, the sound quality in this album is something very very strange and weird.
Seems like 90% of the songs are cracked, wrecked, breathless
and, I don't know... just strange. This is how an audio amateur
like me classifies what I listened to: strange.

Surfing their website, I found this message from Billy:

"We set out to make the loudest fucking rock and roll album that was humanly possible."

Reading the album sleeve, I could see that it was mastered
at Masterdisk (which I guess is a huge and famous mastering
company!).

How it can be? What's wrong?
 
Another victim of "Loudest CD On The Block" contest. Over compressed and no dynamic range, clipped peaks, etc.
 
Track Rat said:
Another victim of "Loudest CD On The Block" contest. Over compressed and no dynamic range, clipped peaks, etc.
Click to expand...

I've said it before and I'll say it again: You only wish you could compress that much and have it sound that good.
 
fenix said:
I've said it before and I'll say it again: You only wish you could compress that much and have it sound that good.
Click to expand...
Ah..........no I don't.
 
If someone has to compress their tracks that much then there is prolly nothing worth listening to to start with.
 
LOL, WHY would they want it that loud fenix? Arent you the same guy that advocates Pro Tools? I see now why you might not think theres anything wrong with that app.
 
I totally agree. I've been a SP fanatic for years, so I'm a big fan of Corgan's songwriting. And Jimmy Chamberlin is the fucking man... and Pajo rocks as well. But the mastering on the album kills it for me. What really bugs me though is that they're actually good songs... there was so much potential for them to make a great album! All I can say is try to see them live if you get a chance, or look for some bootlegs (they allow audience taping of their shows, so every show gets bootlegged). They're a good band, even though the album sounds terrible.
 
SenryokuZokyoza said:
the sound quality in this album is something very very strange and weird.
How it can be? What's wrong?
Click to expand...

There is absulutely nothing wrong with it, he just managed to make a CD that matches his character with perfect precission:D :D :D

Also, most of you seem to be all to ready to blame the mastering. Please consider a couple of points
1. Mastering houses like those in question are "high throughput". They just do what the clients wants them to do, regardless (where as I would have told him to fuck off already before he ever set foot in this place, but that's another story).
2. If it wasn't the above, consider that a mastering engineer can only do so much. If you get tracks to work with that are already overcompressed and maxed out, what can you do?
 
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