The High Country discussion

[whit3tokio]

Pretty solid album, but not without faults.

I hate to say it, but the mixing is just so dang terrible on this album. Atleast that's how I feel. I can barely hear Phil on most of his tracks, but Will is completely inaudible. I honestly can't understand him at all. The songs are still pretty good, but I just can't hear what the hell they're saying a majority of the time. This is a huge bummer. I've been really looking forward to some new SSLYBY. I think it's safe to say all of us here were.

Am I the only with this beef though? I'm curious.

[acrossthesea]

Was it the pitchfork review of Let it Sway that said they cririqued Chris Walla should let the reigns off the band and crank up some of the noise? So maybe that was in the back of their mind to make a record like this (I realise Chris wasn't particuarly involved.. but in general). I don't think the mixing is neccesarily terrible it's just a stylistic decision to go for the scuzzy production, which maybe jarrs slightly with the band's discography. I've always thought a big part of SSLYBY is the charm/sweetness to the songs/performances.

So I think the prodcution and arragenments works fine for the poppy stuff because the melodies and songwriting still shine and also the harsh edge is a nice contrast. So I love the first two songs especially, they're a really strong one-two punch. I'm not a fan of Will's songs though unfortunately, I don't think the quality is there to be honest. So the flow of the album doesn't work for me. (I'm a big fan of Lucky Young and Unearthed off Fly By Wire though).

I do like a lot of the stuff of the record though, it's just I can't get on with the sequencing too much. I assume the album hasn't gone down so well from the lack of response..?

[simplepagesonmymind]

i dig it. it's louder than the other stuff but that's ok. i was very surprised to hear song w on there, but it's a cool version, wish they had kept the second part. still, at 26 minutes long it didnt leave a huge impression. i'd say it's better than let it sway and pershing but worse than broom and fly by wire.