[Date Prev][Date Next][Thread Prev][Thread Next][Date Index][Thread Index]

My Generation SACD review & a touch of violence



Now I have in hand (CD player, actually) the SACD of MG at last and have given it a good listen...and have some interesting things to report. First of all, the incidentals. While costing about the same as the double disc deluxe MG, this is only a single disc. However it does have all of the material from both discs, and is in line with other SACD prices. Unlike the Stones' releases (which are priced as a regular CD), this is ONLY a SACD...it isn't dual layer and will not play in a regular CD player. It's definitely ONLY in stereo...says so on the box. The packaging is interesting, being a more durable (it appears) plastic box. The paperwork is the same as far as I can tell and the image on the disc itself is the same as the first disc of the deluxe set except for a SACD logo and the newer date.

Sonically...well, I'm going to assume that anyone moved to invest in a SACD player has a pretty decent stereo to start with. That being said, there is a noticable difference in the sound quality...but not nearly the difference between the old mono mix and the stereo mix. That's to be expected. With the SACD there are subtle differences in the depth and dimension of the instruments...the vocals seem more "real" if that's the way to express it. Then again all flaws, such as static in the guitar on Out In The Street and The Good's Gone, are also more noticable. The mixes are the same as the deluxe release, with one notable exception, and I have to wonder if it's intentional. The stereo Anyway Anyhow Anywhere on the SACD does NOT have the backing vocals! At first listen, I did a double take...was I remembering it wrong? But no, the deluxe version has them...and this one does not. Thus another version of the song is born. Although it could be a slipup like the incomplete version of Under My Thumb on the remixed O&S. I have no idea. But a spot of good news too: the new clarity of the vocals makes the stereo I Can't Explain as powerful as the mono version (you might recall my review of the deluxe version found it to be less so because of the mix).

So doing a one-to-one comparison in the same unit, the SACD wins...with the deluxe version coming across as a bit more heavy-handed and unsubtle. Which is not necessarily a bad thing when we're talking about early Who. Would I buy a SACD player just for this release? No, not unless I needed a new one anyway. However, so far I've found that every regular remixed or remastered CD sounds decidely better in this player...I listened to It's Hard last night and it sounded fantastic. And most unupgraded discs, too, for that matter.

>Certainly The Who have engaged in their fair share of violent behavior, both 
on stage and off.

Mike:

As to onstage, I don't think that's the sort of violence Asimov refers to. Reading the text from which I took the quote (The Foundation trilogy), it's pretty clear he meant physical violence against another person or people. As for the band's violence toward each other, I think it's safe to say that was a rather incompetent way of resolving the issues they had...wouldn't you? Violence is the tool of lessor minds (there's a quote for you), as one can see in many bars on any given Saturday night.  BTW, you wouldn't be a MST fan, with that name, would you?

>That's a pretty impressive quote, from a very impressive man.

Kevin:

Of course, Ghandi would see a way out of this current situation other than violence. So should anyone, really. It's pretty clear and obvious, and also that violence now is just going to lead to more and more horrific violence against the US later. Here's another good and relevent quote for you: Those who refuse to learn from history are doomed to repeat it.


"Violence is the last refuge of the incompetent."
                                 Isaac Asimov

                 Cheers             ML
Yahoo! Tax Center - forms, calculators, tips, and more