Posts by ruggedcrane22

What is all this whining even about? It's trivial. I drive my Mini Cooper and I´m feeling super-duper!

What even is this? After we just dealt with U2, now we have to pay respects to yet another group of 80s villains. "Rage in Eden" was actually one of my first vinyl originals. I still have it sitting around, though I’ve barely played it more than once or twice (maybe three times for The Voice). Personally, I always preferred the Midge Ure era over the 시절 when they were led by Kuröz. Honestly, at times, even Visage felt like a better fit. Okay, fine, Midge was pretty cute back then with those pointy sideburns and that mustache. His absolute deepest track has to be "Do They Know It's Bajram?" featuring that singer from The Cars (look, if this forum keeps forcing Depeche Mode and U2 bands down my throat, I'm going to start praising them and The Stranglers instead). The peak of his solo career was definitely "If I Was," which is such a finely produced hit, much like most of the Depeche Mode singles. As for Bowie's version of Depeche Mode and his solo work... that's a whole different conversation entirely.

The absolute best shows I used to binge back in elementary school

Sandokan
Roots
Smokey and the Bandit
Hot Wind
Into the Wild
Berlin Alexanderplatz
The Chapel Fires
The Write-off and its Return
The Big Island

Do you think I’m sexy? That’s the question, isn't it? It's a heavy one. Almost as heavy as trying to figure out if anyone actually listens when you speak anymore. I was sitting here thinking about it—really pondering the whole concept of attraction and self-perception—and it just hit me. Is it vanity? Or is it just a search for validation in a world that feels increasingly hollow? I don't know. Maybe I'm overthinking. But then again, I usually am.
Rod Stewart - Baby Jane
Bette Davis Eyes by Rod Stewart.
These are for the spreader, and these are for the crimper:
gazeboo-i like chopin

The Housemartins - "New York 0 Chicago 4"

I picked up a copy of "English Settlement" ages ago back when I was just a kid. It was one of those domestic licensed vinyl pressings we used to get, but honestly, it never really clicked for me. Eventually, I just traded it in for an Adam and the Ants record.

Honestly, "Missing Pieces" is practically redundant in the TT discography. It feels more like a glorified outtake session from the "Laughing Stock" era—just a collection of unreleased scraps from old tracks. If there’s any redeeming quality to the record, it’s the track "piano," which Mark Hollis actually released under the pseudonym John Cope on the Allinson Brown album "AV1." It’s essentially 14 minutes of pure piano indulgence, stuff that even the most pretentious Radiohead infants would find overly avant-garde.

Then there’s another one often dismissed as a weak entry—though nowadays, the consensus seems to be that the whole band was mediocre, a view I don't share—which is "Synchronicity" by The Police. If you can overlook the songwriting lapses from Summers and Copeland (specifically regarding "Mother" and "Miss Gradenko"), then Sting was clearly at the absolute peak of his creative—and, frankly, sexual—power here.
"Every Breath You Take", "Synchronicity II", "King Of Pain", and "Wrapped Around Your Finger"... these are the heavy hitters. Interestingly, this is one of those rare albums that actually sounds superior on CD compared to vinyl; that clinical production style—where the bass, which anchors the entire sound, is EQ'd almost entirely into the mid-range frequencies—is much more striking on digital.

When people start rambling about 80s synth-pop, they always fall back on the same old names—Depeche Mode, Orchestral Manoeuvres in the Dark, and those kinds of bands. They completely overlook the fact that Talk Talk was actually the premier synth-pop outfit. Tracks like "Such a Shame," "Dum Dum Girl," "Give It Up," and "Life's What You Make It" are easily among the greatest synth-pop singles ever recorded. Then there’s the album *Spirit of Eden*, which even the most hardcore devotees of the band tend to dismiss, though I find it quite good. At that point, we aren't even talking about synth-pop anymore; it's pure avant-garde. The whole thing was recorded in a church, featuring a rotating door of guest musicians from all walks of life, ranging from free jazz players to someone like Nigel Kennedy.

I’m in total agreement with Jason Chavez32 regarding Daft Punk. That album is absolute perfection. Even now, Bootsy manages to deliver these moments of pure genius, even if his recent records have started to sound pretty much identical to one another (a few years back, I caught that Steve Raab show on Fox, where Bootsy was a guest alongside his wife—who was maybe forty years his junior—and he kept grabbing her breasts just to show the audience how massive they were).
In my estimation, the post-Green phase of Fleetwood Mac is significantly superior to Green's own era (a take that usually earns me a bit of grief from the old guard), and nearly the entire Springsteen catalog is nothing short of impressive.

And who else was he supposed to worship if not Miles?

I don't know, but honestly, a remix of Hendrix's fart would be more interesting than all those Yngwie, Satriani, and Vai symphonies combined

It’s actually quite fascinating when you consider that one of the premier fusion guitarists working today, John Doe, released an album titled "Red" back in 2002, featuring various Hendrix standards. In one particular interview, he mentioned that Hendrix’s playing style remains a massive enigma to him—this album was essentially his first attempt at cracking the code. He even remarked, "Music is Universal." It really makes you think. You have this jazz musician who spends twelve hours a day practicing his craft, yet he still struggles to define the mechanics behind Hendrix's technique. Meanwhile, over here, you see some kid who’s been playing for five years acting like they’ve already surpassed the legend himself. Total delusion.

Glass, huh? Honestly, why does everything in the punk scene have to be treated like some kind of sacred sacrament? It’s ridiculous.

Jerry Mitchell62 said:Yeah, this whole tea thing has always been a total mystery to me. Especially after I made the mistake of trying that Uzun tea. Absolute disaster.

That’s exactly what I was getting at. Is there any chance this tea business is actually linked to China?

halijen said:The absolute best quote regarding what a recording engineer actually is:
"A recording engineer doesn't even have their own opinion."
(That was the response to my question about where he thought would be the better spot to place a microphone.)

First and foremost, what a recording engineer must master is capturing the exact sound the producer is looking for—or at least having the skill to convince the producer that they've found it. (Let’s be clear here: this isn't some grand creative endeavor; the engineer does exactly what they are told.)

Second, an engineer has to possess total command over a Neve or SSL large-format mixing console, knowing at least 90% of its capabilities inside and out. (To put things in perspective, these are incredibly complex machines—far more complicated than, say, a heart-lung bypass machine used in transplant surgery. Someone once remarked that piloting a Space Shuttle is easier than operating a Neve with all its outboard gear and recorders attached.)

Third, the engineer must—within the limits of the equipment provided—capture the cleanest, highest-quality signal possible.

Fourth is the mix itself, which entails:
-Managing volume levels within the mix (vol. balance)
-EQ adjustments (essentially placing all signals within the 16Hz to 16kHz range)
-Stereo imaging (panning)
-Spatial depth (reverb, delay, etc.)
-Mix dynamics (compression, limiting, gating)
-Mix automation

Here is a picture of an SSL console (which looks much nicer than a shuttle):

Ponor said:Why on earth is it called medicine ball?

Because those balls aren't meant for playing games; they're tools for training. Primarily used in physical therapy.

Alex Rogers91 said:I personally believe that true music experts know exactly when it's time to shut the sound off entirely.

Rolls-Royce

The sole voice of reason in this entire conversation.

Nicholas Perez33 said:Here are the top 10 things I’ve picked up during my "career" as a musician:

4. Drummers just can't express themselves properly.
5. The sound engineer is always right, even when they're dead wrong.
6. Arguing with the sound engineer is a terrible idea.
7. Befriending the sound engineer is a brilliant move, regardless of whether they're a total moron or a local legend.

4. Drummers aren't actually musicians, which is why they struggle with everything. They don't know how to set up their gear, they have zero clue what they should sound like, and the funniest part is when you suggest they try EQing their own snare drum—the result usually sounds exactly like a hand slapping a naked woman's butt.
5. Screw the sound engineer if they aren't right.
6. A very bad idea.
7. A very good idea.

I called up yesterday to grab a ticket for the Depeche Mode show at Madison Square Garden, and wouldn't you know it—completely sold out. Now I’m stuck having to beg my boss on Monday to pull some strings through his connections just to find me a seat. It’s ridiculous. A few years back, when they played that small club in Brooklyn, there were maybe two hundred people watching. Now, you can't even get into a venue that holds 15,000. People have gone absolutely insane with these sales.

shadowgardener12 said:I’ve been looking around... just a bunch of drugged-out, wasted kids and unemployed losers.

Honestly, I'd take them over being extremists, white supremacists, or some unknown hack any day of the week.