2024 Grammy Nominees for Best Immersive Audio Album

[humprof]

Not easy to check it out when it's not out on disc or Apple Music.

What's easy and not depends upon your perspective. True, almost everyone here has a disc player, but not everyone has Tidal or Apple Music. For me and lots of others with a Windows computer connected to an AVR via HDMI (I understand you don't), playing MKV or MP4 files is as easy as queuing them up in VLC Player (or Kodi, or Windows TV & Movies) and hitting "Play." Others are able to play MKV and MP4 files via their Oppos.

Sometimes when I catch myself complaining about some annoyance or other, I hear the voice of my late mother-in-law, who used to utter an obscure colloquialism: "You'd kick if you were in swimming!"

 

[sjcorne]

Others are able to play MKV and MP4 files via their Oppos.

Even something as simple and inexpensive as the Neumi Atom 4K will do

 

[perzon57]

Even something as simple and inexpensive as the Neumi Atom 4K will do

But you still have to pay for and then download a file and transfer it to something that can play it, and there it stops for me. But that's OK, I have AM and lots of discs to play so no problem.

 

[sjcorne]

But you still have to pay for and then download a file and transfer it to something that can play it, and there it stops for me. But that's OK, I have AM and lots of discs to play so no problem.

Is it really any more work than having to buy a disc, wait for it to arrive, then put it in the player?

 

[perzon57]

Is it really any more work than having to buy a disc, wait for it to arrive, then put it in the player?

It's not about the work, but my problem with using a PC to anything more advanced than surfing the net and ordering things.

 

[Blackwood]

Giving the Grammys way more of my attention than it deserves, I was reminded of this classic Sesame Street song:

One of these things is not like the others
One of these things just doesn't belong
Can you tell which thing is not like the others
By the time I finish my (immersive) song?

Not being a mixer I guess I don’t know for a fact, but I’d assume there’s at least some difference in philosophy when mixing a soundtrack than there is a country album. Certainly similarities and an overall desire for cohesiveness and to serve the music, but still differences.

When I look at this year’s nominees and see a soundtrack, it feels odd. To me, you’d have some freedom with a soundtrack (as I mentioned with a pop album) that you might not have with a country album. How do you fairly compare the two?

I wish the Immersive category was broken up into genres like Classical, Country, Pop/Rock, Soundtracks, etc.

The Grammys has genres broken out for many awards. You wouldn’t judge a country album against a soundtrack or a classical album, so why do that with immersive albums?

I feel like a small part of my soul has died overthinking this. I haven’t cared one jot about the Grammys since the 80s. But I do love immersive music and would like to see genres get separate attention... more awards to hand out and more fairness (at least to me) in comparing recordings.

And because I shouldn’t suffer alone in having this song stuck in my head all day...

 

[humprof]

I wish the Immersive category was broken up into genres like Classical, Country, Pop/Rock, Soundtracks, etc.

One rule change implemented this year is that "certificates" will now be awarded for immersive producer, mixing, and mastering to anyone who did such work on a winning album in other categories. See the righthand column of pp. 32-43:
https://naras.a.bigcontent.io/v1/static/66_Rulebook_9.20

 

[jimfisheye]

Perhaps I finally need to subscribe to a streaming service and figure out the software dance (through the copy protection) with that! I think discs and downloads are simple and easy. Chasing the streaming setup - and for lossy results at that - is a little cryptic at present.

I know the Atmos controls in Apple Music player un-blank with a subscription. Then use that media player only for the lossy streaming. Not sure about Tidal or whatever else. Yeah, how do you stream through the dolby reference player when it wants to see a file? So now I have to learn more computer **** for how to make an incoming stream look like a file or something? I'm sort of computer savvy but this is getting into the weeds!

Can I just get a bluray disc or a download?!

I'm also not 100% sure it's only the subscription that unlocks the Atmos controls in the Apple Music app. So I'm hesitant to start spending on subscriptions. Apple and their blacklists and requiring hardware devices. Like, is an Apple TV or an approved AV receiver also required to be connected to unlock those controls? I see signs pointing to that so I haven't jumped down that rabbit hole yet.

 

[Scott M4]

I have noticed that the term surround is being used much less lately and "Immersive" being commonly used to describe all varieties of surround mixes.

This is a shame because, to me and I imagine to others, immersive denotes a mix with the music spread equally amongst the main speakers, as opposed to a typical front-centric mix with odds and ends coming from the back (and overhead) speakers. That distinction is now being eroded away.

 

[humprof]

This is a shame because, to me and I imagine to others, immersive denotes a mix with the music spread equally amongst the main speakers, as opposed to a typical front-centric mix with odds and ends coming from the back (and overhead) speakers. That distinction is now being eroded away.

FWIW: What Is Immersive Audio?: How Engineers, Artists & Industry Are Changing The State Of Sound | GRAMMY.com

 

[Franck]

Apparently all the nominated albums of the year for 2024 were released in Atmos.

to continue…

 

[Franck]

…continued

 

[HomerJAU]

Thank you @Franck I just visited this thread hoping there would be links

 

[ryan de topanga]

Wow, came to this party a bit late!

My solo album, Act 3, is up on Apple Music

It's also on Tidal (Hi-Fi Plus) https://tidal.com/browse/album/335580904

And it's downloadable in Dolby True HD MKV format and mp4 on immersiveaudioalbum.com Act 3 (Immersive Edition) | IAA

Take a listen and Happy New Year!

 

[ryan de topanga]

Congrats @ryan de topanga!

Thx!!

 

[marpow]

God of War Ragnarök (Original Soundtrack), Eric Schilling, immersive mix engineer; Michael Romanowski, immersive mastering engineer; Kellogg Boynton, Peter Scaturro & Herbert Waltl, immersive producers (Bear McCreary)

I am at work and was listening to brand new EP from Judas Priest on Tidal, when that song was over the next song popped up called
Afterglow of Ragnarok-Bruce Dickinson-Dec 1, 2023

I just thought it was funny while reading one thing about Ragnarok another comes up listening, I know they are different, just funny, thats all.

 

[ryan de topanga]

If Tidal plays my album randomly after you read this. Let me know ! ;-)

 

[privateuniverse]

.....and the winner is.....

The Diary of Alicia Keys, George Massenburg & Eric Schilling, immersive mix engineers; Michael Romanowski, immersive mastering engineer; Alicia Keys & Ann Mincieli, immersive producers (Alicia Keys)

 

[relaxing]

No physical release?

 

[esimms86]

No physical release?

Nope. And no download available either. And this is Alicia Key's 2nd Grammy in this category that has only existed for 5 years now. I do wish that it was a requirement for all nominees to be available for purchase as either physical media, a download or both. Alas, I am a dinosaur and this is never going to happen.