HiRez Poll Genesis - FOXTROT [SACD] (UK)

[JonUrban]

Please post your thoughts and comments on this SACD released in Europe and Japan.

If you care to comment on the US DVD release, please make note of that in your posting.

Also, those who did get the SACD release let us know where you got it if you feel so inclined.

Scan is of the back of the jewel box, as the front cover graphic is identical to the CD only release of this title.

 

[Ge Someone]

This is a very good disc (I heard the DTS 96/24). The sound is considering the age of the recording quite good, the surround mix is very OK too.
Get 'em out by Friday is the surround highlight. As for the extra's it is kind of strange to see Peter Gabriel without a beard and Phil Collins with . Unique documentation of an early Genesis performance (actually two).

 

[Lucanu]

9 here
As I said on SEBTP it seems to me they had different takes on some parts (especially vocals) which I was used to.
Supper's ready was a little surprise in surround mixing. Some of you know that I had a pressing (sort of a Best of) which sounded very good decoded in SQ, and this one sounded so close to it I couldn't believe my ears

 

[LizardKing]

Picked up the SACD as an import here in NZ for lots of $$$$$ at a local store.

But hey it was worth it...These earlier Genesis SACDs seem to be bettter than the 1st releases (76-82)...

 

[rtbluray]

Truly exceptional.
The biggest surround highlight on this disc is definitely "Get 'Em Out By Friday", with the different characters interspersed over the 5 speakers.
All of the other songs are phenomenal too, but particularly "Watcher of the Skies" and the epic "Supper's Ready".
No wonder Nick Davis got nominated for his surround mixing work in this box set. It's a must-own for anyone who loves Genesis and 5.1!

 

[hafquark]

I'm a little hesitant to pass judgement on Genesis as they didn't strike my fancy back in the day, although I enjoyed most of the early Art Rock groups (or Progressive as it's now called) such as Yes, ELP, and King Crimson. Don't know why I didn't care for Genesis in the early seventies as I immediately fell in love with Peter Gabriel's first solo album and have been an avid fan of his music ever since.

I agree with LizardKing that the "76-82" SACDs sound much better than the earlier boxsets. I think the music is between an 8 and 9 with a solid 9 for the fine multichannel mix. Very clear and sparkling sound, a bit loud but not badly over-compressed to my ears.

It took a few decades but I'm a fan now

Oh yeah, picked up my copy of "Foxtrot" used on Amazon about 2 years ago for a relatively low price.

 

[DennisMoore Jr.]

Hi Jon,

I have the BoxSet bought from the UK so I would get SACD and not DTS, that was released in the USA.

As a Genesis fan I have heard Foxtrot from Vinyl, orig US CD and the remastered CD. This 5.1 remix on SACD(I suspect DTS will sound just fine as well) is priceless and a HUGE upgrade in sound & quality. As noted in the package, modern digital engineering/cleaning was able to soften Peter's voice so his shouting at the end of Super's Ready is more tolerable(I always prefered Phil's version on Seconds Out, because of this). Finally a Super's Ready that is clear & clean.

Genesis used acoustic guitars heavily here and they sound immaculate! The new remixes make this record sound so crystal clear it is startling.
It makes all the songs come to life. The crispness & brightness & clarity on Can Utility & The Coastliners is an excellent example.

The 5.1 mix opens up the space and makes the 2.0 mix un-needed for me. The band's use of acoustic guitars, bass pedals, organs & vocal harmonies, really
come to life and are proudly displayed in the 5.1 mix.

I can't say enough on the magic & improvement that has been done here. I gave it a 10 becasue I could not vote to give it a quintillion.

 

[groo]

This was very difficult to find but it was worth it. This is an amazing 5.1 mix and superb clarity. This just goes to show that you don't have to rely on Scheiner or Wilson to generate such immaculate sounding 5.1 mixes. And I doubt they can make it any better than what Nick Davis has achieved on this recording. Every instrument comes alive, Peter Gabriel's voice is well centered and dispersed when appropriate. And the warmth, I could listen to this for hours without getting fatigued. In short, super fidelity, stupendous mixing in 5.1 and one of the warmest 5.1 recordings I have. Supper's ready!

 

[colsky]

I realised last night that I have had the sacd/dvd (UK) box set of the early (proper!) Genesis albums for years, together with some of the later ones, and have not yet rated these. So I listened again to Foxtrot, both the sacd and the dvd dts versions. My recollection from my previous listens was unchanged - the dvd dts version is, in my opinion, a much nicer listen than the sacd. I remember having this feeling about all of these Genesis releases. Anyway I found Foxtrot difficult to fault. Excellent 5.1 mix of a classic album. Very clear sound and superb centre stage vocals. A definite 10.

I followed this by listening to And Then There Were Three. This album seems to divide opinion, but I have always had a soft spot for it. As for the 5.1 mix though, after Foxtrot it sounded horrible! Very harsh sounding at the start, improved a little as it went on.

 

[IMachine]

I realised last night that I have had the sacd/dvd (UK) box set of the early (proper!) Genesis albums for years, together with some of the later ones, and have not yet rated these. So I listened again to Foxtrot, both the sacd and the dvd dts versions. My recollection from my previous listens was unchanged - the dvd dts version is, in my opinion, a much nicer listen than the sacd. I remember having this feeling about all of these Genesis releases. Anyway I found Foxtrot difficult to fault. Excellent 5.1 mix of a classic album. Very clear sound and superb centre stage vocals. A definite 10.

I followed this by listening to And Then There Were Three. This album seems to divide opinion, but I have always had a soft spot for it. As for the 5.1 mix though, after Foxtrot it sounded horrible! Very harsh sounding at the start, improved a little as it went on.

I think the dts stream always softens the transients and has a little more mid and low bass level.
So for the Genesis outputs that would make sense. I also prefer the dts versions.

 

[ProgRules]

I realised last night that I have had the sacd/dvd (UK) box set of the early (proper!) Genesis albums for years, together with some of the later ones, and have not yet rated these. So I listened again to Foxtrot, both the sacd and the dvd dts versions. My recollection from my previous listens was unchanged - the dvd dts version is, in my opinion, a much nicer listen than the sacd. I remember having this feeling about all of these Genesis releases. Anyway I found Foxtrot difficult to fault. Excellent 5.1 mix of a classic album. Very clear sound and superb centre stage vocals. A definite 10.

I followed this by listening to And Then There Were Three. This album seems to divide opinion, but I have always had a soft spot for it. As for the 5.1 mix though, after Foxtrot it sounded horrible! Very harsh sounding at the start, improved a little as it went on.

I think the dts stream always softens the transients and has a little more mid and low bass level.
So for the Genesis outputs that would make sense. I also prefer the dts versions.

This makes all the complaints I've heard about these mixes understandable; I love my DTS mixes and couldn't fathom the disdain I often heard regarding them. I only have the 1st box, then added Trick and W & W individual releases (I got off the bus after a real letdown w. ATTWT); I've heard the mixes get worse as the years go up.

 

[IMachine]

This makes all the complaints I've heard about these mixes understandable; I love my DTS mixes and couldn't fathom the disdain I often heard regarding them. I only have the 1st box, then added Trick and W & W individual releases (I got off the bus after a real letdown w. ATTWT); I've heard the mixes get worse as the years go up.

No not really, but it is a matter of taste.
Calling All Stations and We Can't Dance are both great sounding surround mixes.
But they are not classic releases.

 

[LizardKing]

No not really, but it is a matter of taste.
Calling All Stations and We Can't Dance are both great sounding surround mixes.
But they are not classic releases.

Agreed! I was going to say the same.....

 

[blue.monk]

This is one of the best in the whole series IMO. Great music, mix and fidelity. 10

 

[DennisMoore Jr.]

This makes all the complaints I've heard about these mixes understandable; I love my DTS mixes and couldn't fathom the disdain I often heard regarding them. I only have the 1st box, then added Trick and W & W individual releases (I got off the bus after a real letdown w. ATTWT); I've heard the mixes get worse as the years go up.

Oh dear, @: Oh my, :howl

Dude, you are missing the boat here, big time:

I'm like you, I think Genesis peaked creatively after Wind & Wuthering, but ATTW3 & Duke are very worthy, kinda like Tormato & Drama.

ATTW3 = Snowbound & The Lady Lies are worth the price of the disc.

Duke = The end suite of Duke's Travels/End is one of the best things the band ever did.

Please run, do not walk to your PC and order those missing two 5.1 mixes. You won't regret it.

For me, I get off the boat after Abacab, though I enjoy Abacab & Dodo on occasion...

 

[IMachine]

Oh dear, @: Oh my, :howl

Dude, you are missing the boat here, big time:

I'm like you, I think Genesis peaked creatively after Wind & Wuthering, but ATTW3 & Duke are very worthy, kinda like Tormato & Drama.

ATTW3 = Snowbound & The Lady Lies are worth the price of the disc.

Duke = The end suite of Duke's Travels/End is one of the best things the band ever did.

Please run, do not walk to your PC and order those missing two 5.1 mixes. You won't regret it.

For me, I get off the boat after Abacab, though I enjoy Abacab & Dodo on occasion...

Abacab is their last big one for me.
I listened to it very often last week.
All albums from Trespass to Abacab are part of cultural heritages!
YESSSSSSSS!

Foxtrot is a killer. Every song is arranged perfectly.

 

[DennisMoore Jr.]

All albums from Trespass to Abacab are part of cultural heritages!

At the risk of belaboring the point, the above quote says it best about GENESIS, in general.

 

[privateuniverse]

Another day, another Genesis album....

In the last few days, I've been on a Genesis binge. I've listened to (in the following order) Trespass, Calling All Stations, Nursery Cryme and We Can't Dance. I had found Nick Davis' approach on the 90's albums to be different to his approach on the 70's albums. The 90's albums have a more immersive feel, spreading keyboard washes across the entire room to fill up the space while the 70's albums tended to have more unique elements hard-panned to either side of the rear speakers. Naturally, I expected the approach here to mirror that of the other 70's albums. However, a good bit of Nick's 90's approach does come into play here. This is most evident on the opening strains of the first track "Watcher of the Skies" (quite possibly the most ultimate Mellotron song in the history of rock 'n' roll.) In a lot of other places in the album, Tony Banks' organ parts are spread to all four corners, as opposed to being hard panned in one of the rear channels like they were on the two previous albums. There are places where Davis gets more adventurous with the rear channels. Peter Gabriel's dark sense of humor is at play on a few songs ("Get 'em Out By Friday" and the "Willow Farm" section of "Supper's Ready.") During these sections Davis gets very playful with some of Peter's goofy vocals, it's very fun. "Can-Utility and the Coastliners" has the multiple acoustic guitar parts mixed to opposite corners, a technique that was used to great effect on the previous albums. The same mix philosophy is used on the "Lovers' Leap" section" of "Supper's Ready." While there are other moments of hard panning individual parts in one of the rear channels (tack piano on "Time Table" and flute on "Get 'em Out") it doesn't seem to be the dominant mix philosophy like it was on the earlier albums. For me the more immersive approach doesn't seem to work as well here as it did on the 90's records. Still, there are lots of satisfying moments here.

As for fidelity, I am amazed at how good these early 70's albums sound. I don't remember any of the vinyl I had as a kid or the CDs that I replaced them with in the 80's sounding nearly this good. Everything is crystal clear and very dynamic. Kudos to Davis for making it all sparkle.

As for the music, it's hard to argue with any album that has "Watcher of the Skies" and "Supper's Ready." Those two songs would easily be on any list of all-time great progressive rock songs. "Time Table" tends to get overlooked, but it has always been a favorite of mine. A really beautiful song. The only problem musically that I have with this album is that I think that the performances aren't as good as they could be. They're a bit ragged in places, especially when compared to versions found on subsequent live albums. Gabriel-era lovers have always chastised me for this, but I will take the Seconds Out version of "Supper's Ready" over this one any day.

Overall, this is a very dynamic and clean mix. Lots of nice surround moments and the music contained here is one of the cornerstones that progressive rock was built on. However, the mixing approach here wasn't quite as satisfying as Nursery Cryme or Trespass. Not to say that this is not enjoyable, far from it. It just doesn't quite scale the heights that the other two did. I gave those both 10's. So I have to rate this one a solid 9.

 

[Beefalo]

A year ago I owned zero Genesis. Surround or otherwise. I kept hearing about their M/C releases. Finally I gave in and gave them a try. That was 15 M/C SACD's ago....
This one is probably my favorite. Sounds like a nice 1st pressing vinyl. I prefer the SACD over the DTS. I think this title needs the extra sharpness.
Great songs. How can you not love a song titled "Suppers Ready"
It makes my stomach growl....

 

[Matt Wilson]

Well, another 9 for me. The clarity is outstanding. No previous Genesis release of Foxtrot sounded this good. Why would you throw on the CD when you can play this? I've always had an issue with the Gabriel-era CDs and their muddy sound. Now that I have the SACD box I'll never return to Genesis in two-channel stereo.

You shouldn't either.