HiRez Poll XTC - SKYLARKING [Blu-Ray Audio]

[Perp]

I just hope they all come out before they stop making discs. @:

I hope The Big Express is next too. Mummer would be okay.

 

[GOS]

I just hope they all come out before they stop making discs. @:

I hope The Big Express is next too. Mummer would be okay.

:violin:yikes:banana:

 

[Scott65]

English Settlement does seem like the most obvious next choice to release. Certainly MY choice.

But I'll wait for it for another year or two if it means "having" to listen to 5.1s of Mummer or The Big Express in the meantime.

And will they bookend the series with the first two albums and the Apple Venus albums? Will there be some Dukes of Stratosphear in the future?

Hopefully it will be a 'yes' to all of the above

 

[edisonbaggins]

10, Dear God...

 

[edisonbaggins]

Baggy had to vote 10 on this. Very accessible songs. "Dear God" is one that escaped me in the MTV days, but it sure as hell resonates now...
I can't recommend this album and especially 5.1 mix enough. Simply wonderful.

 

[FlavioRR]

The first song I heard from this band was Dear God. Then I got ready to listen to the full disc in streaming, despite the poor sound quality, it caught me immediately.

Years later, Mr. Wilson, with his new mixes, makes it one of the best albums he has ever heard.

I love that Blu-Ray has so much material.

I give it a 9/10. The reason is that Dear God sounds different in the 5.1 mix, it's something in the voice, but all the rest is spectacular.

Mix: 9/10
Fidelity: 10/10

 

[sjcorne]

Playing this now for the first time in a while and...just wow. The backing vocals and string arrangements are just amazing.

 

[Snood]

Sooooooooooo Snood took a closer listen last night annnnnnnnnnnnnd first a lil Snood history

This is an album that my best friend in Hi Skoo tried to bang into me head urgh......Snoody was into BOC, Sabbath , ZEP etc and whenever he drove this was playing and you can imagine Snood was all like Arrrrrrrrrrrgh. It was same 5 or 6 songs over and over - Summers Cauldron/Grass - Supergirl - Earn Enough (Which Snood love) - Another Satellite (Which Snood still hate ) and Dear God (he played it so much it was more like Dear God Play Something ellllllllse!!!)

Out of all the albums that have been released in 5.1 by XTC, if you are looking to get into XTC, Snood would say this one should be the last one you should pick up HOOK Wise. Granted there are a lot of great songs, but this one will take a few listens to sink in...........if you are not patient you might just give up on XTC. For some reason I keep thinking Beatles Revolver and some Beach Boys thrown in.

For someone that might be a XTC nooby........Black Sea, Oranges& Lemons, Nonsuch and Drums - in that order would be the list to jump in first & pick up. I do waver between oranges and NonSuch tho - they that close

Ok onto Snood thoughts - The 5.1 mix is very very Awesome - Love a lotta of songs with vocals front center - lotta action in all speakers. PLease make sure you check out the 2016 Extra tracks a few of them are better then some album tracks and the 5.1s on them are great toooooooooooo

The Content with all the extra stuff - which includes the fixed Polarity and Demos and vids and instrumentals and on and on.......AWESOME

The Mix is Definitely a 10, The Content a 10, but a smile was not on my face the whole time like the other releases & thanks to my best buddy Scott - It just not one of my fave XTC releases so cringing and giving it a 9

Remember if you diving into XTC for the first time try your hand at Black Sea, Oranges & Lemons or Nonsuch which are a bit more accessible and hookier (if that a word) then treat yourself to this one.

 

[MrSmithers]

Wowzers! This feels like one of the best things I’ve ever heard! I have Black Sea and Drums & Wires and I thought they were good, but....!!!! This album takes it to another level!!!

Holy Cow! Don’t be a numpty like me and think ‘ah not familiar with it, sure it’ll be ok but not really my cup of tea’. You really have to hear it now!!!

 

[beerking]

Very slow to get into XTC. although I remember the Nigel ditty.

This album didn't really grab me at first but after a couple of listens it has now...

Great mix, superb sonics.

A worthy 10

 

[Scott65]

Very slow to get into XTC. although I remember the Nigel ditty.

This album didn't really grab me at first but after a couple of listens it has now...

Great mix, superb sonics.

A worthy 10

I did not really like the stereo cd (other than the songs Grass and Dear God)...but the 5.1 mix brings the whole album to life. It's now one of my favourite XTC albums.

 

[Juggsnelson]

Combining a most criminally underappreciated, brilliant band, Steven Wilson at the mixing desk, and everything including the kitchen sink bonus material wise at a very low price point and how can you not come up with a ten? And that's what I voted! XTC has long been a favorite of mine and these deluxe editions are just the icing on the cake.

 

[WBP]

I can't fault this release - its an amazing album ( their best imo) and the mix is perfect - just has to be a 10

 

[Scottie-boy]

This is a masterpiece. I remember hearing at a friend's house in 86 and loved Dear God, but never really listened to it. Now it's one of my favorites. 10

 

[fthesoundguy]

Um... Its a 10. Nothing more really needs to be said. But since I probably should:

I had only heard of 'Dear God' before and thought it was just ok. As per my previous XTC review, I just hated the lead singer and just was not into this kind of music.

Summer's Cauldron is a perfect way to start an album. Loved the movement during it I think I replayed it 3 times! And placing instruments directly behind me still mindfucks me. SW keeps EVERY song interesting with how he places things, its never stagnant. I feel like once I get off SW's mixes and onto others, i'm going to be really disappointed. Its fun to listen to at a low volume (for my wife) or full blast. This is going to get replayed quite often. I'm still smiling from experiencing this.

I also did not know about the original mix having polarity issues, so I think its awesome that they included both to listen to. Cool thing for audio nerds to debate and listen to real world experiences of recording problems (with solutions).

This is also one of the first times that I have not turned off "Extra" or bonus tracks that didn't make it on the original release. Extrovert is awesome! Its also great that they gave us all the demos, instrumentals and different takes. Box set in a blu-ray, everyone should release their catalogs just like this.

Highlights: Summer's Cauldron/Grass, Ballet For A Rainy Day, Another Satellite, The Man Who Sailed Around His Soul, Extrovert

 

[ngv99]

It's hard to give this anything less than a 10. Love this album though not as much as Black Sea. The effects on Summer's Cauldron in 5.1 blew my mind and it just got better from there. 9 for the album, 10 for the mix, rounded up to a 10.

 

[Marplot]

Dear God has resonated with me since this album was released. The rest is hit and miss because they tend to be a little treble heavy for my taste.
However, Mr. Wilson has worked his usual magic and spaced everything out so well that you can hear everything ... to include some wonderful chorus vocals in the rears to really make the lyrics pop.
Surround Mix: amazing. 10 = 3
Audio Fidelity: There is nothing I can say that hasn't already been said. 10 = 3
Content: It is a very accessible XTC album, although a bit of a specific taste compared to Black Sea. 8 = 2.4
Package: With the exception of The Pineapple Thief Where We Stood, there is no better value for sheer amount of quality content. The XTC Surround releases have set the bar for quality and content. 10 = 1
9.4 = 9. That seems low for the release but a 10 is genuinely hard to get.

 

[Marplot]

I should mention that The Man Who Sailed Around His Soul .. the intro and outro are film noir outstanding! I felt like I was about to witness something untoward happen ...
As far as visuals go, Devin Townsend went all in with Empath and all the work he had done, but I will take a static album image over a judgemental Mike Oldfield peering at me like in 5 Miles Out.

The initial vocals in Dear God are almost isolated and sound so plaintive and forlorn.

 

[Titch]

Should have voted 10 when I purchased this five years ago, but better late than never. I've had the CD since it originally came out in 1986 - it was played to death during my spotty teenage years. The 5.1 LCPM mix on this blu-ray is so gorgeous at revealing details and harmonies that are buried in the original stereo mix.

 

[jhw59]

This gets a very very (did I say very?) rare 10 from me. Nothing is perfect but I can find no flaws with this surround mix.