Phalaris for Busy People
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Listen to this version and see this’ll change your mind.
And I think TWOM in place of Schadenfreude works better in terms of quality. But I can’t lie, I also like the idea of TWOM being it’s own separate entity. I’m happy they didn’t repeat the same misstep with RINKAKU. That too was it’s own beast that didn’t work well within ARCHE.
I’ll also take a stab at these rearranged playlists and see if that changes things. Thanks @EvilHippy & @zeus
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The vocal separation on that edit is absolutely terrible.
I took a serious listen to PHALARIS in its entirety this week. One thing that came to mind while listening is that I’ve become quite bored of the ultra-downtuned guitars. I was already sick of this sound by the time DSS was released. It gives a really muddy, flat feel to the guitar tone that ultimately makes the songs feel weak and weirdly empty.
Negativity aside, for me this album was a huge step up from TIW if only because it doesn’t sound like the band is actively trying to destroy my hearing. It’s definitely mediocre for DEG though, with many of the tracks being somewhat forgettable.
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Have listened to the album a bunch of times and not really got amy complaints. Very solid stuff and overall pretty interesting songs, there is plenty of variety throughout and some really catchy stuff. Various parts do have a habit of popping into my head randomly. Definitely a nice continuation of the darker vibe from ARCHE which apart from a few songs was almost entirely absent on TIW. Personally i just feel these guys constantly are out doing themselves and producing really good stuff after all these years so look forward to seeing what comes next.
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Have to bring this topic back because the vinyl just dropped, and the mix is an upgrade. I avoid PHALARIS like the plague because the CD mix is scatterbrained; too many different people had ideas about how things should sound and the experience suffers. While the CD mix continues the tradition of Dir en grey releases sounding like shit, I’m glad to report that the mix for the LP was handled by one person - our city pop god over at JVC Tohru Kotetsu - and he did a damn good job. This is the best I’ve ever heard Dir en grey sound since Dum Spiro Spero LP (and ironically both CD mixes for those albums have similar issues).
This is the improvement I expected from UROBOROS R&E!
True spatial experience here. Everyone is clear and in their own groove, instead of the veiled, recessed nature of the CD. I can hear classical strings in The Perfume of Sins that I struggled to hear before. The vocals are really clear too, which is great! Kyo doesn’t sound tired anymore. About the only thing that couldn’t be fixed is the bridge during 落ちた事のある空, which I can only assume was butchered beyond repair very early on in the process. Still have no idea what the goal was with that…
The new mix makes me want to listen to this album now.
You thought you liked 御伽 before? Just wait…
You have to judge for yourself, but I notice the drum tone is vastly superior
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Probably because the same guy did both x)
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Hearing just a few seconds of Perfume from this new master makes me want to throw my original copy away.
Such a huge improvement. This should’ve been the CD mix from the start.
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My problems with how Oboro sounds remain a mix issue, I think, not a mastering issue. But wow this is… miles ahead of the CD master. Tiny synth elements like buzzes and shit that are intentionally buried in the mix can actually be heard now as opposed to just being squashed out by limiting on the CD master. Overall drums are punchier but without overtaking the entire mix, and the vocals pop out more while still sounding like they’re a part of the actual mix (rather than sitting on top of the songs floating in their own space). Even the guitars are more clear - I can hear the attack of the pick on the strings
Everything about this just breathes so much more, has more front-to-back depth, and a clearer top-to-bottom spread of the frequency range
Gobbless
The splatiness of the snare and brightness in the overheads is still somewhat present, but seems to have been mitigated by the new master thank fuck
Man I wish I had the ear to hear the differences, but alas, I listened to the full LP with headphones and didn’t notice anything at all.
Then again, I have no idea what to “hear” out for, so who knows…
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It’s probably easier if you do direct A/B comparisons, flipping back and forth between the same spot in the same songs (just make sure to volume-match the playback, loudness differences will always fool our ears no matter what)
Then, what I noticed first was how the drums don’t cover everything. They’re more powerful, but don’t step on everything. There’s also little details like synths buzzing along in the background that are more apparent in the vinyl master, imo, they poke through the density of the songs with more ease but without being loud enough to distract you from the song itself
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I don’t know if it’s the mix or time away but I’m enjoying this album way more than I did when it came out.
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I remember being very pleased with this album when it came out. I even said I liked it more than The Insulated World. Re-listening to the CD and now the Vinyl, I don’t think I can say that anymore.
Schadenfreude - 13 is a great group of songs. The album starts off well enough, but it’s that middle part (excluding Ochita) where things start to drag rather significantly. It’s not until we reach Eddie that the album picks back up. Kamuy has it’s moments, but it’s nothing special and certainly not deserving of closing the album. And SURE AS HELL not worth the 9 minutes spent listening to it.
To be honest, The Insulated World is the better album when comparing the two. The Insulated World has far stronger tracks and it’s a more consistent listening experience with quality from start to finish. It also has a great group of songs to finish the album. Downfall, Followers, Keigaku no Yoku, Zetsuentai, and Ranunculus. I’m trying to remember the last time ANY Dir en grey album finished that strong. Uroboros, probably.
I remember when Phalaris came out several people were reordering the songs to make a “better listening experience”. No such conversations were had about The Insulated World, and if they were, certainly not to the degree that Phalaris had. You shouldn’t have to re-order an album. A good album, a great album should be consistent from start to finish. Phalaris ain’t it, no matter how many times you re-order the tracks.
At the end of the day, The Insulated World was done dirty. It has all of the production issues people talk about, which makes it especially deserving of an LP release/remaster; but that’s a day that will never come.
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I still think 13 and Perfume of Sins are the best “new” tracks on the album. The rest is just okay.
The album never grew off me & I think it’s a massive course correction over TIW in terms of material I’m interested in hearing from the band. It’s pretty mid-tier within the broader context of their catalogue, but I’d pick it over most of their EPs and a few other full-lengths. Schadenfreude, 13, Hibiki, and Otogi are all solidified as excellent additions to the Diru canon in my eyes, and the rest of the album never falls below listenable. Oboro and Ochita are both pretty alright as far as Diru singles go. Kamuy is a good closer that could have been two minutes shorter.
Disc 2’s ass tho
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Maybe it’s just the rip I downloaded but the one I have is extremely low volume. It’s honestly hilarious when you compare it to the CD version. Guess I’ll have to wait for my copy to arrive before i can make a judgement
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It’s the rip, although the vinyl IS mastered much quieter. Gardner pumped the CD release up to like -7LUFS which is OBSCENELY loud for no good reason. Streaming will turn it down anyway (somewhere between -18 and -14, depending on which service). The vinyl has way more of the dynamics preserved rather than absolutely crushing all the transients with a limiter
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Another thing to keep in mind is that, since with vinyl the music literally plays from the medium itself with the help of needle, you gotta make sure the needle doesn’t jump. I don’t know the details all too well, but as an example, often times you need to mix the low ends differently otherwise the frequencies can be too loud and make the needle jump when playing (which you wouldn’t want obviously). Some records defy all reason and have insanely good bass though. I dunno how they work that magic.
My guess too is that the person who ripped their copy just uploaded it as is. You can amplify the rips using software like audacity to get it closer to 0db, hence making it louder without messing with the audio quality. Still won’t be as loud as a CD, but I’m sure there’s something more you can do. I’m just not knowledgeable enough.
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The sad thing is, even the original release of PHALARIS sounds way better than TIW.
But compared to the new mix, OG PHALARIS sounds flat and muddy, mostly due to unnecessary over-compression killing the dynamic range.
Just goes to show how garbage the job on TIW was.
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I have an adjusted version of TIW that is head canon for me. I forget how bad the original job is.