It’s up, and goddamn they didn’t need to go that hard on I’M SICK😭
Edit: and so does Ambivalent Ideal and Cultic. I might need a few more listens to give my full thoughts on the album as a whole but those three tracks was definitely the highlights for me.
The polished sound is a mixed experience for me.
I knew I probably wouldn’t like the extra polish on The Avoided Sun, but I thought it’d suit Shadows. But upon listening to it…I don’t really think it does. I think the trashy mixing of the original adds a lot of charm. One of the hardest things to listen to in the Shadows remake are definitely the drums. I don’t like the way Asanao’s snare sounds. It usually does its job in their new style, but I think it’s pretty headache-inducing when applied to their old style. I like how his snare used to cut through the other instruments. It was snappy and sharp. Now it’s too boomy…? (Not sure if that’s the right word to use.) Which sucks because I think Asanao is a pretty dynamic drummer. I don’t know anything about audio engineering or whatever so I don’t know the right words to use, but I’m curious if anyone else feels the same way. I think the difference really shows in their song Marrow. I prefer the original version of that song by a mile.
Sorry to be a negative nancy though. If I were to ignore that one thing, I’d say that the band has done quite well on these remakes.
Not much of a review, but: I am on my fourth listen-through of all three releases already. So good, so good.
I say this in the least condescending way possible:
This is the best use of Ryo’s production palette.
All of his hallmarks are there, and the guitars sound sharp, biting, and the clean passages glitter like crystal through his EQ settings. The drums sound like they’ve been triggered to hell and back with the fastest GGD samples, and it sounds so fucking good for it. It’s a great way to experience these songs again, and for new lynch. fans, its a great way to revisit the legacy of these timeless songs.
Sonically all of them are nice.
Composition-wise I fuck with SHADOWS the most, gonna re-listen the rest just to be sure tho.
MAZE is the best composition of this release. Let Yusuke write most of their upcoming stuff pls.
Love this
These remakes were surprisingly excellent. I’ll start with The Avoided Sun.
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THE AVOIDED SUN
Yeah. I still think it’s too polished. But where it has an edge over greedy dead souls for me is that it sticks closer to the original album in terms of tone. So, it still feels comfortably familiar.
It’s just that in a lot of songs, the quality of unfiltered intimacy and intentional quietness is lost. This is unfortunate for tracks like [liberation chord] and [from the end] as they were some of my favorite tracks in the original album and those qualities are what I loved about them. There’s just a bit too much energy in the remakes.
I’m also disappointed with how smoothed out [ecdysis] sounds. The og is in my top 3 favorite lynch. songs. That shi used to be gritty and groovy. Now it sounds like you’re ice skating in space with how glossy everything sounds. The drum pattern in the chorus sounds simpler and less interesting. And the filter used on Hazuki’s voice here does a disservice to his vocals. At least the bass break still has that fuzzy tone.
There are parts throughout the album where that extra pep added some extra dimension though. Like the chorus in [forgiven]. Listening to it gave me chills. [The Universe] is actually listenable now with Hazuki’s voice part being a lot more playful and viscious. The rewritten parts also work much better and are more interesting. [Enemy] hits fricking HARD and I think it’s superior than the original in many aspects.
Overall, it’s a good time but it will not be replacing the original any time soon for me. I think if it was a bit more faithful in execution like [forgiven] or [enemy] then the rest of the album would’ve worked a lot better for me.
There’s a whole lot of “filling in space” with melodies or filters that rounds out the album a tad too much. It makes things busier and louder than they need to be. And the beauty of The Avoided Sun has always been its simplicity for me.
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SHADOWS
I think this is a phenomenal remake. Everything just sounds so much more crisp, rich, and deep. I do agree with the snares being too boomy and found that distracting. But this remake brings some needed punch to the album.
I didn’t think [adore] could sound any better. Well, it’s better now. It’s heavier but not overdone. And that quiet break in the middle has some added depth making it even more beautiful than it was before. This essentially applies to the rest of the album. There’s greater clarity in the softer parts and more grit in the heavier parts.
I think the only track where this style doesn’t apply as flawlessly is [Ambivalent ideal]. I prefer the more rough quality in the original. I attribute this more to the song’s composition though. I think it just works better as a simplified version. The remake version is fine though and is still a good balance between the og and modern style.
Only real complaint I have is, could they not have recorded a real piano for [last night]? They still use that plugin-ass sounding piano from the og and it always makes me laugh because I swear it’s the same piano sample I’ve heard in FL Studio. See, I recreated it:
I spent like 10 minutes doing this. Minor complaint, but it always takes me out of the song as it sounds kind of amateurish in an otherwise excellent song.
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You got me back with these remakes lynch. Even if they still continue releasing rehashed music year after year, I don’t mind. I’m just happy I get to talk about an album I love to bits, The Avoided Sun, like it’s a brand new fresh release in 2025 of all years. And shadows is freaking fantastic.
Agreed. Side note, after reading your comment on the piano in Last Nite, I feel like it bothers me too, lol. I’m no music professional and I usually don’t care about technical or production stuff, but it could’ve been so much better if it had real piano in it.
So, is everyone aware that “I DON’T KNOW WHERE I AM” just climbed the ranks as far as top 10 lynch songs? Yes? Good. @Ro_pls I never expected to like this song, EVER. Its easily top 10 now. I see it now.
those mid-tempo and up semi-ballads like I DON’T KNOW WHERE I AM, FALLEN, LIE, MIRRORS, AN ILLUSION, VARIANT etc are basically best lynch. songs lol
Getting excited reading all this positive feedback. I always felt like the production of SHADOWS didn’t match it’s composition, and it sounds like most of those problems have been addressed.
Ngl i’ve ended up feeling more excited for Bringer than every other track on this reposting rush put together. I’m pretty ambivalent about them all but Bringer’s good. Yeah sounds very down the middle like y’all say but there’s this confidence to it i haven’t felt from the band since Blood. Like if someone asked “what kind of music do you listen to” this one could be a decent candidate for how to answer. Hopefully it’s proof they’ve learned good lessons from rehashing the past and are ready to carry that forward into new confident songwriting.
Does anyone else think that BRINGER signifies they won’t be retaking IBIM/IC?
Since remakes were part of the XX anniversary campaign and they already revealed all « acts », seems not for now. Too bad because especially (the underrated) IC definitely needs it.
Yes and it’s a disappointing feeling. I take it that they just planned to update their work under the Marginal Works label from their indie days. But those 2 albums NEED a better remix at the bare minimum.
I promise I’ll have a review up soon…im bubbling with thoughts about SHADOWZ but I’ve been swamped w/ work.
All I can say now is that SHADOWZ has not left the rotation. And im sure my Spotify wrapped will be LYNCH heavy this year…
I completely agree.
But for some reason I think his style fits lynch more than the other bands he’s worked with. I like these lynch remakes much better than the Sadie ones.
To that end, “from the end” is the only track I find issue with here. I feel like this is one of those tracks where a more compact/piccolo sounding snare would have been better left in the mix, just EQ’d to a dodgeball tone. Otherwise that huge sampled/over-EQ’d snare is perfect for these songs. Same thing with “Rasen” from the previous retake album.
I have such mixed feelings towards SHADOWZ. It’s one of my long-time favourites so it’s amazing to have a new take that shows the members’ growth with all the modern trappings. However they just killed that awesome bass line in the mix that made the original so groovy, especially in the outro.
DAZZLE is a nice slap!