Reference CDs for mastering Electronic Music

[OurDarkness]

Hi,

I would be interested to know what CDs would you refer to when mastering electronic music (in the style of Jean Michel Jarre, Klaus Schulze and Tangerine Dream). Also what CDs would you refer to for exceptional recording, 3D stereo, warmth and so on (always in EM)

Regards,
Yannis

[Lagerfeldt]

Jean-Michel Jarre: Oxygen 7-13 (1997) mastered by Greg Calbi at Masterdisk.

Says "20-bit mastering" with big letters on the back. Is that a warning or a recommendation?

Sounds good though.

I like the AIR albums Talkie Walkie and Pocket Symphony. Also Röyksopp's "Melody A.M" and "The Understanding" albums. I don't think those are necessarily what you're looking for though.

[wado1942]

Jarre's Houston/Lyon concert is an excellent example of an early all-digital recording. It was remastered in 1997 with a nice level of -16dBfs. Equinoxe-3 off that album is great. The wash from the PA and energy of a live performance really adds a nice feel that his studio records never had.

[mxeryus]

Logic System - last year I finally found the three CD's from them. The song Convulsion of Nature is a masterpiece.

[Jerry Tubb]

some great retro electronique:

Snowflakes are Dancing - Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia

Poème électronique - Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia

Louis and Bebe Barron - Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia

Switched-On Bach - Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia

JT

[diogo_c]

Originally Posted by Lagerfeldt

Jean-Michel Jarre: Oxygen 7-13 (1997) mastered by Greg Calbi at Masterdisk.

Says "20-bit mastering" with big letters on the back. Is that a warning or a recommendation?

It means you have to dither before listening!

[DamZ]

Originally Posted by Lagerfeldt

Jean-Michel Jarre: Oxygen 7-13 (1997) mastered by Greg Calbi at Masterdisk.

Says "20-bit mastering" with big letters on the back. Is that a warning or a recommendation?

Sounds good though.

I like the AIR albums Talkie Walkie and Pocket Symphony. Also Röyksopp's "Melody A.M" and "The Understanding" albums. I don't think those are necessarily what you're looking for though.

loving these...... were part of my first "sound education"
also the 1st oxygène

[Waltz Mastering]

Originally Posted by Jerry Tubb

some great retro electronique:

Going back even further:
Edgard Varèse - Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia

[Jerry Tubb]

Originally Posted by Waltz Mastering

Going back even further:
Edgard Varèse - Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia

One of my faves, luckily own his "greatest hits" on double vinyl LP.

JT

[macc]

Originally Posted by Waltz Mastering

Going back even further:
Edgard Varèse - Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia

Absolutely love it. More his orchestral stuff than the electronic, but so much of it is absolutely wonderful. Horrific at times, and all the more wonderful for it.

[graincloud]

Varez is awesome ! indeed as was most of the early electronic and contemporary scene imo (wendy carlos, shaeffer, penderecki, ligeti, delia derbishire, raymond scott, JJ Perrey etc etc) ...it was a priceless time for music.
i trend to think Jarre is really overated as a composer (good sound btw), though that's totaly off topic and very subjective

as for more "modern" sound references, as in "good production", lately in the electro scene, i've been spinning stuff by Martyn, Harmonic 313, Babics latest lp, Monolake, Clark "Body riddle", Overstep by Autechre. etc... experienced producers and good label spending for mastering often gives a good combo that's why i always check Warp's releases (well Gonjasufi even if a true jewel is rather dirty, but in the good way, so not a ref per se)

i'm very interested how MEs are dealing with glitchy, experimental or extreme electronica... how to deal with sound when a snare is not a snare and a kick is not a kick , etc ...

this is giving me ideas for another thread .

[lu432]

Try Oscar G live at Space a friend of mine named Greg Chin Mastered those. A+ work for references.

I would also recommend listening to David Tort stuff, the guy doing that mastering is also doing some A+ quality work.

Hope that helps

Cheers!

[polybonk]

Most of the Warp records stuff is very good reference material. However lately the RMS levels are just nuts. -2/-3 db on some. Boards of canada "Music has the right to children" is exelent. A decade older and a lot quieter/deeper. It was remastered at one point.

Autechre - Oversteps is my current favorite. 3d, warm, clear, detailed and deep


Mastered by Noel Summerville at Metropolis

I'd add Autechre's first three albums (although the last is hardly 'warm').

[jude]

im a big fan of "boards of canada". awesome sound, stunning production

[Rainy Days]

Can't say I would use any Clarke CDs as reference material as they're blisteringly loud.

If you're looking for good reference material I would sugguest Sea Change by BECK, and any old Telefon Tel Aviv album.

Cheers,
Nathan

[graincloud]

Originally Posted by Rainy Days

Can't say I would use any Clarke CDs as reference material as they're blisteringly loud.

true they are loud, but it's part of the sounddesign. if you check "body riddle" or is remix of "maximo park" for exemple, despite the wall of sound produced it has some good macro dynamic and arrangement, good balance etc... i think airy and surgical mixes are not always the best, clark mixing is special but the mastering on this particular album is great imo. everything is in place and it's still a good ref i think to compare with same kind of busy material and very sounddesign oriented tracks. great bass movements , awesome burst of noise, great details and textures ..everything is under control here. i think this is sounding rather impressive and exciting, not just macho

that's tipacaly the kind of album i'd like the tesimony of the ME on. how went the session, what kind of techniques used, amount of shaping vs fidelity, etc...

Another album, in the same vein, with stylish and special mixing, loud but with a great full sound : "jackson and his computer band" on warp too.

[Rainy Days]

Originally Posted by graincloud

true they are loud, but it's part of the sounddesign. if you check "body riddle" or is remix of "maximo park" for exemple, despite the wall of sound produced it has some good macro dynamic and arrangement, good balance etc... i think airy and surgical mixes are not always the best, clark mixing is special but the mastering on this particular album is great imo. everything is in place and it's still a good ref i think to compare with same kind of busy material and very sounddesign oriented tracks. great bass movements , awesome burst of noise, great details and textures ..everything is under control here. i think this is sounding rather impressive and exciting, not just macho

The issue with Clarke albums is that they leave the music with no room to breathe. I'd like to hear an unmastered cut just to compare to see how different his vision is from the ones they put out commercially. I'm not badmouthing the mastering I'm just curious if the style is a byproduct of the process and not of his doing.

[csl]

Originally Posted by Rainy Days

The issue with Clarke albums is that they leave the music with no room to breathe. I'd like to hear an unmastered cut just to compare to see how different his vision is from the ones they put out commercially. I'm not badmouthing the mastering I'm just curious if the style is a byproduct of the process and not of his doing.

I have a feeling the heavy compression is done by Chris at the mixing stage -- he's mentioned running his mixes through some valve outboard; the mastering engineers probably do little more than an EQ tweak and a dB of limiting.

Noel Summerville handled the last few BoC releases, and they sound excellent. Geogaddi is superbly produced all-round.

[OurDarkness]

What do Boards of Canada, Aphex, blah blah have to do with Jean Michel Jarre, Tangerine Dream and Klaus Schulze? Just because someone uses synths or his music is widely accepted as EM, it doesn't mean that it has similarities with the artists I mentioned in my OP.

[graincloud]

Originally Posted by OurDarkness

What do Boards of Canada, Aphex, blah blah have to do with Jean Michel Jarre, Tangerine Dream and Klaus Schulze? Just because someone uses synths or his music is widely accepted as EM, it doesn't mean that it has similarities with the artists I mentioned in my OP.

heeerrr very obvious, maybe you should read a couple of their interviews or listen to their music
i think we were just trying to help and passion deviated us a little bit maybe
though
BOC is full of 70's inspired and sounding synthlines
SAW 1 & 2 by Aphex are made with synthetiser with an ethereal aesthetic, repetition and sounds great.
Not even mentioning that some of the gear used is probably common...

that's some similarities to me.

so maybe you are after a particular sound connoted from a period of time ? 70s , 80s ?

[OurDarkness]

I appreciate the help but let's stay to Berlin school electronic music.

[807Recordings]

Originally Posted by OurDarkness

I appreciate the help but let's stay to Berlin school electronic music.

Don't forget the guys who push the Berlin sound aka hard wax crew.

Scion,
Substance,

One of my favorites that came out on Tresor is Scion Arrange and Process.