American Idiot

[Ruudman]

..and pretty UNdynamic, too.



ruudman

[Sounds Great]

Originally Posted by Ruudman

..and pretty UNdynamic, too.



ruudman

Yup. A jackhammer is very loud. And very undynamic. Either all or nothing.

[bloodstone]

At mastering, put a compressor and limiter in the signal chain, with the limiter at the end. Set the limiter to digital 0. Compress the mix and push up the make-up gain 6, 8 or 10 db or more. Enjoy the sound of modern records.

[kevinc]

Not too surprising. It`s just how they do things these days.

Sux.

[eligit]

this album is dynamically static and boring. i don't even care about the clipping. (i have lots of bootlegs with distortion all over them that i still listent to).

just the boredom of a signal that is so unrelenting. (a smoke detector is also very loud and impressive. no annoying quiet parts).

some of the songs are catchy tho.

as an antdote i put on "who are you" by the who.....dynamics baby! quiet acoustic solo and then....BANG. fun.

[joaquin]

Hi. My girlfriend has the CD on all day ...everyday...in her Car, and I must say that with the engine and traffic noise...It work like a charm

PS. I try to listen to some RadioHead on the speedway....no good

[Jim Williams]

Sometimes for fun I'll run one of these flattend CD's into my Aphex 612 expander. If there is at least a couple of db moving, I can grab those dynamics and somewhat "uncompress" the record.

Not having any luck lately....

Reminds me when I went to the "record" doctor.

I told him it hurts when I listen to these records.

He said, "don't listen to these records".


Jim Williams
Audio Upgrades

[alphajerk]

Originally Posted by joaquin

Hi. My girlfriend has the CD on all day ...everyday...in her Car, and I must say that with the engine and traffic noise...It work like a charm

PS. I try to listen to some RadioHead on the speedway....no good

so does my wife... gotta admit, im loving these CDs more and more now that its summertime and i have my windows down and the stereo cranked.

[recorderman]

i only hear it on thre radio..kill me...i think it sounds good

[Jose Mrochek]

the boulevard of broken dreams song, you guys have to admit. I'ts a great melody. My respects for them. I like the song so much I really didn't care. I have the CD also. But that one, is a step above the rest.

[2leod]

Originally Posted by BevvyB

Greenday

Sounds very loud

Explain

Bev

NIGEL: Well, it's one louder, isn't it? It's not ten. You see, most...most blokes, you know, will be playing at ten. You're on ten here...all the way up...all the way up....

MARTY: Yeah....

NIGEL: ...all the way up. You're on ten on your guitar...where can you go from there? Where?

MARTY: I don't know....

NIGEL: Nowhere. Exactly. What we do is if we need that extra...push over the cliff...you know what we do?

MARTY: Put it up to eleven.

NIGEL: Eleven. Exactly. One louder.

MARTY: Why don't you just make ten louder and make ten be the top... number...and make that a little louder?

NIGEL: ...

[kevinc]

LOL !

Exactly.

[DaveC]

I try to listen to some RadioHead on the speedway....no good

Yeah, if you'd have a death-wish...
That music depresses the crap out of me, not good if you're in a car with
a really bad mood.

[BevvyB]

I can't work out it

Has this helped? Am I closer to understanding with your collective thoughts?

Bev

[2leod]

I've sometimes thought that if the day ever came that I understood the women in my life, the day that fast food was actually healthy and good for you, the day that blue walters started flying out my arse and I became a rock star, I would make an album with two sets of mixes - the first set good, dynamic and a pleasure to listen to, and the second mixed & mastered for radio and highway driving.

[Winey]

Originally Posted by recorderman

i only hear it on thre radio..kill me...i think it sounds good

It sounds really good on the radio!
It goes against the "loud CD = crap sound on FM radio" theory.
I wonder why.
Maybe now that everything is so smashed FM has cut down on the amount of limiting.
I listened to this mix in the studio and it still sounds good.
Very compressed more than anything, but very nice aggressive mix bus compression.
It's also very mid aggressive which really works for this stuff.
I think the volume is mostly from the creative use of a mix bus comp more than extreme limiting, but you can never be sure.
It sounds like compression + clipping to me.
It also has heavy use of samples behind the drums for more impact.
That kick sounds really fake in the solo'd parts, but it still works.
I still think green day is nothing more than typical punk-pop, but put them next to everything else on commercial radio and they suddenly they're amazing.
Their "borrowing" of exact melodies and chords is more disturbing to me than anything else.

[doorknocker]

Originally Posted by Jose Mrochek

the boulevard of broken dreams song, you guys have to admit. I'ts a great melody. My respects for them. I like the song so much I really didn't care. I have the CD also. But that one, is a step above the rest.

And for once I agree with you, bro.

'Boulevard' is a great tune and that intro tremolo thing is good too.
Don't know the rest of the record but I'm seriously asking: Do you NEED dynamics for this kinda music?
I think this genre actually benefits from loud mastering.
I'm all for dynamics but there are times when 'flat out' is just the right thing.
Like Billy Gibbons once said when he was asked if it's true that they tailor the mix to car radio speakers
'If it sounds good in your car, what more do you want?'

I don't think anybody is listening to Green Day in a lone, candelight-lit room....

Andi

www.doorknocker.ch

[Eagertone]

Originally Posted by 2leod

NIGEL: Well, it's one louder, isn't it? It's not ten. You see, most...most blokes, you know, will be playing at ten. You're on ten here...all the way up...all the way up....

MARTY: Yeah....

NIGEL: ...all the way up. You're on ten on your guitar...where can you go from there? Where?

MARTY: I don't know....

NIGEL: Nowhere. Exactly. What we do is if we need that extra...push over the cliff...you know what we do?

MARTY: Put it up to eleven.

NIGEL: Eleven. Exactly. One louder.

MARTY: Why don't you just make ten louder and make ten be the top... number...and make that a little louder?

NIGEL: ...

Well... THIS goes to 11!

[max cooper]

Originally Posted by Jose Mrochek

the boulevard of broken dreams song, you guys have to admit. I'ts a great melody. My respects for them. I like the song so much I really didn't care. I have the CD also. But that one, is a step above the rest.

Green Day impressed me so much the first time I saw them (at the Cocoanut Teaszer; the first of several bands opening for the Angry Samoans) and I have enjoyed lots of their records and shows. That said, I'm surprised they used one of the most tired cliches as a song title: "The Boulevard of Broken Dreams" Yes, good melody though.

[max cooper]

Originally Posted by DaveC

Yeah, if you'd have a death-wish...
That music depresses the crap out of me, not good if you're in a car with
a really bad mood.

Dude, it's just music; it's not a gun or a bottle of bourbon.


(I'm not sure why I've taken to using the word "dude" lately. )

[NathanEldred]

Is it me, or did they run that whole CD through some kind of Aural Exciter? In the immortal words of Steve Albini (in reference to certain kinds of overcompression I believe): "It makes it sound like a beer commercial".

[karatemanjohnny]

It depends on the radio station..

on one station near me, I heard it, and the verse/chorus would be totally different levels. it was so nasty, i could hear the limiter squashing it. i actually broke out laughing the first time i heard it; it was so hilarious.

the "loud parts" were softer than the "soft parts."

i don't know why i found it so funny, but i really did just bust out laughing.


also, some Radiohead works all the time - Maquiladora comes to mind. if you are at risk of driving your car off a cliff, this song won't push you over.

- John

[juniorhifikit]

Originally Posted by BevvyB

I can't work out it

Has this helped? Am I closer to understanding with your collective thoughts?

Bev

CLA mixed it. I think Ted Jensen mastered it. Doesn't get much more slammin' than that.

[Bang]

They are making rock records really loud and undynamic now? When did they start doing that, it must be a new thing, I've never heard anyone complain about it before.

Steve
www.bangrecording.com
www.blacklinerock.com

[alphajerk]

Originally Posted by NathanEldred

Is it me, or did they run that whole CD through some kind of Aural Exciter? In the immortal words of Steve Albini (in reference to certain kinds of overcompression I believe): "It makes it sound like a beer commercial".

in the immortal words of homer simpson:
mmmmmm, beer!

f'uck albini, when he starts recording good sounding shit... then he can have immortal words... until then there are merely mortal.

but i agree with you on the aural exciter part, this is actually the album that made me start the 'to hype or not' thread. my wife and kid love the record and i have to admit, this is probably green days best album they have done to date... but i hate CLA's mixing. the drums sound odd [probably SR'd] and have too much top to them. the album sonically sounds artificial but i do like the guitars on it. the production was nice as well.

[thethrillfactor]

Originally Posted by alphajerk

but i hate CLA's mixing. the drums sound odd [probably SR'd] .

CLA doesn't sample replace drums.

It would take too long.

He is all about speed.

You bring them in the morning, he knocks it out by lunch.

By dinner time he is on his way home.

Some of his mixes work this way(Hoobastank come to example), others are lacking and sound smashed(Jeremy Camp).

Left on his own with no limitations he is actually really good.

Its just he is caught in the whole L.A. Mcdonalds Drive thru style of mixing and production.

[alphajerk]

i would assume all drum replacements would be made by his assistant in PT before being xferred to the digitape track [i read some interview with him about how he had his assistant prepare all the tracks first, again... in fast food style production]

probably one of my least favorite mixers and seeing his name on an album will make me not buy it because i pretty much can bet its gonna be stale and boring... and honestly, the green day album could of been so much more than it is.

[warhead]

I always thought Green Day's music kind of sounded like beer commercial stuff anyway. "When I Come Around" is the most typical 4 chord rock song format ever, and I remember at the time there was a Bud commercial that had the same basic chord progression as well.

That being said, Iron Maiden got away with "E"--->"D"--->"C" and then "C"--->"D"--->"E" power chord progressions in about 95% of their songs their entire career and they had some cool stuff too. And Angus Young has yet to leave the first 3 frets on his guitar for just about all of AC/DC's rhythm parts.

OK...on the overcomp'ing overlimiting deal...I wonder how much they paid to have it done? When will the labels figure out that anyone can overcompress and then output into the limiter an addition 5-10dB and get that "sound"?

War

[thethrillfactor]

Originally Posted by alphajerk

i would assume all drum replacements would be made by his assistant in PT before being xferred to the digitape track [i read some interview with him about how he had his assistant prepare all the tracks first, again... in fast food style production]

probably one of my least favorite mixers and seeing his name on an album will make me not buy it because i pretty much can bet its gonna be stale and boring... and honestly, the green day album could of been so much more than it is.

That interview is old.

Chris and Tom work right of PTools.

No sample replacements.

Would take too long.

Just straight into the comps,EQ's and SSL.

He gets $5K a mix so the goal is to knockout at least 2 mixes a day.

3 if it were possible.