Hypnagogic States (the september EP)

[lostflower4]

Is that actual clipping in the waveform or just at peak volume?

I use a set of studio master headphones with my iPod and Freakshow clips so badly :(

Well... In perfect practice, volume limiting, or dynamic range compression (whatever you want to call it), simply raises the overall volume of something without clipping — but at the expense of attenuating all the highest peaks in the waveform.

When done in moderation and with good sense, this can actually be a fine thing. You can see this trend progress on CDs made throughout the years. If you take something that was released in the mid-'80s, chances are the volume is pretty moderate. Many times you could simply amplify the sound by several decibels without inducing any clipping (no fancy techniques needed).

Then, in the early '90s, a trend began to make CDs louder and louder. Some say this was motivated by multi-disc changers becoming commonplace, because people didn't like to have so many different albums of varying volume.

Digital technology allowed this loudness race to be taken to the extreme with the advent of processors like Waves L1, L2, etc. This allowed music to be limited/compressed to a much higher degree than was traditionally possible with analog equipment.

If you take a CD from around 1991-1993, chances are these technologies were being used, but to a reasonable degree. CDs still had a lot of dynamic range, but all the peaks were near 0 RMS, and with generally no clipping. Really nothing wrong with this at all. It's too bad things couldn't have stayed this way.

(Although "Wish" was released in 1992, it had a lower volume than typical CDs of this era).

But that's what I assume you're asking here, whether these new recordings are just mastered to 0 RMS, or beyond this (digital clipping).

Well, I'd say it's a combination of both now. Starting in the mid-90s ("Wild Mood Swings" in the Cure's case), the desire for loud CDs reached new heights, and the dynamic range of stuff started to become extremely compromised — although I'd still say it was more reasonable compared to today's standards.

Pretty much everything commercially released today is literally squished into a rectangular block with almost no dynamic range at all. In order to get this loud, some of the dynamics have to be reduced to such an extreme degree that even if clipping technically does not occur, those peaks are otherwise mangled/distorted by this extreme process.

Also, the tolerance for true clipping has greatly increased too. Just analyze one of those early '90s CDs again with an audio editor, and you will find virtually no clipped samples presen.

But look at stuff from years after this, and you will find that most CDs do have clipped samples. Combine the unnaturally amplified music along with true actual samples, and you have one heck of a mess there.

...And so we have The Cure's new releases. 

[japanesebaby]

by the way i've seen some people both on the official site and COF talk about some preview clip from the remix album.
where acn this be listened to? : 

obviously it was posted somewhere on the official site(?) but i'm obviously too dumb to find anything over there
(sorry but it's just so messy over there and there's not even a search option).

then have a look at the two screenshots attached.
the first one's "healthy sound" from times when the cure was produced well, with love and care.
the second one's from 'all kinds of things'. i think you should see how the latter one has been damaged. see how part of the dynamic range (look at the edges and imagine how the peaks there should be like, like they are in the "healthy" image) has been cut off already in the studio? the 2008 image looks just like one big block of constant volume.

Is that actual clipping in the waveform or just at peak volume?

that's actual clipping in the waveform of course (sadly) - just open 'freakshow' in an audio editor and you will see the same yourself.
anyway, someone already answered to this so i've nothing much to add.

[revolt]

by the way i've seen some people both on the official site and COF talk about some preview clip from the remix album.
where acn this be listened to? : 

obviously it was posted somewhere on the official site(?) but i'm obviously too dumb to find anything over there
(sorry but it's just so messy over there and there's not even a search option).

Well, maybe they were referring to the short snippet from a remix of "The Only One", that can be heard the moment you access the front page of the official site... It is really too short to make a good opinion.

[japanesebaby]

by the way i've seen some people both on the official site and COF talk about some preview clip from the remix album.
where acn this be listened to? : 

obviously it was posted somewhere on the official site(?) but i'm obviously too dumb to find anything over there
(sorry but it's just so messy over there and there's not even a search option).

Well, maybe they were referring to the short snippet from a remix of "The Only One", that can be heard the moment you access the front page of the official site... It is really too short to make a good opinion.

oh i see now, thanks. i knew it was some really dumb thing - you see my bookmark for the official site is set to go past the front page and directly to the "news" so i missed noticing this completely.

and that's certainly too short a clip to say anything much about it - other than it (naturally) sounds very compressed and messy....

[Lostflowerboy]

To my surprise the remixes of Sleep when I'm dead and the perfect boy seem to work very nicely, at least judging from the samples. And a surprise to hear vocals on the 65DOS mix, I thought this band was only into instrumentals.

[Secrets]

by the way i've seen some people both on the official site and COF talk about some preview clip from the remix album.
where acn this be listened to? : 

obviously it was posted somewhere on the official site(?) but i'm obviously too dumb to find anything over there
(sorry but it's just so messy over there and there's not even a search option).

Well, maybe they were referring to the short snippet from a remix of "The Only One", that can be heard the moment you access the front page of the official site... It is really too short to make a good opinion.

oh i see now, thanks. i knew it was some really dumb thing - you see my bookmark for the official site is set to go past the front page and directly to the "news" so i missed noticing this completely.

and that's certainly too short a clip to say anything much about it - other than it (naturally) sounds very compressed and messy....

There's also this:
http://www.buecher.de/shop/Musik/Hypnagogic-States-EP/The-Cure/products_products/detail/prod_id/24863494/

Talk about noise pollution. Nearly as bad as the WMS remixes *shiver*

[revolt]

by the way i've seen some people both on the official site and COF talk about some preview clip from the remix album.
where acn this be listened to? : 

obviously it was posted somewhere on the official site(?) but i'm obviously too dumb to find anything over there
(sorry but it's just so messy over there and there's not even a search option).

Well, maybe they were referring to the short snippet from a remix of "The Only One", that can be heard the moment you access the front page of the official site... It is really too short to make a good opinion.

oh i see now, thanks. i knew it was some really dumb thing - you see my bookmark for the official site is set to go past the front page and directly to the "news" so i missed noticing this completely.

and that's certainly too short a clip to say anything much about it - other than it (naturally) sounds very compressed and messy....

There's also this:
http://www.buecher.de/shop/Musik/Hypnagogic-States-EP/The-Cure/products_products/detail/prod_id/24863494/

Talk about noise pollution. Nearly as bad as the WMS remixes *shiver*

Well, except for track 5, which has the good sense of "toning down" the voice and also sports some interesting ambient sounds, I'm afraid none of the remixes' samples sounds promising at all. It looks like we have been offered a really pointless record. :roll:

[nausearockpig]

Pointless? Aren't the royalties going to Int. Red Cross? probably not a complete waste then...

[revolt]

Pointless? Aren't the royalties going to Int. Red Cross? probably not a complete waste then...

I meant from a musical /artistical point of view.

I won´t comment on the charity purpose, other than to say that if The Cure really want to do that kind of thing, they can always transfer some of their money directly to the relevant institution. Or maybe donate de royalties (either the totality or a percentage) from a truly important record - I won't say the new album, but maybe one of the De-luxe editions.

Then again, maybe it is adequate to have the royalties of this particular record going to the Red Cross... I mean, with the damaged years we're probably gonna get, there's a chance that we may find ourselves in need to ask for the help of the mentioned institution... 

[Ulrich]

To my surprise the remixes of Sleep when I'm dead and the perfect boy seem to work very nicely, at least judging from the samples. And a surprise to hear vocals on the 65DOS mix, I thought this band was only into instrumentals.

For their own stuff, yes. But if 65DOS do a remix, they can of course leave the vocals there.

I've never been a big fan of remixes (oh I remember Mixed Up, not so much pleasure for me back then), but I'll buy the EP! First of all, it says "The Cure" on the cover so I'd buy it anyway... And I'm glad to hear it'll be for charity. Anyone wanting to give more money to charity, should of course donate directly to Red Cross or other organisation of their own choice.

[silversand]

I've listend to the snippets.
And what i can say at the moment it doesn't sound good actually, sorry
I don't like these remixes by these emo-bands (okay, i can't stand emo bands)
Don't like Mixed Up, these remixes are worse. So if i buy this EP i can't say it yet.
I will see

[nausearockpig]

@ Revolt: I tend to agree given the waste that I've seen from the Australian Red Cross.. it's fken criminal esp. since that money should go to needy people, not updating managers' mobile phones with the latest Nokias...

@ Ulrich: a friend of mine once said "you'd buy a The Cure CD even if it contained an hour of RS farting!".. He's probably right... LOL

[revolt]

First of all, it says "The Cure" on the cover so I'd buy it anyway...

Well, I wonder then if you would buy something like this  :

http://www.allmusic.com/cg/amg.dll?p=amg&sql=10:kxfoxz8jldte

Or this:

http://www.allmusic.com/cg/amg.dll?p=amg&sql=10:3bfpxq9sldae

[Trust...]

First of all, it says "The Cure" on the cover so I'd buy it anyway...

Well, I wonder then if you would buy something like this  :

http://www.allmusic.com/cg/amg.dll?p=amg&sql=10:kxfoxz8jldte

Or this:

http://www.allmusic.com/cg/amg.dll?p=amg&sql=10:3bfpxq9sldae

[Ulrich]

First of all, it says "The Cure" on the cover so I'd buy it anyway...

Well, I wonder then if you would buy something like this  :

http://www.allmusic.com/cg/amg.dll?p=amg&sql=10:kxfoxz8jldte

Or this:

http://www.allmusic.com/cg/amg.dll?p=amg&sql=10:3bfpxq9sldae

Oh yes, Gospel and (even better!) R&B, must buy them!!
Or maybe not...