Fuzzbox - Big Bang 2 CD

[Rubellan]

Just got my copy in the mail... and was horrified to find the entire set has been severely brick walled. Hold onto your original CD but keep this one for CD 2, some rare tracks there. I don't hear any vinyl transfers, just ear-splitting volume. The booklet is nice though.

[Neil Kelly]

Gee, i have this two but didn't notice. There again i'll be the first to admit i never do! Only played Disc 1 so far. Never had this album before. I also got the first one too when it was released on Deluxe edition recently which i've also never owned before. Is that brick-walled too?

[Rubellan]

The first one was a little loud but nowhere near this level.

[Barmy]

Which label are you referring to as "the first one"? Thanks.

As a general matter, since almost all CDs are brickwalled now I see little point in buying remasters unless either (1) the original issue is confirmed crap, (2) the remaster is a confirmed improvement (and music rags are NOT to be trusted on this matter) or (3) the remaster has at least 4 or 5 extras that are not useless remixes or edits. Tired of feeding this industry. Not sure why so many think 80s CDs sounded bad because, despite their flaws (often described as lack of clarity), I'd take them over brickwalling anyday.

[Rubellan]

When I said "the first one", I meant the recent 'Bostin Steve Austin' re-issue. I have the original Geffen CD of Big Bang that I bought in 1989. I will be holding onto it. When doing side by side comparisons, the only thing different about the new release is that it's much louder and the left and right channels are swapped. I hear no enhancements or improvements. CD's mastered in the 80's always seem to win out, except on the rare occasion when someone at the label or involved in the project ensure it's done right.

[Barmy]

Wow just dug it out and the old Geffen sounds great. WAY better than the Cherry Red. No surprise there.

[omar]

I just got the Fuzzbox cd and thought that it sounded ok. A little loud but not as bad as some of the other stuff out there .

[blaaah]

Disappointing lack of sleeve notes. I wanted to know where the other mix of raining champagne came from but no note sadly.

[anfunny2003]

Agree with the lack of decent notes, it's just an old press release! As for the "other" mix of Raining Champagne, it's from the CD single of International Rescue. The fan club letter announcing that single release back in 1989 listed it in the track listing as "Extended Mix", but the actual CD single doesn't give the mix a name. "South Soho Mix" is apparently what is written on the master tape box. It's only a minute longer than the version on the 12"/7" format.

[blaaah]

Ah thanks, i had only heard the cds version, so the other version is new to me then!

[profil]

As much as I love the album version of "Self!" as much do I think that the 12" version (The Selfish Mix) is total crap. And I had forgotton how bad it is. Would have loved to get just a simple extended mix of that song instead of a complete remix - like the fantastic 12" version of International Rescue (The Orgasmatron Mix).

[blaaah]

Each to their own, one of the best mixes of 1989 to me, bruce forest class remixer, disappointed there wasnt a dub! He sampled a coke bottle cracking for the break at the end.

[Rubellan]

I truly hated the "Self" remix when I bought the 12" in 1989. This is why I never sought out any of the others from the time. I assumed they were all crap. Thankfully, International Rescue and Pink Sunshine are excellent, but Walking On Thin Ice is pretty bad as well.

[Neil Kelly]

I was a bit of a fan of Bruce Forest too and i'm friends with him on FB lol and spoke to him last year about some of his remixes. I agree that when you used to buy a 12" and the remix was really different it was really annoying. Especially of course if you didn't like the mix. When we loved a song bacl in the day we usually wanted it in extended form rather than a remix that bares little resemblance to the original. A good example was the House mix of Adam Ant's Room at the top which we got in the U.K. whilst the USA and extended video received a much better Extended version which was hard to obtain. So much so that i backed up the VHS version onto minidisc in the end in 1998!

[obs]

I'll join in on the Bruce Forest tangent ...
Off the top of my head, here are another two 12"es I have with his remixes:

OMD's Dreaming - I had all the albums, so I wasn't going to buy the Best Of, but wanted the single, as I love this song. I was, and still am, a fan of the 12", so I picked it up (CA 12", which I think has the same mixes as the US 12"). To my dismay, the Bruce Forest Club Mix sounded nothing like the original version, and I *hated* it. What made it worse was that all three versions were remixed by Bruce Forest. I wasn't too happy. I ended up buying the 7", and later on, picked up the Best Of on vinyl, used, and also the CD (one of the first two CDs I ever bought!).

Erasure's Love to Hate You - This one is in the same type of style as the Fuzzbox and OMD remixes, but for some reason, it's okay to my ears. It's not as good as the original, or the other 12" mix, but I don't mind it. Strange that "Love to Hate You" and "Chorus" didn't get an L12 release.