oo music just cannot survive even 1 dB of additional dynamic, a difference in volume between two tracks, compression. The first time I really heard the damage will make the softer one sounding less powerful... but was on the ASIA “Anthology” CD. I own all original once you level out the soft and loud tracks, you’ll hear CD’s and just thought it was something wrong with that there is “life” in the “unfucked” track that makes my CD walk man, or my stereo, later on I understood for a lot more pleasurable listening! what had been done. I still cannot hear that one, and have ripped the original CD’s and the difference is Ok, I have a band and one of the first things that huge on such bombastic music where every hertz is I said when we’re recording was: “No compression, packed at all times :) What we play is what we’ll hear” (Of course, no la- bel involved whatsoever). How do you feel when I think that music can have many definitions and bands or labels ask you to do something that you characteristics. Perhaps the best term that is ap- know will end up in a big pile of sh!t? Have you ever plied to our interview is “dynamic”. Taking a point refuse to record/produce/mix a band? of comparison, classical music should be the pur- Compression is a must. Not while recording, but for est and most beautiful form of making and playing making a kick ass mix you need compression. Tons music. And when we hear a piece, we hear some- of it. It actually creates a wider dynamic (to our ears) thing like, “allegro”, “andantino”, “fortissimo”, “pi- if you play around with the attack and release times. anissimo”, more intense or less intense. In short: The problem is that you need to kill all those added Dynamic. This should be present in ALL music. In dynamics while making the master, these days. Sucks your opinion, what is it that makes people listen to ass. There’s been a few masterings that I felt I couldn’t music in a totally unnatural way? do anything with since the material was already mixed The fault lies with the record company execs and “nor- so loud everything was distorting etc. But so far, I have mal people” that just doesn’t understand that levelling been able to rescue all the mix jobs. out all music to have the same loudness by adding volume to the soft (rather than the opposite) doesn’t Still the example of my band that can be extrapo- work without severe consequences. But then again, lated to thousands of bands out there, trying to do most don’t care. they listen to music in shitty in-ears something with their music. If we present you with on 128 kbps anyway. some material for you to mix for further presenta- tion to a label and say: “We want to be the loudest I’ve been reading carefully a very interesting article possible”. We do as we told or any time in the pro- on the website www.metal-fi.com - “The Dan Swanö cess you try to prove that this is not the right way to Challenge” (I encourage our readers to read it) as do things? well as some interviews. Something that most likely I am mixing an album at the moment, and that is very our readers (and guys with bands ...) have not real- loud but still it sounds fucking great and punchy be- ized is: when we enter a studio who’s responsible to cause I adapt the mix to work at louder levels of limit- Well, I must admit that this is one of the most complicat- choose (or not) the “loudness” or “dynamic”? From ing, and does whatever it takes for the mix to sound the what I understand, the label has the last word on the same before and after limiting. To receive a mix that ed but at the same time challenging interviews I’ve ever matter. Is the band merely a puppet or the result of a sounds great, but the drums are on the verge to be too done. I hope to be ble to make it interesting and that all our dialogue between the band / producer / mixer? “unpunchy” and then have to squeeze another 7dB of I am not saying that all labels are like this, but there’s volume out of it, that won’t work out. You need to get readers become elucidated on this matter. Dan “The Man” definitely a fear of having the new album by artist X the material to work at -6 dB DR5 and it should sound Swanö will tell us a little about what is the “Loudness War” sounding “weak” compared to some brick walled as close as possible to the mix without any limiting. stuff. That is for sure. The main problem is the way Usually it means adding tons of smack to the drums, Dan, it’s a pleasure to interview you, for the impor- such, shuffle play or random, introduced people to we listen to music today. In the old times, you put on that will be “eaten” by the limiter, so the outcome is tant person that you’re in Metal but, above all, for the difference in volume between various CD’s and a record, adjusted you Hi-Fi set to a good level...and just as punch as before limiting. This will never sound your (our) fight in this battle. music styles, and they we’re annoyed by that... but rocked out. When you made a mixtape you always as good as the “unfucked” but at a quick listen, it will rather than making the louder music more silent checked the volume before you recorded that other be pretty alike, since the amount of punch is there... … to open hostilities, nothing better than “The (which can be done without fucking things up soni- track, so the mix tape would have a nice balance, and but when you kill the dynamics other shit happens... Man” to explain to us what is this scourge plaguing cally) they made the quiter stuff louder using software you wouldn’t need to reach for the volume knob at all. it’s a bit like having a 40m2 living room, then have to music today. Dan, what is it the “Loudness War”? that mercilessly raped the fine-tuned original, make But once everything was files and you had 150.000 il- move all the stuff into a 20 m2 room...all the stuff will Hard to explain, but it’s a process where a perfectly them harder to listen to. All just to “even out” the bal- legally downloaded MP3’s on your PC, and no smart be there, but it just won’t feel the same because the fine mix will have to suffer going through a process ance between various styles and mixes. Although it way of levelling them all out...this became a “problem” space that made the room work before is gone.... that only makes sound worse, in order to stand up may work on a theoretical level. Just apply limiting to for the “normal consumer” Some stuff was for the ear- to music that can take a good pounding (like rap make all the music have the same result when being ly days of CD and some was the latest coolest, totally In the process of giving ourselves known to the la- and other crap..) Since the introduction of iPods and measured with a meter... but the problem is that some brick walled hit single and since our hearing is very bels we “only” have one version on CD – with good

2 3 dynamics, I think. Do you think that’s a good idea classical so much. But it seems a lot of people who’s in pushed the levels up with a limiter, but I turned the scene, Lars Ulrich, had this to say concerning the that we – “the small bands” – present the labels with charge seem to believe that “make it loud” is an option out gain from the limiter down with as much volume “Loudness War” and the piece of sh!t that was the two versions for they to choose? One “loud” and the without consequences. Just like “make it red, rather as I was adding to it, and always compared to the “vi- sound/production/mix of “Death Magnetic”: other “fully dynamic”? This would be a good way to than green” but in this case, making something like nyl mix” and had a bus of extra transients from the “Listen, there’s nothing up with the audio quality. It’s fight this problem or would simply postpone it? Metallicas Black album -5 dB RMS DR4 would alter drums that I added to the limited version, and tried 2008, and that’s how we make records. [Producer] The problem is that each production is always com- the mix A LOT and those punchy drums would sound to emulate the punch from the vinyl mix as much as Rick Rubin’s whole thing is to try and get it to sound pared to other productions. Once there is a loud CD as if played with mallets! I could. lively, to get it to sound loud, to get it to sound excit- that sound great and punchy (Usually with triggered ing, to get it to jump out of the speakers. Of course, drums or drum machine) there is “proof” that it can In your quest to prove the music industry (and lis- Something that I admire very much is that vinyl I’ve heard that there are a few people complaining. be done, so most people that don’t care about the fact teners) that this “Loudness War” is just meaning- never disappeared and I see other thing with curi- But I’ve been listening to it the last couple of days in that the “reference” CD would probably have sound- less and being a person with a lot of influence, ex- osity: more and more releases are made with CD my car, and it sounds fuckin’ smokin’.” ed a lot better at perience and one together with Vinyl. Do you think the path is CD -> Two Facts: Metallica is one of my favorite bands and DR8 that it does of the best there “Loud”, Vinyl -> “Dynamic”? Can we make the CD Lars is not by any means a great drummer. at DR5. But it just is, you give your- dynamic and pure as a vinyl? There will be room for With these statements he demonstrates that he’s so happens that self a hard task both or it would be admitting that the problem ex- also some kind of (ignorant) monster, trying to hide it sounds alright to create several ists and our war would be lost? For me, as you might something that is in plain sight of everyone: DM is mega-loud and versions of “The deduce it would be termination of this “Loud” sh!t, a piece of sh!t and every sentence that he says can anything please Inheritance”. pure and simple. only be a joke. I could list them but I think is not back to back Can you briefly I would love to see a “dynamicification” o the CD worth of it. He contradicts himself in every single with that CD will explain to us again. Let CD and Vinyl be mixed to sound awesome one of them. I would ask you to comment, but as sound weak, be- what you do and and let MP3 be the “consumers who doesn’t give a is obvious, if you do not wish to comment, be my cause of the way what constitutes flying fuck” format. It will be a looooong ride there guest. ? I’ll comment for you. the human ear re- these versions? though. But I am doing what I can to bring awareness Not really sure what happened there, but I assume it sponds to louder I just didn’t to the fact that we are killing the music for no reason was already distortion during mix down and the Ste- = more powerful. like spending6 whatsoever... There’s never been better gear or more reo Sum, that ended up on the CD I guess they just If someone that months work- awesome recording formats in the history of music, didn’t listen carefully enough. Funny story. I helped doesn’t care that ing on the ba- yet we kill all the quality improvements at the final my wife’s sister and husband getting their new Hi-Fi much about dy- sic sound of the stages... strange world. receiver connected to their newly acquired surround namics and this album, with all system quite some time ago and I asked them for a and that would acoustic drums, One of the most prominent figures on the Metal CD, so I could check that everything was OK, and set compare one dy- only to have it all the level or the sub-woofer etc. and they said “We have namic mix and taken away from the new Metallica” and I was like “Wow, cool..” Since one limited-to- my ponce I made it was a million bucks production I figured it would death mix with- it as loud as most do great as a reference. I spend a long time trying to out changing other metal CD’s figure out where the fuck the distortion in their sys- the volume in to out there. I didn’t tem was coming from.... Crawling back and forth and make them both wanna go around checking this and that...In my mind, there was no way equally loud..the defending myself in hell that the CD from Metallica could distort that loud one will al- to friends saying badly....until it finally hit me...Let’s check it in head- ways be the best, “It sounded so phones straight from the player, and I was VERY sur- because it is more much more awe- prised to find that the distortion was actually there, powerful!! Some some before I on the original CD! I found some other CD, I knew people have even limited it” and all didn’t distort, and their Hi-Fi system sounded awe- asked me why the would go “Yeah, some right on! dynamic mix isn’t right..of course... as loud in volume as the normal CD version... (No sm- blink, blink” so I decided to include the proof of how Even on mp3 is possible to easily distinguish a good ilie exists to visualize my facial expression for this!!) awesome it sounded when it was just mixed to sound dynamic album from an compressed one? awesome and not having to think about how my mix Yeah. Absolutely. The more punch there is on the orig- In conversation with some friends and confronta- would “react” to having a lot of dB’s being squashed inal, the better a really bad MP3 sounds. I have con- tion of opinions, one that stood out was that this away from it. Because even the best limiter in the verted some of my work to 128 kbps, and sometimes it “Loudness” sh!t would be typical of specific genres. world cannot alter the fact that in order to raise the sounds shockingly good for being just like 10% of the But this is not what happens, or is it? I totally dis- volume without distortion, stuff will have “to go” from information of the actual WAV!! agreed and I think this is a disease that don’t sees the mix, and it this case it was the punch from the genres! drums that suffered the most... So I kept one bus with What do you think of the re-releases of older al- I think most genres have this problem. maybe not the mix, and simultaneously I had another bus to that bums? For example, Zeppelin have a new box set,

4 5 new remastered. I think that the originals are far our readers have been elucidated on how NOT TO way better, right? These new and “improved” edi- HEAR MUSIC directly from the mind of one of the tions tend to be more… how can I say… “distorted”? most prominent figures of Metal. To conclude, I (I think i only have one of this kind… A remastered would ask you three examples of albums to listen version of “Painkiller” with a horrible cover!) and 3 pieces of sh!t who we should avoid. I enjoyed I believe those “loud” times are slowly going away. I the last album of Iced Earth, those cymbals are haven’t heard of the albums you mention, but I doubt amazing and of course I did not like that crap that’s that Jimmy Page would spend 3 years of research and called Death Magnetic, and in this aspect, I think then brick wall the shit out Led Zeppelin. the last Hypocrisy album was bad too. He’s quite the audiophile from what I have heard... but I think all mixes of Jens Bogren are worth listening then again.. never say never. Louder always appears too. He’s definitely one of, if not the best, mixer out better when A/B’d without level matching... there, and I am proud to say that I was one of the first people in the world to “get” his genius :) What we as readers and promoters of “good” music All Rap and Hip-hop music should be avoided at all can do to fight this “war”? Who I must kill? time :) I think the salvation will come in more intelligent mu- sic players that can set the level of the file based on Dan, thank you for this interview and it was a pleas- the info it receives from the file itself, like “Hello, I ure to exchange a few words, although written, with am this song, I sound best played back at 6” and some you. brick walled album will be played back at “3” to reach Thanx to you too. Together we can try to fight this stu- the same loudness, and some really old, unfucked pid thing, and when the CD is obsolete as a format CD’s will go at “9” etc. I did that to 1200 of my MP3’s (just like what happened to Vinyl, VHS, soon DVD using the MP3 Gain software, and 95% of the time it etc.) perhaps albums can be re-released on CD rather really works! So now I don’t have to reach for the vol- than vinyl, in their full, unfucked glory, free of crack- ume knob on my iPod every time I switch from music les and other sonic artefacts of vinyl. ripped from a CD from 1986 to one from 2006 :) Rock on!

I think this interview is going a bit long, I hope that

ANATHEMA «Distant Satellites» (Kscope) Um novo lançamento dos Ingleses Anathema é sempre aguardado com grande ansie- dade. Estes Britânicos são muito fiéis a si próprios, mantendo intocável o seu estilo e a sua personalidade musical. Poderão já estar a pensar que será mais do mesmo mas que já os conhece sabe, perfeitamente, que os Anathema “não fazem mais do mesmo”. «Distant Satellites» não será dos meus favoritos, lugar esse reservado para «A Natural Disaster» mas é um álbum que não desvirtua o que foi feito até aqui. «Distant Satellites» traz-nos algumas mudanças pontuais e entra até um pouco na experimentação, nomeadamente, a introdução de elementos electrónicos, por exem- plo, no tema título “Distant Satellites” ou “Take Shelter”. Após os dois anteriores, «Weather Systems» e «We’re here(…)» mais “complexos” e mais densos, se assim os quisermos adjectivar os Anathema despojaram-se de todos estes elementos e fiz- eram… «Distant Satellites». Nas palavras de D. Cavanagh, isto foi consciente, tudo o que não foi necessário foi removido. No entanto, e apesar disto, a música é tocada com todo o coração e sentimento, como sempre é apanágio dos Anathema. Toda a doce e quente melancolia está presente, embora de forma ligeiramente diferente. Isto é algo intrínseco à sua filosofia, é uma impressão digital que faz da banda uma referência, senão, A referência quando concerne este estilo. As orquestrações são algo subtis mas enchem por completo o ambiente criado, como é o caso de “Anath- ema”. Sendo assim, «Distant Satellites» é mais uma excelente e emocional criação destes Britânicos. Interessante é o facto de já terem dois concertos agendados para Portugal…! [9/10] Eduardo Ramalhadeiro

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