Mike Mettler

Spatial Audio File
New World Man: Richard Chycki on Mixing Rush’s Signals in Atmos
Mike Mettler  |  Apr 28, 2023

Rush’s September 1982 album Signals celebrates the release of its 40th anniversary Super Deluxe Edition today, April 28, 2023—and it’s a spatially inclined box set that contains a stunning new Atmos mix of the core album by longtime Rush confidante and noted producer/engineer Richard Chycki on Blu-ray. In a recent Zoom interview, Chycki and music editor Mike Mettler discuss the esteemed producer’s overall Atmos mixing M.O. for Signals, the one specific request from Rush guitarist Alex Lifeson that was honored in “Subdivisions,” and why “Countdown” truly lifts off into the stratosphere in Atmos. Read on to decipher all the fine immersive signals accordingly. . .

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Music Reviews
Bob Dylan: Fragments – Time Out of Mind Sessions Deluxe Edition Box Set
Mike Mettler  |  Apr 04, 2023  |  Published: Apr 05, 2023
Performances
Sound
Bob Dylan hit a bit of a rough patch as the freewheelin’ 1980s gave way to the dour 1990s. Dylan ended the MTV decade on a high note with September 1989’s Oh Mercy—a visceral, smoky triumph produced by Daniel Lanois—but he stumbled out of the new-decade gate with the half-hearted mish-mosh sheen of September 1990’s Under the Red Sky.
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Spatial Audio File
State of Love and Trust: Josh Evans on Mixing Pearl Jam in Atmos
Mike Mettler  |  Mar 31, 2023

Producer/engineer Josh Evans has been tasked with bringing Pearl Jam’s storied catalog into the Atmos universe, and he’s already spearheaded a number of great immersive mixes for various catalog entries of theirs ranging from the band’s explosive 1991 debut Ten to the broader strokes of 2020’s Gigaton. Recently, Evans got on Zoom with music editor Mike Mettler from the friendly confines of his studio HQ in Seattle to discuss why Pearl Jam trusts his Atmos instincts, the rigorous multitrack tape-to-digital transfer process he follows, and why it’s important to sometimes just let the music breathe. Read on to immerse yourself accordingly. . .

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Music Reviews
Remaster Class - XTC: Nonsuch
Mike Mettler  |  Mar 27, 2023
Any Kind of Love Is Alright

XTC was indeed riding high following the both-sides-of-the-Pond success of February 1989’s psychedelically fulfilling Oranges & Lemons, but far be it from Andy Partridge, Colin Moulding, and David Gregory to even think of doing the same thing twice.

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Blu-ray Movie Reviews
The Velvet Underground
Mike Mettler  |  Mar 24, 2023
Picture
Sound
Extras

The Velvet Underground is not for everyone—nor were they ever intended to be. The critically regarded avant-garde darlings of Andy Warhol's Factory scene of late-1960s New York, the VU forged a truly groundbreaking style of music that saw the doo-wop/pop songwriting and seedy poetry predisposition of guitarist/vocalist Lou Reed embed with the hypnotic, drone-centric playing style of violist/pianist/composer John Cale.

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Music Reviews
John Cougar Mellencamp: Scarecrow – Super Deluxe Edition Box Set
Mike Mettler  |  Mar 13, 2023
Performances
Sound
John Mellencamp was making waves. Unfortunately saddled with the stage name “John Cougar” when he came onto the scene in the late-1970s, once he began climbing the singles and sales charts, he asserted his artistic identity much more forcefully by crediting his hit October 1983 LP Uh-Huh to John Cougar Mellencamp. He did so again on his full-artistic breakthrough album, August 1985’s Scarecrow, before dropping the Cougar moniker entirely when the ’90s rolled around.
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Spatial Audio File
Joe Satriani on the Spacious New Atmos Mix of His Career-Defining 1987 Album, Surfing With the Alien
Mike Mettler  |  Feb 24, 2023

Guitar maestro Joe Satriani has been making strange beautiful music for well over four decades and counting. Given his penchant for exploring the very concept of space itself and all of its dimensions, it should come as no surprise that Satch has wholly embraced the concept of having his music mixed in Dolby Atmos. Recently, Satriani and I got on Zoom together to discuss just how cosmically cool his benchmark October 1987 instrumental album Surfing With the Alien sounds in Atmos, which specific track benefits the most from its Atmos mix, and what earlier surround mix from his storied catalog he considers to be “the most beautiful thing ever.” Read on to discover all the Satch-in-Atmos answers that await. . .

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The S&V Interview
David Crosby, The Tenor of Our Times
Mike Mettler  |  Jan 27, 2023

David Crosby spoke extensively with music editor Mike Mettler just a few months before he sadly passed away at age 81 on January 18. The voice of a generation, Croz discusses his knack for recognizing the chemistry he had with certain musicians, how the song “Compass” helped recalibrate his songwriting acumen, what album of his he’d like most to be listened to a half-century into the future, and much more.

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Music Reviews
The Beach Boys: Sail On Sailor – 1972 Deluxe Edition Box Set
Mike Mettler  |  Jan 26, 2023
Performances
Sound
In the early-1970s, two new VIP members of The Beach Boys not sporting the surnames Wilson, Love, or Jardine came to the forefront of the band — namely, guitarist/vocalist Blondie Chaplin and guitarist/drummer Ricky Fataar. Though their tenure in The Beach Boys was short-lived, the energy and creative verve these two artists of South African descent injected into this consummate California band’s era-transitional gambits were noticeably palpable for a decade, often overshadowed by the sheer magnitude of their groundbreaking 1960s recordings.
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Audio Video News
Beck’s Bolero: An Aural Appreciation of Jeff Beck, The World’s Most Fully Realized Three-Dimensional Guitar Player
Mike Mettler  |  Jan 13, 2023

Jeff Beck was the guitarist’s guitarist. He came of age during the British Invasion, and he created sound after otherworldly guitar sound that would cause you to both tap your foot and bob your head in appreciation while concurrently boggling your mind. Sadly, Beck passed away in his native England on January 10 at age 78, following a brief illness. Luckily for us, his recorded legacy spans seven decades, and whether the playback format was mono, stereo, or surround sound, Jeff Beck could always be heard playing on a three-dimensional plane. S&V music editor Mike Mettler looks back on the stellar career of a singular artist who influenced generations of listeners and musicians alike.

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