Journey 180g Vinyl remaster reviews?

[singhcr]

I'm a really big Journey fan and I have all of their albums aside from Raised on Radio, which I have yet to get on LP.

I found out that many of their albums have been remastered from the original reel to reel tapes and pressed onto 180g vinyl.

I've been particularly looking at Escape: http://www.musicdirect.com/p-11622-j...n-180g-lp.aspx

However, I know that a re-master isn't always the best thing, especially considering that many people will just turn up the overall volume and run excessive noise reduction to remove tape hiss, but will severely lessen the dynamic range of the recording. I like the idea of 180g vinyl, but maybe I should just buy a better copy of the original LP to replace the one that I have.

Does anyone have any experience with this album or the remastering team?

[Troy73]

Slightly off/on topic, have you checked out "Eclipse" yet? I was very impressed with this one compared to "Revelation" the last release. As far as your question goes, I would take a chance given the price point. You may be impressed and personal hearing is a better deciding factor than someone else's opinion. From my experience re-masters, as far as cds go, are hit and miss. Sometimes it's the best thing that ever happened to an album and others....In regards to vinyl, I have no idea how much better or worse the outcome maybe. But, again, I would be curious and try it to see.

[singhcr]

I listened to a bit of the new album and wasn't very impressed. Frankly, I find it annoying that they are using a Steve Perry impressionist as the lead singer instead of finding a new sound. Steve has one of the most distinct voices ever and to try and copy it is insulting. Journey is coming to Saint Paul, MN in a few weeks and while I was tempted to go, I don't really want to hear Pineda covering a bunch of songs that were sung by Perry. Every time I heard him sing, I just thought how Perry would be better.

I really wish the band would get back together with Steve, as "Trial by Fire" retained the Journey sound but was a unique style as the lyrics reflected how the members of the band had changed as they had become older. However, Perry's voice was as silky as ever, and it was a treat to hear him again. Now, this is coming from a 27 year old male who hadn't heard much Journey until a year ago. I could only imagine the joy of those who had waited for Journey to start recording for 12 years or so after Raised on Radio. If Journey thinks they are doing well with Pineda, just imagine how popular they'd be if they brought back Steve Perry!

A similar situation happened with Creed some years ago. Scott Stapp had a very distinct vocal style and it would be foolish to replace him with someone who was trying to sound like him, as fans would keep thinking of Stapp. Instead, they went with Miles Kennedy, who has a very different style and range. It took a while to get used to it, but I really like Alter Bridge now and I can still listen to Creed if I want to hear Stapp.

[Troy73]

The problem is, Journey without a "Steve Perry type" lead vocalist doesn't work. Jeff Scott Soto, who is an awesome vocalist, sang for the band on tour and he tore it up. However, his overall fan reception was underwhelming at best. He's the only of the 3 singers since Perry left that didn't try to imitate his style. The reality of it is, unless Journey wants to go into a different musical direction, they need to have a front man that at least sounds somewhat like Perry because that's their trademark sound.

[dwr]

Hi guys, while I am not a big Journey fan, I will comment on the re-master part of the discussion. Re-masters of LPs aren't really any different than the cds when it comes to the quality of the re-master, some are great and others just leave you scratching your head. I have also found that the ones that are done well like King Crimson - In The Court Of The Crimson King are good on either cd or vinyl. Also if you are looking for a good source for original LPs search Records By Mail (recordsbymail.com) they have real good selections and I have found their grading sytem is very accurate and can be trusted. I have purchased some real good copies of older LPs from them.

Dan

[Steelmaker]

Originally Posted by Troy73

The problem is, Journey without a "Steve Perry type" lead vocalist doesn't work. Jeff Scott Soto, who is an awesome vocalist, sang for the band on tour and he tore it up. However, his overall fan reception was underwhelming at best. He's the only of the 3 singers since Perry left that didn't try to imitate his style. The reality of it is, unless Journey wants to go into a different musical direction, they need to have a front man that at least sounds somewhat like Perry because that's their trademark sound.

I would agree with this. I think Journey at this stage of their career cannot afford to go looking for a new sound. They are all either approaching 60 or already there. Their "sound" is well established in the minds of their fans and at this point it would be stupid to deviate from that. They know what works and finding Arnel Pineda to take over as lead singer was nothing short of a God-given miracle. Yes Arnel does sound a lot like Perry but have you seen any of their dvd concerts with Arnel? He is a VERY energetic and entertaining frontman and wins the crowd over every time with his humble attitude. Plus as much as Perry fans don't want to hear this, the truth is Perry could not cut it in Journey today. His voice is NOT what it used to be and frankly he couldn't handle the songs. They would seriously have to create new arrangments to every song because he cannot hit those notes anymore. Personally I LOVE this version of Journey and am grateful they are still around, making music. What's Perry doing these days?

[singhcr]

Well, the idea that Journey shouldn't change their sound as they're well-established with the sound that they have makes a lot of sense, but it's still hard for me to shake the idea that I'm listening to an impersenation of Steve Perry.

I guess I'll give the new album another listen to and see if I can get used to it, as I am really tempted to go to that concert in St. Paul!

[Steelmaker]

Originally Posted by singhcr

Well, the idea that Journey shouldn't change their sound as they're well-established with the sound that they have makes a lot of sense, but it's still hard for me to shake the idea that I'm listening to an impersenation of Steve Perry.

I guess I'll give the new album another listen to and see if I can get used to it, as I am really tempted to go to that concert in St. Paul!

You should go. You will be surprised by Arnel. He is a terrific performer!

Also, one thing I should say is that after thinking about it, Journey actually HAS changed their sound post-Perry. They are a much harder-rocking band now than they were when Perry was in the band. Yes they still throw in the obligatory ballad on every album, but they are not the pop-friendly band they were in the 80's. Eclipse is a perfect example of this. There is some really interesting stuff on there.

Oh and one other thing. You mentioned Trial By Fire earlier. Honestly I thought that album was awful. Yes it was exciting to see Perry and Journey re-united and the single "When You Love A Woman" was huge. However overall that album was very uninspiring!

[singhcr]

Originally Posted by Steelmaker

Oh and one other thing. You mentioned Trial By Fire earlier. Honestly I thought that album was awful. Yes it was exciting to see Perry and Journey re-united and the single "When You Love A Woman" was huge. However overall that album was very uninspiring!

Well, to each their own, I suppose. It isn't a super album like Escape or Frontiers, but I liked it overall. You could see how the band's lyrics and tone had changed over the years as they got older. Songs like "Colors of the Spirit" really reflect this. I also really, really like "Message of Love" as it's a hybrid of classic Journey and a new sound at the same time.

I'm getting a new (to me) Marantz 2225 receiver tomorrow. That will really boost the quality of my LPs and CDs. After an extended classic Journey LP marathon, I'll check out the new Eclipse album and let you know what I think.

And as for the original purpose of this thread (although it's great to talk about Journey with some fellow fans as most of the people I know listen to modern music that I just don't care for) I think I'll pick up this new Escape LP.

[Troy73]

Originally Posted by singhcr

And as for the original purpose of this thread (although it's great to talk about Journey with some fellow fans as most of the people I know listen to modern music that I just don't care for) I think I'll pick up this new Escape LP.

Good call. I'd be interested to hear your thoughts on it.

[singhcr]

Originally Posted by Troy73

Good call. I'd be interested to hear your thoughts on it.

I'll let you know how it goes. As for the concert, I checked the Journey tickets again and the good seats are basically gone in my price range. Hopefully I can find some tickets from Craigslist or some other place closer to the concert date.

[singhcr]

I had a chance to sample it today.

Firstly, the album was inside a gatefold jacket with the art on the original pressing's liner on the inside of the jacket itself. The record was in a nice thick plastic sleeve. Other than the fact that the artwork wasn't a raised surface like the original jacket, I liked it a lot. It's also nice to have the liner art on the jacket as the jacket can get torn and dirty rather easily.

My initial copy of Escape wasn't the best condition-wise (and I've significantly upgraded my receiver since I last listened to the original pressing that I had) so it may not be a fair comparison, but regardless, I think the re-master is spectacular. The clarity is astounding and it's easy to pick out the individual instruments. On the B side many of the songs hide Perry's voice so it's hard to hear him, but on the A side this is not the case so I think the voice issue has to do with the original mixing of those songs. I also felt that the dynamic range wasn't touched because the tracks I do remember have the same portions of quiet and loud sections.

I'm really tempted to grab some of the other remastered albums like Infinity and Evolution because my copies of those albums could stand to be upgraded.

If anyone wants the Journey albums or any other new pressings of classic albums, Deep Discount has a extensive vinyl selection. I got my copy of Escape for $19.95 shipped, which is the cheapest price anywhere, including Amazon and Ebay.

[singhcr]

It appears that there is no remastered version of Evolution, but I did order the remastered Infinity LP. I'll post my thoughts on that one too for those who are interested.

[singhcr]

The Infinity 180g LP is just spectacular, even more so than "Escape" as the songs here have more of a higher pitch to them, particularily Perry's voice.

Any Journey fan would be a fool not to pick these albums up.

[un4gvn94538]

Originally Posted by singhcr

The Infinity 180g LP is just spectacular, even more so than "Escape" as the songs here have more of a higher pitch to them, particularily Perry's voice.

Any Journey fan would be a fool not to pick these albums up.

is there any news of the greatest hits release? it seemed to have disappeard

[singhcr]

Originally Posted by un4gvn94538

is there any news of the greatest hits release? it seemed to have disappeard

Are you talking about a vinyl release of their greatest hits album? In any event, I don't know as I have all of their albums already. I know you can get that rather easily on CD, if that's what you're after.

I am now tracking down the bonus songs for Escape and Frontiers, they are on the B-side of the 45RPM singles. Once I do that, I'll have all of the Journey songs, at least the band's songs until Perry left in 1996. I bought Eclipse and like some of their songs, but I'm still not won over. Time will tell!

[un4gvn94538]

Originally Posted by singhcr

Are you talking about a vinyl release of their greatest hits album? In any event, I don't know as I have all of their albums already. I know you can get that rather easily on CD, if that's what you're after.

I am now tracking down the bonus songs for Escape and Frontiers, they are on the B-side of the 45RPM singles. Once I do that, I'll have all of the Journey songs, at least the band's songs until Perry left in 1996. I bought Eclipse and like some of their songs, but I'm still not won over. Time will tell!

yes the vinyl release. when the remasters started coming out the greatest hits preorder went up last november. it disappeared and i havent heard anything about it since.

[singhcr]

I decided to give it a shot and listen to "Eclipse" again. Despite being a huge Steve Perry fan, I'm won over. Arnel Pineda has a great voice, and to me it no longer sounds like he's trying to impersonate Perry's. I must admit that as a whole I prefer the overall sound of the earlier Journey albums like "Infinity", "Evolution", and "Frontiers" in particular, Pineda has a wonderful range and I think he has a bright future ahead of him. While I now regret missing that Journey concert, I don't think I would have been able to enjoy it at the time.

I would give anything to have Perry come back on tour to hear my favorite songs live, but that's unlikely to happen. This is Journey for my generation now, and now that I think about it I can't really think of a person better suited to take over than Pineda.

The only downside with this release is that it is on CD. There is an LP import floating around but I suspect it's just a copy of the CD master (go "modern" technology, huzzah! ). Does anyone have the LP copy of "Eclipse"?

[singhcr]

The Greatest Hits albums are out!

http://www.deepdiscount.com/lp/JOURN...TS-180-G-VINYL
http://www.deepdiscount.com/lp/JOURN...S-886979342316

[un4gvn94538]

Originally Posted by singhcr

The Greatest Hits albums are out!

http://www.deepdiscount.com/lp/JOURN...TS-180-G-VINYL
http://www.deepdiscount.com/lp/JOURN...S-886979342316

elusive disc has the same release date as nov. 1. i guess they fixed whatever went wrong. gonna keep an eye on amazons price. amazon is suppose to notify me when they update the product page