Immersive Audio File

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Mike Mettler  |  Aug 30, 2024  | 

Alan Parsons has long been acknowledged as a pioneering surround-sound mixer/producer all the way back to the early days of quad, and now he’s finally triangulated his sights on the kind of project we’ve all been waiting for—namely, by taking the maiden Dolby Atmos remixing voyage into his own deep catalog as the co-mastermind behind The Alan Parsons Project. Parsons’ initial APP-in-Atmos foray appears on the Blu-ray that’s included in the new 4CD/1BD/2LP Super Deluxe Edition box set for their May 1978 release, Pyramid, via the ironically named Cooking Vinyl label. During a recent Zoom interview, Parsons and music editor Mike Mettler discussed his overall Atmos goals for Pyramid, what he was able to “correct” in Atmos, and his dream Atmos mixes for other artists. . .

Mike Mettler  |  Jul 31, 2024  | 

British mixing engineer Ben Wiseman has a C.V. that more than mirrors the sagacity implied by his given surname. Among his many mix/remix and master/remastering production-related projects of the past two decades include albums from the likes of Soft Machine, Hawkwind, Barclay James Harvest, and Tangerine Dream. One of his latest projects includes the ever-intriguing 5.1 mix he did for inclusion in the recent 50th anniversary multidisc box set for Nektar’s November 1973 masterstroke concept album, Remember the Future. Here, music editor Mike Mettler and Wiseman discuss how he initially attuned himself to Nektar’s music, the process of finding and incorporating discarded tracks when it was appropriate to do so, and how he tried to honor the album’s lyrical content with his remixes. . .

Mike Mettler  |  Jun 30, 2024  | 

When last we met in this column space, Dweezil Zappa was describing the truly immersive 24-bit/96kHz remix—key word, remix—that he did for the 50th anniversary 3CD/1LP/1BD super deluxe edition box set celebrating Deep Purple’s seminal March 1972 album Machine Head (Warner Records). Here in Part 2, music editor Mike Mettler and Zappa discussed how “Space Truckin’” really takes off in Atmos, what sold him on the Atmos format in the first place, and how he honed his mixing skills by zeroing in on how he feels drums should sound in Atmos. . .

Mike Mettler  |  May 31, 2024  | 

Dweezil Zappa knows how to push the boundaries of surround sound. He was already testing the limits of 5.1 when I asked him to be on a surround-centric panel I hosted at CES two decades ago. More recently, Dweezil has been laser-focused on mixing in Atmos, and his highest profile Atmos mix to date is the truly immersive 24-bit/96kHz mix he did for the 50th anniversary 3CD/1LP/1BD super deluxe edition box set celebrating Deep Purple’s seminal March 1972 album Machine Head. During Part 1 of a recent Zoom interview, music editor Mike Mettler and Zappa discussed his “bookend” approach to “Highway Star,” how he put an additional spotlight on keyboardist Jon Lord on “Lazy,” and what his specific directive was for the Atmos version of “Smoke on the Water”—and how he honored the song’s references to his late father, Frank Zappa. . .

Mike Mettler  |  Apr 26, 2024  | 

If anybody has Mark Knopfler’s ear, it’s Guy Fletcher. He’s the legendary British singer/songwriter/guitarist’s longtime go-to production partner, and he’s also the man (or guy) responsible for the stellar Atmos mix of Knopfler’s latest solo album, One Deep River. During a recent Zoom interview across the Pond, music editor Mike Mettler and Fletcher discussed how he convinced Knopfler he had no choice but to release One Deep River in Atmos, which Dire Straits tracks are his favorite Atmos mixes to date, and what Knopfler solo material he’d like to tackle in Atmos next.. . .

Mike Mettler  |  Mar 30, 2024  | 

Bruce Soord, guitarist, vocalist, and founder of the British post-prog collective The Pineapple Thief, caught the surround-mixing bug well over a decade ago, and he’s yet to shake it—something that’s quite good news for those of us who admire his learned approach to the 360-degree soundfield. Soord’s recent Atmos forays include The Pineapple Thief’s evocative new album It Leads to This, as well as current albums by Jethro Tull and Big Big Train—and he’s not done yet. During a recent Zoom interview across the Pond to Paris, music editor Mike Mettler and Soord discussed how he first got into surround mixing, what mistakes he made along the way, and why he strives for achieving a “natural feel” in his Atmos mixes. . .

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