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daniel_v

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By daniel_v, in Matthew Good

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Curtster

Curtster

Posted
Posted (edited)

I've had some good listens to the EP, I think it's a really cool bonus release from Matt.  I don't think you can really compare these versions to the originals (apples to oranges), but they are all interesting fresh takes.  They make the songs new again those of us who have listened to BM extensively, which I assume is everyone on this forum.

 

I Miss New Wave is really great, not one of my favourite songs on the original album (I've been getting into it more lately).  I really love the lyrics in this song, I feel this version moves along a little better.

 

Suburbia is very similar to I Miss New Wave for me, not one of my favourite songs on the original album, but I've always thought it has great lyrics.  In this case though, I'm not liking this version as much as I am I Miss New Wave.  I think I will always prefer Matt's solo acoustic performances of this song more than anything else.

 

Born to Kill is a nice slower version of the song, still really like it.  It lacks the edge of the original (like most of this EP does), although I'm still really liking it.

 

Let's Get It On, again not one of my favourites on the original, this version has grown on me though the more I've listened.

 

I've always liked Matt's solo acoustic version of Load Me Up, and I really love the version of it on the EP.  This is the best song here in my opinion, listened to it a few times while falling asleep, excellent.  I love when a fast, heavy song is slowed down to almost a lover's waltz like this.

 

I did notice that Matt seems to croon his way through most of this EP, I say that without knowing anything about singing.  Although, it seems appropriate for these versions of the songs.

Edited by Curtster
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Guest Idioteque

Guest Idioteque

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I'm curious how accurate Matt will be in learning these songs for the tour. Will it be note for note Beautiful Midnight, or because there's not that big of a difference between some of the revisited songs on the new E.P, he could get away with the new version of I Miss New Wave or Born To Kill. Would any of you care if that ended up happening? I know I really want to hear the original Suburbia at least haha.

I listened to the E.P a 3rd time with the mindset of "If the original songs never existed, would this still stand as a solid E.P?" And I do think it's a great package of tracks. Knowing where to not "expect" something familiar to happen musically, it takes less attention off the vocals & parts he toned down. 

I love dissecting vocals, it's like a guitarist listening to a guitar solo. I enjoy seeing the emotional ride they go from point A to point B. This particular vocal run is my "Eruption", and notably alot of the techniques Jeff Buckley is using here, Matt used in the 90's.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=aJ83KaRWIYs  

So as a HUGE fan of all the MGB/MG work and knowing he isn't able to sing like the 90's anymore, particular changes to songs make sense. We will never hear the 1997 version of Apparitions live ever again, and im okay with that. But I don't think he's done anything vocally superior since Zero Orchestra. That performance alone is the punch Arrows of Desire lacked but Chaotic Neutral didn't need, yet still produced a gem like Harridan. Matt's biggest disadvantage over the course of 20 years (including in some cases, being a musician first & singer second) artists like Gord Downie, Eddie Vedder, or Axl Rose all retain the same voice throughout records, Matt had to relearn how to sing & create an entirely new voice in the middle of his career from Band to Solo. Beautiful Midnight dishes out alot of singing that would require the energy of Zero Orchestra, back to back to back. So I'm definitely intrigued at how he's going to approach all these old songs. What techniques he can/can't do anymore, will he go with more of a Vancouver feel.

 

 I know this is like expecting Tom Waits to sing like Freddie Mercury, I get it. 


Can we please get a lyric book or a guitar tabs for this tour pleaseeeee.... 

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adam_777

adam_777

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I should really just not review anything until I've listened multiple times when it comes to Matthew Good music.  This EP has grown on me in a big way.  The biggest change now is my appreciation for Load Me Up.  When I first heard it I was pretty underwhelmed.  To the point of even skipping it on subsequent plays.  Now having listened through half a dozen or so times, I can't stop listening to it.  The arrangement and instrumentation are just fantastic on it, it might now compete for my favourite song on the record.  The others have held up well too, Suburbia I really enjoy taken as a separate entity, but it remains my least favourite because I still feel it changes the mood and atmosphere of that original Suburbia too much.  I think of all the songs on the EP, Suburbia would be the only one I'd be disappointed if it replaced the original in the set on this tour.  Maybe I'd miss the Born to Kill outro too.  

When I first heard this EP announced I kind of wondered if it might be a clever way to reinvent songs that Matt was having trouble singing.  He has been very honest on The Bored that his vocal range has changed and that he has down tuned songs to accommodate it.  He has also stated that for some songs this doesn't work as well such as Fated and that he may not be able to sing them in the future. I was always skeptical a complete play of Beautiful Midnight could happen because of this reality.  So when the EP become evident I thought maybe that's what this might be.  This way you could familiarize fans with different versions sung in a way more sustainable for the current abilities of your voice.  With that being said though, the tracklisting doesn't indicate this method.  Why use Load Me Up and Suburbia, songs that he clearly still can sing as evident on recent tours.  So I believe this was truly just an artistic endeavour and I'm pretty pleased with what Matt was able to accomplish.  It kinda takes balls to tamper with a classic because people are just waiting to use it as an excuse to point out your decline.  Compare it to something you did long ago and use it as evidence that it's all going downhill.  These songs however are brilliant and reinforce to me that Matthew Good shines now as an artist perhaps more than he ever has.  

How about the production on this thing?  It sounds fantastic! It makes me excited for the next album in a big way.  By the way, I'm curious, those comparing the sound quality to Beautiful Midnight, are you comparing to the vinyl version? Because to me that was night and day in sound quality compared to the original cd mix.  I think the recent vinyl remaster certainly holds its own against the sound quality of this new release, but agree that the cd does sound more murky by comparison. 

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AnOceanPearl

AnOceanPearl

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I am interested in how he'll arrange things for some songs during the tour, mostly Jenni's Song actually. During the Arrows tour, "We're Long Gone" was played... I don't remember... a half step or a full step lower than on the album recording, and I kind of feel like Jenni's Song out of all the songs on BM would be the one that Matt might need to do something similar for.

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uglyredhonda

uglyredhonda

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I love dissecting vocals, it's like a guitarist listening to a guitar solo. I enjoy seeing the emotional ride they go from point A to point B. This particular vocal run is my "Eruption", and notably alot of the techniques Jeff Buckley is using here, Matt used in the 90's.

 

Weirdly, I've listened to Jeff a lot in the last couple of days.  :)

 

I actually wonder how Jeff would sound now had he survived Memphis.  If you listen to those 1994/1995 performances - he was really hard on his voice.  (And a smoker as well.)  Eventually, that kind of falsetto starts to deteriorate, especially with smoking and screaming.  The recordings we have of Jeff are these perfect now-unbreakable moments.  We're never going to hear him as a fifty-year-old trying to recreate that.

 

I'm a smidge conflicted about the BM tour.  I've loved how Matt's shows have reflected his history while continually moving forward - this is probably the first tour he's done where it'll be a direct A/B comparison between the past and now.  And that's not an easy ask.  I'm actually hoping/expecting some reinvention - I definitely don't want him trying to do FTRT exactly like he did when he was 28.  (I'm not worried, honestly - I fully trust Matt's instincts.)

 

By sheer luck, I happened to be at the show this year where Pearl Jam played VS in its entirety.  I've been conflicted on Vedder for a while - his voice is not what it used to be for all of the expected reasons (age, overuse, smoking).  But something about performing that album - he didn't sound exactly like young Vedder, but he made it work that night.  I never imagined they were still capable of sounding so close to how they did in the 90s.  He knew his limitations, too - he backed off and let the crowd help when it came to parts that he really can't do anymore.

 

But I'll admit - that night was especially amazing because it was completely unannounced.  There were no expectations.

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daniel_v

daniel_v

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I should really just not review anything until I've listened multiple times when it comes to Matthew Good music.  This EP has grown on me in a big way.  The biggest change now is my appreciation for Load Me Up.  When I first heard it I was pretty underwhelmed.  To the point of even skipping it on subsequent plays.  Now having listened through half a dozen or so times, I can't stop listening to it.  The arrangement and instrumentation are just fantastic on it, it might now compete for my favourite song on the record.  The others have held up well too, Suburbia I really enjoy taken as a separate entity, but it remains my least favourite because I still feel it changes the mood and atmosphere of that original Suburbia too much.  I think of all the songs on the EP, Suburbia would be the only one I'd be disappointed if it replaced the original in the set on this tour.  Maybe I'd miss the Born to Kill outro too.  

 

When I first heard this EP announced I kind of wondered if it might be a clever way to reinvent songs that Matt was having trouble singing.  He has been very honest on The Bored that his vocal range has changed and that he has down tuned songs to accommodate it.  He has also stated that for some songs this doesn't work as well such as Fated and that he may not be able to sing them in the future. I was always skeptical a complete play of Beautiful Midnight could happen because of this reality.  So when the EP become evident I thought maybe that's what this might be.  This way you could familiarize fans with different versions sung in a way more sustainable for the current abilities of your voice.  With that being said though, the tracklisting doesn't indicate this method.  Why use Load Me Up and Suburbia, songs that he clearly still can sing as evident on recent tours.  So I believe this was truly just an artistic endeavour and I'm pretty pleased with what Matt was able to accomplish.  It kinda takes balls to tamper with a classic because people are just waiting to use it as an excuse to point out your decline.  Compare it to something you did long ago and use it as evidence that it's all going downhill.  These songs however are brilliant and reinforce to me that Matthew Good shines now as an artist perhaps more than he ever has.  

 

How about the production on this thing?  It sounds fantastic! It makes me excited for the next album in a big way.  By the way, I'm curious, those comparing the sound quality to Beautiful Midnight, are you comparing to the vinyl version? Because to me that was night and day in sound quality compared to the original cd mix.  I think the recent vinyl remaster certainly holds its own against the sound quality of this new release, but agree that the cd does sound more murky by comparison. 

 

I agree that it's always best to let songs marinate a bit before commenting. First impressions and long term impressions are usually different.

 

I was skipping over Load Me Up as well, but given how stressful the last few days have been for me I've found myself listening to it more and more, and it's actually quite calming/relaxing. Very peaceful. Like someone else said, if you look at the songs as their own entities, rather than covers of the originals, I think you can appreciate them more, and this version of LMU really is a good song if taken as it's own thing. Even though the country element Stu did with the slide guitar work threw me off at first, it really does add a lot to the song, especially the lead guitar work he does at the end. It's also one song where I really do appreciate the lower tone Matt used as it completely fits the mood of the song. 

 

It's funny that people would bring up Buckley too, because he was another one of those artists who's songs I didn't like as much at first, but had a way of getting better with time. These versions of Let's Get it On and Suburbia I instantly liked, but LMU took a few days for sure, and yet might end up being one of my favorites off the album in the long term. I think I'm getting there with BTK and IMNW, but it may take a little while longer to fully appreciate them (ironically I would imagine because they're the closest sounding to the originals). Like I said earlier, there are parts of both songs that are fantastic and innovative (the bass replacing the lead guitar in the verses of BTK for example- something he did with Suburbia too), but even after admitting I should try and look at them as their own songs, I'll admit I'll find it hard not to compare them to the originals just because they were so epic. Matt's falsetto and the instrumental climax in IMNW, and the intensity of the vocals/ progression of each section (aided by the keys) in BTK are so embedded in my mind it feels like something is missing with these two (again, probably because they're the closest sounding to the originals).

 

Like the demos for Chaotic Neutral and the actual record songs for that album though, I'm sure I'll continue to like these the more and more I listen to them. I initially thought something had been lost with the album version of Cold Water, because I had listened to the demo version too many times (think Matt called it demoitis, lol), but after a while I really came to appreciate it. Now, I prefer the album version over the demo. As a matter of a fact I think it's one of the greatest things Matt and Warne have done together. 

Edited by daniel_v
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russic

russic

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Interestingly my wife has fallen in love with the new Load Me Up. She's always been a more casual fan, but she made a good point I hadn't considered: the original has dark lyrics but is delivered in a jump-around sing-songy kind of way, whereas the new one is more haunting and seems to "fit" a bit better (for her liking). 

 

I've really grown to enjoy the EP. At first I was a bit put off by the lack of familiar picking parts on guitar, which are a big part of Beautiful Midnight for me. After some listens though I've come to realize how good the songs end with regards to the guitars and bass. Something like Born to Kill is missing that amazing orchestra riff, but what replaces it is a really strong outro.

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Moonlight_Graham

Moonlight_Graham

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I got the EP on CD for Christmas. Finally had a chance to listen through it all.  My favorites are Suburbia (very catchy, has an 80's vibe, love the bass) and Let's Get It On (drums and bass on this are killer), I prefer this version to the original.  I really find the unique takes so interesting.  I Miss New Wave is good, Born to Kill doesn't do that much for me, not quite as unique as the others.  Load Me Up sounds so different but it's such a soothing version musically I forget that it's the same song.  I didn't like the slower versions of faster songs on Rooms from In A Coma (ie: Hello Time Bomb) so I didn't think i'd like this one, but I was sold halfway through.

 

Production on this EP is really good.  And Bones is such a damned great bassist, oh man! 

 

Can't wait for the new record.

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folk singer

folk singer

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I got the EP on CD for Christmas. Finally had a chance to listen through it all.  My favorites are Suburbia (very catchy, has an 80's vibe, love the bass) and Let's Get It On (drums and bass on this are killer), I prefer this version to the original.  I really find the unique takes so interesting.  I Miss New Wave is good, Born to Kill doesn't do that much for me, not quite as unique as the others.  Load Me Up sounds so different but it's such a soothing version musically I forget that it's the same song.  I didn't like the slower versions of faster songs on Rooms from In A Coma (ie: Hello Time Bomb) so I didn't think i'd like this one, but I was sold halfway through.

 

Production on this EP is really good.  And Bones is such a damned great bassist, oh man! 

 

Can't wait for the new record.

 

 

Its weird, but reading comments all over the bored about the new EP, it seems that most everyone prefers the new "Lets get it on" to the original. I personally find Dave's guitar in the original (especially as the song builds and then breaks out) to give me goosebumps every time. Obviously I have a nostalgic connection to the originals, but I really enjoy all of the EP songs (have to be in the right mood for "load me up" though) in their own way.

 

I am most looking forward to the songs that weren't on the EP for the concert though (FTRT, ABAHMG, RFH, especially). I am really interested to see how true to the album some of these songs will be... I would imagine that the EP songs will be played as is (except Load me up).

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Allthewayout

Allthewayout

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Yep. Let's Get it On may be right up there with the original.

 

Just me, or does anybody else hear any Disintegration-era Cure with this version of Suburbia? Original Suburbia may be my fav Matt tune and I love the direction the cover went in (and yes, I am one of those people satirized by South Park who thinks that Disintegration is best album ever). Actually, now that I think of it I'm going to jump over to the hopeful covers thread! Extremely hopeful...

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adam_777

adam_777

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every time I think I've surely reached my excitement cap, I somehow get more excited.

I'm feeling the same.  I keep thinking I couldn't be more excited and then I start to think wow, at each show I'm going to hear "Running for Home" "Suburbia" "A Boy and His Machine Gun" "Born to Kill" and "Going all the Way" plus all the others and its just like wow.  I can honestly say I've gone to every Matt Good show I've ever been to, hoping I would hear those songs.  To get them all in one go like this is pretty remarkable, I've been counting down the days and I'm under a month now, so pretty exciting indeed.  

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Moonlight_Graham

Moonlight_Graham

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I just noticed, whoever has done the audio mixing for this album and Chaotic Neutral is goddamned brilliant, whether it be Warne Livesey or somebody else.  They must maybe play with pushing up and pushing down the levels on the instruments in the songs a lot to experiment in finding the exact perfect levels for each instrument in the song.  You take a song like the new Let's Get It On and the huge volumes of the bass and drums in front of the mix drive the whole song and make it sound so great, and exact same thing with Army of Lions, which could have been a mediocre song if you didn't have the big drums and bass on that tune just make it come alive. 

 

I've heard a lot of potentially great songs almost ruined like that.  I also must say that I'm pretty anal about EQ levels when I listen to my MP3's, I adjust them all the time when songs have a shitty EQ mix, but Matt's last few albums have had really EQ levels that I rarely have to touch compared to many other bands albums.  Usually I have to turn down the treble frequencies because the music is too harsh and hurts my ears, though it also may be due to excessive compression from the whole "loudness wars" bullshit.  Note: I just checked and Chaotic Neutral has some compression on it for most songs :colbert: , especially All Your Sons And Daughters.  Tiger By the Tail and Cold Water even have some mild compression which is odd.  I also just checked the original Beautiful Midnight and it has no compression whatsoever.  Don't have the I Miss New Wave CD with me to check right now.

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emmit643

emmit643

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What a nice interview.  That girl was really good at her job, she seems really sweet and interested in his work/life.  I like the story about his son walking out on stage hahaha.

 

yeah, I remember seeing a photo on instagram of him holding his son on stage for the last show of tour so I think it must be the time he was talking about.

 

and yeah I agree, it is a nice interview.

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