This may be a really dumb question but how do I order the Aspid cd? I tried to mail the label but got no reply.

You need to email Metal Race, there's no other way. I believe you're screwed though, as the available copies ran out pretty fast. Plus, the ones that are circling the secondary market are for sale for much heftier prices.

I think it depends upon the person as well. Some people seem to have really sensitive ears, some people are audiophiles and buy really expensive listening equipment, etc. I just have my $15 ear buds and my $70 Razer headphones, and I don't think my ears are particularly sensitive. I honestly can barely tell a difference when it comes to most remasters...

Of course, and that one is a major factor as well. Although when it comes to remasters of old stuff it tends to be more of a case of how you're perceiving the sound, as in your ears may be accustomed to post-2000 glossy and brickwalled mastering so when you hear a remaster done that way you're not going to notice it. But if you've been listening to 20+ year old stuff, and by extension rawer and less compressed mastering processes, then you're bound to notice it on the spot.

I happen to have a very very good pair of ears, which made an ear doctor go literally "Wow!", so I tend to spot much of the differences either way. I can listen from 2Khz upwards at 0dB according to audio tests. And below 2Khz I only need to get as low as 5/10dB to be able to hear it.

Shit. Should have been faster then. Thanks for the reply!

From Memento Mori next release:

GODDEFIED (Sweden, Death Metal) - Inhumation of Shreds (Complete Recordings 1991-2009) CD [MEMENTO-XXXVI] October 2014

http://www.metal-archives.com/bands/Goddefied/21617

Someone told me that there are some news surrounding the Morpheus Descends Anthology, but I can't seem to find any word on it. Anything new on that field? Can we have some details about its future availability?

Seems like it's a little ways off, but I'm really worried it's limited to 1000 copies. I just bought Wacken tickets and need to cut my CD spending, but this is an essential release.

Thanks for the info mate, that was what I was talking about. I'm wondering whether there'll be a repress on standard jewel case after the box set edition, because as it is written that's what seems to be implicit with this sentence.

"Possible subsequent releases will not be in this complete format."

Either that or I'm reading way too much into this. But yes, pretty much essential purchase. Wacken tickets you say? You can always resell them for 300% profit!

Pre-orders taken now at Metal Recycler and Amazon.uk.

Does anyone have the ability to provide a comparison of original versus new reissue of Mastodon's Remission? Looking at the remaster's DRM rating I'm guessing it's brickwalled to smithereens to match its successors.

Wrong thread :/

If so, perhaps you could direct me to the correct one? As it's a reissue though I thought I'd be on pretty safe ground with this thread.

Actually, even though I didn't mention it til sometime after the first post, I did sort of intend for this thread to be a place for discussing the virtues of remasters vs. original issues. Unfortunately though I have no insight into that Remission remaster. As you said, that loudness war site's data doesn't look promising.

Not really pleased with what they did to the covers of To the Gory End and Death Shall Rise. They're both like, condensed versions of the original artworks

Unfortunately can't help you about a thread for your question.

Although this thread is for reissue of old material which original press have a so high price to get to.

Remission is not too old in my eyes (2002) and original Relapse cd press start selling for only 5-6 euro.

I hope I'm not off-topic, but most remasters I have seem to be more trebly than the originals. Is this common or coincidental?

If you're noticing anything consistently unpleasant about remasters, I'm sure it has something to do with the whole "loudness war" thing. Compression, brickwalling, loss of dynamic range, all that crap. Most people say this results in a "brighter" sound, which initially may lead a listener to think it sounds "clearer," which is the opposite of the case. I used to be one of those people who thought "audiophiles" were merely snobs who were way too picky about minutiae -- then I realized something was very wrong with many newer CDs, and now I count myself among their perpetually bitching legions. A lot of the music from our past is literally being destroyed, and it sucks.

StainedClass, google "loudness war" or "remaster vs original sound quality" or some variation thereof. Check out a forum like this one. It's a definite issue and there's no shortage of backlash.

It always amazes me how little over ten year old albums "need" remastering. Even more when we're talking about huge bands that never run out of second-handed copies. Like Remission one could wonder why Amon Amarth's reissues needed remastering. But I digress...

Just noticed on Relapse's website, it's not only remastered but also remixed! Oh well, just buy a second-handed copy then...

Didn't see this one coming, holy crap!

http://www.insideoutshop.de/Item/Vauxdv ... ion-/16006

Iron Maiden vinyl reissues:

http://www.ironmaiden.com/classic-80s-v ... e-way.html

Personally, why? (Yeah, yeah, I know )

Everyone else may have known this but I sure didn't: Seems Ripping Corpse's Dreaming with the Dead was reissued a few years ago with absolutely no changes from the original. Like a dummy I either sold or traded my original copy and put off the acquisition of a replacement because I'd figured either a) an original would cost a fortune, or b) any remaster of it would probably suck.

I ordered from Amazon -- not the marketplace, just straight Amazon -- and the copy I've received is indistinguishable from an original --

http://www.discogs.com/Ripping-Corpse-D ... se/4533028

-- down to the matrix/runout stuff, the "made in Canada" bit, and best of all, the sound is unchanged. Low volume, just like the old days. I don't know about the other versions listed at discogs, but the entry I linked matches exactly the reissue I now have.

Nice to have this album again, by cracky.

For the love of fuck why is everything under the sun getting remastered but labels continue to overlook Centinex's 1997 album 'Reflections'? Fantastic album that suffered dearly from a band that thought they could handle some of the studio duties themselves. Audiomix Studios & Centinex completely botched this and it needs to get fixed, right fucking now! I'm looking at you Swano!

The Vemod repress of Venter Pa Stormene came out today. For those like me that missed it the first time, better grab it while it's cheap. Last time I thought twice about buying it the album sold out and went up to 50€ a piece on Discogs.

You've been warned!

Guys, prepare to shit yourselves!

From Memento Mori:

"Finally, we can already unveil what's also coming out in January. This release is none other than a compilation 2CD from the great Australian band MISERY. This 2CD, entitled "Evil Reborn (1992-1995)", will compile the "A Necessary Evil" album (1993), the"Sorting of the Insects" demo (1992), the "Insidious" EP (1994), the "Dark Inspirations" EP (1995) and "Morbid Dreams", the only song taken from the "Astern Diabolus" demo (1993) that didn't make it on the album. All in all, over 90 minutes of Death Metal delicatessen straight from the good 'ole 90's. Intense, dark and crushing stuff with fast parts mixed with slower mid-tempo sections that was compared back in the day to what bands like Deicide, Cannibal Corpse, Vital Remains, Morbid Angel, Incantation and Sinister had on offer. You can listen to "A Necessary Evil" in its entirety here: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=eg3UwxSezyk"

Sacrilegium's "Wicher" will be reissued by Pagan Records on CD/DLP soon. The band already has pictures of the release on their FB page.

Can anyone here read Japanese? I saw on ebay Overkill's "Horrorscope" and "Taking Over" Japanese re-issues for 2014 are remastered. I know some ebay sellers aren't all that honest or they're just stupid, but is anyone able to confirm this? I had my doubts about a Japanese re-issue of Machine Head "Burn My Eyes" being remastered until I got my hands on it, sounded fantastic compared to my original.

http://www.ebay.com/itm/Mint-Sealed-OVE ... 19f4eaf419

I don't read Japanese, but I order a lot of Japanese stuff. Anyway, I did some research and those are actually legit! The label "Tower to the People" looks like an imprint of Tower.jp (*groan*) This unfortunately means that these CDs are only sold at Tower Records, so you'll have to use a shopping service to get those (because they don't ship outside of Japan). I was skeptical at first not seeing those CDs at HMV Japan or Disk Union, but checked Tower and there they were.

http://tower.jp/search/item/overkill

There's also reissues in that series for WFO, Years of Decay and Under the Influence too (no "I Hear Black" though). Even though shopping services are a bloodletting, they're still cheaper than getting it off of ebay (probably by $15 US per CD).

In that series (for metal), there's also reissues for Testament's stuff on Atlantic (I'd be game to hear a remaster of The Legacy) and Metal Church's 1st 3.

I had no idea Tower Records was still around. They folded around here about a decade ago. I'm gonna need those Testaments too!

Tower Records in Japan has a different ownership than the one in the USA, so it wasn't affected by the US one going tits up. Same thing for HMV Japan vs its international counterparts. The Japanese ones are very much alive and well, for whatever reason. There's one Tower store in Tokyo that's 5000 square meters (9 floors). I'd kill to be able to go on a spending spree there.

Where's the best place on-line to get Japanese releases shipped to North America? I've always assumed everyone just gets them off ebay.

Yeah, a remastering of Testament's early stuff would be nice. My Atlantic CD copies sound too damn soft. Hell, remastering pretty much anything by Atlantic would be nice since their CDs are not loud enough.

Same with SPV/Steamhammer's early stuff. Can barely fucking hear my copies of Persecution Mania and Violent Restitution.

HMV Japan is the main one I use. They're usually the cheapest. There's usually a discount for older titles if you order enough of them (eg, if you order 2+, you'll get 15% off). They also periodically have rebate coupons (ranging from 10-30% off), which are nice too. The shipping is pretty high because they use EMS. Its not too bad if you order in bulk (like 6+). 2 CDs is like 1600 yen, but 6 is around 2260 yen. Its really fast though, and has tracking and insurance.

CD Japan is another one that's pretty good. They're more expensive (no multibuy discount) and their selection is a lot smaller, but they sometimes have items that HMV Japan doesn't have. They also accept paypal and have more options for shipping. They're much better for 2 CD orders.

I don't like Amazon period, so Amazon.jp I order via a shopping service (same goes with their marketplace). I do know they ship overseas though. I've heard stories of iffy packaging jobs from there. Both Tower Records and Disk Union you have to use a shopping service to order from on your behalf (eg Noppin). Shopping services are necessary for getting stuff from yahoo Japan as well (Japan's equivalent to ebay).

Smaller stores like S.A. Music, Rockstakk and Disk Heaven are quite useful too (they all accept paypal and may have some hard to find titles). Disk Heaven really needs to update their site for overseas ordering - that part vanished when they updated software. I know they still ship overseas because I have a friend who's ordered from there recently.

Thanks for the info, I've got some shopping to do!

A statement from The Crypt...(finally)

"AUTHORIZE (Swe): The Source of Dominion + Bonus Tracks Official Reissue CD coming from THE CRYPT!

In an ongoing effort to continuously offer the finest Cult Death Metal classic reissues, The CRYPT has decided to release official CD reissues in addition to vinyl. We will offer the same level of detail and care that our LP releases are known for. This will apply to many of our new, upcoming releases as well as some of our past releases.

The first official CD release on THE CRYPT will be from AUTHORIZE (Swe) The Source of Dominion + Bonus tracks.

Originally only available in a collectable 2LP set, a long out of print CD reissue from 2006 and of course the obscenely overpriced original CD from 1991, The Crypt is honored to reissue the unearthed classic debut album and underrated gem of cryptic Death metal "The Source Of Dominion" from Sweden's AUTHORIZE. Also featured is the demo "Darkest Age" from the band's "Morbid Fear" days, as well as the bonus track "Darkest Age" alternate mix from the Opinionate! Records split 7" featuring Nirvana 2002. Overall nearly 80 minutes of CULT SWEDISH DEATH METAL!!!

This CD set features the original Per Stjernstrom cover painting supplied by the band as well as lyrics, classic interviews, liner notes and exclusive band photos with the original layout elements designed after the original 1991 Putrefaction Records CD with attention to detail, even down to the logo and typeface for a touch of nostalgia.

More details to come."

That sounds amazing! I have wanted that album for a long time.

Ah, so The Crypt has finally forgone the vinyl only business. Great to hear since they're very good when it comes to that format, I can only suppose the same care will be put into CD editions. With that being said, isn't the 2006 reissue an unofficial one?

I found a guy that had all the Testament's, Overkill's and Metal Church's. Got all of them with a sweet bit rate and scanned covers w/obi. Here's the deal... Overkill's Horrorscope is a complete remaster, sounds spectacular! WFO is another full blown remaster. Taking Over, Under The Influence and The Years Of Decay all got a 'boost' in sound, no remaster. The boost on Taking Over in my opinion is well worth having, I no longer have to max the volume on "Deny The Cross". All of the Testament's were a boost in sound, some done very well (older ones) and others (Low) barely noticeable. The Metal Church's sounded pretty good to me but I don't have those three originals to compare the sound on like I do all Overkill and Testament. If you want to know if any other "Tower To The People" releases are remastered you can go to the Japan Tower website and find each album. One the page of each album there will be a few words in English, the remastered ones will actually show that they are.

Thanks for the info. Those Overkill sound especially interesting - I'll have to snag some of these next time I do a shopping-service run with Tower Records. As strange as it sounds, I kinda wish they did a reissue for "I Hear Black" as well (I wouldn't mind having "Killogy" on CD).

Apparently Iron Maiden's back catalog was reissued over there early this year. I wonder if those have better sound than those 1998 Raw Power remasters I have. Sometimes reissues over there use the same masters as over here, but sometimes they don't.