WARNING: long rant coming.
First, let me preface this post by saying that I *greatly* appreciate the effort and care that so many different tapers in this community put into providing us all with recordings of shows, tour after tour. I would also like to take the time to specifically thank spacebandit for coordinating a lot of this work and bringing it out to the masses.
Now, matrix recordings. Simple concept: You have one source that is really clear but lacks bass and sounds a bit thin, and another source that is all bass and rumble and very little definition. You combine those two together, and end up with one fantastic recording that has both the clarity of the first and the deep low end of the other. Sounds almost too good to be true, doesn't it?
Unfortunately, it often is. Since recording devices very often run at microscopically different speeds, the end result usually sounds good at the beginning, but towards the end of a 2.5 hour show the sources no longer completely line up, creating an echoey effect. In addition, you have to make sure to do very careful EQ on each source so you don't end up with, for instance, all guitar and almost inaudible vocals. And then there are phasing issues to condend with on top of this. Add a third recording into the mix, and you're looking at easily several days of hard work before you end up with anything resembling a listenable recording.
And now comes the part where I will probably be stepping all over people's toes, for which I apologise in advance.
From this tour we have one 2-source and two 3-source matrix recordings: 5 May Schlachthof, 2 May Hamburg and 24 May Bielefeld shows. I haven't been able to listen to the Schlachthof matrix yet as it refuses to download. The two other each have their issues, but it's the Hamburg recording in particular that prompted me to write this. Because it breaks my heart that after all the effort you guys went through to make a mix of the 3 different sources, you end up with something I personally can't bear to listen to. None of the sources line up completely, and it's so echoey it sounds like it was recorded inside a bathroom. If this were the only recording of this show, I'd think that the venue's acoustics were atrocious. But no! One of the sources was uploaded previously, and while it's a bit distant sounding and lacks some low end, it's otherwise quite enjoyable and much preferrable to the matrix recording.
The Bielefeld matrix, fortunately, sounds a lot better. But the low vocals and dominating drums and guitar makes me wonder if some more EQ might have made a difference. And here - again - the sources veer ever so slightly apart during the show. Compare the echoey drums in the last couple of songs with the clarity of the guitar in the opening, for instance. Or, if you're feeling really adventurous, compare the opening acoustic tracks in the Bielefeld matrix with the closing acoustic tracks in the Hamburg one.
Now, I realise that this post probably makes me sound like an ungrateful bastard, and for that I am sorry. But surely the goal of providing recordings is that we will enjoy listening to them? I for one would love it if any matrix recordings could come in addition to, and not instead of, the individual sources. Release the sources as they are ready during the tour, and instead spend time to make matrixes after the tour, when more care and effort can potentially go into them. I love the idea of matrix recordings, but they're really difficult to get right. I know, I've tried a few times myself.
To conclude this awful ramble that nobody will be bothered to read, I again ask, as politely as I can, that please please pretty please with sugar on top, is it possible to upload the individual sources that went into these matrix recordings?
Thank you for your time, and again: you are all doing great work, even if I complain.