I thought it was a horrible performance. Lots of keyboards and synths going on... in songs that don't even need them. It was like listening to Queen turn all their hard rock songs into pop songs.
The sound is not bad, the sound MIX is bad, terrible actually. The synths are mixed to loud, and you have to concentrate very hard to hear some guitars.
If you want a proper mix, get the radio broadcast
Accidentally bumped into this thread.
Currently uploading to Mediafire, hope that will do.
I'll upload all files in case someone want them all from the same place
Accidentally bumped into this thread.
Currently uploading to Mediafire, hope that will do.
I'll upload all files in case someone want them all from the same place
I tend to refer to Japan 85 as "mixed by Spike's mum" due to the prominence of the keyboards.
It's surprising that they OK'd a DVD release, given the work they put in to Montreal, but then it does serve to illustrate how widespread the keyboard had become in the set by then - it's all over Now I'm Here & even TYMD which is shocking.
It does demonstrate the ethos of the mid eighties whereby a lot of bands, even rock ones, were smothering everything in synths and string based keyboard sounds. As pointed out here, they shouldn't really have been all over Now I'm Here and Tie Your Mother Down, and certainly not as high in the mix.
Thankfull by the Magic Tour the following year, some subtlety and quality control had prevailed, and although Spike was still playing all over those same songs, it was far more tastefully done with classic piano sounds, which enhanced and complimented the songs, rather than hindering them.
The mix on Rio and Japan 85 is baffling really - the guitars are buried, horrible synths right up, and drums very strange sounding. I know Roger went with a totally different type of kit for those tours (the metallic ludwig rather than a very natural sounding wooden kit as before and after).
If you listen to the Rock In RIo Blues mix from the A Winter's Tale CD single however, the mix there is great, and really a better representation of how the whole of Rio and Japan gigs should sound. I do wonder if Rio is sitting in the vaults already fully remixed, as it does seem strange to have fully gone back to the masters and done a great mix of an unknown instrumental track, simply for a 'B' side to a single.