| JDL2nd 12.07.2005 09:56 |
Which album has the best drumsound ? I would vote for Sheer Heart Attack and A Night At The Opera. The drumsound on those album is very warm and full. It sounds really big. Listen to the fills in Brighton Rock, Flick of the wrist, death on two legs, you're my best friend, sweet lady and the prophet's song. It sounds really great. I actually think those albums are recorded with the same drumkit. Has anyone got any information about this ? I don't like the drumsound on the game. It doesn't sound full although the cymbals sound great. The drumsound on The Miracle and Innuendo is far too dry. Although I like the bassdrumsound in I want it all. Wich album has the best drumsound and why do YOU think ? |
| Benn 12.07.2005 10:33 |
I have to say that I love the drum sound on MIH - it has a very crisp, clean snare sound with what appears to be very little enhancement / tampering with the "original" acoustic sound. I think Roger started using a new kit around that time. The Queen II Jap Mini Vinyl re-issue IMO has the best vintage drum sound. Extremely close to the original vinyl issue. |
| Lord Fickle 12.07.2005 13:18 |
The Game and MIH, in my opinion, although the drum sound seemed to vary on many of the albums. |
| Rick 12.07.2005 14:11 |
News Of The World. Very powerfull, just listen to Get Down Make Love and It's Late. |
| Adam Baboolal 12.07.2005 15:45 |
Definitely the following for me (in no particular order): MIH, NOTW, The Game, AKOM, ADATR and ANATO. And bits of other recordings from certain tracks on other albums. Funny I found this topic as I was actually in the studio at college looking at miking a drum kit! They sat me behind the drums, which was a wee bit nerve-y. The sound we got reminded me of the kind of sound Queen got at certain points in their career. I was very pleased to hear that. Peace, Adam. |
| chewing gum bum 12.07.2005 20:21 |
Ooh, tough one. For me it's Queen II and NOTW. Big, natural and open sounding. In the later years I'd have to say Innuendo. |
| Grantcdn 13.07.2005 00:19 |
White Man displays one of the best and heaviest drum sounds ever created....News Of The World, and more recently some Innuendo tracks have also been good....but also Fun In Space... |
| wstüssyb 13.07.2005 00:21 |
You gotta listen to the works tour...totally like the best drum sounds ever =) |
| GreatKingSam 13.07.2005 07:06 |
I hate to say it, but I think the Live Killers album has the best drum sound. It is just so clear and so audible. I forgot who first mentioned t - but White Man has got one of the greatest drum tracks I think I've ever heard. |
| Lord Fickle 13.07.2005 09:44 |
I think it's interesting how the drum sound varied from track to track on many of the albums. I mentioned The Game above, because it's one of the few albums with a consistant drum sound throughout. The drum sound on some tracks is buried way to low in the mix, examples being Breakthru, I Can't Live With You (Innuendo version), to name but a couple. |
| Adam Baboolal 13.07.2005 10:26 |
Well, I can provide a little insight into why the sound varied from track to track. Yesterday, we set up some mics around the kit and spent around an hour getting them to sound good. Then we took them down and used a drum mic set. Our first attempt with the first set of mics sounded cool. The one I thought had that ideal drum sound. But once we listened back to the second drum mic set, it was lesser. All you need to know is that there are plenty of variables in recording drums: Mic positions, room they're recorded in, drummer's drumming (changing over time), drummer's setting up of the kit, the drums used, mics used, etc. etc. And of course, that doesn't even factor in the recording engineer who will get a sound they like, along with the band. So many variables that will bring the band new sounds. But the main reason that takes all these things into effect is setting this up for every session. There's only so many things that can be set up the same per session. And of course, the mixing will change the sound between tracks, depending on the sound needed. Peace, Adam. |
| Boy Thomas Raker 13.07.2005 10:35 |
That's interesting Adam. So, if White Man were the standard for great drum sound, couldn't they go back to that set-up for every rock song that needed a big sound? Or are the variables too great to control? I know that I read a quote from Brian saying that he was really happy with the sound he got from Fat Bottomed Girls (the song, not the actual girls, although that may have made him happy as well!), but wasn't always pleased with his sound. Too an amateur like myself, it would seem that they'd know how he recorded (volume & tone settings, mic positions) that song, and should be able to use it for all songs. Thanks for the thoughts. |
| Adam Baboolal 13.07.2005 10:52 |
Fact is, the variables usually are out of your control. Just like, no two recordings will ever sound the same. I've done it in my earlier recording days, i.e. taking down settings and making sure they'll be exactly the same for the next time I record. But it doesn't work. This is especially evident with those older recorded sounds as the equipment used then, is no longer used now. But to be clearer, what I mean is that that old equipment was never constant in the sound it recorded/played back. Tape sound constantly changing, recording equipment sound would fluctuate (mixer/recorder) and drum changes, etc. etc. I'm not saying it's impossible to get those sounds again, but it's probably very unlikely. Especially these days. Peace, Adam. EDIT: Provided they knew how White Man was recorded (details-wise) they could try using the same techniques they did at the time and see what happens. But the sound will be different and therefore will have to be mixed differently anyway! |
| Lord Fickle 13.07.2005 11:28 |
That's an interesting insight, Adam, but if that's the case, how come many other drummers (John Bonham springs to mind, Phil Collins, Neil Peart, Mark Portnoy etc, etc) get a sound consistant throughout a whole album, and in Bonham's case, practically throughout his whole career!? Was the recording of Queen albums so fragmented that they never recorded more than one or two tracks at one time? |
| Adam Baboolal 13.07.2005 14:59 |
Well, I can't speak for any of these bands, even Queen. I don't know the details of how they were recorded. If anyone can provide some pictures, I could perhaps explain to the best of my knowledge what was going on. Anyone involved in recording drums knows that you can do it a few ways, e.g. Led Zepplin famously used only 2 overhead mics and a kick drum mic. The standard these days is 8 mics, i.e. 2xoverheads, 1xkick, 1xsnare, 1xhi-hats and 3xtoms. And there's even a guy in Sweden who has 40-60 mics in a big room that he mixes between for a huge range of sounds! It's pretty incredible and he's regarded as a master of drum recording, apparently. As for getting a consistent sound, like I said, it's not impossible. You just need to stick to certain equipment and recording techniques. But I'm sure that Roger was always looking for good sounds, rather than consistency. Peace, Adam. |
| JDL2nd 13.07.2005 15:59 |
GreatKingSam wrote: I hate to say it, but I think the Live Killers album has the best drum sound. It is just so clear and so audible. I forgot who first mentioned t - but White Man has got one of the greatest drum tracks I think I've ever heard.Live Killers is great, that's true. It's got a great bassdrumsound. Very heavy en powerfull. It's the best bassdrumsound Roger ever had on stage. But I think the snare is sometimes a little weak. Roger used different snare drumes. It also has got a very musical ride cymbal. Roger plays it like an crash, very HEAVY. Really great. |
| Bohardy 13.07.2005 19:03 |
Welcome to the future of recording drums... link It'll be interesting to see if this takes off, and whether the pickups really do offer a more naturalistic recording of the live drum sound. Certainly if the hype is trie, these would completely eliminate all the problems mention above, ensuring the same recorded drum sound remains pretty much the same whatever the recording session. |
| FriedChicken 13.07.2005 21:12 |
The Game and Made in Heaven |
| FriedChicken 13.07.2005 21:12 |
worst: Jazz |
| Lord Fickle 14.07.2005 02:26 |
FriedChicken<br><font size=1>The Almighty</font> wrote: worst: JazzYes, and parts of The Works |
| GreatKingSam 14.07.2005 07:04 |
The Jazz drum sound is a shame. Drum track wise, Rog was on fire on this album, in my opinion. Dead On Time is an awesome drum track, and More Of That Jazz for me, yet simplistic, is a great beat. It's a shame that, drum wise, didn't perhaps have more of a NOTW sound to it. |
| bitesthedust 14.07.2005 13:03 |
News Of The World definitely, Innuendo as well. |
| Daniel vZ 22.07.2005 18:10 |
I'd say The Game, NOTW, the worst is I think Jazz or Hot Space ;) |
| The Fairy King 22.07.2005 21:08 |
best: Queen II and Innuendo. worst: Jazz and The Works. |
| Anto1 23.07.2005 12:09 |
To me. Best: ADATR and NOTW. Worst: The Works, AKOM, The Miracle, Innuendo. The 80's loud snare stuff just doesn't do it for me. |