Saul also mentioned on another board that three Better videos exist and thought we would see one of them soon.

This will be a first test of what he knows.

I like this record a whole lot better than Illusion I, but I will need a few years to fully consider that comparison.

Industry legend Bob Ludwig on mastering of CD

http://mastering-media.blogspot.com/

The Loudness War Is Over - If We Want It
The Loudness Wars are over. The tide has turned. The massive backlash against the crushed, distorted sound of Metallica's Death Magnetic has had exactly the impact we all wanted.

Want proof ? Guns 'n' Roses' new CD, "Chinese Democracy", has been mastered by industry legend Bob Ludwig, who offered the label three different masters, and they chose the most dynamic version.

In an article on his website, Bob says

    I was floored when I heard they decided to go with my full dynamics version and the loudness-for-loudness-sake versions be damned.

and goes on to explain:

    I think the fan and press backlash against the recent heavily compressed recordings finally set the context for someone to take a stand and return to putting music and dynamics above sheer level...

    ...I’m hoping that Chinese Democracy will mark the beginning of people returning to sane levels and musicality triumphing over distortion and grunge. I have already seen a new awareness and appreciation for quality from some other producers, I pray it is the end of the level wars.

Bob isn't the only one to see a change, though. Mastering engineers have been commenting on the Gearslutz Mastering forum and elsewhere that since the publicity surrounding the release of "Death Magnetic" more and more people are asking

"Please don't do a 'Metallica' on my record"

I've seen it myself too - recently I called a long-time customer to suggest that his latest CD would sound better with a few dBs more headroom - I said "I realise you'll probably disagree with this, but in my opinion it's too loud" - and he replied "I know" !

That had never happened before.

But it will happen more and more, from now on. Despite Metallica's unconvincing insistence that they are happy with the way Rick Rubin produced "Death Magnetic", over 80% of fans responding to a poll on their forums think that it should be remixed. Over 18,000 people have signed the online petition. Only a handful of the 280,000 who have viewed the YouTube comparison video say they prefer the CD version.

And what about "Chinese Democracy" ? One of the most expensive and anticipated rock albums in recent years ? Against all expectations, it has been produced and mastered with dynamics, punch and power. The average A-weighted RMS loudness is around -16 dBFS, and as a result it "jumps out of the speakers" at you in a way that "Death Magnetic" never will. Check out a preview of the first track on Last.fm - listen to the way the guitars pile in at 1'26" and then again at 2'10" and then again at 3'36" - you just can't achieve that kind of buzz and build with an RMS of -4 dB.

Here are some predictions for "Chinese Democracy":

    * It will sell by the bucket-load (head?!) even though it hasn't been smashed to hell
    * No-one will complain that it's too quiet
    * It will sound fantastic (and loud) on the radio, because it's dynamic and punchy
    * No-one will start a petition to have a crushed and distorted re-release made

Hats off to Bob and the team behind Guns 'n' Roses, and here's to a future of better-sounding music.

I think Better is the gateway song for this record.

According to a guy who mods the Buckethead board, there are three different videos in the can for Better. He said we should expect to see a vid for Better.

There is a lot of negativity in this thread, I will try to ground it a bit.

First, the record is very good. It definitely is a good mix of styles (maybe needed one more rocker and one less ballad) and contains many genuinely exceptional musical ideas. Axl's dour attitude tends to bleed deep on many tracks and I think that mires the message down a bit. This is not a bright and happy record by any means.

The sales projections are downright dismal for a GnR record. 300k opening week barely eclipses Contraband. The number I am more worried about is the 2 million albums CB sold; that record had solid legs and reaped sales off of two very solid singles. Can CD do that? I don't think it can.

The BB exclusivity is no doubt compromising sales. If the album is in more stores, more people will buy it. Simple grade economics. But because the album's availablity is constained, it is absolutely dire that the band and the frontman get out there and promote. People need to know where this record is, what is on the record, and why they should buy it.

Compounding this problem is the fact that public opinion of Axl is not very positive. Years of unanswered lies, media biased news stories, and Axl's own self centered behavior has created an atmosphere among average rock fans that Axl is an egomaniac who killed the old band, then couldn't make a good enough of one on his own so it took him 3+ producers, $13 million, and 15 years to create 15 songs. There is much more to this story, but no one will ever hear it if the man being held with his rear end to the fire for the disintegration of a great band has fireproofed himself from any media attention.

At the end of the day, this is Axl's bed to lie in. Years of procrastination, re-tooling the retooled parts of extinct band members, and fighting with insurance companies, record label lawyers and himself have forced him to accept a compromising distribution deal. Essentially a bail out for Universal music. Axl traded  total album sales for room on Universal's credit card. Unfortunately, he may have that card taken away by the end of this album's run.

It is a damn shame really. The album is exceptional. CD may not have been a great choice of first single, but I always viewed it as an appetizer. If Axl ever invites himself to dinner ( he had a habit of leaving even those who attended his birthday party hanging ), everyone can see why this man is an exceptional music talent.