Dark Matter: Official Album Thread

[RockPusher]

Can the people who have set the EQ a certain way on Spotify lemme know what way that is? Until my vinyl shows, this is still the way I have to listen (my holding out for vinyl plan did not last very long)

[oneway23]

Can the people who have set the EQ a certain way on Spotify lemme know what way that is? Until my vinyl shows, this is still the way I have to listen (my holding out for vinyl plan did not last very long)

Is this the same EQ setting that a certain poster has been talking about incessantly for a month, yet continues to act like a sketchy weirdo about and refuses to share it, like they found the secret recipe to Bush's baked beans or KFC's 13 herbs & spices?

[wilkins]

This is album is still great!

[gardenparty]

Really enjoying the album. I was a little let down by Upper Hand and Setting Sun after reading all of the early comments on them. I probably just built them up a bit too much and then they fell a little flat to those expectations.

I'll rank just cause:
1. Scared of Fear
2. Waiting for Stevie
3. Wreckage
4. React, Respond
5. Upper Hand
6. Dark Matter
7. Running
8. Setting Sun
9. Something Special
10. Won't Tell
11. Got to Give

[Kalevi]

I appreciate the album art more after looking into it

https://alex-gnezdilov.com/about/

[WaitingForBluey]

Can the people who have set the EQ a certain way on Spotify lemme know what way that is? Until my vinyl shows, this is still the way I have to listen (my holding out for vinyl plan did not last very long)

Normalize volume = off
Audio quality = very high

Equalizer:
Basically started with the rock preset, made the cuts less drastic, pushed a little more in the sweet spots (125-250 / 2k-4k)

[Thurman Murman]

One week in and still no estimated delivery date for either the vinyl or CD i pre-ordered Feb 13th....sweet!

[Hatfield]

It's still wild how this took an album I loved (Gigaton) and make me think its just meh because this is SO good. I thought Gigaton was such a great late-game effort for the band. But this album could have come out 20 years ago. I mean, not exactly, their music sounds different now. But this sounds like a band that's still active. Not like an aging rock band past their prime. This sounds like an album that is just a good Pearl Jam album no matter when it came out.

Was thinking about this the other day.

If you had told me when Gigaton came out, good as it was, that Pearl Jam had a modern-day, late-era classic like DM left in them that was even better, I would have fallen out of my chair.

The fact that it actually happened is still almost too much for my brain to process.

How unprecedented is this? It's hard to contextualize Pearl Jam because they aren't the Rolling Stones, but are they Neil Young? Are they U2? Have other bands put out this fantastic a record 34 years in? It's hard to calculate because we aren't talking about popular culture impact, but subjectively ranking the quality of an album. We aren't talking about Wilco or some other midterm band that cares a lot about it's albums and legacy.

Just how amazing is this?!

[RockPusher]

Can the people who have set the EQ a certain way on Spotify lemme know what way that is? Until my vinyl shows, this is still the way I have to listen (my holding out for vinyl plan did not last very long)

Normalize volume = off
Audio quality = very high

Equalizer:
Basically started with the rock preset, made the cuts less drastic, pushed a little more in the sweet spots (125-250 / 2k-4k)

Thank you. For some reason the image is not showing up either on my phone or my computer.

[oneway23]

Just how amazing is this?!

Indeed!

The only record that comes close, to me, in terms of bands who I adore, would probably be Rush with Clockwork Angels.
For that fan base, my god, it was evocative of all of the best parts of their sizable legacy, and, unfortunately, much like DM, was also subjected to a lot of the same production complaints as DM.

[DDWJMUVW]

Can the people who have set the EQ a certain way on Spotify lemme know what way that is? Until my vinyl shows, this is still the way I have to listen (my holding out for vinyl plan did not last very long)

Is this the same EQ setting that a certain poster has been talking about incessantly for a month, yet continues to act like a sketchy weirdo about and refuses to share it, like they found the secret recipe to Bush's baked beans or KFC's 13 herbs & spices?

If you're calling me a sketchy weirdo then I assume you'll rescind at this point.

I don't have time to dig through my emails to look for the screen shot I sent STIP a while back, since we have an 8 week old and I put in 50 hours a week, but he can share. OR........you can find your own EQ settings since they'll probably be more to your liking anyway.

[RockPusher]

Can the people who have set the EQ a certain way on Spotify lemme know what way that is? Until my vinyl shows, this is still the way I have to listen (my holding out for vinyl plan did not last very long)

Is this the same EQ setting that a certain poster has been talking about incessantly for a month, yet continues to act like a sketchy weirdo about and refuses to share it, like they found the secret recipe to Bush's baked beans or KFC's 13 herbs & spices?

If you're calling me a sketchy weirdo then I assume you'll rescind at this point.

I don't have time to dig through my emails to look for the screen shot I sent STIP a while back, since we have an 8 week old and I put in 50 hours a week, but he can share. OR........you can find your own EQ settings since they'll probably be more to your liking anyway.

Seems R&B may work...

[BootsToAsses]

It's still wild how this took an album I loved (Gigaton) and make me think its just meh because this is SO good. I thought Gigaton was such a great late-game effort for the band. But this album could have come out 20 years ago. I mean, not exactly, their music sounds different now. But this sounds like a band that's still active. Not like an aging rock band past their prime. This sounds like an album that is just a good Pearl Jam album no matter when it came out.

Was thinking about this the other day.

If you had told me when Gigaton came out, good as it was, that Pearl Jam had a modern-day, late-era classic like DM left in them that was even better, I would have fallen out of my chair.

The fact that it actually happened is still almost too much for my brain to process.

How unprecedented is this? It's hard to contextualize Pearl Jam because they aren't the Rolling Stones, but are they Neil Young? Are they U2? Have other bands put out this fantastic a record 34 years in? It's hard to calculate because we aren't talking about popular culture impact, but subjectively ranking the quality of an album. We aren't talking about Wilco or some other midterm band that cares a lot about it's albums and legacy.

Just how amazing is this?!

I'm not sure about other bands, but Dylan was able to produce some classics 30+ years after his initial 60s peak and his last record was universally acclaimed too.
He's one of a kind.

[BootsToAsses]

The vinyl has been the best experience for me so far, but I'm enjoying the sound through my headphones.

I'm still not feeling like I want to skip any songs, it's remarkable!

Current rankings:

1. Won't Tell
2. Setting Sun
3. Got To Give
4. Scared of Fear
5. Running
6. Wreckage
7. Upper Hand
8. Dark Matter
9. Waiting For Stevie
10. React, Respond
11. Something Special

[4/5]

I'm usually pretty hesitant to praise stuff too soon or get too excited, but man this album scratches me right where I itch. I pretty much always find at least a couple songs from their new stuff that I like a lot, but I think this one has a great chance to have real staying power for me. I've always loved the big soaring moments so I can be a sucker for the anthemic type songs even when they don't quite reach the highs they're hoping for or are kinda cheesy. They're my kryptonite. But this album doesn't feel like I'm talking myself into anything, I just really, really like these songs.

[oneway23]

Can the people who have set the EQ a certain way on Spotify lemme know what way that is? Until my vinyl shows, this is still the way I have to listen (my holding out for vinyl plan did not last very long)

Is this the same EQ setting that a certain poster has been talking about incessantly for a month, yet continues to act like a sketchy weirdo about and refuses to share it, like they found the secret recipe to Bush's baked beans or KFC's 13 herbs & spices?

If you're calling me a sketchy weirdo then I assume you'll rescind at this point.

I don't have time to dig through my emails to look for the screen shot I sent STIP a while back, since we have an 8 week old and I put in 50 hours a week, but he can share. OR........you can find your own EQ settings since they'll probably be more to your liking anyway.

You mention your work hours and your child as though it makes the fact that you've repeatedly declined to share your Spotify EQ settings with anyone but stip any less strange.

I'm sorry...I find it an odd reaction to a pretty innocuous request.

In fact, you could have simply shared your settings in the time it took you to write that defensive response.

I couldn't care any less how you listen, but, I've seen you decline numerous posters now, and, yes, I find that worthy of a joking post.

You didn't cure cancer with your EQ settings.

[Strat]

I'm usually pretty hesitant to praise stuff too soon or get too excited, but man this album scratches me right where I itch. I pretty much always find at least a couple songs from their new stuff that I like a lot, but I think this one has a great chance to have real staying power for me. I've always loved the big soaring moments so I can be a sucker for the anthemic type songs even when they don't quite reach the highs they're hoping for or are kinda cheesy. They're my kryptonite. But this album doesn't feel like I'm talking myself into anything, I just really, really like these songs.

Yes, yes, let it in. Dont question it

[Jorge]

(Question it a bit)

[RockPusher]

(Question it a bit)

Boo. No shame in enjoying music.

[MattA75]

It's still wild how this took an album I loved (Gigaton) and make me think its just meh because this is SO good. I thought Gigaton was such a great late-game effort for the band. But this album could have come out 20 years ago. I mean, not exactly, their music sounds different now. But this sounds like a band that's still active. Not like an aging rock band past their prime. This sounds like an album that is just a good Pearl Jam album no matter when it came out.

Was thinking about this the other day.

If you had told me when Gigaton came out, good as it was, that Pearl Jam had a modern-day, late-era classic like DM left in them that was even better, I would have fallen out of my chair.

The fact that it actually happened is still almost too much for my brain to process.

How unprecedented is this? It's hard to contextualize Pearl Jam because they aren't the Rolling Stones, but are they Neil Young? Are they U2? Have other bands put out this fantastic a record 34 years in? It's hard to calculate because we aren't talking about popular culture impact, but subjectively ranking the quality of an album. We aren't talking about Wilco or some other midterm band that cares a lot about it's albums and legacy.

Just how amazing is this?!

You could make the argument this is their equivalent of Dylan's Time out of Mind