Favorite album production

[McLean]

I worked at a studio for a long time. The head engineer there used to say to all of his clients "Bring me a copy of an album that you like the production on it. I can match that kind of sound to your group. Now this does not need to be a band or group that you like their music, we are listening to the production." Sure enough he could do it, and do it well. That made me think about album production. I started listening to everything that I heard and instead of just judging the music, I started listening to the production. For example; I am not a Michael Jackson fan, but his albums have awesome production on them. What is some of your favorite productions? Not necessarily your favorite bands, we are listening to the production.

[DreamwaveMusic]

I love Floyds production techniques for Dark Side and Wish You Were Here. I prefer really organic sounds in recordings, their techniques were so good that the album still stands above most modern productions.

[dagosto]

I really like the production of Nuetral Milk Hotels album Aeroplane Over the Sea. The sound is a bit lo-fi which I like. I'm pretty sure it was done on tape. There are songs that are just acoustic and voice as well as one with crowded instrumentations of mixed acoustic and electronic origin.

One reason I like this album so much is the consistant interest it sparks using melody, tempo, instrumentation, and dynamics. The songs that are quiet are actually quiet. Also the sequence of pieces is very effective. The music is off course is excellent but would not be as cohesive when presented together without these production choices.

[Bellringer]

Roy Thomas Baker makes a great record. Especially his vocal production. Great examples are Queen and The Cars. Another producer I like to match mixes next to is Nigel Godrich. The records he has done with Radiohead, Beck, and Air have a great mix of organic and electronic sounds and they aren't compressed to death.
Pink Floyd Dark Side of the Moon and The Wall are great sounding records.
Sometimes I like to try for a sound like Fleetwood Mac got on Rumours and their Self titled. Sometimes I write heavy with some strangeness involved. Brainiac is usually good for a heavy, freak out mix.
So many great sounding records. I'm sure there are a lot of well produced records I don't like, but I rarely will listen to something that annoys me long enough to notice.

[Professor Riffs]

Mr. Bungle - Disco Volante

Very un-run-of-the-mill production, full of dynamics, a wide range of emotions conveyed.....all while keeping the album sounding like the same album from start to finish.

p.s. I am a total studio layman, so my opinion is not a technical one, just a listener's opinion......I just pluck on the geetar

[smopo24]

I love what Nigel Godrich did on Pavement's Terror Twilight. A very under-rated album, even by Pavement standards. The kitchen-sink approach doesn't work for every album, this one is just flawless.

[dolivas]

anyone ever checked out the Dukes of Stratosphere stuff? (it's basically a side thing for XTC) The production by John Leckie (who would later work with Radiohead) is so both attached to the past, i.e. a lot of late 60s early 70s psych effects, and to the future with synths and flanger/phase effects that only present day technology can create. That's one album I listen for the production.

I have some old producer faves like Bob Johnston who I think produced John Wesley Harding, Songs of Leonard Cohen and some of Neil Young's early records. I can be mistaking him for another guy Jack Nietzsche, but all those records are just some of the warmest "real" sounding records out there. Not much in terms of effects but the sound is just so upfront and there.

[Fernando Marin]

weel there's a lot of good album for example NEVERMIND (NIRVANA), BLACK ALBUM (METALLICA), DARK SIDE OF THE MOON (PINK FLOYD), great sound beyond of the style, everything analog I mean recording, mixing and mastering. in the black album the kick section they used 3 or 4 microphones besides every part of the drum had a microphone and it's more like 2 or 3 ambients microphone. all this you can see in a metallica's video called one and a half year with metallica it's amazing. regarding nirvana's album they get a great sound in the voices dubbing. the sound in drums is so simple but with a lot of power. I am forggeting blood sugar sex magic of red hot, in that album there something very interesting with hi-hat and snare, you can hear in couple of songs in the case of hi-hat it sound with more presence in one side than other side with a lit delay I think and the snare is the same thing.

[JCI]

The Cardigans have the most fascinating production on their recordings. Gritty pop like "My Favourite Game" to more lo-fi intentioned "I Need Some Fine Wine...". Whenver I think of good pop music, I think of the Cardigans.