Metal Sludge Gossip Board

Wraffchild - Stakk Attakk

Kiss debut has garbage tone and garbage performances, but great songs.

A few come to mind -
Kiss, Hotter Than Hell
Overkill, I Hear Black

And basically anything Toby Wright produced in the late 90's
Queensrych, HITNF
Kiss, Carnival of Souls
Alice in Chains, Dog Album 1995

Foo Fighters - S/T

Sounds like it was recorded in a cardboard box, which, to be fair, it probably was.

Twisted Sister - Stay Hungry

For my money, a classic. Belongs in the top 10 of every 80's hard rock/metal list.

I think the impulse is to always blame Tom Werman, as evidenced by our ABTW credo above the door, but I think the band just sounded like shit.

And French/Ojeda get shit but they truly did themselves zero favors with those tones. Was the whole idea to sound like kids in their bedroom playing through tiny Peaveys? If so, I guess I can appreciate it conceptually...

Jethro Tull - Aqualung

Wolfsbane - Live Fast, Die Fast

Suffocation's 2nd album, Breeding the Spawn. Production is so bad on that one that they've been re-recording each of it' songs one at a time for all of their latter albums.

Chip Z'Hoy wrote: ↑Wed Sep 10, 2025 6:23 pm Twisted Sister - Stay Hungry

For my money, a classic. Belongs in the top 10 of every 80's hard rock/metal list.

I think the impulse is to always blame Tom Werman, as evidenced by our ABTW credo above the door, but I think the band just sounded like shit.

And French/Ojeda get shit but they truly did themselves zero favors with those tones. Was the whole idea to sound like kids in their bedroom playing through tiny Peaveys? If so, I guess I can appreciate it conceptually...

Yup, guitars sound like they're played through cardboard amps. They went from awesome tone on You Can't Stop Rock n Roll to this shit.

And I definitely blame Tom Werman. He may have been a good pop producer, but he completely neutered heavy metal bands. The records he did for Dokken and Crue had similar problems.

SchenkerFan wrote: ↑Wed Sep 10, 2025 11:39 pm
And I definitely blame Tom Werman. He may have been a good pop producer, but he completely neutered heavy metal bands. The records he did for Dokken and Crue had similar problems.

Dokken Tooth and Nail has one of the worst tones for a major label album. The Rock Candy CD remaster is a massive upgrade but still not even close to their Neil Kernon produced albums.

GoodJudge wrote: ↑Wed Sep 10, 2025 9:40 pm Wolfsbane - Live Fast, Die Fast

Rick Rubin couldn't be bothered. The drum machine on Manhunt is rubbish, for example.

Black Sabbath - Born again

Love the songs but the sound is horrible.

Alessa wrote: ↑Thu Sep 11, 2025 5:10 am Black Sabbath - Born again

Love the songs but the sound is horrible.

I kinda like it. Iommis tone is trebly and solid-statey, but it fits the heaviness of the material. Some of those riffs are like proto-thrash.

Bono Nettencourt wrote: ↑Thu Sep 11, 2025 6:41 am

Alessa wrote: ↑Thu Sep 11, 2025 5:10 am Black Sabbath - Born again

Love the songs but the sound is horrible.

I kinda like it. Iommis tone is trebly and solid-statey, but it fits the heaviness of the material. Some of those riffs are like proto-thrash.

Wasn't that going to be remixed now that Iommi has recovered the studio tapes? What he /they did with Forbidden was amazing. I used to hate that album and now it's not even the worst Martin era Sabbath album - Cross Purposes is weaker and if you remove The Shining it gives Eternal Idol some tough competition.

I never heard that. There are some raw demos floating around.

Aside from the limitations of recording equipment decades ago, how the hell do producers and sound engineers not hear shit tone when we can? It's like tv shows and movies. One watch and I can often tell if it's a flop and headed toward cancellation, yet some executive greenlit the show for prime time.

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Hatchets Molly wrote: ↑Fri Sep 12, 2025 4:16 am Aside from the limitations of recording equipment decades ago, how the hell do producers and sound engineers not hear shit tone when we can? It's like tv shows and movies. One watch and I can often tell if it's a flop and headed toward cancellation, yet some executive greenlit the show for prime time.

Would be interesting to see how accurate your predictions are. Never missed a big hit or failed to see that something will bomb?

In 1991, you would expect Europe's Prisoners in Paradise to take them to the next level. It sounds good and both band, producer and song doctors have multiplatinum track records. This would Surely be their Dr Feelgood or Pump?

Yet it bombed and that years runaway success was the 2nd album by a band whose debut did nothing and the new one while not sounding bad was not what was expected to be a hit in that era.

Full disclosure, I prefer both PiP and Bleach to Nevermind. But we all know what sold....