Kate Bush


I hesitated between posting this question in the Music forum rather than Analog, but since the question regards the quality of the vinyl pressing and sound rather than the quality of the music, I decided the question was more fitting in the Analog forum.

I own all of Kate's records with the exception of "Aerial," and all of her albums are exceptionally good sounding, even the recent reissues of "The Hounds of Love" and "The Sensual World." Her last release before "50 Words for Snow" was "Director's Cut," which she released under her own label Fish People. The quality is beyond reproach. I just purchased "50 Words for Snow" and cleaned it with the AIVS 3-step formulas before first play. I had to stop a few minutes into the first song as the sounds was being marred by the loud crackling noise every several seconds. Same with the second song. It pretty much continued throughout the entire two-record album. The album was mastered by Doug Sax and James Guthrie and the CD sounds spectacular so I know it's not the recording but the quality of the pressing. Does anyone who owns this release share my experience? As much as I'd want it to be the case, I find it hard to believe I just happened to buy a bad isolated pressing. I'm so bummed as the music is heavenly.
actusreus
I was referring to her earlier work. I have a copy of Ariel and although it is a fantastic album, my vinyl is terrible. I listen to the CD which is pretty good
Dear Moonglum: I never heard the Aeriel one but the three LPs reissius I own are just great by the in deep content of Kate composition and the music it self.

It is almost impossible hear those recordings and not been moved with.

I will buy that Aeriel CD because what you and other posted here and because I already been " touched " by Kate.

Regards and enjoy the music,
R.
Dear Raul...many thanks for your confidence in our critiques.
That you already know Kate from the past is a sure guarantee of success, but I really hope you like it.

Prior to Aerial, Kate disappeared "off the radar" for 12 yrs. When Aerial's release was announced there was a stampede(!) to pre-order.

Best regards...
Moonglum,
Thank you for the link to the BBC interview with Kate; it was great to hear her speak about her music, creative process, and touring. It amazes me that her huge popularity in the UK and Europe for decades has not seemed to affect her in any negative way.

I read somewhere that she was a fan of the analog sound and was dissatisfied with the recording quality of some of her newer albums. It must have been in the context of "Director's Cut." I own most of her albums, with the exception of "The Red Shoes" and "Aerial" and they sound amazing. The sound is full, rich, and organic. Perfectly analog.

I know "DC" is quite controversial and a lot of her die-hard fans outright reject it. Some were even angry that she dared to remake "This Woman's Work." I'm in the smaller camp that fully embraced the album. I think it's terrific. She managed to make the songs sound as great as the originals, but also different. To me they do sound like new songs so I completely agree with her that statement that she considers it a new album.

I'm now hoping that "Aerial" will be reissued at some point, just like "Hounds of Love" and "Sensual World." I'm baffled as to what happened with that album that it commands such ridiculous price. Almost all of her albums are rather easy to find used for less than $10. I have two copies of each I own, but "Aerial" is just impossible to find used, even on eBay.
Dear Actus...I strongly agree regarding the D/Cut. I was delighted with it and felt at the very least it provides an alternative viewpoint.
When I googled the R4 interview (which I'd not previously heard) I was actually looking for a more recent one on "50 Words" that was recorded weeks ago, but this one was especially interesting.
In the way that Kate says she is never satisfied and constantly feels a desire to rework the material, she is fast becoming the new Gustav Mahler (:-)
(Meant in a kindly way to both Mahler & Kate...)

I don't think the composer would be offended if you went for the CD version. The only note of caution is that there may be remastering differences between the 2005 and 2011 versions. Kate took a loooong time thinking about the 2005 version, so, to me at least, Aerial is a finished masterpiece(?) and it worries me that they may have have tinkered with Disc 2.
Websites appear to show the tracklisting on CD2 with a single title "An Endless Sky of Honey".
The original had 2 main titles :
CD1 = A sea of Honey
CD2 = A sky of Honey
The following are the original titles of each "movement" on CD2 in their correct order :

Prelude
Prologue
An Architect's Dream
The Painter's Link
Sunset
Somewhere in Between
Nocturn
Aerial

Hope this helps...