Rick savage's sound?

[The Mock Turtle Regulator]

He's definitely a clean/tight enough player that they'd do well to turn him up a half-notch or so. I don't get it....

I think it's all down to contriving a specific sound for the radio/MTV audience to "maximise their reach", to use management-speak- making the sound accessible to pop fans who are used to a rigid, clean polished sound.

I was watching youtube clips of their Don Valley Stadium 1993 gig, and it's funny to see how many comments say "I prefer this to the album version"- but these are from rock fans as opposed to average radio/TV listeners/viewers.
a bit of feel/give to the timing of the drum parts (if not the tone as it's still triggered samples), and natural tone and feel of the bass- not to mention natural backing vocals as opposed to the sampled/detuned/stacked-up backing vocals on the records...

also I gave their Retroactive compilation another spin the other day- IIRC all the tracks on it have real bass guitar and no synth- inc. several leftover tracks from the time of Hysteria eg. "fractured love"- and you can hear the usual natural variations in the bass tone- the little inconsistencies when a string buzzes against the frets differently, pick pressure/angle slightly different- i guess the things that Mutt Lange hates!

 

[JBTucci]

I did not realize he played keys as well.

 

[The Mock Turtle Regulator]

at 2.32 you can see him play the verse line on keys.

 

[TimWilson]

an interesting interview with Rick Savage from 1992 in which he talks about working with perfectionist Mutt Lange, playing to a click/drum machine and using synth bass-
[Invalid or Expired Link Removed]
[Invalid or Expired Link Removed]

Wow, that was an interesting read! Especially from a producer's standpoint. Thanks for the links.

 

[JimmyM]

Wow, no wonder I hate Mutt Lange-produced albums! There are exactly two albums Mutt Lange produced that I liked..."Highway To Hell" and "Back In Black" by AC/DC. Everything else has been crap IMHO. They all end up sounding like synthetic monuments to himself. Absolute crap. I hope he never produces another album ever.

 

[20db pad]

Wow, no wonder I hate Mutt Lange-produced albums! There are exactly two albums Mutt Lange produced that I liked..."Highway To Hell" and "Back In Black" by AC/DC. Everything else has been crap IMHO. They all end up sounding like synthetic monuments to himself. Absolute crap. I hope he never produces another album ever.

He did a record by The Cars years ago that was also pretty cool. I'll agree that Mutt's sound completely homogenizes the band he's producing to the point where they all sound the same. Same drum sounds, same guitar sounds, same bass sounds on everything.

The last few Shania Twain records also featured the typical Mutt Lange "treatments". They sound very dated, as he never changed his approach that was so successful in the eighties.

 

[JimmyM]

He did a record by The Cars years ago that was also pretty cool. I'll agree that Mutt's sound completely homogenizes the band he's producing to the point where they all sound the same. Same drum sounds, same guitar sounds, same bass sounds on everything.

The last few Shania Twain records also featured the typical Mutt Lange "treatments". They sound very dated, as he never changed his approach that was so successful in the eighties.

Exactly. BTW, compared to the first 4 Cars albums, the "Heartbeat City" album Mutt Lange did was crap. Compare "Drive" or "You Might Think" to "Just What I Needed" or "Dangerous Type." Ric Ocasek has to take part of the blame since he started losing his touch after "Panorama" but Mutt Lange did them no favors. I think that's part of the reason he did Shania's albums...he had already worn out his sound in rock and roll.

 

[Fretless1!]

Wow, no wonder I hate Mutt Lange-produced albums! There are exactly two albums Mutt Lange produced that I liked..."Highway To Hell" and "Back In Black" by AC/DC. Everything else has been crap IMHO. They all end up sounding like synthetic monuments to himself. Absolute crap. r.

I was really trying to decide how to phrase my thoughts on this matter.

I think you just summed it up. Thanks.

Other than the above mentioned albums, Lange's work is sterile and lifeless. Do not like it.

 

[Merton]

High'n'Dry is pretty good too. But yeah, even I (a massive Lep fan) sometimes find listening to Hysteria that it's too slick and polished. But I still love it!

 

[The Mock Turtle Regulator]

here's a video clip of him explaining his live setup-


at 1.05 he shows the midi footpedals he uses to play the synth bass sounds live.

 

[Michael Durwin]

How sad. In listening to Pyromania, as I did until I wore out the needle of my record players multiple times, there’s nothing on it or about it that couldn’t have been captured from the live musician in the studio. As for Hysteria, the guitars were straight through a Rockman (which I’m still trying to get my hands on), that and the vocals were what made the sonic quality of the album. The drums and bass could easily have been taken straight from the artists instead of Lange playing sample DJ. From Rush to Spinal Tap to Royal Blood, we’ve heard how powerful and so icky robust and unique a bass can be when recorded by a competent engineer. As for drums, allowing Allen to play a synth kit would have been fine. But honestly, are the drums in Pyromania or Hysteria and better than Collins’ drums from In The Air Tonight? I get that Mutt Lange is supposedly a super producer, but is he really? He knows how to mix and master, but he clearly doesn’t have any clue how to record audio. 1 microphone on a staircase in a hallway for the drum sound on When The Levee Breaks was easily as good as anything Lange got for Hysteria or his ex-wife.