Audio: Listen to this article.
Release week is finally here for Pearl Jam’s new album Dark Matter!
It should come as no surprise to members of the Audiophile Style community that I’ve been a diehard Pearl Jam fan since August of 1991 when I purchase the band’s debut album Ten. In fact, I’m sure many people are asking themselves if they really need to hear me talk about PJ more :~)
Anyway, the new album, produced by Andrew Watt, officially comes out Friday, April 19th. Last night, April 16th, the band offered a one night only, global theatrical experience, at theaters around the world. The Dark Matter album was played in its entirety, twice. The first run-through was in the dark, the way I like it, without any visual imagery. The second spin of the album included visualizations created for the experience and lyrics on the screen.
What got me most interested in the event, other than the music of course, was the fact that it was presented in Dolby Atmos. This was my first experience listening to an album mixed for Dolby Atmos in a theater. I’ve spent the last couple years listening to Atmos on my expertly calibrated twelve channel Wilson Audio system, but never in a theater.
If I had to use a single word to sum up the experience, compared to what I’m used to at home, it would be WOW. Wow, the music was fantastic. Wow, the immersive mix was really well done by Josh Evans and Nick Rives. Wow, it was played in an incredibly difficult environment. Wow, the sound quality was less than stellar.
Going into the event, I was looking forward to sharing the experience with my wife and likeminded Pearl Jam fans. A chance to hear the album early, and immersively. That’s what this was all about. It wasn’t an audio system demonstration. And, we all got exactly what we wanted. Great music, some cheers by diehard fans, and a memorable experience.
As an audiophile, writing on Audiophile Style, it behooves me to discuss the audio quality. The most important part of the evening for me was to get into the music and the Atmos mix. I could tell both were great and crafted with the usual Pearl Jam care and expertise.
The quality of the sound in the theater was probably what I expected in the back of my mind, but I wasn’t ready to accept until I heard it in person. Delivering Spatial Audio to a crowd of people sitting a hundred feet apart horizontally a large differential vertically, with a system capable of PA decibel levels, is a challenge to say the least.
The theater sounded very reflective, as if care hadn’t been taken to reduce reflections enough for music. Perhaps this works for movies, but for a band with three guitarists, a bassist, a drummer who’s really killing it, and a host of other featured players, the sound in this theater really over-drove the room. It’s don’t think the volume level did this theater any favors, as the room was overdriven much of the time. The speakers could certainly handle the volume, but the room couldn’t, as the reflections sounded massive.
On the other hand, without knowing the audio system at all and where the speakers were placed, what I heard as reflections could’ve been a result of the playback system trying to reproduce an album mixed for a much different environment.
I’m far from an expert in the area of theater sound at the commercial level, but I’m OK with evaluating it for my own tastes and comparing it to my own experience at home. This one was just strange, and it had nothing to do with the music or the mix.
I hope that nobody who was at the theater was attempting to judge Dolby Atmos of music last night. It wasn’t a reference level experience, that’s for sure. In fact, a local radio personality sat next to us for the event, and I felt like inviting him over to my listening room to experience this album in all its immersive glory. Perhaps I should reach out to him this afternoon.
The take away for me was that I can’t wait until the high resolution TrueHD Dolby Atmos arrives at my doorstep. I received a shipping notification, and my system is ready to rock. The music is fantastic and the mix serves the music very well. Josh Evans and Nick Rives have a proven track record with Pearl Jam mixes, that shows they understand the music, the meaning, and the tools to immerse listeners and deliver an unparalleled Pearl Jam experience.
The album can’t arrive soon enough!
About the author - https://audiophile.style/about
Author's Complete Audio System Details with Measurements - https://audiophile.style/system
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