This week we focus in on a project undertaken for Armalyte Industries in 2016, Cubanate's 'Brutalism' compilation.
EAM were contacted by Marc Heal of Cubanate to start the process of compiling test masters sourced from Marc and Phil Barry's DAT (Digital Audio Tape) archives. The compilation was to encompass tracks from all Cubanate releases up to, but excluding, 'Interference'.
The project required an analysis of the DAT recordings to determine, for each track individually, what post production was required, either in the form of simple tonal rebalancing, or more complex restoration processes, prior to final mastering.
Many of the original recording were good quality, but in some cases the artist wanted to present a remaster which addressed inherent issues in the original release that were not desired, or improvements in the previously released versions to reveal more detail in the recordings.
Each track was discussed with the artist prior to post production and test mastering, a painstaking process which required a more detailed approach to restoration and mastering then for most projects.
Most of the tracks were mastered using side chain excitation, dynamic EQ and spectral editing to ensure clarity and balance, particularly in the vocal and percussion frequencies.
Many of the tracks went through numerous test masters before being finalised and authored for release and the project took nearly a year to complete.
The release was met with critical acclaim for the curation of the tracks as a body of work, but also for the quality of the product itself, including the sound of the final masters.
"The tracks have been giving a loving remaster and as a result sound as though they were written and recorded yesterday, showing really just how far ahead of the curve Heal and Barry were back in the early-mid 90s." - Review: Cubanate – 'Brutalism' ~ INTRAVENOUS MAGAZINE: Your daily dose of darkness...
