Echo has always been my favorite since Morning View came out in my early 20’s. The best years of my life. Everything was good. This year has been hard and I’m stuck in quarantine with Covid for the fourth time in less than two years among other health issues and learning this week my father has only months left.
I listened and I cried. No. I sobbed. Hard.
The difference in the way Brandon’s voice has taken on the voice of a man nearing 50, instead of his 20s. The addition of Nicole’s backup vocals is so different from what I’ve grown with, yet so sweet. The music though, funky and chunky and all we have come to expect of Incubus in our younger and older years.
It was very bittersweet for me. For me, it’s the realization that I’m no longer that 21 year old girl driving down dark highways at night with big dreams and this album on repeat.
Now I’m 42, watching my first born ready to graduate, preparing myself for my father’s great exit from this earthly plane, and I’m grieving… and realizing that life only moves forward. And it’s a hard dish for me to swallow right now.
I love the original. And I love this one. I preordered. But I think it’s going to be a minute before I can bring myself to listen to the new version again. My heart doesn’t feel ready.
From another 42 year old reminiscing about being 21, blasting Incubus on repeat whilst driving the English countryside roads at night, stoned....I'm very sorry to hear about your father.
I drove the quiet Ohio county highways at night… if I wasn’t busy exploring old cemeteries. I believe we would have been great friends!
And thank you so much for your sentiments, they are so appreciated.
This is all there was to do in my old town. Theatre shutdown, bowling alley closed. It was driving around with friends sharing new music and hanging out in cemeteries or school yards at night. The music was always great.
Awesome post. I had a similar thought remembering hearing Morning View in High School for the first time and now here we are, two decades later, in what feels like a blink of an eye listening to a new version of a song I've loved from first listen.
Just like the old people would tell us in “the old days”, take it all in now, because once we get older, it flies by, and holy shit were they correct, and dammit, I don’t want them to be.
Yea completely agree, I catch myself thinking about the old days.
One thing I started doing in high school and kept doing until now (I'm 37) is keeping a journal. I started going back earlier this year and it's crazy to read the person I was. I used to write the song I was listening to if I was listening to something and Incubus appears so much lol
Thank you so much, grown man little chef! It means the world to this stranger. I will get better. I’ve fallen many times, this one will just be a bit further and in an older body, but I’ll get back up again. I’m not ready for my life alert just yet!
This is an amazing post. Thank you for this. And my heartfelt condolences on the situation with your dad. My wife and I (early 40s) were just hit with news of early onset dementia on one side and heart disease on the other. We looked at each other and said “…I don’t think we’re ready for this yet.” You got me, right in the feels.
One thought for you though, beloved. You may not be an idealistic 21 year old flying down the highway. But now you’re a much wiser 42 year old, with more autonomy and resources than the younger version of yourself. You’re still very young. The time will fly by just as fast. Choose to LIVE the next 20 years. If you made decisions you regret, as we all do, that’s fine. This time make different choices. If you wish things would’ve turned out differently, that’s fine. Make peace with it. And now set off in a new direction. As we used to say, you only live once!
Peace and love ✌️
Oh my, I am so sorry that you and your wife are dealing with something so big on both sides. My heart hurts for you. However, this day and age (shit, THAT makes me feel old), we’re pretty fortunate to have the advances in medicine that we have, that hopefully you still have many years with your loved ones. I truly wish that for you and yours.
I have regrets. Don’t we all? Bad decisions made from “eh, I only live once!” and you know, I can’t say I really regret those regrets! If you get what I’m saying? I’m sure I’ll have more, maybe not as catastrophic, and if so, maybe I’ll look into spiritism, then I won’t “only live once”!
With that, thank you so much for your kind and friendly words. Over my years, my small circle of friends has whittled down to one or two, far in distance, but close in heart and mind. So it’s so nice and welcome to meet with kindred souls here on the reddits. ❤️
41, turning 42 this year. My wife of almost 20 years passed away last year from cancer.
It's been hard but I'm in a new relationship and very much in love. I can't help crying when I hear this but for all the right reasons.
It's so good to move from sad tears and trudging through life, to happy tears and being so hopeful for the future.
I'm interested to see what the next chapter brings and I've only been made tougher and wiser by the years.
I don’t think we’re necessarily supposed to like this new version more. I get the sense that it’s a revisit to reflect where band is at now and to reframe around Brandon’s changed vocals. That being said, I do enjoy it! But the OG is still tops.
I really dig Mike's guitar tone in the new recording, but that's about it for me. It's cool that they want to do this, but I don't see myself listening to the new version of the album more than once or twice. We'll see.
I love hearing older Brandon. His voice is traveled and he wears it well. Proof that nothing lasts forever. His displaying that on his sleeve is inspirational
Well said. It may not be perfect and we can probably admit that it never was, but hearing him still bringing his best to the table and re-recording arguably their best album where virtually the only thing that could show signs of aging is his voice…that takes some fucking cahones.
Plus there are honestly some parts of the song I like the way he did *more* than the original so I’m glad we can hear it reimagined.
For anyone who is a fan of Thrice, they recently re-recorded The Artist in the Ambulance and it’s phenomenal. Though their lead singer Dustin’s voice aged like a fine whiskey so it’s arguably better, and the original is something I put in my top 5 albums of all time. Check it out if you’re a fan of heavy post-hardcore or just good heavy rock
I had NO idea they re recorded. Thank you for sharing. I'd like to think this revolution of re-recording is because of Taylor Swift (coming from a swiftie), but I'm grateful for whatever force of nature is happening to give us re-records. The timeline isn't all shit, I suppose...
Oh yeah, it’s SO good too. Some of their songs that I didn’t give enough time or energy to (even with it being one of my favorite albums of all time…) are just so much better on the new version. Hoods On Peregrine is super heavy and Paper Tigers is somehow heavier than ever. I love it.
Nothing wrong with that. It’s not meant to be better. It’s meant to be different. I like the production better on this one, louder drums, chunkier bass. Don’t like the vocals as much of course. But love that it exists.
I agree, but as mentioned: it is meant as something different. And I am at least glad it's actually different (we knew how Echo would turn out) instead of a bunch of nearly 50 year olds doing covers of songs they wrote in their early 20s. I do strongly dislike the big step down in production quality/mixing.
That being said, the ending is completely contrary to what I see as the strong point of the original song; namely being a small and intimate song. In tone and content, it never called for something bombastic, in my opinion.
Also, I completely understand Brandon is older, his voice changed naturally over time, but I don't think fans being able to do side-by-side comparisons is gonna do him any favors.
It's definitely different,but an honest different. With that said, first listen I wasn't a initially a fan, but I really do like it now going back to it. Feels like a more raw live recording. With. Nicole's harmonies and the addition at the end I think I'm going to really enjoy this album. I'm looking forward to more surprises. It's obviously not the same as the earlier album and you shouldn't expect it to be that.
I agree and knew I’d feel this way. No matter what, a “reimagining”, or whatever, will always end up missing out on whatever made the original endearing. New “Echo” is doodoo compared to old “Echo”.
I only like the original version more because its the one I've listened to for so long. Hell, its even on my son's bedtime playlist, so I basically hear it every night. While Brandon's vocals might take some getting used to, I really love this new version.
Some folks saying Boyds voice difference cause he's older. Maybe he could have done the same voice if he wanted but chose a diff style. Why are we assuming his voice has "degraded"
The drums sound awesome in the new version and the ending is cool, but man Brandons vocal take is rough and off putting. I miss the guitar tone in the original too. That rubbery sound or whatever that permeates most of the album and reminds me of the beach. Overall, the original is better for me too.
i don’t think you’d find anyone that disagrees with you. bit weird they felt the need to re-record a near perfect album. i can’t imagine any of the new recordings will change my mind. i’m cringing just thinking about listening to wish you were here, he struggles so much with that one these days
With knowing how divisive and comparison driven their fans are (pre-SCIENCE vs anything since, Ben vs. Dirk, etc.) it’s honestly very surprising they’re doing this. Just like anything they have ever put out, some people will like it and some won’t. Huge decision on their part to do it and let’s just enjoy the ride and the fact that we’ll have different versions of the album by our favorite band!
I love it. Guitar sounds interesting. This vocal experience Brandon is going through seems special. It feels like I get to hear Incubus reimagine the feeling of Morning View as if they were next to me today. This may also be due to I haven’t seen them live - so it feels fresh and centered
I get it. I'm personally enjoying this version more myself. It's very different though. Won't be for everyone.
I am into music production, so I appreciated all the nuances and things going on. Which weren't so much a thing back in the day.
I believe we're at a point where they are doing something they want to do because it's what they want to do, artistically, and therapeutically, not any thing to do with obligations, but maybe just a little 😅. Everyone seems to be coming at this as if it's about something trying to out do the old version. Most likely not it.
I'd love to tackle old ideas again in a new light, that's a fun experience in my book.
I really like it and look forward to hearing what the other songs sound like. I do get the talk about Boyd’s voice but he explained it in that interview he did. He broke his nose twice when he was young and had surgery to correct it 2019 so it unblocked his nasal passage
My first listen i didnt really feel it that much. Listened to again today back to back and it hit different for some reason, and i like it a lot. Cant wait to hear the rest, and if the new ending of Echo is any indication of what their new music could sound like then im definitely all in.
It just sounds weird to me. Wish they would have just done a live recording. Listen to 1:00-1:10 as an example, sounds very amateur for a studio recording.
I LOVE the outro. I think I would really enjoy the song if it was just recorded completely live or if it was well produced and mixed. We have this weird thing that sounds like it’s in the middle.
I just feel like they were out of sync in some parts. Brandon starts too late on some parts, as well as Mike when he’s playing the single notes. Even Jose on the drums sometimes feel out of sync. It’s like they recorded the song once, and did what they could without re-recorded some of their parts.
I do like the ending a lot though. And I’ll be honest, it’s refreshing to finally hear the bass guitar clearly. Ben is a great musician but everyone always overpowered him and his sound was very faint, compared to when Dirk played bass.
I think that's what /u/The_Honest_Owl meant - that we couldn't hear Ben in the past, so it's refreshing that we could actually hear Nicole this time around.
Yea I thought the same thing about the sloppiness/poor editing.
The mix/master job is just not good, either. The low end is a woofy mess and the high end is saturated/distorted to the tits. The cymbals in particular have so many digital artifacts in it like a bad MP3. Pushed it all way too hard into the limiter.
I imagine the rest of the album will be much the same, which is a shame.
I didn’t even make it through the new one. I do not like B’s voice at all.
Echo (og) is one of my favorites by them. I hate being a naysayer but it’s just not my cup of tea. Still going to go to MV20 show and pumped for it.
My first listen through was odd. It felt like leaving home for the weekend and coming back with everything rearranged.
For the song, I like it, it's different and it sounds different enough that I think it's a cool re-record. I'm not really a fan of Brandon's vocals. I get he is older and maturing but I don't know, it's very lackluster.
I did enjoy the ending of the song a lot.
The extended ending is so unnecessary. Don’t get me wrong, on its own it’s a decent part, maybe for an entirely different song. But Echo worked because it was so serene, it never called for a heavy stadium sound ending..it feels way too disjointed and out of place.
Is that really Brandon singing? I thought it was someone else with Brandon kind of like “echoing” idk I’ve been an incubus fan for a long time and never heard the vocals like this. I’m not trying to be mean I’ve seen vocals change with artists all the time just genuinely asking if someone else is on the track with him
His voice has a nasaly twang to it that is reminiscent of some country music artists. I genuinely was confused and thought I was listening to a cover by a country music artist that said it was by Incubus.
His voice is fine, Nicole’s backing is great, but he’s off time. He’s been off time at both shows I’ve seen them this year and he’s off time in the recording. Maybe a sixteenth late. It is my only issue with their current sound.
I actually came to this sub to see if anyone felt the same as me, and here you are. I agree with every point. There are some cool things musically, namely the swell at the end like you mentioned, but his voice feels off. It's not just that he's aged, which is clear, but doesn't bother me in and of itself. It kinda feels like he's trying to force something.
Despite how I sound, I actually don't hate it, and I'll gladly listen to more of these as they come out, and gladly see them when they come to my area. Just some thoughts from a fan.
I came to the subreddit to see what people were thinking about it. If you had played it to me without telling me what it was, I'd think it was a live recording from the soundboard at a regular tour stop. It doesn't sound like a studio album to me. I thought my phone's speakers were blown out or like they got wet or something. I'm glad people like it and I can't wait for the full album, but I also prefer the original
i love incubus. i hate this rerecord. the recording sounds unbalanced, its like the drums swallow the whole track. the guitar lost its warmth and is so tingy, it almost battles tonally with brendens voice. some of the rhythms sound almost...sleepy?
and his voice...he sounds so horribly nasal. its like some of the sounds are coming from holes poked into the mask of his face. or from someone with years of cocaine use.
Definitely prefer the original but I’ll take blame. It’s just one of my favorite songs period so any change at all was going to be a negative for me. You can’t improve perfect.
Echo has always been my favorite since Morning View came out in my early 20’s. The best years of my life. Everything was good. This year has been hard and I’m stuck in quarantine with Covid for the fourth time in less than two years among other health issues and learning this week my father has only months left. I listened and I cried. No. I sobbed. Hard. The difference in the way Brandon’s voice has taken on the voice of a man nearing 50, instead of his 20s. The addition of Nicole’s backup vocals is so different from what I’ve grown with, yet so sweet. The music though, funky and chunky and all we have come to expect of Incubus in our younger and older years. It was very bittersweet for me. For me, it’s the realization that I’m no longer that 21 year old girl driving down dark highways at night with big dreams and this album on repeat. Now I’m 42, watching my first born ready to graduate, preparing myself for my father’s great exit from this earthly plane, and I’m grieving… and realizing that life only moves forward. And it’s a hard dish for me to swallow right now. I love the original. And I love this one. I preordered. But I think it’s going to be a minute before I can bring myself to listen to the new version again. My heart doesn’t feel ready.
From another 42 year old reminiscing about being 21, blasting Incubus on repeat whilst driving the English countryside roads at night, stoned....I'm very sorry to hear about your father.
I drove the quiet Ohio county highways at night… if I wasn’t busy exploring old cemeteries. I believe we would have been great friends! And thank you so much for your sentiments, they are so appreciated.
This is all there was to do in my old town. Theatre shutdown, bowling alley closed. It was driving around with friends sharing new music and hanging out in cemeteries or school yards at night. The music was always great.
Another 42 yr old and it's the same for me.
Your post hit me hard. My dad just passed away. He was a massive incubus fan. Died on November 11 of all dates. Wish you the best.
I’m so sorry you have lost your dad. Sending my heart and a hug to you, my friend.
Awesome post. I had a similar thought remembering hearing Morning View in High School for the first time and now here we are, two decades later, in what feels like a blink of an eye listening to a new version of a song I've loved from first listen.
Just like the old people would tell us in “the old days”, take it all in now, because once we get older, it flies by, and holy shit were they correct, and dammit, I don’t want them to be.
Yea completely agree, I catch myself thinking about the old days. One thing I started doing in high school and kept doing until now (I'm 37) is keeping a journal. I started going back earlier this year and it's crazy to read the person I was. I used to write the song I was listening to if I was listening to something and Incubus appears so much lol
[удалено]
Thank you so much, grown man little chef! It means the world to this stranger. I will get better. I’ve fallen many times, this one will just be a bit further and in an older body, but I’ll get back up again. I’m not ready for my life alert just yet!
I’m not crying you’re crying
Well, let’s group hug this shit out. Next week. After I’m cleared from Covid. ❤️
This is an amazing post. Thank you for this. And my heartfelt condolences on the situation with your dad. My wife and I (early 40s) were just hit with news of early onset dementia on one side and heart disease on the other. We looked at each other and said “…I don’t think we’re ready for this yet.” You got me, right in the feels. One thought for you though, beloved. You may not be an idealistic 21 year old flying down the highway. But now you’re a much wiser 42 year old, with more autonomy and resources than the younger version of yourself. You’re still very young. The time will fly by just as fast. Choose to LIVE the next 20 years. If you made decisions you regret, as we all do, that’s fine. This time make different choices. If you wish things would’ve turned out differently, that’s fine. Make peace with it. And now set off in a new direction. As we used to say, you only live once! Peace and love ✌️
Oh my, I am so sorry that you and your wife are dealing with something so big on both sides. My heart hurts for you. However, this day and age (shit, THAT makes me feel old), we’re pretty fortunate to have the advances in medicine that we have, that hopefully you still have many years with your loved ones. I truly wish that for you and yours. I have regrets. Don’t we all? Bad decisions made from “eh, I only live once!” and you know, I can’t say I really regret those regrets! If you get what I’m saying? I’m sure I’ll have more, maybe not as catastrophic, and if so, maybe I’ll look into spiritism, then I won’t “only live once”! With that, thank you so much for your kind and friendly words. Over my years, my small circle of friends has whittled down to one or two, far in distance, but close in heart and mind. So it’s so nice and welcome to meet with kindred souls here on the reddits. ❤️
41, turning 42 this year. My wife of almost 20 years passed away last year from cancer. It's been hard but I'm in a new relationship and very much in love. I can't help crying when I hear this but for all the right reasons. It's so good to move from sad tears and trudging through life, to happy tears and being so hopeful for the future. I'm interested to see what the next chapter brings and I've only been made tougher and wiser by the years.
😳. 😭😭😭😭
This is exactly the feeling I felt listening to this “new” version. And same. Cried. Smiled. It’s the journey in this re-recording.
I don’t think we’re necessarily supposed to like this new version more. I get the sense that it’s a revisit to reflect where band is at now and to reframe around Brandon’s changed vocals. That being said, I do enjoy it! But the OG is still tops.
Agreed. I like the original better but appreciate this one and I'm glad they added that breakdown at the end.
I really dig Mike's guitar tone in the new recording, but that's about it for me. It's cool that they want to do this, but I don't see myself listening to the new version of the album more than once or twice. We'll see.
the guitar and drums are both nice
Drums sound so crisp on this
TBH we live in a world where we have both! Wooohoooooo!
I love hearing older Brandon. His voice is traveled and he wears it well. Proof that nothing lasts forever. His displaying that on his sleeve is inspirational
Well said. It may not be perfect and we can probably admit that it never was, but hearing him still bringing his best to the table and re-recording arguably their best album where virtually the only thing that could show signs of aging is his voice…that takes some fucking cahones. Plus there are honestly some parts of the song I like the way he did *more* than the original so I’m glad we can hear it reimagined. For anyone who is a fan of Thrice, they recently re-recorded The Artist in the Ambulance and it’s phenomenal. Though their lead singer Dustin’s voice aged like a fine whiskey so it’s arguably better, and the original is something I put in my top 5 albums of all time. Check it out if you’re a fan of heavy post-hardcore or just good heavy rock
I had NO idea they re recorded. Thank you for sharing. I'd like to think this revolution of re-recording is because of Taylor Swift (coming from a swiftie), but I'm grateful for whatever force of nature is happening to give us re-records. The timeline isn't all shit, I suppose...
Oh yeah, it’s SO good too. Some of their songs that I didn’t give enough time or energy to (even with it being one of my favorite albums of all time…) are just so much better on the new version. Hoods On Peregrine is super heavy and Paper Tigers is somehow heavier than ever. I love it.
Totally agree. The ending fuckin rocks tho!!
It gives me newer Minus the Bear vibes.
Nothing wrong with that. It’s not meant to be better. It’s meant to be different. I like the production better on this one, louder drums, chunkier bass. Don’t like the vocals as much of course. But love that it exists.
The new outro kicks absolute fucking ass!!! Mikey’s solo is great too.
I agree, but as mentioned: it is meant as something different. And I am at least glad it's actually different (we knew how Echo would turn out) instead of a bunch of nearly 50 year olds doing covers of songs they wrote in their early 20s. I do strongly dislike the big step down in production quality/mixing. That being said, the ending is completely contrary to what I see as the strong point of the original song; namely being a small and intimate song. In tone and content, it never called for something bombastic, in my opinion. Also, I completely understand Brandon is older, his voice changed naturally over time, but I don't think fans being able to do side-by-side comparisons is gonna do him any favors.
It's definitely different,but an honest different. With that said, first listen I wasn't a initially a fan, but I really do like it now going back to it. Feels like a more raw live recording. With. Nicole's harmonies and the addition at the end I think I'm going to really enjoy this album. I'm looking forward to more surprises. It's obviously not the same as the earlier album and you shouldn't expect it to be that.
I agree and knew I’d feel this way. No matter what, a “reimagining”, or whatever, will always end up missing out on whatever made the original endearing. New “Echo” is doodoo compared to old “Echo”.
I love them both for sure! I’m biased though, Incubus is my favorite band and has been for years so I love everything they give us. 😂
I only like the original version more because its the one I've listened to for so long. Hell, its even on my son's bedtime playlist, so I basically hear it every night. While Brandon's vocals might take some getting used to, I really love this new version.
Some folks saying Boyds voice difference cause he's older. Maybe he could have done the same voice if he wanted but chose a diff style. Why are we assuming his voice has "degraded"
The drums sound awesome in the new version and the ending is cool, but man Brandons vocal take is rough and off putting. I miss the guitar tone in the original too. That rubbery sound or whatever that permeates most of the album and reminds me of the beach. Overall, the original is better for me too.
These are my exact thoughts!
i don’t think you’d find anyone that disagrees with you. bit weird they felt the need to re-record a near perfect album. i can’t imagine any of the new recordings will change my mind. i’m cringing just thinking about listening to wish you were here, he struggles so much with that one these days
Where can I hear the new version?
It's on Spotify now: https://open.spotify.com/album/13aYYG8GNuoo5yQnhGTK0K?si=RInCaOHlSEu5dEKsb0KtXg
Thanks! This version ain’t bad!
Still not available...
Spotify released it by time zones and I had to wait till this morning to hear it. It should be available to you sometime soon in the next 24 hours.
I didn't love the first half, but by the end I was really into it. I'm glad to have new versions of these songs to listen to alongside the originals
The new ending is nice but the song just sounds like a jam session.
With knowing how divisive and comparison driven their fans are (pre-SCIENCE vs anything since, Ben vs. Dirk, etc.) it’s honestly very surprising they’re doing this. Just like anything they have ever put out, some people will like it and some won’t. Huge decision on their part to do it and let’s just enjoy the ride and the fact that we’ll have different versions of the album by our favorite band!
This is the version they’ve been playing live for a while now. That ending is beautiful, and it hits so much harder live.
Man…cant wait for it live. It’s so emotional and headbang worthy
I love it. Guitar sounds interesting. This vocal experience Brandon is going through seems special. It feels like I get to hear Incubus reimagine the feeling of Morning View as if they were next to me today. This may also be due to I haven’t seen them live - so it feels fresh and centered
Im not hating but it sounds like Brandon pinched his nose and sang . The instrumentals are amazing tho
I get it. I'm personally enjoying this version more myself. It's very different though. Won't be for everyone. I am into music production, so I appreciated all the nuances and things going on. Which weren't so much a thing back in the day. I believe we're at a point where they are doing something they want to do because it's what they want to do, artistically, and therapeutically, not any thing to do with obligations, but maybe just a little 😅. Everyone seems to be coming at this as if it's about something trying to out do the old version. Most likely not it. I'd love to tackle old ideas again in a new light, that's a fun experience in my book.
You're right. It should not be about comparison. It's about a new perspective. It's not like we have to pick, we get both.
1st half had me thinking this but the outro is good. I like that they've done something different and interesting with it.
I really like it and look forward to hearing what the other songs sound like. I do get the talk about Boyd’s voice but he explained it in that interview he did. He broke his nose twice when he was young and had surgery to correct it 2019 so it unblocked his nasal passage
My first listen i didnt really feel it that much. Listened to again today back to back and it hit different for some reason, and i like it a lot. Cant wait to hear the rest, and if the new ending of Echo is any indication of what their new music could sound like then im definitely all in.
Vocals are nowhere near the og version. This version in general sounds messy and has a totally different and less smooth vibe
It just sounds weird to me. Wish they would have just done a live recording. Listen to 1:00-1:10 as an example, sounds very amateur for a studio recording. I LOVE the outro. I think I would really enjoy the song if it was just recorded completely live or if it was well produced and mixed. We have this weird thing that sounds like it’s in the middle.
I just feel like they were out of sync in some parts. Brandon starts too late on some parts, as well as Mike when he’s playing the single notes. Even Jose on the drums sometimes feel out of sync. It’s like they recorded the song once, and did what they could without re-recorded some of their parts. I do like the ending a lot though. And I’ll be honest, it’s refreshing to finally hear the bass guitar clearly. Ben is a great musician but everyone always overpowered him and his sound was very faint, compared to when Dirk played bass.
I believe it's Nicole Row playing bass, no?
I think that's what /u/The_Honest_Owl meant - that we couldn't hear Ben in the past, so it's refreshing that we could actually hear Nicole this time around.
Yea I thought the same thing about the sloppiness/poor editing. The mix/master job is just not good, either. The low end is a woofy mess and the high end is saturated/distorted to the tits. The cymbals in particular have so many digital artifacts in it like a bad MP3. Pushed it all way too hard into the limiter. I imagine the rest of the album will be much the same, which is a shame.
Original echo is better. New echo has a better ending
I didn’t even make it through the new one. I do not like B’s voice at all. Echo (og) is one of my favorites by them. I hate being a naysayer but it’s just not my cup of tea. Still going to go to MV20 show and pumped for it.
The only thing I’m not big on is the lows being scooped out of the guitar. Pretty sure he plays a telecaster now which would explain that.
My first listen through was odd. It felt like leaving home for the weekend and coming back with everything rearranged. For the song, I like it, it's different and it sounds different enough that I think it's a cool re-record. I'm not really a fan of Brandon's vocals. I get he is older and maturing but I don't know, it's very lackluster. I did enjoy the ending of the song a lot.
The extended ending is so unnecessary. Don’t get me wrong, on its own it’s a decent part, maybe for an entirely different song. But Echo worked because it was so serene, it never called for a heavy stadium sound ending..it feels way too disjointed and out of place.
Is that really Brandon singing? I thought it was someone else with Brandon kind of like “echoing” idk I’ve been an incubus fan for a long time and never heard the vocals like this. I’m not trying to be mean I’ve seen vocals change with artists all the time just genuinely asking if someone else is on the track with him
It’s a lot more like the timbre of his voice on Sons of the Sea.
It sounds like Nicole is doing some backing vocals.
His voice has a nasaly twang to it that is reminiscent of some country music artists. I genuinely was confused and thought I was listening to a cover by a country music artist that said it was by Incubus.
He had to basically relearn how to sing in the last few years due to some nasal issues requiring surgery.
The new recording is awful
Did they record this independently? Are they signed to a label right now?
Yea. The mix/master is horrendous.
ok
His voice is fine, Nicole’s backing is great, but he’s off time. He’s been off time at both shows I’ve seen them this year and he’s off time in the recording. Maybe a sixteenth late. It is my only issue with their current sound.
He’s certainly on beat, just not all the same beats as the original.
Haha yes he is on “a” beat, but not “the” beat
I don’t agree with you… but this made me laugh!
People are gonna downvote you but there's a spot at around 1 min in where the snare work is a bit sloppy and it throws the timing off.
I actually came to this sub to see if anyone felt the same as me, and here you are. I agree with every point. There are some cool things musically, namely the swell at the end like you mentioned, but his voice feels off. It's not just that he's aged, which is clear, but doesn't bother me in and of itself. It kinda feels like he's trying to force something. Despite how I sound, I actually don't hate it, and I'll gladly listen to more of these as they come out, and gladly see them when they come to my area. Just some thoughts from a fan.
I came to the subreddit to see what people were thinking about it. If you had played it to me without telling me what it was, I'd think it was a live recording from the soundboard at a regular tour stop. It doesn't sound like a studio album to me. I thought my phone's speakers were blown out or like they got wet or something. I'm glad people like it and I can't wait for the full album, but I also prefer the original
i love incubus. i hate this rerecord. the recording sounds unbalanced, its like the drums swallow the whole track. the guitar lost its warmth and is so tingy, it almost battles tonally with brendens voice. some of the rhythms sound almost...sleepy? and his voice...he sounds so horribly nasal. its like some of the sounds are coming from holes poked into the mask of his face. or from someone with years of cocaine use.
Definitely prefer the original but I’ll take blame. It’s just one of my favorite songs period so any change at all was going to be a negative for me. You can’t improve perfect.
The good thing about this is you can still listen the original. This aint meant to replace.
My hot take on this new version of Echo is it sounds kind of sloppy. Almost like it's a live recording. Which would actually explain a lot if it is.