Ultravox – Rage In Eden [Steven Wilson Stereo Mix]

The fact that two tracks are missing has been voiced before here, but their absence really hurts this album. And the ‘new’ mix really isn’t as good as the original one. The instrumentals are nice, but you’re probably better off buying the box set.

Its a shame that the multi tracks for 'The Voice" and "I (Death In The Afternoon)" couldn't be found, but nevertheless this is a great release that I enjoyed, and the quality is up there. I have an OG promo of this so I can see myself bouncing between these two.

Very happy with this release - a bargain at the asking price of £25 as the extra included instrumental album is a treat and works better than I thought it would in its own right (reminds me of The Human League's "Love Unlimited Orchestra" instrumental release of "Dare"). Been so disappointed with most vinyl this last year - endless snap, cracklle and pop and poor sound, but this release is pretty flawless. Half-speed 180gsm and polylined sleeves too. Grab it before it finally disappears.

Great remaster and the sound and packaging is out of this world. Clear vinyl is flawless. I find it very difficult to listen to this record as I'm used to the running order of the original.

I am absolutely stunned by the missing songs. There really should be a bigger disclaimer in the packaging or an inclusion of the whole album on a separate disc instead of the instrumentals. I’m enjoying the remixes but horrified by the incompleteness … definitely glad I grabbed the cd over the vinyl on this one!

I still do not understand how you are able to make a 5.1 version of The Voice and I , but not a New Stereo Version. I don't care what you call the editing programs, it just makes no sense.
Anyhow, my mindset was divided between 1. "Oh No, a remaster - and by Steven Wilson?! it must be bad" and 2. "Still - new mixes on one of my top fav albums of all times - AND with a lengthier Stranger Within - GREAT!!"
Somehow I landed in between these two assumptions. It isn't a straight out bad remake, and the longer version is.. longer (is that the exact same as better? not sure). The most striking feature is apparent from track 1 (AKA A2) as the guitar has been pushed back into the mix, and by the second verse, where the backing extra guitar figure should be stabbing and gnawing, that part is almost inaudible. One of the main original marvels of this album is the astounding balance between the instruments that creates the deep and enchanting soundscape, where the guitar is fitting perfectly with the rather electronic music. The guitar, just like the drums / effects often have a remarkable sustained adaptation, as it soars on the title track, Rage In Eden. If anything, I'd rather push the guitars up front in a new mix, or at the very least leave them just as they were. I saw Midge Ure perform this October 2022, and he pushed the guitar up to the max on these tracks to an astounding effect, albeit maybe not everyone was as pleased as I was, cause it wasn't too synthy.
~ //Added Note* - Surprisingly, the CD's stereo Wilson mix of We Stand Alone sounds a lot better than this vinyl mastering, I have no idea why, but the whole track/guitars sound a lot better on the CD?! ¯\_(ツ)_/¯ // ~
And as I never ever heard any surround albums, that part is yet to come - I have a system but it's not set up.
End of the day, decent, and even though he might not be the worst there is, I really don't get why artists hire Steven Wilson for New Stereo Mixes - he isn't any good, just medium, as in mediocre. The UK version of Bland and Scones? (Blank & Jones). Seeing his name is a warning sign, but here, it is still decent, so, thanks for not totally destroying this, and, yes, an instrumental version is always better than endless 7" versions of album tracks. It ends up as 4/5.

In spite of it missing two tracks from the original release, what’s here sounds great. It really is very dynamic and well mastered. The instrumental versions are nice add.

I almost picked this up, mistaking it for a clear vinyl edition of the 2LP deluxe but then I saw the footnote on the back about the multitracks not being available for two songs, so this should not have been released at all as a standalone CD and LP, or they should have added the missing songs as the original masters. Why did they not release the 2LP deluxe as RSD on clear vinyl? There is a 4LP clear vinyl box but that may be too much for some.

The multitracks for the two missing tracks were unavailable, so they could not produce new stereo, surround, or instrumental mixes of those songs.

My bad for missing the non-inclusion of 2 songs. The addition of an instrumental album of the same songs doesn't do a lot. Possibly my worst RSD purchase.