As the end of 2023 approaches, it’s time to look back on fan-favorite releases from last year in surround sound and immersive audio. The Grammy Award for Best Immersive Audio Album, formerly Best Surround Sound Album, was first awarded in 2005. Since then, the Recording Academy has always annually recognized the best of the best in surround sound and immersive audio experiences. As music formats have evolved and expanded over the years, so have the audiophile fans - so much so that IAA wants to make sure your voices are heard.
IAA offered our first Listener’s Choice Award in 2020 and followed it up with even more successful campaigns in 2021 and 2022. It that spirit, we’re thrilled to announce its return for music released in 2023!
Now through November 15, we'll be accepting nominations for YOUR PICK of the Best Immersive Audio Album of 2022-23. The release dates for albums to be eligible are between October 1, 2022 and September 15, 2023 (the same as the Recording Academy guidelines).
To acknowledge the difference and impact of different formats in which artists now release their music, we are hosting 2 distinct categories: one for the best immersive audio album you streamed in 2023, and one for the best immersive audio album you downloaded or purchased on physical disc. Nominate for either or both categories as you wish!
The deadline for submitting your nomination is Wednesday, November 15th at 12:00pm PT. Nominations will be tallied and 5 finalists selected for final round voting shortly thereafter.
We’ve outlined some choices below, for your consideration. Now is the time for fans to speak!
Submit your vote for the nominees of the 2024 IAA’s Listeners’ Choice Award here!
Artist: Tom Petty & The Heartbreakers
Title: Greatest Hits (1993)
Format: Streaming
Immersive Mix By: Ryan Ulyate Dolby Atmos)
Release Date: 10/12/22
Following his acclaimed work on the Wildflowers and Angel Dream reissues in 2021, it’s no surprise that the Petty estate has once again tapped expert mixer Ryan Ulyate to create a Dolby Atmos mix of The Heartbreakers’ classic 1993 Greatest Hits compilation.
Every track sounds amazing, but “Don’t Come Around Here No More” from 1985’s Southern Accents would have to be a standout. Arguably one of the band’s most ambitious tunes ever, it sounds massive in Atmos with the programmed drums and vocal chorus raining down from above.
Artist: Grateful Dead
Title: Europe '72
Format: Streaming
Immersive Mix By: Steven Wilson (Dolby Atmos)
Release Date: 10/20/22
Ever since Steven Wilson’s amazing Dolby Atmos remix of the American Beauty studio album was released in August 2022, fans have been speculating which of other entries of The Dead’s vast discography would receive the immersive treatment next. We certainly would've expected another studio album, but it turned out to be Europe ‘72, a live document of the band’s tour through Western Europe from April through May of that year. Europe ‘72 captures the band at the height of their powers, performing classic songs such as “Jack Straw” and “Brown-Eyed Women” for the first time on stage.
Wilson’s Atmos take on the album engages both the rear and height speakers for a full-on immersive experience. The rhythm guitars are mostly panned to the side speakers, while lead vocals are largely isolated in the center channel. Though the rear surround and rear height channels predominantly carry ‘you are there’ reverberation and ambience, the front height speakers are used quite extensively for lead guitar, piano, and organ parts. The Dead’s trademark harmonies appear all around the room, with individual voices sometimes even placed in the top speakers.
Read our full review here!
Artist: Joni Mitchell
Title: The Asylum Albums (1972-1975)
Format: Streaming
Immersive Mix By: Ken Caillat (Dolby Atmos)
Release Date: 11/10/22
Among the most celebrated reissue campaigns of the past several years is the Joni Mitchell archives, an ongoing effort from Warner/Rhino centered around uncovering previously unreleased recorded material from singer-songwriter’s vast back catalog. The latest reissue in the series, The Asylum Albums (1972-1975), covers four of the most popular albums in the Joni Mitchell canon: 1972’s For The Roses, 1974’s Court and Spark (along with its accompanying live release Miles of Aisles from that same year), and finally 1975’s The Hissing of Summer Lawns.
Though the box set once again disappointingly forgoes any immersive audio content on disc, brand new Dolby Atmos remixes of all four albums quietly became available on the streaming services soon after its release. Mixed by Ken Caillat (perhaps best known for his engineering & production credits on Fleetwood Mac’s Rumours) and Claus Trelby at Marshmellow Skies studio in Westlake Village, CA–with oversight from Joni Mitchell herself–these new Atmos versions sound absolutely phenomenal.
Read our full review here!
Artist: Monkey House
Title: Remember The Audio (2022)
Format: Digital Download
Immersive Mix By: John 'Beetle' Bailey (Dolby Atmos)
Release Date: 12/10/2022
Monkey House is the brainchild of Canadian singer-songwriter Don Breithaupt, founded in 1992 to perform songs Breithaupt felt were too complex or eclectic for other acts he’d been collaborating with at the time. I suspect that Breithaupt and his bandmates are well used to being compared to Steely Dan, but that band’s influence is easily detectable in both the clever, sardonic songwriting and slick production. Dan alums Michael Leonhart, Jay Graydon, and Elliot Randall even appeared on their last two studio albums, 2016’s Left and 2019’s Friday.
Remember The Audio has been available to stream in Dolby Atmos on Apple Music since its June 2022 release, but the TrueHD/Atmos MKV files from IAA’s shop provide an infinitely more rewarding experience for audiophiles. Some of the more subtle time-based effects in the mix, such as the vocal reverb throughout “New York Owes You Nothing” in the height channels, seem to test the limits of the 768 kbps Dolby Digital Plus/JOC codec. With lossless Dolby TrueHD, the detail and clarity from the ADM master file is much better preserved.
Read our full review here!
Artist: Frank Zappa
Title: Waka/Wazoo (1972)
Format: Blu-Ray
Immersive Mix By: Karma Auger & Erich Gobel (5.1 & Dolby Atmos)
Release Date: 12/10/2022
It’s difficult to think of an ensemble more perfectly-suited to immersive reproduction than the famed 20-piece ‘electric orchestra’ that appears on Frank Zappa’s 1972 albums Waka/Jawaka and The Grand Wazoo. Zappa’s vision combining elements of jazz funk/fusion, big band orchestration, and progressive rock was simply too big for stereo and perhaps even the four-channel quadraphonic formats of that era to contain.
Though the four CDs provide a wealth of previously unheard outtakes and session recordings from this period, the centerpiece of this reissue is arguably the Blu-Ray disc containing 96-khz/24-bit remasters of the original 1972 stereo mixes as well as new 5.1 surround sound and Dolby Atmos remixes by Karma Auger & Erich Gobels. Both surround mixes fully utilize the entire immersive environment, with the listener bombarded with instrumentation from all angles including directly beside, behind, and even above.
Read our full review here!
Artist: Katatonia
Title: Sky Void Of Stars (2023)
Format: Blu-Ray
Immersive Mix By: Bruce Soord (5.1 & Dolby Atmos)
Release Date: 1/20/2022
Swedish rockers Katatonia are no strangers to immersive audio, having first embraced 5.1 surround sound way back in 2006 for the release of their now-classic album The Great Cold Distance. Their following four studio releases–2009’s Night Is The New Day, 2012’s Dead End Kings/Dethroned & Uncrowned, and 2016’s The Fall Of Hearts–also received 5.1 surround mixes, as did the 2015 live album Sanctitude.
Released through Napalm Records in January 2023, Sky Void Of Stars is the band’s 12th studio album and the first to be mixed in Dolby Atmos. As with several of the prior albums, immersive mixes duties are once again handled by Bruce Soord of The Pineapple Thief. The Atmos mix makes interesting use of the ‘phantom’ space between the speakers, placing Jonas Renkse’s lead vocal in both the front and front height channels. Similarly, backing vocals often appear suspended between the rear surrounds and rear heights.
Read our full review here!
Artist: Orbital
Title: Optical Delusion (2023)
Format: Blu-Ray
Immersive Mix By: Mark Ayres (5.1 & Dolby Atmos)
Release Date: 2/17/2022
Though we weren’t personally familiar with Orbital prior to the release of Optical Delusion, their tenth studio album, it turns out that the duo (composed of brothers Paul and Phil Hartnol) had been making music since the early 1990s. After receiving worldwide attention following their headline performance at the 1994 Glastonbury Festival, the band went on to score two UK top five albums with that same year’s Snivilisation and 1996’s In Sides.
The band recruited British audio engineer Mark Ayres (best known for his mixing work at the BBC Radiophonic Workshop) to mix the album in 5.1 surround sound & Dolby Atmos, and he’s done a masterful job. Right from the opening notes of the first track, the electronic kick and snare sounds alternate between the front and rear speakers–creating the impression of standing within a massive sample-based drum kit–as various synthesizer and vocal layers begin to build from all around the room.
Read our full review here!
Artist: Haken
Title: Fauna (2023)
Format: Streaming
Immersive Mix By: Bruce Soord (Dolby Atmos)
Release Date: 3/3/2022
The Pineapple Thief’s frontman, guitarist, and songwriter Bruce Soord handled the English prog-metal band’s first foray into immersive audio, released through InsideOut Music in March 2023.
An eclectic medley of ‘70s era progressive rock, metal, and even some jazzy elements (a trumpet solo!), Fauna is the perfect vehicle for Dolby Atmos and Soord’s interpretation doesn’t disappoint. Backing vocals and heavy guitars rain down from above, while Ross Jennings’ lead vocal stays locked to the front soundstage and synthesizers appear from behind.
Artist: The Church
Title: The Hypnogogue (2023)
Format: Streaming
Immersive Mix By: Darrell Thorp (Dolby Atmos)
Release Date: 3/15/2022
One of the most exciting releases of 2023 would have to be Australian indie rock band The Church’s first studio album of new material in nearly five years, The Hypnogogue. It’s also the band’s first album to receive an immersive mix. Mixed by Darrell Thorp and mastered at The Metropolis in London, the Dolby Atmos mix perfectly enhances the melancholy, psychedelic nature of this music.
The Hypnogogue pays homage to classic concept albums of the 70s-like Genesis’ The Lamb Lies Down On Broadway and Pink Floyd’s The Wall, boasting a dystopia-tinged narrative about an aging rock star from the future seeking out an occult scientist with a machine that could supposedly revive his stalled career by “pulling music straight out of dreams.”
The Atmos mix is interesting in that it makes fairly sporadic use of the center and side surround speakers, but the rear surrounds consistently feature ancillary elements like percussion and backing vocals. The four height speakers, on the other hand, are employed quite aggressively for acoustic guitars as well as some electric rhythm parts.
Read our full review here!
Artist: Ten Years After
Title: A Space In Time (1971)
Format: Blu-Ray
Immersive Mix By: Chris Kimsey & Kurt Martinez (5.1 & Dolby Atmos), Larry Keyes & Al Lawrence (Quadraphonic)
Release Date: 3/15/2022
Ten Years After was a British blues rock outfit spearheaded by singer/guitarist Alvin Lee, best known for their successful run of Top 40 albums in the late 60s and early 70s. One of the first acts to sign with the then-new Chrysalis Records label, the band reached peak fame in 1971 when their newest studio LP, A Space In Time, was distributed through Columbia Records in America.
To celebrate the album’s belated 50th anniversary, SuperDeluxeEdition.com has come out with a limited-run Pure Audio Blu-Ray disc featuring multiple high-resolution stereo and spatial audio mixes. The disc includes a whopping five(!) unique audio options, including brand new stereo, 5.1 & Dolby Atmos remixes as well as the original 1971 stereo mix and rare 1973 quadraphonic version.
A Space In Time was the band’s first release under the Columbia Records banner, and thus was chosen as an early candidate for said label’s relatively brief foray into the experimental four channel quadraphonic surround format. The quadraphonic mix treats all four speakers as equal partners, with key music elements such as Alvin Lee’s scorching guitar leads and even Ric Lee’s drum kit appearing fully isolated in the rear speakers.
Read our full review here!
Artist: Van Morrison
Title: Moondance (1970)
Format: Streaming
Immersive Mix By: Steven Wilson (Dolby Atmos)
Release Date: 3/27/2023
Moondance (1970) was Irish singer-songwriter Van Morrison’s second studio album, originally recorded at legendary producer Phil Ramone’s A & R studios in New York City and mixed by then-novice staff engineer Elliot Scheiner (who’d go on to work with Steely Dan, Toto, The Eagles, and other notable acts in the ensuing decades). Whereas the prior album Astral Weeks (1968) failed to attain critical or commercial success, Moondance cemented Morrison as one of the great singer-songwriter acts of the early 1970s.
As impressive as Scheiner's 2013 5.1 mix was, the new 2023 Dolby Atmos remix from Steven Wilson somehow manages to raise the bar even higher. The opening track, “And It Stoned Me,” immediately fills out the entire 7.1.4 soundstage with the rhythm section upfront, lead vocal in the center channel, acoustic guitars in the sides, piano in the rears, and horns in the heights. Plate reverb was key to the sound of Moondance and much of it appears in the height speakers, giving the entire presentation a live-sounding ‘you-are-there’ quality.
Read our full review here!
Artist: Mr. Big
Title: Mr. Big (1989)
Format: Digital Download, SACD
Immersive Mix By: Chris Bell & Michael Romanowski (5.1 & Dolby Atmos)
Release Date: 4/21/2023
In the Summer of 2021, Evolution Music Group (evoXS) surprised audiophiles and immersive music enthusiasts by issuing a 5.1 surround SACD of California hair metal band Mr. Big's classic 1991 studio album Lean Into It. Naturally, fans began to speculate whether or not the band’s 1989 self-titled debut would receive a similar deluxe reissue. Such conjecture proved correct in January 2023, when evoXS announced a 5.1 SACD of the album with remastered stereo & new 5.1 remixes for release on April 21, 2023.
We at IAA were thrilled to offer the album as an exclusive immersive digital download through our online shop, with high-resolution 5.1 FLAC files as well as Dolby TrueHD/Atmos MKVs. Chris Bell and Michael Romanowski’s immersive interpretation of the album is impressive, especially given the relatively limited number of elements in play. The album sounds quite ‘big’ in stereo, but in reality the core four-piece band’s studio performance is augmented only by the occasional background vocal, guitar, or percussion overdub.
Read our full review here!
Artist: R.E.M.
Title: Murmur
Format: Streaming
Immersive Mix By: David Leonard Dolby Atmos)
Release Date: 5/2/2023
Though much of R.E.M.’s catalog became available in 5.1 surround sound during the mid-2000s, their first several albums released under the independent label I.R.S. (everything prior to 1987’s Document) were conspicuously skipped.
The band’s classic debut album Murmur (1983) finally received the immersive treatment courtesy of award-winning mix engineer David Leonard. Leonard’s Atmos mix really uses the whole space, with Stipe’s vocal hovering between the fronts & front heights and the drum kit extending outward towards the side speakers. There are even some drum fills that go up into the height speakers, plus isolated acoustic guitar, piano, or organ in the sides & rears.
Artist: Lori Lieberman
Title: Ready For The Storm (2015)
Format: Digital Download
Immersive Mix By: Bob Clearmountain (5.1)
Release Date: 5/5/2023
Ready For The Storm is American singer-songwriter Lori Lieberman 17th studio album and the third to receive an immersive release, following 2014’s Bricks Against The Glass in 5.1 surround sound and 2022’s Truly in Dolby Atmos. Lieberman is of course best known for “Killing Me Softly With His Song,” which has since been covered by a number of artists (most notably Roberta Flack in 1971).
Originally released through Drive On Records USA in June 2016, Ready For The Storm is a double album featuring guest vocal and songwriting contributions from several well-known Dutch artists such as Henny Vrienten, The 3JS, and Niels Geusebroek. The album was mixed in stereo & 5.1 surround sound by legendary engineer Bob Clearmountain and mastered by multi-Grammy Award recipient Darcy Proper at Valhalla Studios New York.
Though it may not seem an obvious candidate for the surround treatment–given its primarily acoustic and sparse nature–the album actually translates incredibly well into 5.1 surround sound. This is probably no surprise given Clearmountain and Proper’s involvement, but the clarity of the 192-khz/24-bit 5.1 FLAC files is simply astounding.
Read our full review here!
Artist: The Moody Blues
Title: To Our Children's Children's Children (1969)
Format: Blu-Ray
Immersive Mix By: Stephen W Tayler (5.1)
Release Date: 5/12/2023
By 1969, The Moody Blues had transformed from a traditional rhythm and blues-based rock band into progressive rock pioneers. To Our Children’s Children’s Children was the fourth album to feature then-new recruits Justin Hayward and John Lodge, who had replaced the departing Denny Laine and Clint Wark. It was also the first release to come out on the band’s own label Threshold Records, and–like the preceding album, 1969’s On The Threshold Of A Dream–there was no hit single.
With the new 5.1 surround mix, Stephen W Tayler has taken a great deal of care to maintain the original sound while also using the technology to separate individual instruments and vocals. He is not about creating tricks or sound collages, but enhancing the sense of space. The guitars are featured from behind at times, while other passages have the majority of the instrumentation positioned upfront with just ambient sound coming out the rear speakers.
Read our full review here!
Artist: Bob Dylan
Title: Time Out Of Mind (2022 Remix) (1997)
Format: Blu-Ray
Immersive Mix By: Michael H. Brauer (Dolby Atmos)
Release Date: 5/12/2023
Bob Dylan seemed to have a lot to prove in 1997 when he released Time Out Of Mind, his first album of new material since 1990’s Under The Red Sky. Seven years seemed a very long time to wait for new original songs from Dylan, but he exceeded expectations with one of his most successful albums of his career. Critically, it continues to be regarded as one of his very best albums.
With the new Bootleg Series Vol. 17 box set covering the Time Out Of Mind era, the opportunity to remix the album from the original multitracks finally presented itself. In addition to the new stereo mix, mixing engineer Michael H. Brauer and his assistant Fernando Reyes also created a Dolby Atmos version. Though the Atmos mix is available to stream on Apple Music and Tidal, it was also issued on a limited-run Blu-Ray disc from SuperDeluxeEdition.com.
One would not necessarily associate Time Out Of Mind with surround sound or immersive audio, given the sparse nature of the album, but it works brilliantly. The separation of the instruments and Dylan’s voice is truly breathtaking, adding a whole new dimension to the songs.
Read our full review here!
Artist: Daft Punk
Title: Random Access Memories (2013)
Format: Streaming
Immersive Mix By: ? (Dolby Atmos)
Release Date: 5/16/2023
The French electronic duo’s fourth and ultimately final studio album effectively paid tribute to the classic R&B/funk music of the 1970s & 80s, with key contributions from Pharrell Williams of The Neptunes and Chic frontman Nile Rodgers elevating it to the top of their acclaimed discography.
Random Access Memories has undoubtedly appeared on many immersive music fans’ wishlists since it debuted in 2013, and the new Dolby Atmos mix–created as part of celebrations surrounding the album’s tenth anniversary–doesn’t disappoint. The rhythm section is largely kept within the front channels , while ancillary elements like rhythm guitar, handclaps, processed vocals, and other sound effects are parsed out into different locations the expanded soundfield.
Credits for the Dolby Atmos remix appear to be unavailable at this time, but we wouldn’t be surprised if original mixing engineer Mick Guzauski (Chuck Mangione, Alicia Keys, Britney Spears, etc) was responsible. Guzauski remixed a number of classic albums in 5.1 surround sound throughout the early-2000s, including Eric Clapton’s 461 Ocean Boulevard (1974) and Derek & The Dominos’ Layla & Other Assorted Love Songs (1970).
Read our full review here!
Artist: Tears For Fears
Title: The Hurting (1983)
Format: Blu-Ray
Immersive Mix By: Steven Wilson (5.1 & Dolby Atmos)
Release Date: 6/9/2023
Released through Mercury Records in March 1983, Tears For Fears’ debut studio album The Hurting spawned three top-40 international hit singles–"Mad World", "Change", and "Pale Shelter"–and ultimately became known as a defining album of the early-80s British new wave/synth pop movement. Lyrically inspired by psychologist Arthur Janov’s primal therapy and Roland Orzabal’s own difficult childhood, The Hurting explores dark concepts such as child abuse, psychological trauma and depression.
It seemed unlikely that The Hurting would be revisited again after the extensive 30th anniversary reissue, but SuperDeluxeEdition.com and Universal Music have teamed up to deliver what is surely the final word on the album in this fantastic new 40th anniversary Pure Audio Blu-Ray. Not only does it include new remixes by Steven Wilson in stereo (both vocal and instrumental versions), 5.1, and Dolby Atmos, but also a brand new remaster of the original 1983 stereo mix and never-before-heard early renditions of “Mad World” and “Watch Me Bleed” produced by Mike Howlett.
Though the position of each element varies throughout, the 5.1 surround mixes typically utilize the rear speakers for digital percussion, synthesizers, guitars, and backing vocals, while the rhythm section is arrayed across the front channels and lead vocals take up residence in the center channel. The Dolby Atmos mixes take the immersion even further with the addition of the side surround channels and four overhead speakers.
Read our full review here!
Artist: Sister Sledge
Title: We Are Family (1979)
Format: Streaming
Immersive Mix By: Steven Wilson (Dolby Atmos)
Release Date: 6/13/2023
With Chic’s first three studio albums already having become available in spatial audio, it was only natural that Sister Sledge’s debut album We Are Family - which was written by Chic frontman Nile Rodgers and bassist Bernard Edwards - would receive the same treatment courtesy of Steven Wilson.
“He’s The Greatest Dancer” kicks off with Rodgers’ rhythm guitar moving between the front height speakers, while the group backing vocals appear entirely from behind and disco strings fill up the top soundstage.
Artist: Gentle Giant
Title: Interview (1976)
Format: Blu-Ray
Immersive Mix By: Steven Wilson (5.1 & Dolby Atmos)
Release Date: 6/16/2023
British musician/producer Steven Wilson has remixed dozens of classic albums in 5.1 surround sound and now Dolby Atmos throughout the last 10-15 years, but his work on cult British progressive rock act Gentle Giant’s back catalog stands out as particularly exemplary in my view. Their eight studio album Interview (1976) is the latest entry in the reissue series, issued on a CD/Blu-Ray set from the band’s label Alucard Music on June 16.
The title track kicks off with the radio sounds drifting from rear to front in the height speakers, then explodes into full immersion with the rhythm section largely upfront and the alternating rhythm guitar & organ parts hard-panned into the side speakers. Derek Shulman’s commanding lead vocal cuts through from the center channel, while keys appear in the rear surrounds and bells drift around above during the quieter interlude.
Read our full review here!
Artist: The Pineapple Thief
Title: How Did We Find Our Way? 1999-2006
Format: Blu-Ray
Immersive Mix By: Bruce Soord (5.1 & Dolby Atmos)
Release Date: 6/23/2023
Ever since Bruce Soord first embraced immersive audio for his 2015 self-titled solo album, immersive music fans have wondered if he’d ever consider going back and remixing the band’s vast discography for surround.
The new How Did We Find Our Way? 1999-2006 box set finally answers that question, featuring new 5.1 & Dolby Atmos mixes of the albums Abducting The Unicorn/Abducted At Birth (1999), One Three Seven (2002), Variations On A Dream (2003), 8 Days (2003) 8 Days Later (2004), 10 Stories Down (2005), and Little Man (2006).
Soord has outdone himself on this set, with nearly 9 hours(!) of music remixed in 5.1 surround & Dolby Atmos. The Atmos mixes interestingly tend to have a good bit of dry drum signal in the height speakers (in addition to isolated elements like backing vocals, synths, and rhythm guitars): it really does give that interesting effect of being in a 'bubble' of sound, with the kit floating in space instead of being tied to just the front channels.
Artist: Black Sabbath
Title: Paranoid (Quadio) (1970)
Format: Blu-Ray
Immersive Mix By: Mike Butcher (Quadraphonic)
Release Date: 6/23/2023
Perhaps in response to the success entities such as SuperDeluxeEdition.com and Cherry Red/Esoteric Recordings have found with immersive music on Blu-Ray, Rhino Entertainment–Warner Brothers’ catalog division–have suddenly revived their their long-gestating series of “Quadio” reissues containing newly-remastered digital transfers of quadraphonic mixes from the 1970s.
Though Paranoid was originally released in September 1970, the quadraphonic version-mixed by Mike Butcher at Morgan Studios in London–wasn’t issued until 1974. To this day, it remains the only Black Sabbath album to have received a surround/immersive mix–which is especially disappointing given Steven Wilson’s involvement in the recent Vol. 4 (1972) and Technical Ecstasy (1976) super deluxe reissues.
Butcher’s quad mix–while perhaps a bit ‘gimmicky’ by today’s standards, with its copious use of panning & swirling effects–does open up the album in an effective manner, separating out a lot of Tony Iommi’s guitar work and percussion into the rear speakers. “War Pigs” features Bill Ward’s thunderous drumming crashing all around the room, while Ozzy Osbourne’s unmistakable vocals fill up all channels.
Read our full review here!
Artist: The Band
Title: Music From Big Pink (1968)
Format: Streaming
Immersive Mix By: Bob Clearmountain (Dolby Atmos)
Release Date: 7/5/2023
Music From Big Pink (1968) was The Band’s classic debut album, featuring the classic line-up of bassist Rick Danko, pianist Richard Manuel, organist Garth Hudson, guitarist Robbie Robertson and drummer Levon Helm. Having originally performed backup for Bob Dylan on his 1966 tour as the “The Hawks,” the members of The Band gathered at a house in upstate New York (colloquially known as “Big Pink” due to its exterior color) to develop original music.
In June 2023, a new Dolby Atmos rendition of the album quietly appeared on the Apple Music and Tidal streaming services. Similar to Giles Martin’s recent Dolby Atmos remix of The Beatles Revolver album, Bob Clearmountain used filmmaker Peter Jackson’s proprietary AI-based stem separation software to parse out vocals and instruments recorded to a single track on the multitrack master.
“The Weight” was more of a three-channel affair in the 2018 5.1 surround mix, with most of the core instrumentation & vocals arrayed across the front soundstage while ‘you-are-there’ ambience and organ permeating the rears. Now-thanks to the ‘de-mixing’ technology-the opening guitar riff hovers between the front right and side right speaker while piano is almost entirely confined to the side left channel. The rears again feature the organ, with the ambient sound spread both behind and above.
Read our full review here!
Artist: Suede
Title: Suede (1993)
Format: Blu-Ray
Immersive Mix By: Steven Wilson (5.1 & Dolby Atmos)
Release Date: 7/7/2023
Though Suede never really took off in the US, their self-titled debut album–released in March 1993 and widely considered to be the first-ever ‘britpop’ album–was an instant phenomenon in the UK and eventually became one of the fastest-selling albums in British history. Inspired by earlier acts like The Smiths and David Bowie, the band (led by frontman Brett Anderson and guitarist Bernard Butler) combined elements of glam rock, grunge, and alternative music into an entirely new sound that would dominate the UK music scene through the early-to-mid 19990s.
The album was recorded on a shoestring budget, using relatively-basic equipment such as four-track tape machines, but Steven Wilson manages to pull off that difficult trick of getting it to translate remarkably well into immersive audio. As with all great surround sound reinventions of classic albums, the newfound channel separation allows you to step inside the record and appreciate the subtler details.
“So Young” kicks off with Anderson’s vocals ("she can...start...to walk out") alternating left and right between the front height speakers before settling in the center channel. The guitars fill up the room, spread from front to rear, while double-tracked vocals and ‘you-are-there’ ambience rain down from above. There’s even a brief appearance of piano in the rear surrounds prior to the final chorus.
Read our full review here!
Artist: Ultravox
Title: Quartet (1982)
Format: DVD
Immersive Mix By: Steven Wilson (5.1)
Release Date: 7/7/2023
Quartet was Ultravox’s sixth overall studio LP and the third to feature the classic line-up of Midge Ure (lead vocals & guitar), Chris Cross (bass), Billy Currie (keyboards & violin), and Warren Cann (drums). The album yielded four U.K. top-20 singles ("Reap the Wild Wind," "Hymn," "Visions in Blue," and "We Came to Dance") and ultimately peaked at #6 on the British album charts.
As with his excellent work on Vienna and Rage In Eden, Steven Wilson's new 5.1 mix makes extensive use of the rear speakers for isolated synthesizers, guitars, and harmony vocals. There are even some fun passages where elements move around the room, such as the intro to “Serenade” and breakdown of “We Came To Dance.”
“Reap The Wild Wind” kicks into gear with the background vocal chorus mixed entirely to the back of the room, while Midge Ure’s centered lead vocal alternates with rear channel chants of “take my hand.” Double-tracked vocals and piano pop up from behind for "Serenade," with “Hymn” again showcasing a steady diet of synthesizers and percussion in the rear speakers.
Read our full review here!
Artist: A Bad Think
Title: Short St. (2023)
Format: Digital Download
Immersive Mix By: Bob Clearmountain (Dolby Atmos)
Release Date: 7/7/2023
Just over a year after the release of X, Michael Marquart has impressively managed to write, record & produce an entirely new 12-track album. Much like the prior three releases, Short St. covers a lot of ground genre-wise with elements of country/western, more mainstream ‘feel-good' pop/rock, progressive rock, and various other styles in between.
As with most of Bob Clearmountain’s 5.1 and Dolby Atmos mixes, the separation of the instruments is extreme. The center channel once again acts as the focal point of the surround presentation, featuring not only dry lead vocals but also bass guitar, kick drum, lead guitar, and percussion.
“Passion Play” opens with the muscular bass line in the center speaker, underpinning Marquart’s lead vocal while acoustic guitars percolate from the sides and falsetto vocals pop up in the rear heights. Synths then fade in from the rear heights for “Evening Fog,” before the massive drum sounds kicks in and acoustic guitars & backing vocals pop up again from the sides.
Read our full review here!
Artist: Brian Eno
Title: Another Green World (1975)
Format: Streaming
Immersive Mix By: Emre Ramazanoglu & Brian Eno (Dolby Atmos)
Release Date: 7/10/2023
Following the release of his acclaimed new album FOREVERANDEVERNOMORE in Dolby Atmos this past October, a number of classic Brian Eno titles quietly became available to stream in spatial audio earlier this month.
“Sky Saw”–the opening track from 1975’s Another Green World–is an immersive tour-de-force, featuring synthesizers moving all around and above the listening space. Drums & bass are interestingly panned almost entirely to the side surround speakers.
Artist: Christine McVie
Title: In The Meantime (2004)
Format: Streaming
Immersive Mix By: Dan Perfect (Dolby Atmos)
Release Date: 7/12/2023
This past July, Christine McVie’s little-known 2004 album In The Meantime received a fantastic new Dolby Atmos mix courtesy of her nephew, Dan Perfect.
The opening track, “Friend,” kicks off with guitars upfront and percussion filling out the side and rear surround speakers. Christine’s vocal is isolated in the center speaker, but extends a bit further out into the side channels. During the chorus, backing vocals burst from the top speakers to great effect.
Artist: Neil Young
Title: After The Gold Rush (1970)
Format: Streaming
Immersive Mix By: Niko Bolas & Neil Young (Dolby Atmos)
Release Date: 7/12/2023
Immersive music fans were no doubt pleasantly surprised to discover much of Neil Young’s classic catalog–including iconic releases such as 1970’s After The Gold Rush and the seminal 1979 live album Rust Never Sleeps–suddenly became available to stream in Dolby Atmos earlier this month.
“Only Love Can Break Your Heart” sounds massive in Dolby Atmos, with Neil Young’s distinctive vocal placed upfront and multiple acoustic guitar parts filling out the side & back channels. During the chorus, background vocals burst from the rear surround speakers.
Artist: ABC
Title: The Lexicon Of Love (1982)
Format: Blu-Ray
Immersive Mix By: Steven Wilson (5.1 & Dolby Atmos)
Release Date: 8/4/2023
Originally produced by ZTT Records founder and former Yes member Trevor Horn, ABC's The Lexicon Of Love reached the top of the UK album chart and spawned four top-20 singles; "Tears Are Not Enough", "Poison Arrow", "The Look of Love" and "All Of My Heart. Groundbreaking at the time, the album combined elements of new wave, disco, punk, and even Cole Porter-esque orchestration for a wholly-unique result.
Steven Wilson's Atmos mix really showcases Trevor Horn’s opulent production, revealing tons of interesting details that were buried in the stereo version. Anne Dudley’s orchestration throughout “Valentine’s Day” and “The Look Of Love” is featured primarily from above, along with some previously-unheard percussion and synth blasts. The rear channel shouts of ‘who got the look!’ and ‘where’s the look!’ were expected in the latter tune, but very entertaining nonetheless.
Read our full review here!
Artist: Birdsong At Morning
Title: Bound (2008)
Format: Digital Download
Immersive Mix By: Alan Williams (5.1)
Release Date: 8/4/2023
Massachusetts-based musician & educator Alan Williams has become a popular figure in the world of immersive audio, having created 5.1 surround sound mixes of Birdsong At Morning’s last two studio albums–2015’s A Slight Departure and 2018’s Signs and Wonders–as well as his solo albums, 2021’s Evidence Unearthed and 2022’s Currents. Now, in the Summer of 2023, his latest immersive undertaking is a brand-new remix of Bound, Birdsong At Morning’s debut EP originally released in 2008.
The first offering of a four-part series of EPs issued in six-month intervals, Bound introduced the richly-textured arrangements of Birdsong At Morning with a decidedly laid-back, acoustically oriented sound. Each successive release would expand that palette, increasing both the tempo and energy. The remaining EPs–Heavens, Vigil, and Lumens–will be treated to similar immersive updates and released over the course of the next year, eventually gathered together into a single collection entitled Annals of My Glass House.
Read our full review here!
Artist: Chlara
Title: Love Ya (2023)
Format: Digital Download, SACD
Immersive Mix By: Andrés Mayo & Martín Muscatello (5.1 & Dolby Atmos)
Release Date: 8/11/2023
Sometimes referred to as the Philippines' “acoustic songbird,” Chlara is a 29-year-old british-born Filipina singer/songwriter whose popularity has steadily grown over the past several years. Love Ya, her latest studio album, is the first to feature nearly all-original material (save for a bold reimagining of David Bowie’s 1977 classic “Heroes”) since her 2014 debut Unstoppable.
Love Ya is available in a wide variety of formats, including LP, MQA-CD, and Hybrid Multichannel SACD. The album has been mixed in both traditional 5.1 surround sound and Dolby Atmos by Andrés Mayo and Martín Muscatello. We at IAA are thrilled to offer the album as an exclusive immersive digital download through our online shop, with high-resolution 5.1 FLAC files as well as Dolby TrueHD/Atmos MKVs.
The album opens with “I Is The Loneliest Letter,” foregrounding Chlara’s voice in the center speaker and spreading the keyboards out into the rear surround speakers. The center channel remains an active part of the presentation for the duration of both the 5.1 & Atmos, spotlighting lead vocals as well as other key elements like acoustic and bass guitar. The height channels are engaged as well, featuring both ‘you-are-there’ ambience and discrete elements such as the telephone-processed vocal refrains during the chorus.
Read our full review here!
Artist: Peter Schilling
Title: 40 Years Of Major Tom - New Adventures (2023)
Format: Digital Download
Immersive Mix By: Tom Ammermann (Dolby Atmos)
Release Date: 8/18/2023
It’s been more than four decades since Peter Schilling landed a #1 hit on the German charts with "Major Tom (Völlig Losgelöst)." The single, together with his debut album Error In The System (1982), marked the beginning of an unprecedented musical career for the artist originating from Stuttgart, Germany–a global success story spanning from Europe to the US, where his English version of "Major Tom (Coming Home)" reached #14 on the billboard charts.
To celebrate the 40th anniversary of his breakthrough release, Schilling and Warner Music issued a new extended and remastered greatest hits collection spanning four decades of Peter Schilling. Now, the celebration continues with an immersive release featuring nine tracks personally selected by Schilling himself. The Dolby Atmos versions were produced by Peter Schilling, mixed by Tom Ammermann and mastered by Michael Romanowski.
“Major Tom” kicks off with dancing all around the listening space while drums & bass take up residence across the front three speakers. Schilling’s whispered backing vocals appear largely from the front height speakers, with harmonies popping up from behind. Lead vocals interestingly appear largely from the top speakers during the chorus.
Read our full review here!
Artist: Jethro Tull
Title: Broadsword & The Beast (1982)
Format: DVD
Immersive Mix By: Steven Wilson (5.1)
Release Date: 9/01/2023
Jethro Tull’s musical development from their 1968 debut This Was through to the band's peak popularity in the mid-70s (1971’s Aqualung and 1972’s Thick As A Brick) and beyond is quite fascinating to follow, as they quickly discarded the more blues-oriented sound of the first three albums into their truly unique brand of progressive rock with shades of medieval folklore and other celtic influences.
The band would interestingly opt to veer into more experimental waters for 1980’s A, their first studio album of the new decade, no doubt informed by contributions from U.K.’s Eddie Jobson on violin and keyboards. 1982's Broadsword marks to a return to simpler straight-ahead rock songs, with less in the way of odd time signatures and eclectic instrumentation.
Similar to Wilson’s past 5.1 remixes of the Jethro Tull back-catalog, the rear speakers are used quite extensively throughout for ancillary elements like flute, backing & double-tracked vocals, keyboards, strings, rhythm (and in some cases lead) guitar, and percussion.
Read our full review here!
Artist: Ryan Ulyate
Title: Act 3 (Immersive Edition) (2023)
Format: Digital Download
Immersive Mix By: Ryan Ulyate (Dolby Atmos)
Release Date: 9/12/2023
Ryan Ulyate has been recording, mixing and producing music professionally since 1978. In 2005, he began a decade-long collaboration with Tom Petty that included mix and production credits on the Mojo (2010) and Hypnotic Eye (2014) studio albums.
Ulyate’s latest project is Act 3, his debut album as a solo artist. Inspired by the bands he listened to while growing up, as well as artists he’s worked with, it’s a tapestry of classic British and California rock. As of this writing, the album is exclusively available as a high-resolution immersive download through IAA’s online shop. The Dolby Atmos mix was created by Ulyate himself and mastered by Michael Romanowski at Coast Mastering.
“Dreamland” kicks the proceedings off in style with Ulyate’s layered vocals surrounding the listener, before blasting off into full immersion with the drums filling up the entire space at ear level, acoustic rhythm guitars upfront, an electric rhythm part in the side surrounds, and lead guitar fills popping out of the front heights. Lead vocals are loudest in the center speaker, but some additional dry signal spills over a bit into the front and side channels for a more cohesive experience.
Read our full review here!
Artist: The Who
Title: Who's Next / Life House (1971)
Format: Blu-Ray
Immersive Mix By: Steven Wilson (5.1 & Dolby Atmos)
Release Date: 9/15/2023
The new Who’s Next / Life House Super Deluxe Edition will no doubt deliver the final word on this period of the band, including dozens of previously-unheard studio and live recordings from 1970-72 across a massive 11-disc box set. The most exciting aspect of this reissue for audiophiles is undoubtedly the Blu-Ray disc containing brand-new stereo, 5.1 surround sound & Dolby Atmos remixes of the original nine-song Who’s Next album and fourteen(!) associated studio recordings by Steven Wilson.
Though Who’s Next is perhaps not as densely-layered as other albums from this era that Steven Wilson has remixed in 5.1 surround or Dolby Atmos, such as King Crimson’s Lizard (1970) or Yes’ The Yes Album (1971), he’s nonetheless made the most of the limited (by today’s standards) original multitrack recordings to craft an exciting new immersive experience chock full of detail yet also faithful and respectful to the original production.
Read our full review here!
