I spent a very enjoyable weekend play testing the first physical test burn of the
Stone & Steel BluRay so I’m now in a perfect position to provide some more details about this release.
It clocks in at a whopping 02:44:50 – over 160 minutes of material. Big Big Train have always been extremely fair to their fans, but at only £15 for the BluRay this is an absolute Steel
in anyone’s book! What’s more 02:16:09 of that – 136 minutes - is mixed in 5.1 So you’re getting over 2h of this amazing band’s back catalogue in surround for the first time!
The rest of the material, just under 30 mins, is a mixture of blog-style narratives describing the reasoning behind the project, the interaction and feelings of the band members and them just having fun and “extras” such as a drum-cam video. It’s different to most “rockumentaries” because, as they point out, despite having numerous albums, before this point they were a studio only band, often exchanging material via the internet. In fact some of them had never met before this coming together at Real World. You get to see them working and performing together for the very first time!
They also have two options for playback – “full feature” or “songs only.” Are you seeing this, Roger Waters?
So, what about the surround? You’ll know from my previous posts that I was very complimentary about the 5.1 mixes and this has translated extremely well to the physical BluRay. The format of the surround is DTS HD Master Audio encoded at 24/48 I know this shouldn’t be possible but the flacs I play tested seem to sound even better when played off disc! According to my player (and the DTS encode log files I have seen) the audio stream weighs in at around 4 to 5 Mbps and it sounds absolutely gorgeous on my system.
The surround is very tastefully mixed; discrete and in keeping with the live-in-studio performances. By that I mean that discrete parts and effects are mixed to the surround field in order to make watching a hugely immersive experience, but it’s not distracting or inappropriately active. For example; all eight members of the band are great vocalists (Nick D'Virgilio has an amazing falsetto that doesn’t waver a bit as he bashes seven hells out of the drums) and the multi-part harmonies on the choral sections that are a trademark of the band are reminiscent of the choral sections on Steven Wilson’s “Close to the Edge” remix. Yes, honestly. The brass section that plays on several tracks is also mixed to make jaw dropping use of the surround field. Some of the brass parts are so emotional that they still bring tears to my eyes even after all these listens. A number of the songs use bass pedals and these are mixed to the LFE in a window rattlingly effectively manner.
Simply put; sound wise it’s right up there with the best live surround material I have in my collection and a lot, lot better than many studio albums!
It also has a very flat transfer (minimal compression, no limiting) and it hasn’t been mastered again during the burn to disc. I’m hoping to post a screen shot later showing the waveform of one of the songs to give those who are interest in that kind of thing a better idea.
The video is superbly shot and edited. The footage of Dave Gregory’s guitar work (and guitar collection) Nick D'Virgilio’s drumming, Rikard Sjöblom’s guitar and keyboard work, Danny Manner’s piano and double bass playing, Rachel Hall’s violin, the brass section and vocalist David Longdon’s high energy delivery have all given me, a long time fan of the band, an even greater respect for them as musicians and song-writers.
In summary; whether you’re already a fan of the band or not, if you’re a fan of epic, emotional and quintessentially British folky Prog or just appreciate amazing musicians playing live, expertly recorded and delivered in surround this is an essential disc to have.