I had my first listen to both discs yesterday evening. Anybody else thinks that these slip cases suck? I had a hard time getting the discs out and especially slip them back in..
Anyway, the new 5.1 mix of Damnation is simply gorgeous and I couldn't be happier about it. The album has always been one of my favorites and this mix makes the listening experience better than ever.
Deliverance on the other hand was a big disappointment. I already expected it wouldn't be easy to transfer the almost perfect Sneap mix from the original release to 5.1. My reservations concerning the new mix proved to be true. All of the rhythm guitar tracks sound weak and are way too low in volume. Where is the wall of sound? Furthermore, the drums are lacking punch, especially the kickdrum is way too muddy and doesn't cut through the mix anymore. During the double bass passages, bass guitar and kickdrum are fighting against each other, trying to find their spot in the mix. The snare is weak and features some weird machine gun effect on some rolls, indicating some sample replacement. Sneap also blends in samples on many of his mixes, but avoids such effects in a clever way. The overall clarity of the mix is good, as is the use of the rear speakers. I don't like the toms on the rears though.
All in all, I wouldn't have bought the 5.1 mix of Deliverance if they offered the album separately. I wish Jens Bogren would have done the remix, since he knows how to mix death metal and made some significant improvement on the overall quality of his 5.1 mixes over the years. He did a much better job on Still Life, Blackwater Park and even Watershed.
Damnation: Music and Mix 10/10
Deliverance: Music 10, Mix 6