I'm settling on an 8 for this one... Here's an updated version of what I wrote on the album's thread:
It's funny. The first time I listened to this, I had just spent around a week hooked on the new Lichtmond and I don't know, I just felt like TER couldn't hold a candle to it.
I have since listened to TER several more times, in stereo at first and then in 5.1, and I like it quite a bit now. Pretty much as I expected, it took some time to sink in. I had to first accept that this isn't really a "Pink Floyd" album per se, but rather an ambient/chillout album made by the Pink Floyd members.
Going back to the comparison (and off-track) for a moment: so Lichtmond is basically Enigma infused with Pink Floyd, prog rock, spoken word and world music. And it's mind-blowing 5.1. Among the best 5.1 I've heard. You could say it's the next level. It's modern, innovative, exciting, pushing towards new horizons (all subjective, of course).
In a way, I feel that chillout music and also prog rock have come a really long way and there are some brilliant artists out there right now, case in point, Lichtmond and Ambra in the chillout corner or RPWL, Porcupine Tree in the Floydian prog rock camp. Now, these guys wouldn't do their amazing music if it hadn't been for Pink Floyd in the first place. But then again, they kinda picked it up where Pink Floyd left off and the genres have evolved into some really interesting directions. The new Pink Floyd, on the other hand, isn't particularly exciting or innovative (never claimed to be).
Instead, it's, you know, more classic Pink Floyd bits. Cozy, tried and true.
It might sound like apples and oranges, but I guess I'm inclined to compare TER and Lichtmond 3 right now because they just happened to coincide on my radar, and they're both big events in my musical world.
Anyway, just speaking Floyd-wise. This album is a grower, as I said, but I think it will grow to be a cherished disc in my collection. The 5.1 strikes me as tame, but again, that's because I've been listening to the all-out surround assault of Lichtmond 3, and I guess I'm a bit spoiled now. I think the TER mix works quite well in its subtle quality, it's discrete and enveloping and I get the impression Jackson went for more center channel usage here than on The Division Bell.
So yeah, just some random thoughts to share with you guys. It's a keeper for sure, but it needs time to sink in and you need to be in a classic Pink Floyd mood.
On another note, I'm bugged by the scarcity of sound effects on The Endless River, which feature heavily on pretty much every other Pink Floyd album. From footsteps through "the machine" to bells to voices, rockets, a row boat, slamming doors... Pink Floyd was massively cinematic. This album has only a few effects here and there... A bunch of dolphins, birds, recycled bells from Summer 68 and we're almost done.
Music is an 8, mix is an 8. Sonics would be a 10, but I'm not raising the score because of something that was to be expected. So here we go: 8.