[kj] Absolute Dissent RSD Remaster

[T.B.]

I spent the morning A/B'ing my original black vinyl album of Killing Joke's "Absolute Dissent" with the 2018 RSD yellow/orange vinyl remaster.

This album on the originally released vinyl and cd is one of the more notoriously brickwalled releases.  The original album while (at least my copy) is a very nice, heavy weight, clean pressing is a frankly painful listen at any significant volume due to the mastering.  Everything was mixed so hot that even for an album that's supposed to be brutal and played loud, it's just not a good listen.  I think I've listened to my vinyl copies (I have the black and clear releases, I originally thought I had the orange one as well) maybe 3 times in 10 years.  I've stuck with the CD version, not that it's any better, it's just more convenient.

Now the new remaster is definitely a different animal.  Far better mastering, it *can* be cranked without listener fatigue.  It sounds for lack of a better word, more "polite."  The album is essentially pushed to 3 sides (side 4 is the 2 bonus tracks not on the original LP)  while the original was spread over 4 sides.  But make no mistake, this is a much better listen on vinyl than the original release.  Also, this new release includes a fold out poster of the band that wasn't included on the original release.

The only real cons I can mention about this release versus the original is the original sleeve and inserts were printed on much heavier card stock and the black or clear vinyl pressings are heavier and frankly seems to be of better quality. My 2018 copy has very, very  slight edge warping on both discs that don't affect play.  I'll add the caveat that I'll always prefer black vinyl over any colored vinyl because it's a record, not a piece of candy, heh...