Official "The Last Hero" Thread (pre-release discussion)

[SHEAKENBAKEN]

100 pages, and the album hasn't even been officially released yet. Good job, everyone!

It should be a lot less though. Given the nature of why it's at 100 already.

[MuffinMcFluffin]

Much of me feels like I would enjoy Poison In Your Veins much more if it didn't sound like there were five Myles Kennedy's singing with possibly a Mark Tremonti thrown into the mix.

Please go back to just one Myles???

[TenaciousBe]

On the amazing side though, one of the hockey rinks where my son played was playing My Champion on ht arena PA during stoppages in play during the first period. I found the audio guy and told him how fantastic that was, so he played it in parts of the 2nd and 3rd periods, too.

That is so cool! I would never in a million years expect to run into an Alter Bridge fan out in the world. It's happened to me once or twice, and each time was equally delightful, but it still seems like we're so few and far between.

Same here. I did some tunes at an "Autumn Artistry" festival in my small town this weekend (local vendors doing a craft fair type thing, geared towards autumny stuff), and I did my Watch Over You cover. The guy at the next booth gave me a hearty clap and said it was awesome, and he was a big Alter Bridge fan.

[Jim]

I went through a time portal that took me to the future

I'm sorry man but I had to edit TWO of your posts regarding TLH on that page alone, you really have to read our rules and guidelines in regards to discussing The Last Hero. We do not allow pre-release chatter about how it sounds and whats on it. If you want to do that, please do it elsewhere as we do NOT want to promote the leaked version of the album here with any discussion.

Will be talking this over with the team.

[Raven]

I went through a time portal that took me to the future

I'm sorry man but I had to edit TWO of your posts regarding TLH on that page alone, you really have to read our rules and guidelines in regards to discussing The Last Hero. We do not allow pre-release chatter about how it sounds and whats on it. If you want to do that, please do it elsewhere as we do NOT want to promote the leaked version of the album here with any discussion.

Will be talking this over with the team.

There is more spoilers from the listening party thread and from reviews on this very site than anything i've said surely,and if there was literally anywhere else to talk about the album i would be there.Til then i will just avoid the page till after release

[Jim]

I went through a time portal that took me to the future

I'm sorry man but I had to edit TWO of your posts regarding TLH on that page alone, you really have to read our rules and guidelines in regards to discussing The Last Hero. We do not allow pre-release chatter about how it sounds and whats on it. If you want to do that, please do it elsewhere as we do NOT want to promote the leaked version of the album here with any discussion.

Will be talking this over with the team.

There is more spoilers from the listening party thread and from reviews on this very site than anything i've said surely,and if there was literally anywhere else to talk about the album i would be there.Til then i will just avoid the page till after release

The listening party was a one off listen by a FEW people on here buddy. The talk in there is made up of what people heard playing through an extremely loud PA in a concert venue ONCE. Not the rounded opinions of people who have the album illegally and listen to it 4 times a day

As I said, will be talking the repeated rule breaking over with the team. It's quite simple man, everyone else seems to be sticking to it. Not long to go!

[WaywardOne]

Much of me feels like I would enjoy Poison In Your Veins much more if it didn't sound like there were five Myles Kennedy's singing with possibly a Mark Tremonti thrown into the mix.

Please go back to just one Myles???

THIS! 1000x THIS! This is a band with two lead singers... why the hell would you ever layer one of their vocals and bury the backing vocals in the mix? If you want to sound good live, you don't layer vocals. Simple.

[Mister Gold]

Much of me feels like I would enjoy Poison In Your Veins much more if it didn't sound like there were five Myles Kennedy's singing with possibly a Mark Tremonti thrown into the mix.

Please go back to just one Myles???

THIS! 1000x THIS! This is a band with two lead singers... why the hell would you ever layer one of their vocals and bury the backing vocals in the mix? If you want to sound good live, you don't layer vocals. Simple.

Tell that to Queen. They had three lead singers and layered their vocals in ways that were far more extreme than what we've ever seen from Alter Bridge... yet their live shows from the 70's/80's are still revered by rock fans.

Layering vocals in and of itself isn't necessarily a problem; it's how you choose to use it and how you try to recreate the vocals live. I think there's a much better case to be made there, if you want to criticize the band for that.

[Lotha]

Mister Gold, I agree 100% with everything you wrote in your last couple of posts.

There are bands who layer the vocals yet pull off the song successfully live - even those where only the lead singer is capable of actually singing in tune - it's all a matter of execution.

[DonHarry]

If Myles pulled his finger out and mastered some polyphonic overtone singing he could do all the layers at the same time

[WaywardOne]

Much of me feels like I would enjoy Poison In Your Veins much more if it didn't sound like there were five Myles Kennedy's singing with possibly a Mark Tremonti thrown into the mix.

Please go back to just one Myles???

THIS! 1000x THIS! This is a band with two lead singers... why the hell would you ever layer one of their vocals and bury the backing vocals in the mix? If you want to sound good live, you don't layer vocals. Simple.

Tell that to Queen. They had three lead singers and layered their vocals in ways that were far more extreme than what we've ever seen from Alter Bridge... yet their live shows from the 70's/80's are still revered by rock fans.

Layering vocals in and of itself isn't necessarily a problem; it's how you choose to use it and how you try to recreate the vocals live. I think there's a much better case to be made there, if you want to criticize the band for that.

Valid point! Although I don't think any band can be compared to Queen. Let's face it - Freddie Mercury was a god among men, and that band is truly once of a kind.

But this really comes down to more of a matter of personal preference. I much prefer more organic vocals, without effects or layering. Other people may feel differently.

[Jim]

I definitely prefer the 'less layers' sound too. ODR was perfect and so free of all that constance. It was patient and simple, Fortress songs had SO much going on in them there was never a moment to breathe sometimes.

I love the riffs and HUGE sound, but I'll always long for that ODR sound. Myles' voice, Mark's cleans.. Luckily Flip hasn't changed an ounce, nor Brian. Solid!

[Mister Gold]

Valid point! Although I don't think any band can be compared to Queen. Let's face it - Freddie Mercury was a god among men, and that band is truly once of a kind.

But this really comes down to more of a matter of personal preference. I much prefer more organic vocals, without effects or layering. Other people may feel differently.

Indeed. For the record, I do get your primary point and generally agree with it. There's something to be said about a band that is capable of accurately recreating their music in a live setting and letting their natural talents do the talking.

However, at the same time, I think there's definitely places where effects or layering are beneficial to a song or album. Hell, Queensryche's Rage for Order has some pretty weird stuff going on it and I think those effects play a huge part into the 'cyber-gothic vampire' motif that's associated with the album.

[Ubik]

I like twin Myles vocals, you can get some angel-level stuff going on with that, but yeah more than can feel a little over the top.

[pokefan_4]

I really don't see what the fuss is about Poison In Your Veins... It's a solid AB track that, IMO, should have been the lead single

[Jaded Rescue]

I really don't see what the fuss is about Poison In Your Veins... It's a solid AB track that, IMO, should have been the lead single

I think most people, or myself at least, aren't saying so much that it's a bad song, the production is just over-done. So far this entire album's production is pretty terrible in my opinion. Sure, it sounds "clean" in a way, but it's empty of any real feeling or life to me. It's overly layered, noisy as hell, and fatiguing to listen to for more than a track or two.

I don't need to hear 10 Myles Kennedys (Kennedies?) on one track. I don't need to hear 12 guitars. I don't need an echo, reverb, or some special effect put on everything. I honestly just want Ben Grosse back or some other producer that understands how to make a band sound like the human beings that they are.

Don't get me wrong, I love Alter Bridge, and they write some of the greatest songs in the world. And they can play those songs with grace and talent! But this over-produced stuff needs to stop. It's killing what makes them special.

[Crumbso]

I really don't see what the fuss is about Poison In Your Veins... It's a solid AB track that, IMO, should have been the lead single

I think most people, or myself at least, aren't saying so much that it's a bad song, the production is just over-done. So far this entire album's production is pretty terrible in my opinion. Sure, it sounds "clean" in a way, but it's empty of any real feeling or life to me. It's overly layered, noisy as hell, and fatiguing to listen to for more than a track or two.

I don't need to hear 10 Myles Kennedys (Kennedies?) on one track. I don't need to hear 12 guitars. I don't need an echo, reverb, or some special effect put on everything. I honestly just want Ben Grosse back or some other producer that understands how to make a band sound like the human beings that they are.

Don't get me wrong, I love Alter Bridge, and they write some of the greatest songs in the world. And they can play those songs with grace and talent! But this over-produced stuff needs to stop. It's killing what makes them special.

I think it's reached the point now where you just have to accept that this is what AB sounds like. They did one single album with a different style and stated that they didn't quite find the sound they wanted.

Heavily produced is the sound they want to achieve. God knows I was banging on the 'less production' drum on this forum back in the Blackbird days. It's not an argument that is going to work or produce the results I want so I've just learned to accept that this is the sound they want.

Anyway. Who's to say that the rest of teh album is not going to sound good? I thought My Champion sounded pretty good.

[youknowverywell]

I definitely prefer the 'less layers' sound too. ODR was perfect and so free of all that constance. It was patient and simple, Fortress songs had SO much going on in them there was never a moment to breathe sometimes.

Find the Real, One Day Remains, Open Your Eyes, and Burn it Down all had layered vocals on ODR

[WaywardOne]

Production mix from heaven:

Vocals and clean guitars from ODR
Everything else from Fortress

Game over.

[gbruin]

I once thought I was going to meet an AB fan out in real life. I was on a bus and faintly heard One Day Remains playing and it was driving me crazy trying to figure out where it was coming from. I just wanted to salute the cool person listening to it. I eventually pulled out my phone from my pocket and realized it somehow turned on in my pocket.......

Learning to love yourself is the greatest love of all...