Customer Reviews

Technique (2 CD Collector's Edition)

5 star:		(4)
4 star:		(2)
3 star:		(0)
2 star:		(1)
1 star:		(4)

 

 

The MUSIC on these New Order reissues get a 5/5, easily. However, there were far too many egregious mistakes made in the creation of the discs themselves to give them a pass. Only the first discs were re-mastered though they still have some problems, it is the bonus discs that are an absolute mess.

Warner Music/Rhino know about these problems, but there is yet no word on any forthcoming fixes. So I'd hold off until these issues are addressed.

Noted below are the specific problems with the Technique reissue:

1, Fine Time
2, All the way
3, love less (click at 0:04 - unconfirmed)
4, Round and round
5, Guilty partner
6, Run
7, Mr disco
8, vanishing point
9, Dream attack
"Sleeve notes full of errors" "Did anyone proof read these?"
- bonus disc
1, Don't do it - Clicks and pops at 0:08, 0:18, 0:35, 0:40, 1:00, 2:25, 2:27, 3:01, 3:05, 3:07, 3:32, 4:12, 4:17, and 4:19. (a skip near the beginning of the track)
2, Fine line - A myriad of crackles and "jumps"
3, Round and round (dubious sound quality, clicks, pops and digital glitches. "4 pops/irregular static within the first 20 seconds". Problems at 0:05, 0:07, 0:10, 0:16, 0:28, 0:32, 0:36, 0:41, 0:48, 0:52, 0:54, 0:56, 0:59, 1:05, 1:30, 1:39, 2:28, 2:30, 2:32, 2:41, 2:43, 2:52, 3:03, 3:15, 4:19, 5:18, 5:34, 6:32, and 6:34.
4, Best and marsh (dubious sound quality)
5, Run 2 - Plays the extended version (not listed as such). Sound quality suggests it was "mastered" from vinyl. Clicks and pops at: 0:03, 0:10, 0:17, 0:24, 0:38, 0:41, 0:45, 0:50, 1:02, 1:13, 1:40, 2:02, 2:39, 3:10, 3:58, 4:05, 4:12, 4:15, 4:29, 4:42, 4:56, and 5:10.
6, MTO - Plays the "minus mix" (not listed as such)
7, Fine time (silk mix) (dubious sound quality)
8, Vanishing point (instrumental) (dubious sound quality)
9, world in motion (carabinieri mix)- Listed as "cabinieri". Sound quality suggests it was "mastered" from vinyl

Overall, "Be aware that the mastering here is horrible. There are audible pops and snaps on some of the bonus disc music indicating it was ripped directly from vinyl and NEVER cleaned up. You can get better bootleg MP3s than this mess."

Just a warning to those who are thinking about buying this. The mastering of the original disc is "ok" at best, but the bonus CD is terrible. Half the songs are mastered from Vinyl and you can very easily hear pops and skips and dropouts, etc.. Even Peter Hook has responded to all the complaints that he will do his best to get these fixed. Warner's doesn't seem to care since they had a couple of months to fix this issue since the UK release. If all you want is Technique remastered, then buy it used. The package is terrible, the liner notes are terrible (there are misspellings, wrong dates, and the insert is completely white with only black text.)

BTW this doesnt just apply to Technique. ALL the remasters have the same issues....

I bought this particular release of Technique due to two reasons. First of all, it's one of my favorite New Order albums. I had this on constant rotation on my Walkman during my senior year in high school. I evolved from cassette, to CD, and now to this so-called "remastered" edition. Second of all, it contains for the first time ever, the extended remix of "Run 2" on a CD. As any New Order fan may know, the original single is rare as John Denver sued NO because of a break in the song coincidentally sounds a lot like "Leaving on a Jet Airplane" and in an apparent effort to cut off royalty payments to Denver, they deleted the single (who got a co-writer credit as a penalty).
Sadly, as far as the "remastering" goes, Technique doesn't sound much better than the original CD. I compared it to the ripped MP3's from that release with the new CD and there is no obvious audio enhancement.
As far the new bonus tracks full of b-sides, it has been noted recently that the quality is pretty poor, sounding like a direct copy from vinyl. I can attest to that. There are pops and skips and it really does sound like they used a phonograph with a USB line-out to master the bonus CD. It really is a bad job.
I hear Rhino is going to remaster the bonus CD and redistribute it to early buyers of these reissues. It's a wonder they didn't pull the copies off the shelves already as this series has been out in the UK for several months already and they are still waiting for their new CD's too.
I would definitely hold off buying any of these releases until they get it right (if ever).

First, a big, huge thanks to Paul for the heads up on the mastering. I had the chance to buy the November 2008 Collector's Edition of Technique and did so without having read the reviews here firsthand. I played both discs on my home theater system, in my car (I listen to music very loud while I'm on the road) and on my home computer. The first disc is flawless. Not a bum note or remastering issue to be found. The booklet (mine anyway) is flawless too. Apart from the "cabinieri" vs. "carabinieri" misword, no typos to be found in the liner notes. The bonus disc, for me, was fine though not without problems. That said, I tried to listen to find all of Paul's "pops" and "clicks" at the times listed and found a few, though not everything he listed. I believe Paul when he says it's not what he expected. I don't doubt his impatience at finding all these audible potholes. However, in all honesty, this didn't seem half the problem he made it out to be. It in no way distracted me from enjoying the bonus material. And, frankly, that's probably why a fair amound of these mixes and demos are left unreleased. Yes, hardcore devotees may wish to wait for Warner/Rhino to "fix" the problem. But to these ears (and I've had Technique on CD since it first came out), I found nothing massively wrong here. yep, the bonus discs could have been clearer. But, really, given the nature of 12" recordings and "work" tapes, is anyone really surprised by the sound on the bonus material?

I ordered all five of these remasters from Amazon in July 2011. I received the 2009 corrected versions of Movement, PCL and Technique. Brotherhood and Low-Life both are the older versions with the messy second disc. I am returning those two. People say you can tell the older pressings by two external signs:

1) The older pressings have the plastic "Collectors Edition" sleeve on the outside, and the newer pressings don't.
2) The newer pressings have a second book inside with details on all five remastered albums and the older ones don't.

This is actually a little bit misleading as the "Low-Life" I received did not have the plastic sleeve and did have the second booklet. So, I assumed it was the corrected version. But the second disc is obviously the flawed version with glaring glitches and pops throughout.

Perhaps Rhino is recycling all of the defective discs that have been returned to them, hoping less informed buyers won't notice. At any rate, be wary. They should have recalled the bad copies from retailers back in 2009.

I bought copies of all of the New Order CD packages at the end of 2010 and went through them with the reviews open, listening specifically to the reported problems spots. I don't have any of these issues. The sound is great throughout. I would recommend these releases to everyone. Since there is no Heart & Soul for New Order, I think the collection of the double disc series is the best that is out there.

These cats are responsible for a whole lot of great music and this album fits in there. The original release is tight and then you add the bonus cd with the remixes which makes this even stronger. Just make sure to buy the 2009 version, not the inferior 2008 release.

New Order's last studio album for legendary Factory Records (though certainly not intended to be) ended an era with a bang. Taking cues from the emerging acid house scene of the Haçienda and Ibiza club without losing their roots, the Mancunians produced another excellent blend of dance and rock. Opener "Fine Time" is an endlessly-fun listen (particularly the instrumental mix "Fine Line," with Sumner's Donna Summer impression), while "Run" is a call for some sort of sense in a confused world. "Mr. Disco" inflicts the feeling of longing for a mysterious friend; and only New Order could write a song like "Dream Attack" about the memory of an amazing time, backed with music to give the listener the same feeling. The inclusion of b-sides and extended mixes on the 2nd disc finally offers the long-sought for "2" mix of "Run" and its extended b-side ("MTO"), along with New Order's theme for sports show "Best & Marsh" and the action-movie-esque "Don't Do It." Personal favorites include "Fine Time," "All the Way," "Round & Round," "Run," "Mr. Disco," and "Best & Marsh." Any self-declared fan of electronic music cannot have a complete collection without this one, but it can also find room in alternative rock fans' collections.

What the previous reviewers wrote with regards to this mess Rhino issued is 100% correct. Wow! Mastered from vinyl! Are they kidding?! In fact, this seems to be an on-going problem with this once great, now completely tone-deaf label. (They also recently released The Stooges first self-titled album, and it too is an utter disaster. Rhino was utterly asleep as the speed is oh so very s-l-o-w. It's as if no one bothered to listen to what they were releasing or were too stupid to know just how painfully slow it was... point-blank unlistenable).

The currently reviewed title (and I am afraid anything that comes from Rhino these days) are must avoids... if nothing else, to let Rhino know they need to actually bother to listen before releasing material as high-priced collector editions.

These CD's have been in effect recalled for numerous sonic errors primarily on the second disks. DO NOT BUY the November 11, 2008 versions. Rhino has re-released them as of August 25, 2009. These are the corrected versions.