Originally Posted by
neorev
My problem with the new tracks, Billy's vocals ruin Silvery Sometimes and Solara for me. It just doesn't sound sincere. He seems to have chosen singing this way because he thinks it sounds technically better, but where is the emotion? He has chosen technique over conveying emotion. His voice sounds so sterile and lackadaisical. Solara was the same. The feeling is gone. He may think he wasn't the best vocalist back in the day and that is probably true, but jesus at least you felt something in his singing. It didn't need to sound perfect or technically flawless, it just needed to convey emotion. You could feel his pain or longing. His singing felt human and honest. People say the drums are lifeless as a drum machine, well I say the vocals sound lifeless as a guy just going through the motions. People ripped Billy's voice back in the day, but you felt their intention: the rage, the sadness, the bittersweet. This? Sterile, stagnant, empty, lifeless. Rick Rubin's glossy production doesn't help, but even an amazing producer like Flood or Butch Vig can't do a thing if the singer doesn't sound like he truly feels the lyrics he is singing. These newer tracks, he just doesn't convey any emotion to me. They sound so... just blah. This is my biggest issue.