Broke down and bought the album this morning - It really is 90% good. The musical dynamic is better than on the samples, but not by much. Autotune is really only prominent on a few songs. The vocals are really well mixed, the guys sound amazing, and the song selection couldn't be better.
DBDFTW has the horrid autotune you hear in the sample. 'Wendy' is just...man, that autotune sucks any bit of life out of the performance. The harmonies sound amazing, but Bruce sounds like T-Pain. Same with 'Getcha Back' -
I couldn't even tell it was Mike singing his voice is so warped. H&V, SOS have their moments of obvious obnoxious voice modulation. Jeff is really mixed high on the first few songs, but it's not that big a deal.
*have to say I'm really disappointed that H&V got so screwed up. The Chiba performance is the best live H&V I've heard - and this version kinda stripped away that magic.
The car segment is really well done. Many of the songs on disc two are outstanding performances - blows my mind the guys sound this good at their age.
Standouts:
Surfer Girl
Then I Kissed Her
Why Do Fools Fall In Love
When I Grow Up To Be A Man
Disney Girls (Bruce doesn't sound a year over 30 here - without autotune as well!)
Be True To Your School
I Get Around
Pet Sounds
California Saga
In My Room (those harmonies!
)
God Only Knows (especially the coda)
Wouldn't It Be Nice (Al sounds 20 years old here)
Help Me, Rhonda (Again, Al's voice is incredible)
Surfin' USA (this one really rocks!)
Barbara Ann (those harmonies....)
The pros really outweigh the cons here. There are so many enjoyable moments that overshadow the autotune debacle. Overall I'm happy with my purchase and I think most people will enjoy this album.
