Welp, my ears have adjusted to the final mixes now, and yeah, Dark Matters still fucking crushes
I must have some weird ears, cause I really don't hear much of anything you've described in this 'new' leak, Prog and Me7. It just sounds crisper and cleaner (a bit louder in some instances...but not 'loudness war' loud, for clarification) to me. I can definitely hear some fluctuations in the levels of certain instruments and/or vocals but they just sound adjusted to me, I can still hear everything fine, but some things are now more prominent. I also really love the final version of Fallout but I'm definitely keeping the original. Either way, I suppose I'm in the minority considering I have absolutely no problem with the way Epicloud sounds either. The final product (well...I'll have to wait till my order comes in to say for sure I suppose) is superior and the definitive edition, in my earholes.
I'm loving this shit so much more than I initially did though. I can't stop playing March of the Poozers, which sounds much bigger than the old production. Sky Blue sounds infinitely better, especially the song itself; everything just pops out much more to me (especially that groovy dance-like sound during the chorus) (All this to say, I can't find any version above 200k for the old version so of course it sounds inferior no matter what...to me at least; which is a shame cause I'd love a version of old Fallout that is of the same quality as the final version)
Also, I can't pick out the Ho Krll beat! Share your secrets, Prog!
Well, its just that the final mix has certain tweaks here and there, whether the vocals are louder, or the guitars are quieter, or what have you. Certain details that stood out in the old mix are buried and lost in the new final version, for example, RVP lays down some crazy ghost-note groovyness into the chorus of Rain City, and it's pretty audible on the early mix, but in the final mix it's pretty much completely buried under everything else. But, on the flipside, there are lots of things that I never heard in the leaked early mix that have been brought to the forefront in the final version (certain keyboard sounds, backing vocals, other details, etc.). Not counting the obvious little things that have been added to Rejoice, Warrior, Silent Militia, and probably other songs that I just haven't noticed yet.
Anyway, the trumpet at the beginning of Earth is playing the melody from Ho Krll's chorus, only briefly though
still a cool little nugget.
Ho Krll was originally intended to be a track on Ziltoid 1, according to what's written in the Contain Us boxset book. It's likely that Dev liked the melody so much, he wanted to at least include it somehow into the sequel, since it was never on Ziltoid, or Decon, or any other official album. He never lets anything go to waste!
After looking at Devin's twitter, I'm starting to worry that he wont stay true to his word and release a final-mix version of Fallout with his verse vocals. It seems like he REALLY hates his voice on that song.