2014 Best album, all formats.

Best album of 2014 , all formats.
What is your favorite new release of 2014? If possible with a link of some kind so that one can have an impression of the music.

I nominate Batik, the Old Man and the Sea. (Wav 24/96 hi-res download)


This recording really shows what is possible these days in terms of creating a truly wonderful soundstage.
And finally we have a band daring to to compose a suite or a concept album, really telling a story without words but expertly creating the intended images in your head.
Hats off to Sound Liaison for yet another stunning sounding album.



Batik, the Old Man and the Sea

Quote:The 9 pieces of music were performed live in the studio in front of a select audience.The musicians were placed in front of a stereo pair of microphones with additional spot microphones on each instrument. The musicians were playing without headphones, the reason being that we believe that when we get the musicians to play together in the same room, without headphones, it creates a number of musical and technical benefits:

As they are not ''separated'' by the headphones, the musicians, in order to hear each other are forced to create a natural and musical balance, a balance which is then easily captured by the main stereo pair of microphones. Because of the natural and musical balance the need for compression to control levels is no longer necessary. Since everybody is in the same room, the boxed sound which is so common in many modern recordings is absent and the sound of the room helps ''glue'' the sound of the recording.