Queen – Queen I

I applaud the band giving this album the Super Deluxe treatment, though the production isn't the greatest. While the instrument separation and clarity are an improvement over the 1973 mix, I can't get past the replaced (triggered) kick/snare and especially the heavy-handed and unnatural auto-tuning applied to Freddie's vocals, even on the outtakes. It's laughably bad.

Having bought the box when it dropped last November I must say I was half disappointed with the way the drums sounded because after buying albums for over 40 years now I know an early 70s drum sound when I hear one and some of the drums on this remix sound very 80s! Liar [one of the best early Queen songs] and The Night Comes Down have tragic drum sounds on this. they stick out like sore thumbs! It's a pity because the guitars sound fantastic and the mix is clear but it takes from the charm of the original. Another thing is this, where is the bottom end? It sounds very neutral. I bought this deluxe edition as it was in a sale and it's very very nice. The best thing is the outtakes or sessions on the second disc. The box is expensive but it looks good on my shelf. Let's hope they don't molest Queen II now after this.
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I having a copy on cassette nearly 30 years ago and thinking it lacked the kind of hits found on Queen's later albums and also that it sounded sooo old and dusty. With this new mix, I rediscovered this album and found out how good it is. I don't know wether autotune was used or not but I can say this mix does sound amazing and lets you focus on the most important part : the songs! This is by no means an artificial rendering of the original work. It still sounds like a 70's records, only a perfectly produced one. Add a quality digibook with a nice booklet, the inclusion of Mad The swine on the album and a few extras on the second disc, all for a very reasonable price and you get the best version of this album (the boxset isn't worth the crazy price tag in my opinion).