Art Rock

Level 42 – World Machine Is Back

More Records We Only Sell on Import Vinyl

  • The sound is huge — far richer, bigger, clearer and more open than most other copies we played
  • A Better Records favorite for more than thirty years, the rare 80s album that holds up today
  • The big hit here is “Something About You” and we guarantee you’ve never heard it with more space, richness, presence, and performance energy than on this very copy
  • 4 stars: “World Machine pushes their newfound radio-friendly sound into the forefront, and the result is one of the finest pop albums of the mid-80s. ‘Something About You’ exemplifies Level 42’s sound at the peak of its success.”

This British Polydor pressing of Level 42’s BEST ALBUM makes a mockery of most of what’s out there — who knew the sound could be this good? Punchy bass, breathy vocals, snappy drums; it’s all here and it reallyl comes JUMPIN’ out of the speakers on this pressing.

What was striking this time around was just how smooth, rich and tubey the sound was on the best copies. It’s been a few years since we last did this shootout and it’s amazing to us how much better this title has gotten in that short span of time.

Of course, the recording very likely got no better at all, but our system, set-up, room, electricity and who-know-what-else sure did.

(more…)

David Bowie – Lodger

More of the Music of David Bowie

  • With INCREDIBLE Shootout Winning Triple Plus (A+++) grades or close to them from top to bottom, this vintage UK pressing is guaranteed to blow the doors off any other Lodger you’ve heard
  • We shot out a number of other imports and the midrange presence, bass, and dynamics on this outstanding copy placed it head and shoulders above most other pressings we played
  • The sound is big and rich, yet still wonderfully clean, clear and open with fantastic energy – you will not believe all the space and ambience on these sides
  • 4 1/2 stars: “Lodger has an edgier, more minimalistic bent than its two predecessors, which makes it more accessible for rock fans, as well as giving it a more immediate, emotional impact.”
  • If you have Low (1977) and Heroes (1978), this is the album that completes Bowie’s Berlin Trilogy, made possible by the team of Brian Eno and Tony Visconti

(more…)

Phil Manzanera / Diamond Head (Island Pressing)

More of the Music of Roxy Music

  • With two KILLER Shootout Winning Triple Plus (A+++) sides, this UK Island pressing is guaranteed to blow the doors off any other Diamond Head you’ve heard
  • Demo Disc quality sound barely begins to describe the size and power of this recording
  • This album is an amazing sonic blockbuster, with sound that will leap right out of your speakers like practically nothing you have every heard
  • A shockingly well-recorded album from the ultra-talented Rhett Davies – this is his engineering Masterpiece
  • Don’t waste your money on the UK Polydor reissues or the domestic pressings, or anything else for that matter – the right UK Island pressings are in a league of their own
  • Marks in the vinyl are sometimes the nature of the beast with these vintage LPs – those on “Lagrima” are especially bad – but if you can tough those out, this copy is going to blow your mind
  • 4 1/2 stars: “Phil Manzanera’s first post-Roxy foray into solo albums is a terrific all-star affair that still holds up enormously well. Calling on favors from Roxy members present and past, and those from the Cambridge/British art rock scene, Manzanera assembled a supergroup for every song.”

The wind is at your back here because this is one seriously well-recorded album. If this copy doesn’t wake up your stereo nothing will.

Like its brother, 801 Live, this album is an amazing sonic blockbuster, with sound that positively leaps out of the speakers. Why shouldn’t it? It was engineered by the superbly talented Rhett Davies at Island, the genius behind Taking Tiger Mountain, the aforementioned 801 Live, Avalon, Dire Straits’ first album, and many many more.

If we could regularly find copies of this Audiophile Blockbuster (and frankly, if more people appreciated the album) it would definitely go on our Top 100 Rock and Pop List. In fact, it would easily make the Top Twenty from that list, it’s that good.

Looking for Tubey Magic? Rhett Davies is your man. Just think about the sound of the first Dire Straits album or Avalon. The better pressings of those albums — those with truly Hot Stampers — are swimming in it.

(more…)

Ambrosia / One Eighty

More of the Music of Ambrosia

  • Boasting two INCREDIBLE Shootout Winning Triple Plus (A+++) sides or close to them, this copy of Ambrosia’s 4th studio album could not be beat – fairly quiet vinyl too
  • The sound is lively, punchy, and powerful – with all due respect, it should murder whatever copies you may have
  • Analog at its Tubey Magical finest – you’ll never play a CD (or any other digitally sourced material) that sounds as good as this record as long as you live
  • “The ballads are the album’s redeeming feature. They are all lovingly crafted and boast strong, often complex melodies that keep them from getting too sappy or sentimental… The album’s finale, ‘Biggest Part of Me,’ is the best… It combines rich Beach Boys-styled harmonies with a heartfelt lyric to create a rich slice of blue-eyed soul that gave the group a number two hit single…”
  • As is sometimes the case, there is one and only one set of stampers that consistently wins our shootouts for One Eighty.  Click on this link to see other titles with a single set of stamper numbers that always come out on top

This is smooth, rich analog at its best. Easy on the ears as we like to say.

This is clearly the poppier side of Ambrosia, containing two of their highest-charting mainstream hits, “Biggest Part of Me” (#3) and “You’re the Only Woman” (#13). I, myself, of course prefer the proggy first two albums, falling as they do into the broad category of Art Rock where my favorite albums by Bowie, Peter Gabriel, Roxy Music, Supertramp, 10cc, later-period Beatles, Jethro Tull, Pink Floyd, Traffic and so many others from the last forty-plus years can be found.

(more…)

Brian Eno / Taking Tiger Mountain Is a Masterpiece

More of the Music of Brian Eno

  • An original UK Island import pressing of Eno’s Art Rock Masterpiece with an INCREDIBLE Shootout Winning Triple Plus (A+++) side two mated to a solid Double Plus (A++) side one
  • Side two of this copy resolves the subtle harmonics of Eno’s treated sounds better than all others we played – here is a truly immersive Art Rock experience like no other
  • Only these British originals ever win shootouts – their superior sound comes as the result of their being transferred from fresh master tapes, using the highest resolution cutting equipment available, on to to the best storage medium to ever exist: the mass-produced vinyl LP
  • When records are this big and bold, we say they have “blockbuster sound.” Here are some others that fit that bill.
  • “The songs…are as inventive and appealing as their treatments, and make for Eno’s most solid–and experimental–pop album. This LP holds up magnificently, even years on in the artist’s brilliant career.”

This is Brian Eno’s Masterpiece, as well as a personal favorite of yours truly.

On the right pressing this is a twisted pop Demo Disc like nothing you have ever heard. If you have a big speaker and the kind of high quality playback that is capable of unraveling the most complicated musical creations, with all the weight and power of live music, this is the record that will make all your audio effort and expense worthwhile.

That’s the kind of stereo I’ve been working on for forty years and this album just plain kills over here.

(more…)

Roxy Music – Manifesto

More of the Music of Roxy Music

  • This early UK import pressing boasts KILLER Shootout Winning Triple Plus (A+++) sound throughout – exceptionally quiet vinyl too
  • It’s simply bigger and richer than any other copy we played, with rock solid energy to beat them all
  • Forget the dubby domestic pressings and whatever crappy Heavy Vinyl record they’re making these days – the Tubey Magic on this pressing and the others in our shootout prove again and again that the UK LPs are the only way to fly on Manifesto
  • “The songs ending each side fade out with real grace and leave you hanging, wanting more — drenched in a romance out of reach.”
  • If you’re a Roxy fan, this title from 1979 surely deserves a place in your collection

(more…)

Tears For Fears – Songs From The Big Chair

More of the Music of Tears For Fears

  • An incredible vintage UK pressing with Shootout Winning Triple Plus (A+++) sound on the first side and solid Double Plus (A++) sound on the second side
  • Rich, spacious and lively, with an open, extended top end – this is the sound you’ve been waiting for from Tears for Fears
  • More great songs than practically any other record made in the ’80s – “Shout,” “Everybody Wants To Rule The World” and “Head Over Heels” are just a few of the better known hits from this, their breakthrough third album
  • 4 1/2 stars: “It is not only a commercial triumph, it is an artistic tour de force. And in the loping, percolating “Everybody Wants to Rule the World,” Tears for Fears perfectly captured the zeitgeist of the mid-’80s while impossibly managing to also create a dreamy, timeless pop classic. Songs From the Big Chair is one of the finest statements of the decade.”

This is a classic in the Tears for Fears canon, probably the album most people regard as their best. I myself prefer Seeds of Love, which should take nothing away from Big Chair — both are exceptional productions from the ’80s no matter how you look at them.

SFTBC went to Number One on the charts for a reason. There’s really not a bad song on either side and mostly absolutely brilliant ones.

(more…)

Genesis / Nursery Cryme

More of the Music of Genesis

  • With solid Double Plus (A++) grades from top to bottom, this vintage UK Charisma pressing was giving us the big and bold sound we were looking for
  • These sides have the bass, real rock energy and lovely midrange transparency that was missing from all others we played
  • For fans of the Classic Lineup involving Phil Collins and Steve Hackett — this being the first album with them on board — this Brit will show you a Nursery Cryme the likes of which you have never heard
  • If you own the Classic Heavy Vinyl pressing you are really in for a shock – that pressing is a smeary lifeless mess next to this LP (and don’t even get us started on the domestic copies)
  • Marks in the vinyl are sometimes the nature of the beast with these vintage LPs – there simply is no way around them if the superior sound of vintage analog is important to you
  • “If Genesis truly established themselves as progressive rockers on Trespass, Nursery Cryme is where their signature persona was unveiled … these are the songs that showed what Genesis could do, and they still stand as pinnacles of what the band could achieve.”

(more…)

Joni Mitchell – The Hissing of Summer Lawns

More of the Music of Joni Mitchell

  • You’ll find INCREDIBLE Shootout Winning Triple Plus (A+++) sound or close to it throughout this early Asylum pressing
  • Lots of Tubey Magic, textured synths, big bass and breathy vocals – this copy brings Joni’s jazzy folky fusion to life
  • Check out the big bottom end on “The Jungle Line,” which features the Drummers Of Burundi
  • Who made a more original, forward looking and interesting album in 1975 than this? I can’t think of anyone, can you?
  • 4 1/2 stars: “Joni Mitchell evolved from the smooth jazz-pop of Court and Spark to the radical Hissing of Summer Lawns, an adventurous work that remains among her most difficult records [as difficult as it is brilliant] … a strange and beautiful fusion of jazz and shimmering avant pop.”

Both sides here are airy, open, and spacious, with plenty of ambience. The bottom end is tight and punchy throughout with good solid weight, and the top end is silky sweet. Many copies of this album have a phony hi-fi “glare” that made us wince, but the sound here is warm and natural.

After hearing a few copies that bored us to tears years ago we had pretty much given up on finding good sound for this album, but once we found some truly hot Hot Stampers we found ourselves really enjoying this sophisticated Jazzy Folk Pop music.

(more…)

Queen – A Day At the Races

More of the Music of Queen


  • Boasting INCREDIBLE Shootout Winning Triple Plus (A+++) grades or close to them from top to bottom, you’ll have a hard time finding a copy that sounds remotely as good as this vintage UK pressing
  • We shot out a number of other imports and the midrange presence, bass, and dynamics on this outstanding copy placed it head and shoulders above most other pressings we played
  • You may be interested in reading about a copy very much like this one that fell short in one aspect of sound important to us (and we hope you as well)
  • Forget the domestic pressings – they may be cut at Sterling, but they never sound like these shockingly good British LPs
  • “A Day at the Races is a bit tighter than its predecessor… its sleek, streamlined finish is the biggest indication that Queen has entered a new phase, where they’re globe-conquering titans instead of underdogs on the make.”
  • If you’re a Queen fan, their 1976 followup to A Night at the Opera is surely a Must Own
  • The complete list of titles from 1976 that we’ve reviewed to date — more than one hundred as of 2026 — can be found here

Forget the dubby domestic pressings and whatever crappy Heavy Vinyl record they’re making these days — the UK LPs are the only way to fly.

(more…)