7.7 | / 10 |
Users | 4.2 | |
Reviewer | 0.5 | |
Overall | 3.1 |
This special performance was recorded in the band's hometown of Seattle on 31st October 1991, capturing Nirvana in the early stages. Transferred from 16mm film and multi-track audio, the only known Nirvana concert shot to film, this is the first time the legendary gig has been available in it's entirety.
Starring: Kurt Cobain, Krist Novoselic, Dave Grohl, NirvanaMusic | 100% |
Video codec: MPEG-4 AVC
Video resolution: 1080p
Aspect ratio: 1.37:1, 1.72:1
Original aspect ratio: 1.66:1
English: LPCM 5.1 (96kHz, 24-bit)
English: DTS-HD Master Audio 5.1 (96kHz, 24-bit)
English: LPCM 2.0 (96kHz, 24-bit)
None
50GB Blu-ray Disc
Single disc (1 BD)
Region free
Movie | 5.0 | |
Video | 4.5 | |
Audio | 0.0 | |
Extras | 0.0 | |
Overall | 0.5 |
Negative Creep
Live at the Paramount can be viewed either in Full Screen (1.37:1) or Anamorphic Widescreen. We have included screencaptures from both versions of the show in our review.
Sourced from the 16mm film negative and restored, Live at the Paramount looks very good. The image is thick and quite raw, boasting pleasing contrast and clarity as well as very strong colors. The close-ups in particular look excellent (see screencapture #19). The camera movement is erratic and jumpy but actually most appropriate for a show this rough and gritty. The heavy grain present throughout the entire film also adds to the overall quite intense atmosphere. For the record, I did not see any strictly transfer-related anomalies to report in this review. (Note: This is a Region-Free Blu-ray disc. Therefore, you will be able to play it on your PS3 or SA regardless of your geographical location).
There are three audio tracks on this Blu-ray disc: DTS-HD Master Audio 5.1, LPCM 5.1 and LPCM 2.0. For the record, there are no optional subtitles of any sort.
Bad news: There are multiple sync issues on this release that are present on all three tracks. For example, they are very obvious if one keeps a close eye on Dave during "Aneurysm". The music and video are out of sync for a good portion of the song, with Dave appearing approximately 1/3 of a second off. The sync issues are also easy to spot on "Floyd the Barber" - Dave's first entry is once again off.
What makes things quite confusing, however, is the fact that the sync issues, and especially those from the first half of the show, appear during close-ups from one specific camera, and even in songs such as Aneurysm not everything is out of sync. Elsewhere, songs such as "Polly" and "Negative Creep" have close-ups that are perfectly fine. There are also entire songs where there are no sync issues at all ("Territorial Pissings").
I am not entirely sure what might have gone wrong with this release, and I don't feel comfortable speculating because the synch issues are indeed very strange. What is clear is that they do not affect the entire film and, with a few exceptions, appear to be limited only during close-ups from one specific camera. During selected songs, however, even the footage from that camera appears to be fine. To sum it all up, currently I only have a few generic guesses as to what might have caused the sync issues. I am willing to accept that a few extremely small audio misplacements are likely to be present on the master that was created from the 16mm elements, but not the type of obvious sync issues that appear during Aneurysm. Naturally, at this point I would recommend that you do not purchase the disc and wait for some sort of a clarification from the disc's producers and Geffen Records/Universal Music. If you already have, make sure you keep your receipt in case an exchange program that requires one is introduced in a near future.
Unfortunately, there are no supplemental features to be found on this Blu-ray disc.
If you are interested in adding Nirvana: Live at the Paramount to your collections, I strongly recommend that you do not yet purchase any of the discs that are currently in the retail system. As noted in the audio section of our review, there appear to be multiple sync issues on all three audio tracks. I don't know if the issue is limited to specific discs, but I believe that the best thing to do at the moment is wait for some sort of an official clarification from Geffen Records/Universal Music. SKIP IT.
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