Van Morrison: Moondance Blu-ray Movie

Rating summary

Movie		5.0
Video		0.0
Audio		5.0
Extras		0.0
Overall		5.0

Van Morrison: Moondance Blu-ray Movie Review

Reviewed by Jeffrey Kauffman June 1, 2024

Rhino released a really nicely packaged and wonderfully appointed version of Van Morrison: Moondance that I reviewed back in 2013, and they're distributing this new(ish) version officially from Warner Music Group, but this may be one of the easier "double dip" choices for fans even if this newest release doesn't offer the packaging or bonus content that older one offered. The allure here is a new Atmos mix, which is pretty formidable sounding, along with some other interesting mixes that weren't available on the first Blu- ray release, including (for those who might be interested) the instrumental accompaniments without vocals added.

For my thoughts on this epic album, please head over to my old Van Morrison: Moondance Blu-ray review. The albums track list can be seen in the screenshots of the disc's menu accompanying this review.

Van Morrison: Moondance Blu-ray Movie, Video Quality 

As with most Rhino / Warner Music Group Blu-rays, there's "only" a menu in terms of this disc's AVC encoded content, but in this particular case, it's an animated menu with a nicely changing array of images, as can be seen in some of the screenshots I've uploaded to accompany this review. This release kind of "splits the difference" between some of the authoring choices I've mentioned in other Rhino / WMG reviews like Alanis Morissette: Jagged Little Pill Blu-ray review and Joni Mitchell: The Asylum Albums. Like the Mitchell album, you can't use the color buttons on your remote to switch between codecs, but thankfully unlike the Mitchell album and more like the Morissette outing, you can toggle between choices either on your remote or via the menu and not have the friggin' album start over after the choice is made.

Van Morrison: Moondance Blu-ray Movie, Audio Quality 

As can be seen in the screenshots of the menu, there are five audio options on this disc, with the 2013 DTS-HD Master Audio 5.1 and 2.0 mixes repeating the original Blu-ray's options. This disc's "new, improved" audio options include a ravishing Dolby Atmos mix, as well as a new DTS-HD Master Audio 2.0 remix, as well as a DTS-HD Master Audio 2.0 track featuring only the instrumental component. The Atmos mix is another sterling example of actually engaging the Atmos speakers rather consistently (you can clearly hear Van's plaintive voice emanating from them starting with "And It Stoned Me"), with a really gorgeously immersive and enveloping design that is spacious without some of the intermittently odd near phasing/echo that was evident in some of the Mitchell Atmos tracks on the Asylum albums release. While there admittedly may not be a huge difference between this new Atmos rendering and the older DTS-HD Master Audio 5.1 track, there is a more pronounced spatial aspect that is especially noticeable if you position yourself in the center of the soundstage. As Steven Wilson gets into in an essay in the insert booklet, he intentionally attempted to keep things mostly in the same "horizontal plane", with elements like backups, tambourine, horn and/or flutes positioned to increase height awareness.

Van Morrison: Moondance Blu-ray Movie, Special Features and Extras 

Unlike the older release, this comes packaged more traditionally and does include the glut of CD extras. An insert booklet has a really interesting essay by Steven Wilson which addresses his attempts to provide "spatial audio" for this release.

Van Morrison: Moondance Blu-ray Movie, Overall Score and Recommendation 

If you're a fan of Van Morrison and this album, you may well have already sprung for the older 2013 Blu-ray. Don't despair: that release has a ton of A+ content (some on CDs, admittedly) that this release doesn't offer, so you have a release in your collection with some rarities. But this new release offers a really nicely wrought Atmos reimagining of the album, along with a couple of other new codecs/versions to sample. Highly recommended.