Live albums

I own 3 live albums (Our Lady Peace: Live, Metallica: S&M, Korn: Live & Rare)

I think that awesome songs sound even more awesome live. I think it is due to the imperfection and the "largeness" of the sound. Seriously, after listening to "Falling Away From Me" from Live & Rare the recorded version sounded downright weak. Same goes for "Right Now". Another example of a good song that sounds better live would be "Not Enough" from Our Lady Peace Live. I think that in the live version the guitars sound bigger and less restricted, if that makes any sense. "The Memory Remains" from S&M is epic too.

Now, it is not always the case that a live song sounds better. See for example "Freak On a Leash" from Live & Rare. Its just terrible! The guitars sound so weak. Also, "Until It Sleeps" from S&M. That song is supposed to be slow but they sped it up. Fail.

Overall, I think that live albums are awesome. I urge you to buy a live album by your favourite musician or band, it is totally worth the money. Live DVDs are even better, I think seeing the show helps the listener really get into the music. If your favourite musician/band doesn't have a live CD/DVD or if you are too poor to buy a live DVD (Korn live at the Hammerstein for $62 WTF!?) then I have one word for you: Youtube.