They Might Be Giants – Apollo 18

Purchased this a couple nights ago at their concert in Minneapolis.
It's mixed rather low in volume (had to up my typical volume by around +15) but otherwise sounds quite decent, aside from the occasional pops which are par for the course with most picture discs. Either way, this is still a good way to listen to what I consider one of the two John's hidden gems. Recommend.

I haven't heard the more recent Idlewild pressings, but this Asbestos Records version is HUGE... the bass is what really shines... very full and present without overpowering or mushing in the background... always loved it since I was a kid... a treat to have this pressing for sure!

Sounds fantastic here. New copy right out of the shrink wrap, sounds fantastic with pretty much no surface noise or popping. Best sound I’ve heard from the album.

I hate to be a downer here, but my copy is absolute garbage. It skipped right out of the shrink, but I thought a good cleaning would do the trick. It took me some time to get around to cleaning records with my Record Doctor VI, including this one, then some more time till I had a chance to play it. The record had the same noise and skips, and on closer inspection it has deep scratches and is useless. The time to return it passed long ago, so I'm stuck with it. Lesson learned, inspect new vinyl more closely right when it is delivered. But this is clearly an example of very poor quality control at pressing plants. Another recent purchase of a TMBG reissue on Idlewild Recordings is hopelessly warped on side 2. I won't be burned by them a third time.

You can still get a copy of this for much cheaper from the TMBG website.
https://tmbgshop.com/collections/vinyl/products/apollo-18-interstellar-black-white-180g-lp

I purchased a copy of this record in November, 2022. I just noticed that the barcode sticker says "44 of 100". I did not hear anything about this being a limited/numbered pressing, can anyone else comment? I see 300+ have this in their collection which gives me some doubt, but obviously those numbers aren't actually verifiable. I also purchased a copy of the clear w/red wisps pressing of Glean which similarly has "89 of 100" on the barcode sticker.

Haven't heard the Asbestos pressing, but I'm really happy with this one. Looks great and sounds killer on my stereo—dead silent and well mastered.

The European mastering really screwed up the track ID's on this didn't they? Totally ruining the random playing idea of mixing up all the adverts and jingles.

EDIT - Noticing some slight saturation/harmonic distortion in the right channel on both sides of the disc. I think the Asbestos pressing beats this one.

I wonder how this compares to the Asbestos Records version from a few years ago... I absolutely love that version!